Kid Friendly Italian Chicken Fingers

I love any dinner that I can prepare ahead of time, especially one that I can just stick in the oven close to dinnertime. Today I prepped Giada's Kid Friendly Italian Chicken Fingers while my boys were napping. This recipe is very similar to Ree Drummond's Chicken Nuggets recipe which I often make (I always make them as chicken tenders though), except for a few things - Giada's recipe has parmesan mixed in with the breadcrumbs and her recipe is baked whereas Ree's is fried. In both recipes, you cover the chicken in a flour mixture first (I find it easiest to do this in a ziploc bag), then dip it in egg, then in a breadcrumb mixture. My husband loves Ree's recipe when I make it so I was curious to see how he liked this one. I thought it was delicious. He thought it was a bit dry (I baked them for 15 minutes so next time I will try a little less time) and liked Ree's recipe better. I will still try this one again and see if I can win him over on it, but you really can't go wrong with either recipe!

Kid Friendly Italian Chicken Fingers

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentis

1½ pounds chicken tenders

1 Tablespoon salt, divided

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¾ cup of all-purpose flour

3 large eggs

¾ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Olive oil, to drizzle

¾ cup of store-bought or prepared marinara, to serve

Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450°.

Season the chicken tenders evenly with a teaspoon of salt.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour with the remaining 2 teaspoons salt. In a second medium bowl, whisk together the eggs. In a third medium bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs and Parmesan. Dredge the chicken in the flour and then into the egg mixture. Allow any excess egg mixture to drip off and coat the chicken in the breadcrumb mixture. Arrange the breaded chicken in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake until golden and cooked through, about 13 to 15 minutes.

Warm a bowl of marinara in the microwave or on the stovetop.

Arrange the chicken on a platter and serve warm marinara on the side.

Yield: 4-6 servings.

Roasted Butternut Squash

Since fall is here, it's a good time to start making dishes with butternut squash, or you can roast it and serve it alongside a main dish. Here is a simple recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash that tastes delicious. You can roast the squash alone or with potatoes, carrots, or any other vegetables you desire! I made this tonight and my husband loved it - he said it was the highlight of the meal. I already had squash diced into smaller chunks before I decided I was making this, but I still roasted them for 30 minutes and they were perfect.

If you have never cut a butternut squash before, you can google how to peel and slice it or just check out this link. I used my biggest and sharpest knife and cut the top and bottom off of mine, used a vegetable peeler to peel the skin off, sliced it in half longways, scooped the seeds out with a spoon, and then diced it in small pieces. I did this two nights ago and used half of it for another recipe. It's easy to do this prep work ahead of time and keep the diced squash in a container in the refrigerator until you need it!

Roasted Butternut Squash

Recipe courtesy Ina Garten

                       

1 large butternut squash (about 3 pounds), peeled and seeded and cut in 1-inch chunks

3 Tablespoons good olive oil

2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or coarse black pepper

Preheat oven to 400°.

Place the squash on a sheet pan and drizzle with the olive oil, salt, and pepper and toss well. Arrange the squash in one layer and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the squash is tender, turning once with a metal spatula.

Yield: 4-5 servings.

Ready for the oven

Roasted

Baked Tender Chicken Thighs

My sister Maria sent me this Baked Tender Chicken Thighs recipe a while ago and I was recently going through recipes in my email and found it. This is a great recipe that you can prepare ahead of time (for me, that means when my kids are napping!) and then just stick in the oven later. Add a veggie and a starch and you're all set! This was easy to make and delicious - I'll definitely be making it again soon!

Baked Tender Chicken Thighs

Recipe courtesy valentinascorner.com

                       

3 pounds chicken thighs, skinless and boneless

3 Tablespoons olive oil (or Canola oil)

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons table salt

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

1½ teaspoons Italian seasoning

¾ teaspoon ground paprika

In a bowl, combine olive oil and minced garlic. Layout chicken thighs and coat with oil mixture (on both sides).

Prepare the seasoning: In a bowl, combine the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and paprika.

Season both sides of chicken with the seasoning. Transfer chicken thighs to a baking dish. Cover with foil. Set aside to marinate at least 2 hours (*or see note).

Bake at 375°F for 45 minutes. Remove foil and broil for 8-10 minutes (at same temp), until tops of thighs are crispy.

Yield: 6 servings.

Note: Marinating at least 2 hours will give best results. If you don't have two hours, still bake the chicken; it will still be great.

Chicken thighs ready to marinate for 2 hours before baking

Garlic Roasted Potatoes and Carrots

Here is another easy and delicious roasted vegetable recipe - this one is for Garlic Roasted Potatoes and Carrots. I made this twice recently - the first time I used dried thyme and roasted for about 30 minutes. I thought the thyme was a bit overwhelming (2 teaspoons was just too much), and my husband thought the veggies weren't cooked enough. So the next time I made it, I eliminated the thyme and roasted for a bit longer, around 40 minutes, and that tasted better to both of us. You can substitute the thyme for rosemary or anything else that you like, but you may want to just use less of it. I prefer to cut baby potatoes in half or quarters but you can certainly leave them whole if you wish or if you just don't have time to cut them.

Garlic Roasted Potatoes and Carrots

Recipe courtesy Centercutcook.com

                       

1 lb. (bag) small potato medley, whole, halved or quartered

½ lb. baby carrots, whole

1 Tablespoon olive oil

½ teaspoon coarse Kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or coarse black pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced (optional)

Preheat oven to 400°.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the potatoes, baby carrots, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, and thyme.

Stir to mix well.

Pour the potato-carrot mixture into an oven-safe large skillet (or can spread out on a rimmed baking sheet lined with tin foil).

Place the skillet into the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The potatoes and carrots are done when they are tender when pierced with a fork.

Yield: 4 servings.

with thyme

without thyme