Chicken Lasagna Rollups

~= The Finished Goods =~

What you will need:

1. 1 large (2 small) breasts of chicken
2. 1 Tomato
   
3. Mozzarella
4. Spinach Leaves
5. 1 Jar of your favorite tomato sauce.
6. 8 Lasagna Noodles
7. Parmesan Cheese
8. Olive oil
9. 1 cooking pan (9 x 13 Pyrex is what I use)
   

Steps:

Start the chicken in a frying pan on the stove at medium heat (this will take the longest). You can just use a light coating of olive oil (I like to add a some fresh Italian spices and minced garlic). Allow the chicken to cook until its nice and brown on both sides (don't forget to flip it) and around 90% done on the inside.


While the chicken is cooking:

Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook the lasagna noodles.

Cut the tomato into 8 slices. Cut 8 slices of mozzarella.


Once the chicken is finished, slice it into 8 pieces as well.

Assembly:

Lay 1 noodle down flat, add a leaf or two of spinach, 1 slice of tomato, 1 slice of mozzarella, and 1 slice of chicken.

Now roll the combo, so that the noodle becomes the outer layer. Repeat for the rest of the noodles.

Now generously apply the tomato sauce to the top of the rollups. Finally sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese (and other spices if you like). Make that you cover all of the top of the rollup with sauce to prevent the noodle from drying out.

Bake for 10-15 minutes @ 375 (in which time, you can clean up the kitchen :)).

Served with a nice glass of wine.

Verdict:

My wife likes it :)

Leftovers:

4 rollups, providing a nice lunch for both of us the next day.

Sources:

The round object on the top of my neck, and a Olive Garden commercial.

Sweet & Sour Chicken and Rice

~= The Finished Goods =~

Started with finished goods because this one was so easy there wasn't anything to snap during the preparation! Ready in the 20 minutes! (ok, so it wasn't *all* homemade)

Began with 2 parts water to 1 part basmati rice (added to boiling, salted water, then reduced to a simmer) and the timer set to 20 minutes.

Main meat course courtesy of a hometown favorite. Remember this place?

Too bad Bexley needed another drugstore, eh?

Served with green bean casserole (leftover yanked from the freezer) and rice
Verdict: Well, the Kahiki selection turned out pretty yummy. The sauce provided was a bit off-putting as it started out sweet/sour, then finished with the kind of spicy bite you'd expect more from buffalo wings...but still quite edible! Basmati cooked to perfection!
Leftovers: Rice bagged and frozen.
Sources: None

Pot Roast and Potatoes

Contents - 4 medium potatoes, 1.5" cubes. 1/2 medium onion, large dice. 1 stalk celery, again large chunk slice. No carrots - because I have none and it's too dang nasty to venture out to the store! Layer in bottom of crock pot insert.
2.5 lb beef chuck roast, partially thawed, prior to adding to crock. You can go cheap with the meat cuts when crocking. Long, slow crock cooking breaks down the tough connective fiber you find in the cheaper cuts of meat and turns it into fall-off-the-fork goodness!
The "secret" seasoning blend? You got it - one pack each of brown gravy mix, ranch dressing, and Italian dressing. Blend together dry, then add 3/4 cup water and stir until all mixed into solution. Pour over roast.

Cover and cook on high setting for 2 hours, then lower and cook another 4-6 on low. Slowcooker-y times really are dependent on your individual slow cookers; so adjust times as necessary.

(and yes, I know it's time to get rid of the Christmas tablecloth... soon, I say!)

~= The Finished Goods =~

Served with iceberg lettuce salad and southern-style biscuits (not shown)

Verdict: Tender and tasty. Hearty flavor. Perhaps a bit salty for some; might want to make it with 2/3 of seasoning mixes and store the other third for another day.
Leftovers: Roast beef makes for nice lunch sandwiches; last remainders into a hash or frozen for CatchAll soup. Veggies can be frozen for the same fate.
Sources: This is a TNT staple recipe from the Slowcooker Mail List at Yahoo Groups; my choice of veggies.

Fish & Chips

My First Official Offering - mighty tasty on a cold winter's eve!

Started with the potato wedges about 2 hours beforehand. Not really time-sensitive, but you want the coating to spend at least a half-hour on the taters so it'll hold during the frying process.

Here, wedges rest after coated with flour/salt/pepper/seasoning salt blend. Blend was placed in a gallon-sized plastic bag; potatoes were processed in batches to coat evenly.

The other half of our title makes an appearance. Talapia fillets are sliced as shown and dusted in the same manner as above with a mixture of cornmeal/breadcrumbs/flour/salt/pepper/garlic salt--in descending quantity, ATT (Adjust To Taste). Let these guys rest in fridge for at least 30 minutes, too.

Rounding out the menu, a mixture of carrots and pear. Carrots were cooked until almost fork tender, the pear was cubed and added along with a couple tablespoons of brown sugar and a pinch or two of chopped mint (tonight dried, summer it's fresh!)

6-8 pieces at a time, sizzling away in a large skillet of vegetable oil. These went for 4-5 minutes apiece; you can tell something is done when frying when it floats! Drain on paper towel on paper bag for greatest absorbency.

~= The Finished Goods =~

Served with a dollop of tartar sauce (mayo/relish blend) for the talapia and balsamic vinegar for the fries.

Verdict: I liked it all. JLaw thought the pears were too "smushey". A nice start, I dare say.
Leftovers: Fish and potatoes both can be frozen. Rewarm in 450 F oven for 10 minutes or so.
Sources: You see any measurements here? Years of experimenting, for this one!

And from a different perspective...

Descartes walks into a bar.

The bartender walks up to him and says, “Would you care for a drink?”

Descartes replied, “I think not.” and disappears.

Creation!

"I blog, therefore I am."