One-pan Chicken with Zucchini

I was REEAAAAALLLY hungry last night but didn't want to do a lot of damage in the kitchen because, well, it's already a disaster area. I'm surprised the governor hasn't declared it a state of emergency yet. Hopefully I will have it cleaned up before we go on vacation!

SO, I had some thin-sliced chicken breasts and zucchini (yellow and green) from the orchard, and wanted to make a simple, quick dinner. I thought of how flavorful the chicken was from the chicken marsala recipe, so I decided to make it the same way, and just throw the zucchini in there at the end.

Ingredients:
1lb thin-sliced chicken breasts (cutlets?)
1 c AP flour
assorted herbs/spices (I used salt, pepper, and herbs de provence)
1 small zucchini, yellow or green, sliced (I used half of each)
1 TB butter
2 TB EVOO
1 TB lemon juice

Directions:

I mixed the flour and seasonings on a shallow plate, and coated the chicken.
In a saute pan, I melted a pat of the butter (1/2 TB I'm guessing), then added 1 TB olive oil and the lemon juice. (If I had gotten a lemon at the store I would have added the zest to the flour mixture, but alas, went to the store afterwards.)
After the chicken was cooked on both sides I set it aside and added the rest of the butter to the pan. I added the zucchini and a little more salt and pepper and cooked for a couple minutes, until the thinnest slices were somewhat transparent.

I don't have a picture, because as I said, this was a fast dinner and we both had to get places! But it turned out well, and with some Ready Rice (guilty) it was a hubs-pleaser. Another quick chicken to add to my repertoire for crunch times.

Bug Spray for Babes

Totally didn't think about this as something to get!

maybe this will entice me to work out...

This company features workout clothes that actually look good (well, depending on if your baby-body-shape looks good I guess) enough to wear during pregnancy.

Will it make me want to work out? I guess we'll see.

Happy Anniversary to me!

My one year anniversary was on 7/5, and amidst all the celebrations for the holiday (for which I did not have time to cook, I know I know...), we got to go out to dinner and cut our cake Monday.

Hubs asked if I was going to take pictures of the cake... OF COURSE. : )



It's a white chocolate raspberry cake made by Melinda Valencia - it was the second time I'd had that cake and it is to die for.



She said when I asked for that cake, I don't make them like the magazines do, mine are plain and simple. And that's what I wanted for the wedding. Because it tastes good enough, it doesn't need a lot of frill.



Happy Anniversary baby! : *

TWD: Perfect Party Cake

Today's (yesterday's) TWD is brought to you by Carol of mix, mix...stir, stir. I actually made this Tuesday night but finished it Wednesday morning, as I was bringing it to a work function (Food Day for July 4th).

I was a bit skeptical at first about the buttermilk, but the batter tasted ok and smelled pretty good while baking (I left out the lemon extract but added more lemon zest) so we'll see when we cut into it.

The frosting...*sigh* The frosting was not what I had expected - it was very very watery and did not start to look like the regular buttercream I am used to until about 8 minutes into beating it, when the hubs walked into the kitchen and said "Is your mixer on fire? Will it last much longer?" and simultaneously, the frosting curdled. Yay! I was never so happy to see something look so odd, mostly because Dorie said it might and it meant I was doing something correctly, haha.

It turned out to be very smooth and silky, pretty good. I frosted it Wednesday morning by putting a layer of frosting on the bottom half of the cake (I didn't split the layers) and then covering it with blueberries. Yum, fresh fruit.




Then I put the other layer on top, and covered everything with the frosting (I find it easier to pipe it on and then spread it out with a spatula/knife).



I added the top layer for fun, berries in stripes. And it will be ready to be eaten at noon today. Or before, if we get hungry early.





Verdict: awaiting first trial taste!

Worth it?

Momzelle Nursing Clothing - practical, yes. Worth the $45? ...I guess we'll see!

Pasta with Peas and Proscuitto

I saw some shelling peas this weekend at the local street farm market and had never worked with fresh peas before, so wanted to try something with them. I immediately thoguht of a pasta dish with a cream sauce that I had seen...somewhere...

Since I couldn't remember, I just went online and searched. One dish that caught my eye was Pasta with Peas and Proscuitto on the Martha Stewart site. It looked good and had everything I wanted, I just had to find some pasta to go with it. I have about 10 boxes/bags of pasta in the house, but none of them were fettuccine, so the pasta original to the recipe was out. I decided on the penne I had gotten from BJ's, which was a gigantic pack of farfalle and I think mezzo penne? I know it's smaller penne. It's pasta, works for me.




I started shelling the peas, and after a while found the quickest way to do it: pop the end of the pea open by squeezing it, run your thumb down the side to open, and run your finger down the inside of the pod to pop the peas out. Works for me, at least.



Mmm, fresh peas.




Pasta with Peas and Proscuitto
Martha Stewart ~ Everyday Food

Ingredients
Serves 4
Coarse salt and ground pepper
12 ounces fettuccine
1 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, finely chopped (1/4 cup) I omitted this, didn't have them at the farm market and didn't want to run to the store
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 package (10 ounces) frozen peas, thawed
8 slices prosciutto (about 4 ounces total), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise, about 1 cup (a note in this recipe says it's easier to slice when chilled & rolled)
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (optional)
Directions
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot.
Meanwhile, make sauce: In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat; add shallot and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add cream, peas, and prosciutto; bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Simmer until peas are heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir in lemon zest and juice. Pour sauce over pasta; add Parmesan, and season generously with salt and pepper. Add enough reserved pasta water to thin sauce as desired. Serve immediately; top with additional Parmesan, if desired.



This was fantastic. And so easy, it's almost a 30-minute meal. The Hubs loved it, but was half-asleep so I didn't get a whole lot of feedback other than "mmm" and an empty bowl in about five seconds.

Verdict: