Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do a cheaters chicken parm. I buy the pre-breaded/cooked chicken cutlets from the fridge section (purdue italian seasoning) and I follow heating instructions and about 5 minutes before they are done, I slather on sauce and a slice or sprinkles of mozarella cheese and finish them off. They are a lot healthier than frying up the cutlets yourself and for some reason my incredibly picky 5 yo will eat them and not ones that are prepared at home. she strongly believes that chicken should only be eaten in nugget form, so although these are still breaded, I take it as a small victory. The silly part is that my husband and i really like it to and i customize them. the little one has a mild sensitivity to tomatoes, so put less sauce on hers. i like sauce, so i get more. the 5 yo loves cheese. you get the picture.

I'm wondering how you know they are healthier than making yourself? I'm not judging at all. That actually sounds like a great time-saver meal that I may try. I'm just not sure I would be able to tell myself it is healthier than cooking from scratch?

PP here: I think it is healthier than frying up the cutlets like you might do for a traditional chicken parm. It is probably not any healthier than if I made the breading, baked the chicken and then added the toppings. But the ones I buy are baked and whole grain, so I figure at least they aren't BAD for us. Low fat, low calories, and whole grain works for me.

Anonymous wrote:I do a cheaters chicken parm. I buy the pre-breaded/cooked chicken cutlets from the fridge section (purdue italian seasoning) and I follow heating instructions and about 5 minutes before they are done, I slather on sauce and a slice or sprinkles of mozarella cheese and finish them off. They are a lot healthier than frying up the cutlets yourself and for some reason my incredibly picky 5 yo will eat them and not ones that are prepared at home. she strongly believes that chicken should only be eaten in nugget form, so although these are still breaded, I take it as a small victory. The silly part is that my husband and i really like it to and i customize them. the little one has a mild sensitivity to tomatoes, so put less sauce on hers. i like sauce, so i get more. the 5 yo loves cheese. you get the picture.

I'm wondering how you know they are healthier than making yourself? I'm not judging at all. That actually sounds like a great time-saver meal that I may try. I'm just not sure I would be able to tell myself it is healthier than cooking from scratch?

Fish-stick substitute:

Cormeal crusted catfish-- coat catfish with buttermilk (egg allergy) and put in plastic bag with cornmeal and breadcrumbs. Toddler loves helping by shaking the bag and seeing that the fish is all covered.

Brush with oil OR use non-stick foil on cookie sheet.

Bake fish at 500 degrees for 6 min on each side.

Gourmet has a homemade remoulade sauce that you can do on the weekends (or just buy at WF).

I do a cheaters chicken parm. I buy the pre-breaded/cooked chicken cutlets from the fridge section (purdue italian seasoning) and I follow heating instructions and about 5 minutes before they are done, I slather on sauce and a slice or sprinkles of mozarella cheese and finish them off. They are a lot healthier than frying up the cutlets yourself and for some reason my incredibly picky 5 yo will eat them and not ones that are prepared at home. she strongly believes that chicken should only be eaten in nugget form, so although these are still breaded, I take it as a small victory. The silly part is that my husband and i really like it to and i customize them. the little one has a mild sensitivity to tomatoes, so put less sauce on hers. i like sauce, so i get more. the 5 yo loves cheese. you get the picture.

Stuffed peppers. Thai style beef with lettuce wraps. Makes a hell of a mess, but everyone has fun. Roast pork tenderloin, roast potatoes, etc - takes about 45 min to cook the piggy, so works well for week nights. I like roast chicken and then Nigella Lawson has a great pasta recipe that's "roast chicken linguine from the Ventian ghetto" or something like that that I'll do the next day, if we don't get through it all. Saute sausage, garlic, onion, acceptable amount of pepper, tomatoes and spinach/kale/whatever, toss with oriechette or rotini.

Get a crock pot, so many delicious, easy things you can do. I made a fantastic sweet potato and chicken dish last night: http://busycooks.about.com/od/chickenthighrecipes/r/peachcpchix.htm

I used breasts instead of thighs. Crockpot 365 is a great blog with lots of good ideas.

Another good dish is a light quiche - I use premade crusts from WF or Trader Joe's and fill with spinach and a little cheese, if you have time you can saute a few mushrooms and onions. Serve with a salad and is a good meal.

Anonymous wrote:
I make a delicious chicken and rice that everyone asks me the recipe for. Warning: It's not fancy, but it is delicious. In a baking dish, lay down some chicken breasts, seasoned with salt and pepper. Lay Swiss cheese slices on top of them. (If you dislike Swiss use whatever white cheese, but the Swiss is very mild in this dish.) Mix a can of cream of chicken soup with 3/4 cup white wine to thin it out (or, if you don't keep wine on hand, chicken stock or milk) and pour over the chicken. Sprinkle dried stuffing mix over the top, then drizzle a couple tbsp of melted butter over that to keep it from drying out. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes (depending on how thick your breasts were) and serve over rice.

Not the OP, but I plan to try this recipe later on this week! Thank you.

Anonymous wrote:My go tos:
Baked teriyaki chicken wings or drums
Steamed ground pork with preserved veggies
Spareribs in black bean sauce
Ravioli with pesto sauce
Ground beef and eggplant in black bean sauce

How do you make the beef and eggplant in black bean sauce? Thanks!

PP re: chicken scaloppine --

This recipe is easy to customize. Sometimes when making it for adults, I do white wine instead of lemon juice. I also sometimes add artichoke hearts or mushrooms, but my kids don't care for these much.