Chicken Parmesan

This a recipe is a perfect example of why I need to keep a running list of the things I make. It is one of my favorite recipes, but I always forget about it when I'm making my grocery list for the week. It's really simple, yet delicious and you can make it with common ingredients you might already have in the house. I boosted the healthfulness of the meal by serving it over whole wheat pasta. Our family loved it and I think it will become our regular spaghetti.

Hearty Tomato Soup and Rueben Sandwiches

So what do you do when St. Patrick's Day is come and gone and you have 2 or 3 pounds of corned beef leftover? Sandwiches! I love sandwiches. I think I always have, but I definitely think that my mom owning a deli when I was growing up helped. She still to this day makes the best sandwiches I've had. You could have all of the same ingredients but there is something that she does that makes them better. Anyway, one of my favorite sandwiches is the Rueben. Maybe it's the German in me. The swiss cheese. The sauerkraut. Yum! As I was planning my meals for this week I thought we've got to have a great soup to go with this sandwiches. Something comforting... Like tomato soup. You can never go wrong with tomato soup. I found this recipe by Giada De Laurentiis. Both my husband and I agree that this is the best tomato soup we've ever had. Like the name says, it's very hearty and also healthy. It's full of veggies and cannelini beans that all get pureed into a wonderful thick and creamy texture. Best of all it's topped of with a lemon and rosemary creme fraiche. Delicious! (It does have a kick to it. Next time I'll halve the amount of red pepper flakes to make it more family-and-nursing-baby-friendly.)

Buffalo-Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

When I was writing my Fried Chicken post, I mentioned my constant quest for yummy mac and cheese recipes. I think I laughed out loud when later that day I opened my new Food Network Magazine (April 2010) and saw that there was an article on just that. When I turned to the recipes and saw this one I knew right away I had to make it. I like buffalo chicken dishes occasionally, but my husband and son LOVE them. I discovered that even my 22 month old daughter does too. She devoured this buffalo chicken dip that I made for Superbowl this year. Anyway, I thought this sounded pretty good. Well, it was delicious! The sour cream gave an incredible texture and left me thinking that I need to be putting sour cream in all of my mac and cheese. One thing I left out was the blue cheese on top. We are just not huge fans and honestly I don't fell like it was missed.  Even though we're not normally blue cheese fans, the blue cheese makes this recipe delicious! The original recipe calls for using a store-bought rotisserie chicken but I just poached some chicken breasts instead. Be careful with this one. You're going to want to eat it all. (Look for more mac-and-cheese recipes to come - I think it will be a series)

Corned Beef and Cabbage; Shortbread

This is a must-have in our family for St. Patrick's Day. We love it so much that my husband keeps asking why we don't have it other days too. I just always forget! Anyway, this meal is so yummy and satisfying and the best part is you throw it in the crockpot in the morning and dinner is waiting for you later. I love the crockpot. I need to remind myself to use it even more. There are a lot of yummy things that can be cooked in it and it takes a lot of stress out of getting dinner on the table. Anyone that has experienced the daily evening "cry session" with an infant will relate to how hard it can be to cook at that time. This way I can cook in the morning while the little one is happy playing or napping and not worry about it later.