Sunday Night Chicken

Well, first there were Sunday morning pancakes. We had brunch at the IHOP in Avon. I ordered the pancake combo, with scrambled eggs (add cheese), bacon, hash browns, and 2 buttermilk pancakes. The hash browns, oddly enough, were my favorite part of the meal. They were traditional diner hash browns, light and fluffy. The pancakes were too heavy for me. I rarely like pancakes, anyway, so I'm not sure why I ordered them except that I was at IHOP . I am more of a waffle gal when I have sweets for breakfast. J, on the other hand, likes French toast. So, she ordered a French toast combo, with decadent banana-stuffed French toast. When I sampled it, I could see the appeal, if you like dessert for breakfast...and if you like bananas, which I seldom do.

For dinner, I tried a new chicken recipe which everyone but Boot loved. He loved it, too, until Pie asked what the stuff in the middle was. Boot hadn't noticed that the chicken was stuffed & when he found out there was cheese in the chicken, he was disgusted. His loss.

Gouda-Stuffed Chicken

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts 2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c. smoked gouda, shredded 3/4 c. fine dry breadcrumbs
1/2 c. flour 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
Salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut a pocket in each chicken breast. Stuff each pocket with 1/4 cup cheese. Combine the flour, salt (I used garlic salt), and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour, dip in egg, then coat in crumbs. In a large ovenproof skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. When hot, but not smoking, cook the chicken until nicely browned on both sides. Bake chicken at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes, until cooked through.

To go with the chicken, J made a box of Amy's Mexican pasta, doctoring it with extra salsa and some queso dip her plant makes. It was my favorite part of the meal, but I am a mac & cheese nut anyway. I made roasted green beans, too. They turned out beautifully.

Roasted Green Beans

1 lb. green beans, washed & trimmed Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil Freshly-ground pepper

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Yes, 500. Spread beans on baking sheet and drizzle with oil. Bake 6-8 minutes, turning occasionally, until tender. Sprinkle with juice & pepper.

We capped the meal off with Boston Coolers for dessert. If you are unfamiliar with the lingo, it's just a fancy way of saying ginger ale floats. I prefer root beer, but Pie was delighted with his.