dinner last night

OK. I’m not a great cook but I’m a heck of a lot better than I once thought.

Take last night’s meal, for example. I can’t believe I’m going to actually show you the step by step and the final result. Can I just remind you, I’m not a photographer. I’m going to learn to be this next year. I’ve finally mastered most of what I need to know to make my blog attractive. I’ve got the drop-down menu thingee going. I’ve figured out parent and baby pages and now have a bibliography. So this next year it’s learn CSS and photography. But until then…….

It has been snowing here constantly for days. Yesterday I decided to cook a nice dinner. I experimented. I had some chicken tenders.01-2014-01-26 001I put them in a pan with a bit of oil. I cooked them about five minutes to just get them started.

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In another skillet I placed a box of white mushrooms and one onion and browned them. About five minutes. Below is what they looked like when they were done.

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Next, I gathered up some ingredients I thought might go well with my concoction.

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That didn’t seem like enough so here’s the final trio.

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Next I poured about one cup of the alfredo sauce on top, then the bruschetta (I just covered the chicken) and then sprinkled some “Garlic, Garlic”. I was concerned the Brushetta might be a little strong-tasting so I didn’t use as much as I wished I would’ve. It gave the dish a great flavor. This is what it looked like all assembled.

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I then put it all in the refrigerator for about three hours. I baked it for about  thirty minutes at about 35o. Remember it was partly cooked ahead of time and because they chicken tenders, it only took a few minutes. I roasted some fresh brussels sprouts coated in oil and sea salt. My husband says this was a “keeper” recipe.

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Here’s what I will do different next time:

Thaw out the chicken earlier. Let it set out for at least an hour. Use a paper towel and soak up as much moisture as I can.  Because there were still some ice crystals on the chicken and because I didn’t pat it dry, the sauce was a tad too thin.  I read somewhere you should always let you meat sit at room temp for at least an hour (obviously the weather temperature makes a difference) so it dries out a little.

Anyway, give it a try. The chicken melted in your mouth. I think the cooking for a few minutes on top of the stove kept the moisture in.

Well, how did I do with my very first “food” entry?