Chicken Parmesan

¾ cup panko breadcrumbs, preferably whole-wheat

4 chicken breast cutlets (4 ounces each, about ½ inch thick), trimmed

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 tablespoon minced garlic
¼ cup chopped onions (I like red)

1 can cream of chicken soup with herbs
1 soup can of water

¾ cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Season chicken with salt & pepper to taste.  Place panko in a shallow dish and dredge cutlets in it, pressing gently to fully coat.

Heat 1½ tablespoons oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat; add half the cutlets and cook until crispy, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with 1½ tablespoons oil and the remaining cutlets.  Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, garlic and onion to the pan; cook, stirring often, until softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in soup and water, bring to a boil over medium-high.   Pour into a baking dish sprayed with non-stick.  Nestle the cutlets into the sauce in the pan. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake 15-20 minutes or until bubbly and cheese has melted.

Comments:  Due to a digestive problem I can no longer eat tomatoes but love Chicken Parmesan.  When I ran across a recipe for this delicious dish I decided to make it into one that I could actually eat without the tomatoes.  I did this by simply thinking with my taste buds, substituting the cream of chicken soup for the tomatoes.  And by using the soup with herbs it gave this dish a wonderful taste.  So, even if you still like your Chicken Parmesan with tomatoes, give this one a try too.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Easy Chicken & Dumplins

2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth

1 ½ cups shredded cooked chicken 

3 – 4 frozen buttermilk biscuits

½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese

In 1 1/2- or 2-quart saucepan, heat broth and chicken to boiling. Cut each biscuit in half and cut each half into 4 pieces; add to boiling mixture. Reduce heat to medium; simmer uncovered 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, until dumplings are cooked through and mixture is slightly thickened. Stir in Cheddar cheese until cheese melts. Serve immediately.

Comment:  During cooking some of the biscuits will dissolve during cooking which will make the soup nice and thick.  I used the frozen biscuits but I feel sure you could probably use canned too.  For my chicken I used butter garlic rotisserie from Walmart.  This dish is quick and sooooo easy to make.  And best of all, it’s delicious.  I made a double batch and ended up giving nice servings to 3 of my food testers who wanted more.

Tetrazzini Casserole

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 ½ cups milk

¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 cups cubed cooked chicken  or turkey

1 small can English peas, drained

8 ounces (1/2 of a 1-pound package) spaghetti, prepared according to package directions (about 4 cups)

1/3cup Panko

Set the oven to 400°F.  Melt half the butter.  Stir the melted butter and bread crumbs in a small bowl.

Heat the remaining butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook for 1 minute.  Stir in the soup, milk and Parmesan cheese. Add the chicken, peas and spaghetti and toss to coat. Pour the spaghetti into a 13x9x2-inch baking dish sprayed with non-stick.  Evenly spread the chicken mixture over the spaghetti.  Sprinkle the Panko over the chicken mixture.  Bake for 25 minutes or until the mixture is hot and bubbling.

Comments:  The original recipe called for mushrooms and cream of chicken soup.  When I went to my pantry I found I was out of mushrooms but did have a can of cream of mushroom soup.  I used it instead of the cream of chicken.  For my chicken I used a garlic and butter rotisserie chicken.  The original called for 2 Tbsp. of sherry which I didn’t have so I simply eliminated it from the dish.  I didn’t have frozen peas that the recipe called for but did have a small can which I think worked even better.  I also changed the original bread crumbs to Panko.  This dish is simply delicious.  It’s even better the next day after all of the flavors have blended.  And the garlic, butter rotisserie chicken was a great addition.  Simple, easy and great to make with leftovers.