Rosemary Chicken w/Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans

Alright ladies and gentlemen, if you are looking to impress our significant other with a romantic dinner, this just might be it! Yes, I'm still single, so I ate it all myself, but it was still delicious! For a list of ingredients/measurements, please see the recipe I used here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/rosemary-chicken/. It was pretty simple (although I added the mashed potatoes and green beans on the side). To start, get your potatoes boiling and boil them for about 20-25 minutes, or until soft enough to mash. While they are boiling, prep your chicken by adding the oil, salt, cajun seasoning and chopped rosemary to the pan with your chicken and create essentially a dry rub:

Add your chopped onions to the top, and stick in the oven at 375. While the chicken is baking (for about 30 minutes or until cooked all the way through), start making your mashed potatoes. Start by mashing with a potato masher and adding about 1/4 stick of butter and some salt + pepper for the taste. Then, add a splash of milk and whip using an electric mixer:

 Whip until the potatoes reach a smooth consistency. At this point, you should also get the green beans boiling (they only take about 5-6 minutes once the water is boiling). Plate the potatoes and green beans (presentation is everything), and take the chicken out of the oven. Serve with your favorite beverage, and enjoy!

Chicken Parm Sliders w/Sweet Potato Fries

Happy holidays everyone! I hope that you all are getting in some quality time with friends and family. That being said, here is a fun twist on a classic dish for you to share with those friends and family members! I really like Chicken Parm, so I decided tonight that I wanted to do something different. Hence: Chicken Parm Sliders. It's pretty simple. **NOTE: When cooking with raw meat, be sure to wash your hands after every step below!** Start by cracking three eggs into a bowl and whisking until smooth. Then, take ground chicken and roll into a ball shape, then pat into a patty shape. Dip the chicken patties into the egg mixture, followed by coating them in flour (for a healthier option, try almond flour!):

Next, start working on the sweet potato fries by pouring olive oil (or any cooking oil of your choice) and place potato wedges into the oil (make sure there is enough oil to boil the potato wedges in the pan!). I also seasoned mine with a little bit of salt and pepper:

Next, pour some olive oil into another frying pan, and place coated chicken patties into it:

Cook until the patties are brown on both sides, and the meat is pretty much cooked through all the way. Drain the excess oil from the patties and pour your favorite marinara sauce and some shredded mozzarella cheese over the top. Then place the pan into a preheated oven (set to 375) and continue backing for another 5-6 minutes:

Be sure to check the fries throughout these steps. You want to make sure the potato is cooked through, and the outside is nice and crispy (mine got a little burnt, but I like the taste of burnt food so I was able to get past it). Drain the excess oil from the potato pan by pouring all of the contents into a strainer and letting the fries sit for a minute (this helps them crisp up a bit). Remove the chicken patties from the oven, and pour a little more marinara sauce and cheese on top. Serve on small hamburger buns, and enjoy! I enjoyed mine with a delicious Harpoon IPA (drink local!) :)

Grilled Cheese w/Tomato

I know what you are thinking: Grilled Cheese? How old is this guy? And all I can say to that is: Grilled Cheese will forever be good at any age. I had some leftover cheese from a holiday party so I decided to put it to good use. Using my trusted sandwich maker (thanks Mom!), I decided to make some grilled cheese sandwiches. It was pretty simple, I pre-heated the sandwich maker, then put the two bottom slices in. I then added my cheese. In this case: sharp cheddar, pepper jack, and swiss (feel free to put any cheese that you want!). I then added a slice of tomato on top, followed by the two top slices of bread. Close the sandwich maker and cook for 4-5 minutes, and you are done! Served mine with some extra tomato slices and an always delicious Cisco Winter Shredder. Enjoy!

Turkey Chili

My apologies for the lack of posts lately! Last weekend I made a delicious (and fairly healthy!) turkey chili, which was perfect for the chilly (pun intended) weather last week. One of the best parts, it lasted me about 3-4 days! Here is a link to the recipe that I used: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/turkey-bean-chili-00000000027199/. See the recipe for all of the ingredients. It was pretty simple though, you start by boiling the butter, garlic, peppers and onions (previously chopped) until all of the veggies are nice and tender:

Next you add in the ground turkey (I chose Turkey since it's slightly healthier than beef, but feel free to use whichever protein you want, or none at all!) until the Turkey is cooked through. Then add the tomato paste and spices (cumin and chili powder) and stir until everything is mixed. Lastly, add the tomatoes, water, salt and pepper, and kidney beans and BRING TO A BOIL. This is a very important step that unfortunately I forgot to do. It caused my chili to come out more like a soup (still tasted amazing though!). Once everything is boiling, turn down the heat and let simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until it becomes a thicker consistency. Then, top with cheddar cheese and enjoy! (I enjoyed mine with a delicious Mayflower IPA)

Insta-Yum

Follow me on Instagram! cking41boston

S'more Cookies

That's right! It's two desserts in one. This was technically my first baking experience, and I think it was pretty successful! Start by pre-heating the oven to 350 degrees. While it's warming up, spread out small circles of the cookie dough (I will admit, I didn't make my own, but it's certainly up to you!), and press in pieces of Hershey's chocolate. Then, place marshmallows on top. Take the rest of the cookie dough, and completely cover the chocolate and marshmallows until you have a completely covered cookie. Bake for about 25-30 minutes (might vary depending on the oven), basically until the cookies are brown on top. If they are too soft to take off of the baking pan with a spatula, I would suggest leaving them in for a little while longer. If you have a cooling rack, USE IT! Unfortunately I don't have one, so my cookies stayed on my baking sheet, and they came out a little crispy. They were still delicious though!

Panera Mac and Cheese

Seriously though, it really does taste like the Mac and Cheese from Panera! Shout out to my coworker Amanda who sent me this recipe. All I can say is, follow the recipe! I know that I usually write a description of how to cook the meals that I post about, but honestly, this recipe speaks for itself (and honestly, I'm a little tired tonight). So anyways, visit the link below for the recipe and enjoy!

http://www.smells-like-home.com/2012/02/paneras-stove-top-mac-and-cheese/