Cook with Concetta: Next up is the Chicken Cutlets Parmagian. Now I kn...

Cook with Concetta: Next up is the Chicken Cutlets Parmagian. Now I kn...: "Next up is the Chicken Cutlets Parmagian. Now I know a lot of people who insist on pounding the cutlets out until they are paper thin. Not n..."

Next up is the Chicken Cutlets Parmagian. Now I know a lot of people who insist on pounding the cutlets out until they are paper thin. Not necessary! We thinned them out when we trimmed them, a lot less messy than hitting those breasts with a meat thingy, hammer thing. lol. So you take your chicken and you are going to apply the coating. Now the proper way is to dip in flour, egg and then bread crumbs. Well guess what, if you skip the flour no body will die, yeah go ahead skip it if you like, live dangerously. Now here is  Something I had heard about but never tried, if you don't have egg, you can  coat it in mayonnaise then bread crumbs. My daughter tried this tonight and it came out great. Take the chicken cutlets and saute in olive oil, until golden brown, turn and cook the other side until golden as well. Place mozzarella cheese on top and bake in oven until melted, then top with tomato sauce. Serve with pasta and some grated cheese.

So the two larger cutlets became chicken parmagian. You see again the elbow macaroni that I had on hand. Normally if I was having a big family gathering or guests over, I would of course be more meticulous, but the subject today is cheap and easy and fast.
The two smaller cutlets, my son and I had for lunch, I had some sweet and sour sauce with mine and he had barbecue sauce with his. They also would have made a nice sandwich on a bun with lettuce and tomato, or a topping on a salad. This took very little time maybe and hour at the most. I hope I can help you to save money and cook it yourself.

Concetta

Cook with Concetta: Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretch...

Cook with Concetta: Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretch...: "Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher : 'I am going to show you how you can make a lot of food for a little bit of money. I n..."

Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher

Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher: "I am going to show you how you can make a lot of food for a little bit of money. I never throw any leftovers or extra food away. I bought..."

Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher

Cook with Concetta: Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher: "I am going to show you how you can make a lot of food for a little bit of money. I never through any leftovers or extra food away. I bought..."

Chicken Breasts Dollar Stretcher

I am going to show you how you can make a lot of food for a little bit of money. I never through any leftovers or extra food away.
I bought these untrimed chicken breasts at a little local store called Quality Thrifty Produce, for only 1.59 a pound. That is a really good price even for untrimmed chicken breasts. I actually shared a package with my daughter. So I have here less than 3.00 worth of chicken.
I trimmed the fat and loose skin and all the odd pieces off. This will later be Chicken Soup. Then I sliced the thick side off the breast these are sometimes called tenders.  Below you can see on the right 2 nice large Chicken Cutlets, on top right is the smaller cutlets and below that the scraps for soup.

To make Chicken Soup take the scraps and put them in a pot with what ever vegetables you have in your house. Onions, Celery, Carrots, what ever you have that you think would taste good in the soup. If you don't have any fresh vegetables a can of mixed vegetables works too. Remember this is cooking on the fly, no recipe, no rules. Here is what I found in my refrigerator, onion, carrots, mushrooms, garlic, Zucchini, cooked elbow macaroni, ( you could use rice ) or potatoes too.

You will also need some chicken base, bullion cubes, what ever you might have. Even an envelope of cup a soup or ramen noodles, think out of the box. Put it all in a pot add water. except the macaroni because it is already cooked and you don't want it to get to soft. 1 bouillon cube to a cup of water, but make sure you taste it, cubes can be salty. Add what ever spices you might like, parsley  paprika, pepper.

 I made enough soup to feed a family of 4 add some bread and quick and easy dessert and your set.
This soup was made with parts you usually might throw away, and stuff I had in my refrigerator. I never throw away any left overs. I can always make something with them. So this soup really didn't cost me anything to make.

Check in tomorrow for what I did with the rest of the chicken.    Concetta

Cook with Concetta: If you would like to order a loaf of Zucchini Brea...

Cook with Concetta: If you would like to order a loaf of Zucchini Brea...: "If you would like to order a loaf of Zucchini Bread, I can freeze and send second day air. To place your order contact me at Riposta@hotmail..."

Concetta Dolores Riposta

Concetta Dolores Riposta

Cook with Concetta: Tomato Sauce

Cook with Concetta: Tomato Sauce

Cook with Concetta: Tomato Sauce

Cook with Concetta: Tomato Sauce: "There was a time not too long ago, that I would not be caught dead, with a jar of tomato sauce. I guess I was an Italian cooking snob. lol...."

Tomato Sauce

There was a time not too long ago, that I would not be caught dead, with a jar of  tomato sauce. I guess I was an Italian cooking snob. lol. Those sauces used to be horrible, but honestly today, I do use them, they are great in an emergency, most times when I do use them, I will use it as a base and add my own on top of it. Ragu with onions and garlic is a pretty good one, even the store brands that are plain are pretty good.
If I am in a hurry to make sauce, I will open the jar put it in a pot and add to it what ever I have, in the pantry such as diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, paste and some water. I also add my own seasonings, oregano, basil, fresh garlic and chopped onions. This really cooks up quicker than just starting from scratch.
You could also add fresh or canned mushroom, wine, or what ever you have that you might like.
If you want to make meat sauce using one of these sauces, it is simple and easy. Take your ground beef at least a pound or more, and brown it in a frying pan. Drain some of the fat that comes out from the meat, and add the sauce. If you like you can add some of the spices and vegetables we mentioned before, maybe some grated cheese. Pour over your choice of cooked pasta, 1 lb and you have a very inexpensive and fairly quick dinner.
Serve with salad and some Italian bread or rolls.
The cost of this meal is including salad and bread will be about  $3.00 per person.

If you would like to order a loaf of Zucchini Bread, I can freeze and send second day air. To place your order contact me at Riposta@hotmail.com.  Cost including shipping is 15.00 each.

Cook with Concetta: I don't use spray stuff in my baking pans I am old...

Cook with Concetta: I don't use spray stuff in my baking pans I am old...: "I don't use spray stuff in my baking pans I am old fashioned, I use shortening or oil and flour. Rub the pan with shortening then sprinkle w..."

I don't use spray stuff in my baking pans I am old fashioned, I use shortening or oil and flour. Rub the pan with shortening then sprinkle with flour, shake and turn until the pan is covered, I don't use butter because butter burns easily.
For some reason the Zucchini bread always tastes better the next day. It is good plain and even better with some butter. You can toast it in your toaster too and put butter on it for breakfast. My sister like to treat it like a carrot cake and put cream cheese frosting on it. But I think that takes away the integrity of the bread. I don't care too much for sweets and as I said this is not TOO sweet.

Here is the recipe for Zucchini bread. Although it states grate zucchini, when the recipe was passed down it was said that the Zucchini should be put in a blender. Then food processors were invented and the food processor makes it so much easier. You can see in the picture what the Zucchini should look like once it is chopped in the food processor. It is very green, as the air hits it though if your slow at mixing it, it will turn brown. Nothing wrong with that either.

Zucchini Bread

I was going to make some Zucchini Bread tonight, but I didn't have enough sugar. So tomorrow you will get to see some Zucchini Bread. I told a friend of mine, whom lives in Michigan, that I was planning on making Zucchini Bread and selling it on his YIPEEE Social network sight and his reply was, " why don't you make something people will like". Well he obviously has never tried Zucchini Bread. For those fortunate enough to have tried it, you know it is delicious. If you have not tried it , you will be surprised.
The first time I ever tasted or even heard of Zucchini Bread, I was about 22 years old. My Mother had relatives that lived in upstate N.Y. near Cuba. We went for a visit and Zucchini Bread was a daily item in their house. They served it with dinner, had it toasted in the morning for breakfast. They didn't think it was anything special, they thought of it the way we think of regular white bread.
When I make it at home it does not last long, it is hard to have just one slice. It is very addicting. It is similar to carrot cake, but smoother in texture and not as sweet. Although some people put nuts or raisins in their Zucchini Bread, I do not. I like things simple.I have my cousins recipe and that is how I make it, never tried anything new.
Tomorrow we will make the Zucchini Bread, and Mr Michigan will be getting a loaf or two in his mailbox, all the way from Melboure Fl.

Can you cook?

Today's generation does not seem to be able to cook. There is so much fast food out there, they don't have to learn. They most likely grew up in a household of two working parents and the parents didn't get a chance to teach the kids.
But the money spent on fast food and eating out is a terrible waste. I know some people don't like to cook. I can understand that. The clean up is the worst part.
I am going to show you how to cook, and save money. I learned how to cook at a very young age, as far back as I can remember I was helping my Mother in the kitchen, and my Father too. You have heard the old saying. " I don't need a recipe, I'm Italian." well that is true, the more your cook and understand cooking you won't need a recipe and you won't need to follow the directions on the instant mashed potatoes either. sometimes following the directions is not the best way.
This is just the beginning more to come.........