Dinner time! Probably my favorite time of day next to nap time! ;) So I have this thing about dinner, especially when we have company over, that we need at least 3 items on our plates for dinner. Not sure where I got this, but it always seems that my plate is too empty or unbalanced without at least 3 foods on the plate. Anyone else feel this way too? Maybe I'm the only crazy one... Anyway, tonight I planned these Homemade Chicken Nuggets for dinner, but I couldn't have just that on our plates. Partly because it's not enough calories, partly because it would look like a three-year-old's plate, and partly because I need at least 3 things on my plate. So I added Sweet Potato Fries and Green Beans. Both of these recipes are loosely based on other recipes (see links below), but I change them to make them my own. I LOVE my sweet potato fry recipe! However, I don't usually measure anything. But, just for you guys, I measured things today so I could pass on a decent recipe. :) Here's the components in a little more detail...
*Note - I started with fries, then chicken, the ended with green beans. I didn't realize how long fresh green beans take to cook. I should have started them first, because they finished waaaaay after the rest of our dinner. Oops! Lesson learned!
Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets
This is your basic homemade chicken nugget recipe. When I make Chicken Parmesean it's a very similar recipe. These were good, not amazing, but good. They certainly fill that need for Chicken nuggets when you get the craving. And they are healthy so you can even add your favorite dipping sauce (in moderation *boo, hiss*). This was the only actual recipe for this meal that Michael and I were really rating. I give it 2 stars. Michael gives it 2 stars. Another winning, 4 star recipe in our household! Like I said, good, not amazing, basic chicken nuggets. We'll definitely make them again, but I'll probably play around a little more with seasoning in the breading and see if I can't make them a little more flavorful. :)
Parmesean Baked Sweet Potato Fries
I love this recipe! When I make my own sweet potato fries I use it as a reference (mostly for the cooking temp and time anymore). I do alter it based on the amount of sweet potatoes I have on hand and because I like more or less of some different flavors. I encourage you to use their recipe or my own as a jumping off point, and that you make your own blend of spices that your family will love! If you're interested, my recipe is slightly different from the link above.
Here's my recipe:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cut 1.5-2 lbs (or more) sweet potatoes into sticks (I aim for 1cm x 1 cm in size, if you cut them too small they tend to burn)
Put sweet potatoes in a gallon-sized zip lock bag, add the following ingredients to the bag:
2 tbsp olive oil
1.5 tsp salt
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp paprika
Close bag and shake potatoes and seasoning until potatoes are well coated.
Spread potatoes in a single layer on a greased cookie sheet (I usually have to use two cookie sheets because I like to make a lot of fries).
Bake at 425 for 15 minutes.
Flip fries over and return to oven for 10 minutes.
When fries are done baking top with shredded parmesean and parsley.
Serve warm.
Enjoy!
These are always my favorite part of any meal. We aren't rating this recipe, but if we did, it would be a 4-star recipe! They are wonderful! Try them! You won't be disappointed!
Green Beans
So here's what I learned today... Fresh green beans take a lot longer to cook than canned green beans. :P I started my green beans last, thinking, silly me, that they wouldn't take long, much like the canned green beans I usually use (in fact, if you click the above link, you'll discover that it's a website about how to serve canned green beans and dress them up a little). I based it on the same recipe I usually use. I cooked a bit of bacon and onion, then added the beans and some water and let them steam for a (long) while. Eventually they softened and in the end, they were quite good, but it took a while getting there and the rest of the food was gone before they were done. Oops! (Can you tell I'm still learning, yet?) Oh well, they ended up good! And now I know for next time! ;)
So that was our dinner tonight! Hope you'll try one or two of the recipes and enjoy them as well! Be sure to check back in and let me know what you think of them when you do! Thanks for reading! See you tomorrow!
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