chicken

Baked Chicken Parmigiana

~ SL ~ Leave a comment

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

Chicken parmesan beside noodles, zucchini and salad on a round plate.

Did you know that March is nutrition month? This Baked Chicken Parmigiana from Manitoba Chicken Producers More Cooking with Manitoba Chicken cookbook checks all the boxes for me in the nutrition department:

  • It covers all four food groups
  • It`s a lean source of protein
  • It`s baked instead of fried

This recipe is also amazing for meal prep:

  • It`s a virtually hands-free recipe
  • You can use store-bought shortcuts to save time
  • Your kids can help prepare this recipe
  • You can serve it with a variety of sides
  • You can serve it in a few different ways
  • It’s also a take-out fake-out recipe so you can save some money on dining out
A recipe book beside a board of ingredients in small bowls.

Baked Chicken Parmigiana Components

The main components of this recipe are breaded chicken, marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. Traditionally it is fried, but you can achieve the same result by baking it.  A few tips to ensure that the breaded chicken stays crispy are to bread it just before cooking and to ensure that your chicken breasts are well-spaced out on the baking sheet. This allows the breading to crisp up instead of steaming, which results in a soggy breading.

Food waste/Money-saving tip: Make your own breadcrumbs! Save bread ends and leftover buns in a freezer bag.  Once the bag is full, dry them out in the oven at 300°F. Drying time will depend on the size of the pieces. Let cool completely, then grind in a food processor. Store extra breadcrumbs in the freezer.

Meal Prep Strategies

I love this breaded chicken parmesan because I can combine the breadcrumbs, herbs and spices beforehand to save a few minutes. Add the parmesan cheese to the breadcrumb mixture and you can store it in the freezer until you’re ready to use it! 

Baking it in the oven is a hands-free cooking technique that allows me to do other things while it`s cooking, like reading with my kids, emptying the dishwasher or prepping a future meal. Using some store-bought shortcuts like jarred marinara and shredded mozzarella also saves prep time, which is great for busy weeknights.

Two glass rectangular dishes side by side containing ingredients.

Cooking Chicken

Be sure to use a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is fully cooked. Boneless and bone-in pieces, as well as ground chicken patties are fully cooked when a probe inserted in the thickest part of the piece reads 165°F or 74°C. Download this card to keep in your kitchen for quick reference.

Breaded chicken pieces on a parchment covered baking sheet.

Deconstructing this Recipe for Kids

For kids who aren’t foods touching each other (chicken + sauce +cheese) simply deconstruct it and serve all of the components separately. They might also enjoy dipping the chicken in the sauce and sprinkling the cheese on themselves.

A spoonful of marinara sauce over a fried chicken breast.

How to Serve Baked Chicken Parmigiana

My favorite way to serve this is with browned butter noodles and a side Caesar salad. You can really make any side that you like.  Spaghetti with extra marinara, garden salad, roasted broccoli…Anything goes here!

Another fun way to serve this is to make a chicken parmesan sandwich! Toast up some ciabatta buns, butter them with garlic butter and top them with the saucy, cheesy chicken and eat it sandwich-style. I have also tried making this as a burger using ground chicken.  Form some patties and bread them, then bake them! 

Do you want to try this recipe? Download a PDF version of More Cooking with Manitoba Chicken here for 5 easy recipes or email ConsumerRelations@chicken.mb.ca with your mailing address and we will mail you a booklet!

Chicken Caesar Salad

~ SL ~ Leave a comment

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

When dining out, you’re almost guaranteed to find a chicken Caesar salad on the menu.  This classic is the perfect meal for lunch or dinner and is my personal favorite for easy meal planning, due to its versatility.

You can make this salad with mostly store-bought ingredients, or you can take it up a notch and make a more elaborate homemade version.  Let’s take a look at all of the components.

Greens

Traditionally, Caesar salad is made with romaine lettuce.  You can use a pre-washed bagged romaine from the grocery store, romaine hearts, romaine from your garden and even kale.

Serve torn lettuce, halved romaine hearts, or try grilling halved romaine hearts brushed with a bit of olive oil and seasoned with salt & pepper, like Manitoba Chicken Producers did here in this Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad recipe. I personally love grilling the lettuce because the smokiness from the grill adds another dimension of flavor. If it’s your first time grilling lettuce, watch this 60-Second video to see how it’s done.

Chicken

Use boneless skinless chicken breasts for your salad. You can take some shortcuts and meal prep the chicken for an easy meal. Here are a few different ways to prepare the chicken.

  • Pre-cook boneless skinless chicken breasts and slice them for quick and easy lunches or dinners
  • Season chicken breasts with lemon pepper
  • Crush croutons and use as a coating for a crispy baked chicken breast
  • Marinate chicken breasts in caesar vinaigrette
  • Use slow-cooked shredded chicken
  • Use frozen popcorn chicken or chicken fingers
  • Serve homemade Crispy Parmesan Chicken Strips on or with your Caesar salad

Toppings for your chicken Caesar salad

Typically, chicken Caesar salads are adorned with bacon bits and croutons, but you can up the ante by making your own croutons from a loaf of crusty bread or topping your salad with pancetta, prosciutto or capers. 

Meal Prep Tips for Chicken Caesar Salad

If you’re making chicken Caesar salad for dinner, it’s never a bad idea to make an extra one for lunch the next day.  I like to use mini mason jars (125 mL) to portion out the dressing. Alternatively, use large mason jars (1L) and do a salad in a jar, by layering the dressing, chicken, lettuce and bacon bits, then add the croutons just before serving. You could also use a tortilla, naan or pita to serve your chicken Caesar salad as a wrap.

Tearing the lettuce by hand versus cutting it with a knife will prevent it from browning and it will last about two days longer than it would if you cut it.

Finally, I’ve already mentioned ways to meal prep the chicken, but to elaborate on that, batch cooking several chicken breasts and freezing them, guarantees that you will have cooked chicken available for a quick meal anytime, even if it’s not Caesar salad. Use your cooked chicken in any of these recipes from manitobachicken.ca.

How to set up a DIY Chicken Toast Bar

~ SL

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

May Long Weekend is just around the corner.  You may be one of the lucky ones who scored a campsite for this unofficial start of summer or you may be heading to a family cottage to open up for the season.  You might also be staying home, enjoying the comfort of your own backyard like I am. Wherever you choose to celebrate the long weekend, this DIY Chicken Toast Bar featuring three toast recipes from Manitoba Chicken Producers is a great option for a lunch or a snack.

The basics

To set up this toast bar, all you need is shredded chicken, toasted baguette slices and a few fresh toppings.  Here are three toast recipes that you can make:

You may have seen these recipes featured on Great Tastes of Manitoba Season 31, Episode 6- Toast to MB Chicken. If not, you can watch it here to see how they’re made.

Setting up your Toast Bar

Here are some recommended ingredients for your toast bar:

  • Toasted baguette slices
  • Chicken (roasted, shredded, sliced or chicken fingers)
  • Two spreads
    • Hummus
    • Pesto
    • Olive tapenade
    • Baba ghanoush
  • One or two soft cheeses
    • Ricotta
    • Brie
    • Fresh mozzarella
    • Goat cheese
  • Two to three fresh toppings
    • Tomatoes (fresh or roasted)
    • Greens (arugula, cilantro, dill, sprouts)
    • Avocado
    • Roasted red peppers
  • Finishing touches
    • Fruit preserves or jam
    • Balsamic reduction
    • Capers
    • Pine nuts
    • Dried fruit (blueberries, apricots, cranberries)

Meal Prep Tips for your DIY Toast Bar

You can set up your toast bar to be as simple or elaborate as you want.  Most of the ingredients can be prepped ahead of time, to make this a quick and easy snack or lunch, perfect for a day of yard work, camping or sitting on the dock.

Here are some steps that you can take to prep your toast bar ahead of time:

  • Slice the baguette (toast it just before serving for maximum crispness)
  • Cook and shred or slice the chicken
  • Make hummus
  • Roast tomatoes
  • Other fresh toppings need minimal prep, like fresh arugula or herbs, tomatoes, avocado & capers

Store-Bought Shortcuts for your DIY Toast Bar

Store-bought ingredients

If you’re looking for maximum time-savings, here are some store-bought shortcuts that you can try:

  • Rotisserie chicken from the deli
  • Chicken fingers
  • Crostini rounds (find them in the cracker aisle)
  • Store-bought hummus (try a few flavors)
  • Guacamole
  • Oil packed sundried tomatoes
  • Olive tapenade
  • Capers
  • Flavored goat cheese spread

What to do with the leftovers?

What happens if you finish off the baguette and you have a bunch of toppings leftover?

This is why this is the perfect weekend meal.  The ingredients are so versatile that you can pack everything you need for the toast bar and have leftovers for lunch the next day.

Show us your toast bars! Tag @manitobachicken and @toobusylivin204 so we can see which ingredients you chose!