Just so you know, this post is really just me patting myself on the back.
For MrC’s birthday dinner, his one request was chicken parmigiana. This is something I’d never made before, so I turned to the Food Network for help and inspiration. I also had to look for a pasta dish to go with the chicken. I wanted to go with something light and that wasn’t too saucy and not too tasty.
I ended up choosing two recipes by Giada de Laurentiis. I thank God that I love watching cooking shows so much so I knew exactly where to go to find recipes! I of course failed to take proper photos like I always do. I posted these on my Instagram right before the dishes were devoured.
The pasta was based on this linguine recipe. I made some changes though, to suit my taste. I chose not to include lemon zest in the sauce, and I also used fusilli instead of linguine, as requested by the birthday boy. I also tossed everything in olive oil and garlic instead of just mixing the sauce into the hot noodles. Pasta needs to have garlic, as far as I’m concerned.
I did the chicken recipe exactly as it was written. I even made the tomato sauce myself. I got too lazy to blend the sauce after it was cooked though, so I ended up with a chunky tomato sauce, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. The recipe makes a big batch of sauce and I actually still have some in the freezer. I’m planning to add Italian sausage and meatballs into the leftover sauce and serve it with noodles. Yum.
The meal was a total hit, and I now wish I had taken better photos because these just don’t do them justice. Oh well. There’s always a next time. I’ve already promised to make this for my next get together with the girls.
Do you have a show-stopping Italian dish that you make at home?
