CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP CASSEROLE: for 2

I love a good casserole, especially if I assemble it when I have a lot of time and then bake it off for a quick week night dinner when I’m in a time crunch. Last week I saw a recipe for Chicken Soup Casserole on the tasty kitchen blog that I knew I had to try…I mean I love chicken soup and I love casseroles so HELLO – sounds perfect! And man was this delicious and simple. The recipe called for boiled chicken, but honestly I just can’t do boiled chicken…looking at it while it’s boiling just kind of grosses me out and I feel like it doesn’t have any flavor. So I baked my chicken after I sprinkled it with dried Italian herbs and it worked great. Also, the recipe said bake in a 9x13 pan, and well let’s be honest that’s a little bit, ok a lot a bit too much food for 2 people, so I baked half of it in a 9 inch pie pan and froze the other half to bake next week some time. HOORAY – 2 easy dinners! With some roasted broccoli, it was the perfect meal. This recipe is really a great starter, you can use any veggies you like and omit any that you don’t; next time I'm adding some sliced mushrooms. Hope you like it!

Sincerely Loving Food,
Lainey

Deep Fried Eggs

Last week Jessica, at The Novice Chef, wrote about a fried egg. You are all thinking yeah, yeah big freaking deal I can go to Waffle House any minute of the day (literally) and get a fried egg, big deal. But NO, this is not a fried egg like you are thinking this egg is soft boiled, cooled & peeled, breaded & DEEP FRIED! Yeah that’s right deep fried. I commented on her post and said my wedding is in however many days so I will have this immediately after that since I am trying to eat healthy. Well Yeah Right…I made it all the way to Saturday, a solid 5 days after I wrote that. Will power – not so much. Worth it – totally! Breakfast was complete with sausage patties and hashbrowns, completely off the healthy train (however incredibly delicious). But, the meal did keep me full until dinner time so maybe that sort of cancels out…and a word to the wise, recruit a sous chef to help peel the eggs, it is nice to have the extra set of hands!
Sincerely Loving Food,
Lainey

 

Shoplifting at the Grocery Store?

This blog post isn’t totally about food; maybe more about ethics but I just can’t help myself….I really want to hear some other peoples ideas. On Sunday the FH and I were at the grocery store and I totally saw a guy stealing food. At first I was shocked and then I was very intrigued; I wondered, “is he homeless, is he starving, does he get a rush from sticking oranges in his pockets?” and I guess that is the other thing about it…he wasn’t stealing Doritos or Beer, he was stealing healthy food. I know I saw him put a protein shake, an orange and a banana in his pockets. My internal dialogue, “should I tell on him, why is it my place to rat him out, what if he is starving and really needs this food?” He was very “good” at it; I don’t think anyone saw him but me (and then the FH after I told him) yeah these are my detective skills coming out. As we were paying he just strolled out of the grocery and when we were headed to the parking lot we saw him on a bike, cycling away…Now 2 days removed I am still not sure what I think about this. He did look like he needed a shave and his clothes were very ratty, but I am not convinced he couldn’t afford the food. Also I don’t know why I am “justifying” his stealing because starving is not a shop lifting excuse…obviously, stealing is wrong and he shouldn’t have been doing it, but what if he really was starving? Should I have told on him (I know it’s like I’m in 3rd grade), should I have offered to help him? Am I absolutely ridiculous for still thinking about this 2 days later? Well let’s hear it…what would you have done? Why? And feel free to tell me I am crazy for thinking about this…I don’t know why I was so intrigued in the first place, its sort of like Sister Wives, I don’t know why I couldn’t stop watching but I just couldn’t…

Sincerely Loving Food,
Lainey

Monday, Breakfast, Fried Eggs...

This weekend the FH and I tried out a new breakfast place, The Social House, on Atlanta’s West side. We have been driving past this place for years and I am so glad we finally tried it. I had fried chicken with a blue berry waffle, (yes chicken and waffles – its very Atlanta) and the FH had the country fried steak biscuits. I had cheese grits and he had hashbrowns, we are meant for each other...that way we both get to try the 2 sides items!  Our meals were awesome, the drinks were refilled regularly and are looking forward to a return to this place to try out their pancakes, eggs Benedict, the list goes on and on. 

Yesterday afternoon I put together this Chicken Soup Casserole that I am going to bake for dinner tonight. I will let you know how it turns out. Additionally I tried my hand at this fried egg this weekend and holy moly it was so good!!! I will post on that later in the week too.

So to wrap it up – one day a deep fried egg and one day chicken and waffles – I didn’t really hit healthy out of the park this weekend…but it was the first weekend of the NCAA’s so I had to celebrate. Now it’s Monday and back on the diet train. Did you eat anything crazy good this weekend? What’s your favorite breakfast?

Sincerely Loving Food,
Lainey

For a Crowd: Parmesan Garlic Grits

Friday was my turn to bring in breakfast to work. I sort of made MY FAVORITE BREAKFAST, but I left off the sage butter so the bread wouldn’t get soggy and I used shredded mozzarella instead of fresh to keep the cost down. I lightly fried the eggs the night before, assembled everything and then the next morning I put it in a 250 degree oven for like 20 minutes to let the egg finish cooking and warm everything up. To go along with the sandwiches I made parmesan garlic grits. Sounds really fancy, but oh so easy! This recipe is easily customizable for the number you want to serve, just follow the directions on the box, but use half water and half, half and half and then add as much garlic as you want and half as much cheese as grits.

Sincerely Loving Food,
Lainey

Let's talk Italian

There is a place in Vegas, right off the strip called Battista's Hole in the Wall.  In a word it is amazing, or in Italian it is Sorprendente (and no I didn't know that I googled it).  Not only is the food stunning, delicious, perfectly flavored and reasonably priced the joint gives you all the wine you can drink!  Yeah, you read that right...all the wine you can drink! When you sit down at the table they place two decanters of wine (one white and one red) on the table, and they continue to bring new ones each time they are empty.  Holy freaking cow...way to start off a night in Vegas!  The menu is simple and it sort of reminded me of The Old Spaghetti Factory (anyone ever been there?)  There are chalk boards on the wall with the choices like: spaghetti and meatballs, linguini chopped clams, chicken alfredo, lasagna, and Veal Marsala which I had and have not regretted for a second!  The price range is amazing $22.95 to $37.95 (for like file mignon) but most choices are below $30.  With each entree you received your choice of minestrone soup or italian salad, garlic bread and a homemade cappuccino, oh and complimentary all you can drink house wine, did I mention that?

  I had the soup and it put Olive Garden's to shame.  I know that's probably not that good of a comparision anyway but its all I could think of.  The bread is to die for, giant pieces of bread with huge chunks of garlic on them toasted a perfectly golden brown butter color...I had to remind myself I had veal coming so I wouldn't fill up on bread alone.  I was glad I did, 3 huge pieces of veal covered in the mushroom marsala sauce served with grilled zucchini and  pasta.  OMG...I almost went into a food coma!  I ate 2 pieces of the veal and most of the pasta and so badly wanted to clean my plate, but I just couldn't do it.  (remind yourself all the while I am drinking all the wine I want).

   Then they brought everyone the most delicious cappuchino I had ever tasted!  The whole expereince was perfect!  We couldn't do dessert (no room in the inn), but the cappuchino filled any need for sweetness...so good!

I love this place!  Huge props to my friends the Felices for recommending it.  Whenever I go back to Vegas there is not a doubt in my mind I will head to this Battista's!  Where do you like to eat in Vegas?  Have you ever been to Battista's?