Monday, May 19, 2014

Menu Monday #54 {Chicken Parmesan Cups recipe}

On Friday night, my mom and I let Ethan choose our dinner location, and we ended up at Cracker Barrel. We had visited Bagel Exchange for lunch, so I managed to have breakfast for all three of my meals that day. Yes, that is awesome. 

On Saturday morning, I made Ethan's favorite, whole wheat pumpkin pancakes with cream cheese icing, for breakfast. After that, Grandma got packed up and headed back to Ohio. After being gone from home for a month, it was time to go back for a bit. Hopefully we didn't scare her off, and she'll be back later this week to keep us company again while Josh is still away in China! That evening for dinner, I made the boys' day by letting them make their own personal pizzas. I had made my dough earlier in the bread machine, then we topped them with sauce and cheese. I also added some chicken to mine. If that wasn't enough to make the night awesome, I won "Mom of the Year" for making them some M&M cookies, too!! I figured they would work well for bribes if I need them! ;) Haha!

On Sunday morning, I continued on as Super-Mom by making our usual egg bagel sandwiches, doing some laundry, dishes, and getting the boys ready and to church, on time!! I lucked out and scored a nap since I got them all down at the same time for their naps. Perfection. After that, we played outside, watered our garden (it's starting to sprout!), took a walk, then we came in so I could make dinner. I would definitely say it was a successful day. Let's hope I can keep it up this week!

Sunday: Chicken parmesan cups (see recipe below)
I tried out a new idea for dinner. I've made "cups" in the past using Pillsbury® Grands!® biscuits. This time I used chicken parmesan ingredients in them. They turned out awesome and were a big hit with the boys!

Monday: Chicken nuggets, mac and cheese
The boys love it and I love that it's quick and easy. :) Who doesn't love some mac every now and then?!?

Tuesday: Grilled cheese, tomato soup
Ethan has been begging for grilled cheese for awhile now, so it's time to make it! Another easy meal while we're on our own. :) I'll probably add some tomato and fresh basil to my sandwich to make it even tastier!

Wednesday: Whole wheat pumpkin pancakes with cream cheese icing
Who doesn't love brinner? The boys love these pancakes so much, and they're actually fairly nutritious with the pumpkin in them, so I figure they'll work for dinner. ;)

Thursday: Preschool picnic
The boys' preschool will be having its end of the year picnic. I'll need to figure out what I want to bring to share with the other families. It will be a fun evening with the other parents!

Friday: Out to eat
Not sure what we'll have yet. I'll probably let the boys pick.

Saturday: TBD
I may make some homemade pizza again. The boys loved their personal pizzas so much!


What's on your menu this week?

Now for the recipe...



Chicken Parmesan Cups
(Serves 4-5)

Ingredients:
  • 1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® Flaky Layers refrigerated biscuits (8-count)
  • 1/3 cup ricotta cheese, optional
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • 16 pieces/chunks Perdue® Simply Smart® lightly breaded chicken chunks, frozen
  • 1 1/2 cups pizza, or spaghetti, sauce
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
  • Fresh basil, optional
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray 16 regular-size muffin cups with cooking spray.

Pull each biscuit apart into 2 layers; press each into 4-inch round. Place 1 round in each of the muffin cups. Firmly press in bottom and up side, forming 1/4-inch rim. Put 1 tablespoon of the mozzarella cheese into each cup. If you like ricotta cheese, put 1 teaspoon on top of that. Place a chunk of the frozen chicken on top of that. I used the bigger chunks and it's ok to use them frozen - they'll cook along with the biscuits! On top of the chicken, spoon about 1 1/2 Tbsp of either pizza or spaghetti sauce. Top it all off by sprinkling on about 1/2 Tbsp of the shredded Parmesan cheese. Garnish with fresh basil, if desired.


Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Let sit in the tin for 1 minute, then gently remove.


I love how quick and easy this meal is! The most time consuming part is getting all of the biscuits flattened and into the muffin tin. After that, it's a breeze! Being able to use the frozen chicken chunks makes this so easy to prepare. I love that I didn't have to dirty another dish trying to cook the meat first. I used pizza sauce for mine because I already had an opened container of it, but spaghetti sauce will work great, too. The kids would prefer this without the ricotta cheese, so next time, I'll make some with it and some without it. Enjoy!


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