What I made for dinner

Another topic that frequently comes up between myself, friends, and family is what to make for dinner. Oh, and how to make dinner when I get home late...and how to eat in a healthy and budget-conscious fashion. If I think of it, I'll post some examples of what I make and how it's done.

Each Saturday or Sunday I sit down with my cookbooks and plan out my entire week's meals. This prevents return trips to the store, and also saves a lot of money that would go to discarded produce and impulse buys. Plus, it takes the burden off of me to battle traffic and then battle the kitchen and "what should we eat for dinner" questions. J can clearly see what we're having and get excited about it ;) and I can prep or make dinner before work.

I calculated that I save about $200 per month with meal planning alone!

So last night, I made a nice Sunday Supper.

Chicken Parmesan with whole wheat angel hair pasta

 Also a Caesar salad

And for dessert, my new favorite (boy does J's phone take better pictures than mine!)

S'mores-Stuffed Bananas

Recipes

Chicken Parm

The basic chicken parm recipe involves dredging chicken in flour with a bit of salt and pepper, then in an egg bath (say two eggs and 1 tbl. water) and then in a mixture of seasoned bread crumbs and shredded parmesan cheese. Then they are cooked in a pan with melted butter and olive oil until no longer pink.

I made a light tomato cream sauce, but feel free to use any purchased sauce.

S'Mores-Stuffed Bananas

Take a banana, peel still on, and slice longways into the fruit, ending with a "T" shaped perpendicular cut at each end. Use a spoon to pull open, and stuff with one honey graham cracker (low fat) crushed mixed with a tbl. mini chocolate chips. Top with mini marshmallows. Spray foil with canola oil, wrap banana in foil, and bake for 15 minutes at 350. Easy and low-cal, and I realize it doesn't sound like it would be...but not a lot of bad stuff fits in a banana! Scoop onto a plate and serve warm.

Recipe credit: Hungry Girl 1, 2, 3