Cooking for the Inlaws

FI (the Chef) just turned 23, so for his birthday I raided my Pinterest for awesome dinner recipes, and here's what we ended up with:

And the last time I cooked for my fiance I messed up a box of macaroni and cheese (talk about embarrassing!) -- so I was TOTALLY nervous about cooking for the inlaws (for the first time).
Luckily, this meal was unanimously loved and nobody died.
And if the girl who messed up mac n cheese can do it, then so can you.

Herb Crusted Chicken in Basil Cream

from the Our Kind of Love blog
(we tripled the recipe posted on her blog, to yield the following):

Serves: 6

Software:

• 6 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, pounded thin
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cup Garlic & Herb Bread Crumbs
• 6 teaspoons Garlic and Bell Pepper Seasoning
• 3 teaspoon freeze dried chives
• 9 Tablespoons butter
• 1 1/8 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 cup Chicken Broth
• 3/4 can of diced tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese blend
• 6 Tablespoons freeze dried (or fresh) basil
• fresh ground black pepper

Hardware:

• Large skillet
• Cutting board
• Measuring cup/spoons
• Meat mallet (except FIL was sleeping so we squished the meat flat with bare hands instead of pounding it with a mallet)

Procedure:

• Place bread crumbs, Roasted Garlic and Bell Pepper Seasoning and freeze dried chives in a shallow bowl; mix thoroughly.
• Place milk in a separate shallow bowl.
• In a skillet, heat butter on medium heat. Meanwhile, pound chicken flat and thin for even cooking (if you haven't done so already).
• Dip the chicken in the milk, then coat with crumb mixture.
• Cook chicken in butter until browned and cooked through (about ten minutes). Remove and keep warm
• In the same skillet, add garlic and sauté for approximately 1 minute. 
• Add chicken broth and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir occasionally to loosen browned parts from the pan.
• Stir in cream and tomatoes; bring to a boil and stir for one minute.
• Reduce heat to low; add Parmesan cheese, basil and a dash of pepper, stir sauce and cook until heated through and thickened. (about 5 minutes)
• Serve by pouring the sauce over the chicken. For added flair, serve the chicken and sauce over cooked pasta. 

I had a great recipe I was going to use for the green beans, but we lost internet signal while I was trying to whip them up, so we sauteed them in the skillet after the chicken was done with butter, garlic, and salt.

Roasted Potatoes

This was just my own improvisation.
I had about 2 1/2 pounds of little red potatoes and baked them in butter and garlic and parmesan cheese and salt and junk.  And they was YUMMY but it was definitely not enough potatoes -- I'll probably do at least 5 pounds next time!

Overall, this meal cost us about $40 to feed 5 people because we didn't have any of the ingredients hanging out in the pantry.  I'll do a follow-up post if/when I'm able to bring down the cost.