Every month for the past 10 years or so, I have been teaching a cooking class at the Council on Aging in Rochester. I look forward to this class every month. It’s so much fun! And I cook for about 20-30 hungry people.
This month, I made one of my favorites, Oven Fried Chicken Cutlets! YUM!!! And it did come out yummy! I normally choose my menus like I choose my family’s menu plans…based on what’s on sale or what I have in my freezer. In the case of the cooking class…based on what the Council on Aging may have received in donations or what may have been left over from another function. One month, they called and said they had pork loin roasts, so I made the roast with potatoes and veggies or a Hot Brown with Pork instead of Turkey. Easy! It’s the same way many people plan their menus. Except, I need to be able to do most of the cooking in about 30 minutes AND feed about 20-30 people. No problem! Of course, I do some of the prep ahead of time. Who wants to see me dredge and coat 30 chicken cutlets? NOBODY!!! So I leave about 3-4 for on camera and the cooking class. Easy! Then I hope that I have enough to say to fill up the 25-30 minute time slot. Most of the time it works our perfectly but sometimes, not so much. I’ll let you be the judge of this time.
Mix crumbs with seasoning. Put in a shallow bowl. Put flour in another shallow bowl and eggs in a third shallow bowl. Dredge chicken in flour, then egg and finally in breadcrumbs. Place on a greased sheet pan. Bake for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees.
Chopped Salad
1 cup cooked ditalini pasta or other type of small pasta
1 package of torn romaine lettuce (8 cups)
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
1 firm ripe avocado
3 sliced green onions
6 sliced of cooked bacon crumbled
1 cup blue or feta cheese
1/2 cup wine wine vinegar
1 cup olive oil
1 shallot
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup heavy cream
Salt and Pepper to Taste along with Italian Seasoning
Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and rinse under cook water. Drain well. Set in large salad bowl.
Chop lettuce, avocado, tomato and slice green onions and set in salad bowl.
Cook bacon to crisp and crumble. Add to the bowl with the cheese.
Make dressing by combining vinegar, olive oil, chopped shallot, minced garlic and heavy cream. Add salt, pepper and Italian Seasoning. Whisk until thickened. Add to salad and toss.
To serve, add salad to plates and top with sliced oven fried chicken. Enjoy!
