sort of a monday

At work today... which is fine, especially since my week is going to be so short now. I already had off on Thursday, and now my Monday didn't happen until Tuesday. I expected it to be much worse coming in this morning, but Philly is pretty good about snow clean up. Trav ran my car when he got home yesterday to help melt all the ice off... so that made my trip to the train station problem free. I wore my rain boots because even though they aren't the warmest things, they are completely waterproof. My warm winter boots are nice... but don't do well with snow melting on them. Wet toes would not be appreciated this morning.

By the by, I forgot to say this yesterday, but Happy March! Woo, less then three weeks until Spring!! Believe me, I can't wait. How funny that we started March with a snow day. And I just can't believe its March at all! This year is flying.

I have a recipe to share now... something I haven't done in a while. And it has artichoke in it! A veggie, on my chicken. :-) It's a start.


Parmesan Artichoke Chicken

1/2 c mayo
1/2 c parmesan cheese
2/3 can artichoke hearts, finely chopped (I really minced ours since Trav isn't a big artichoke person... I didn't want him to get a big piece of one)
1 tsp garlic
4 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless (we only had three... so I really laid the sauce on thick, and still had some left.)

Mix first four ingredients together and spread evenly over chicken.
Place into a baking dish and bake at 375 for 40 minutes (or until chicken is cooked through and top is browned.)

This was delish. The chicken was moist, the topping rich. I think I'll add just a touch less mayo next time because (for me at least) I don't love when the taste of mayo comes through too much in what I'm eating. I just want it there to enhance the flavor and impart moisture. But, even with that, we both really enjoyed this. Its quick to prep and very tastey.

Now here's a quick side note, and a why I like my pictures with the food on the plate and not in the baking pan:

There was a lot of juices from the chicken. Doesn't make for the prettiest picture, but also... I would recommend using a pan bigger then what you really need. The chicken gives off a lot of fat juices (especially if you are like me and a little lazy when it comes to removing that little bit of fat the store didn't remove... I just eat around it), and that can make the sides of your topping a bit mushy. Still just as tasty! But next time I'll use a bigger pan so the juices can spread out more and therefore, disperse more.

Well, off to work for me. Lots to get done in my much abbreviated week.