This is a story about pasta and pride bear with me as I explain...
People are like dogs in many ways. They desire what they are used to _ what seems familiar to them and they like to please the people they care about.
The other day I was at work outside sweating like a _ well a dog, when a cool breeze hit me full in the face. My first reaction was something like - hey that feels good. Then I thought what is this weirdness a cool breeze in August.
Having grown up in the warm subtropical climate of southeast Texas where freezing temperatures are a once in a decade phenomena I suddenly found myself freaked out by the idea of a cool breeze blowing across the countryside in August. Now to the point of my story.
I do most of the cooking in my house and am pretty good at it for the most part. When times were tough I made a mean meatloaf and Rice a- Roni meatballs with gravy and cornbread cassarole and when they were better roast beef and stuffed pasta shells.
My daughter Alyssa, inspired at least partly I believe, by her father's skill with a stove .and aided by the cooking network or the food channel or some such nonsense has periodically tried her own hand at making a ‘recipe" usually with mixed results. I got used to the idea of smiling indulgently and patting her on the head and pretending it was great even if it was not.
Well one day _ bored out of her mind _ and up to her neck in the summertime blues- she decided to experiment with another recipe. I learned by phone that she was cooking supper - breaded baked chicken on pasta with sauce.
Well I prepared myself to be indulgent and pat her on her 12-year-old head and smile as usual then fate threw a wrench in the works. I sat down at the table with my family and took a big bite of my daughter's concoction and was nearly knocked over with surprise. It was good - damn good and after several minutes I was forced to admit that I was a little jealous of her ability to make such a good meal from scratch on an impulse. This time it was she who smiled indulgently and although she did not pat me on the head it was obvious she was pleased by the turn of events.
I guess you should be proud when your children outdo you in things that you have for the most part taught them., perhaps this day she did, with a little help from TV chefs like Alton Brown. So it is with pride that I present the recipe for Chicken Alyssiana created by "Chef" Alyssa Ann Hopper...my 12-year-old daughter.
Ingredients....
Sauce: ¾ jar of Prego garlic and herb spaghetti sauce; a can of Rotel,a concoction of canned diced tomato and green peppers; two table heaping spoons of ranch dressing, dash of instant chicken broth, and broth from several pieces of chicken, and some bread crumbs...
Breading: Regular bread crumbs, Italian bread crumbs, and five flavored crotons of your favorite flavor....
Basting : chicken broth, half teaspoon of butter, small dash of seasoned meat tenderizer, and sprinkle of instant broth.
3 to 6 pieces of chicken
Put raw chicken in oven covered in two layers of foil and cook at 200 degrees. ..until done. Take broth out of pan. Melt basting ingredients in pan with broth and baste chicken regularly .
Cook favorite pasta spaghetti noodles work well and combine sauce ingredients in separate pan and cook together.
When chicken is mostly done but not falling apart bread chicken and continue cook, breading periodically and moistening the breading a little as needed with the baste as needed.
Serve sauce over pasta and chicken on top, garlic bread makes a nice add on.