Mom's great leap forward in Chicken technology

231--->226.8-->228.2

So I went up a little, no big deal -- last month's drop was attributable to not eating due to illness, the gain is practically a margin of error. I'm still surprisingly sore from Monday's workout, which reminds me that muscle is heavier than fat. I think for me to really see a difference on three fronts -- look skinnier, look toner and actually be lighter on the scale -- I should think more in terms of 6 months of consistent better eating and regular weights. I'll still limit myself to monthly weigh-ins, but will reevaluate at beginning of July. Y'know, bikini season.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Salted Chocolate Caramel Tart: For the Stuporbowl party I'm attending this weekend, I promised to make this recipe. It's a bit labor and time intensive, as the dough had to be made, pressed out, chilled baked and cooled. The caramel needed to be cooked, poured into shells then cooled four to 5 hours. Simple ganache had to be made, poured, then cooled again (or in this case frozen, to last to when delivery is.) The recipe calls for 9" pans, I only had 11", so I made 2 1/2 times the recipe.....and found I had enough stuff for THREE tarts. Hrumph. Well, they look good, I'll assume they taste good when I try it over the weekend...

Chicken Parmesan: My class made this last semester, at their insistence, and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. It's not surprising, as this was one of my mother's signature dishes. I remember when I was 5 or 6, she got the recipe from someone who also summered at the rental bungalows we inhabited in the warm months. When I think about it, it's a simple dish, peasant food really, but for someone like my mom, to bread and pan fry a chicken breast was something foreign and challenging. Her chicken parm was gross, the meat was always dry AND greasy, the stale tasting crust would fall off in chunks before ever hitting the plate, the rubbery cheese not quite melted.

But it was a big deal -- the only way my mom made chicken was what me and dad referred to as "puke chicken", a braise in some sort of liquid that I assume involved ketchup. In later years as we entered the middle class, my mom would bring home roasted chickens from A&P, which were a huge step up.

I ate one breast yesterday, and it was a large portion. After slicing the 2nd breast into thin pieces for quick cooking, I got 6 reasonable pieces, enough for 3 medium portions (or 2 generous portions). I used standard breading procedure (dip in salted flour, dip in egg wash, dip in crumbs, straight into hot oil.) Instead of prepacked "seasoned crumbs", I used panko mixed with dry oregano for that crunch. My mom would try to cook through a whole breast in the oil, I just quickly browned the meat then into a glass pan on a bed of sauce. Cheeses, a little dollop of sauce, into the oven for 20 minutes - my mom would just place the cheese on the meat in the oil and hope for the heat of the goings-on to melt the cheese.

This definitely a once-in-a-blue moon food. Next time, more dry spices in the breadcrumbs, skip the bed of sauce in the pan and just put it on top.


AM SNACK: 8am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 9:30am, organic chex with organic dead milk, banana, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: noon, sardines & avocado and whole wheat sprouted bread, health salad, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 2:30pm, apple, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 5:15pm, momma salad, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 6pm, chicken parmigiana with angel hair pasta, grenadine soda, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Sure, it's big & American, it's not that healthy, but it's homemade from scratch and is part of who I am.

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, potato chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 10pm, peanuts & chocolate chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Well, I'm outta chips. Should I try to resist buying them in the market?