What's For Dinner?!

One of the first things I did after we got married was get a subscription to Cooking Light. It is no secret, I did not cook much before I got married....so I knew I was going to need some help! Sometimes the recipes are pretty good and other times Ben would be fine if I never served it again. However, I keep going back to Cooking Light recipes because it makes me feel better about what I am serving my family :)

This week I knew I needed to use the remaining chicken breast and was searching for a new, creative way to cook chicken. I had pretty much given up and was just going to season it and put it on the grill.......until I found this recipe for Chicken Parmesan. After watching this instructional video, I had a good feeling that it was going to turn out really good (who doesn't love melted cheese!). So, when Ben called to ask what's for dinner, I was confident enough to tell him that he was going to love it.....glad I didn't have to eat my words!

Video

And the final product.........

Truth is we were both too hungry to take the time to take a picture, but trust me it was awesome! And the fact that it was ready in 15 min made it even better! It is a perfect weeknight meal and it will definitely be served again at my house!

I followed the recipe exactly, except I used chicken breast instead of tenders since that is what I had. I used the Muir Glen Organic sauce (purchase at Publix) that is recommended since that is the spaghetti sauce that Ben & I use anyways. I topped with mozzarella cheese instead of provolone. We served it over angel hair pasta. Enjoy!

Herbed Chicken Parmesan 

The Music City

My sister-in-law, Adrienne, graduated with her Executive M.B.A. from Vandy on Friday (in the top 20% of her class!). We are so proud of her....so the least we could do is drive to Nashville for a celebration dinner!

After working all day in Ryan & A's basement (which was flooded during Nashville's recent floods) we had worked up a pretty voracious appetite. I enjoy going to fine dining restaurants and seeing how creative the food display is and all...but there are times when you just need something a little more filling. This was definitely the case that night! We had great conversations though :)

After dinner, the "kids" (aka Ben & I, Ryan & A) went out for a night on the town. Of all the times we have visited them in Nashville, I don't think we have ever "gone out" with them. So, since we were in a celebratory mood (and it wasn't like we had full stomachs and were ready for bed..ha) we decided to go to Demombreun Street. We started out at Dan McGuinness and ended the night at Patterson House (on total opposite ends of the spectrum....irish pub to swanky intimate lounge). We had so much fun but learned a valuable lesson...there are reasons we don't stay out until 3:30 a.m.! We are obviously not "kids" anymore :) What use to take a morning to recover from will, unfortunately, probably take us all week!

The graduate!

Adrienne's parents and grandmother

Group shot

My meal. Poussin (which I learned is baby chicken)

In summary...

It is hard to summarize everything that has happened over the past year in just 1 post but I will try to hit the high points. After our honeymoon in St. Thomas, we moved (really I was the only one moving because Ben was already here) to Chattanooga and lived in a 1 bedroom 900 sq ft condo downtown. Needless to say it was cozy but it was an awesome location. Chattanooga has a beautiful downtown! We lived there for 3 months until we bought our first house! Being a homeowner is still surreal to me...I have never signed my name so many times in one sitting. After 4 months of job searching, I was finally able to find a job in my field. In our spare time, we have been busy celebrating with our friends who are getting married or having babies or we are traveling to see family and friends. Sorry for the lack of pictures, see previous post :)

The Ritz-Carlton in St. Thomas

Our First House {pictures taken before we moved in}

The wood railings are not there any more {just needed for inspections}

Dining room/Foyer

Formal Living Room

Back Porch with fireplace :)

Master Bedroom

Kitchen

A New Start

I can't believe we are about to celebrate our first year of marriage! So much has happened over this past year....which leads to the reasoning behind starting this blog. I am really terrible at remembering to take pictures (in college I always relied on my friends to take the pictures and e-mail them to me) however, I recognize the importance of documenting special memories. So, I am hoping by keeping this blog it will remind me to start taking more pictures and serve as a scrapbook for us. We are so blessed with amazing families and friends and are excited about sharing our journey with you!