Life's Passions

You know many, many times over the years I've been asked what my life's passion is. And if I'm entirely honest, it's food. I love to cook for people. I love to watch their faces when they take that first bite of something delicious. I love tinkering with the recipes I find, or creating something entirely new. Like I did tonight. I was trying to find something for dinner when I stumbled on a recipe for manicotti. I thought to myself, "hmmm, self, what would happen if we did the stuffing of manicotti with a twist on top of chicken. Make a rice pilaf with garlic green beans and I've got dinner. Then there's last night's brownies for dessert. Perfect!" So that's what I set about doing. And yes, it turned out very good. A perfect dinner if you are trying to impress someone. That being said here's the recipe.

Manicotti Style Chicken

Boneless chicken breasts
Greek oregano
Italian seasoning
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
Chili powder
Garlic

Ricotta Cheese
Italian seasoning

Tomato sauce (I like to use Newman's Own Mushroom Marinara)
Oregano
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Italian seasoning
Basil
Chili powder

Parmesan Cheese

First, you are going to put some olive oil in the bottom of the pan you are using to bake the chicken. Then add your chicken lightly sprinkling it with oregano, salt, pepper, chili powder, and garlic. Flip and repeat. Then bake at 375 for 25 minutes until almost done. While it's baking, blend the ricotta cheese and Italian seasoning. Then in a separate bowl, blend the tomato sauce with the oregano, basil, salt, pepper, garlic, Italian seasoning, and chili powder. Just before the chicken is completely done, remove from the oven. Carefully top with ricotta cheese, then the tomato sauce, and parmesan cheese. return to oven until completely done, about 5-10 minutes. Pull and let rest for a moment or two, then serve. Enjoy!