Desserts Entree Recipes

I Heart Chicken Parmesan and Tres Leches Cake #Valentines4All

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Nestle Buitoni and Tres Leches Cake #Valentiens4All #shop
One holiday is over and as the way it usually goes, that means it’s time to start planning for the next holiday. With Valentine’s Day coming up, some of you may be on the lookout for fun and easy meals to prepare for your Valentine(s). With help from Nestle and their brand new Tres Leches Cake Kit, and Buitoni Pasta Sauces, I’ve got a delicious and EASY meal that you can prepare for a romantic dinner, or for your entire family. Hey, sometimes I will even create romantic dinners for my kiddos. We will line make a centerpiece for the table, light some candles and dim the lights, break out the sparkling cider, and enjoy a tasty meal.

I Heart Chicken Parmesan Valentine's Day Dinner #Valentines4All #shop

Chicken Parmesan is super simple to make and my kids all love it. You can’t really go wrong with spaghetti and breaded chicken covered in a delicious sauce and mozzarella cheese. For Valentine’s Day I decided to change this up a bit and cut the mozzarella into heart shapes. Then for a little spice of love I added pepperoni slices which have also been cut into the shape of a heart. Just fine a small heart-shaped cookie cutter and you can cover your Chicken Parm with as many little pepperoni hearts as you’d like. For a nice full-bodied marinara sauce, I recommend the Buitoni sauces which can be found near the refrigerated pastas at Walmart. Combined with the breaded chicken, you really feel like you are getting a homemade marinara without all the work!

I Heart Chicken Parmesan #Valentines4All #shop

You may like your mozzarella broiled until brown bubbles start to form, but if you want the cheese to stay in the shape of a heart then you will just need to heat it slightly so it begins to melt but not lose it’s shape. While the chicken finishes cooking you can begin boiling your pasta. Any pasta will do, but I went with traditional spaghetti. If you really want to get romantic then you can play out the spaghetti scene from Lady and the Tramp!

Nestle Tres Leches Cake #Valentines4All #shop

For me, a romantic meal is not complete without dessert. If you’ve got several critters running around the house like I do, then you may not have time to be slaving in the kitchen all day. Nestle and I have a solution! Brand new to Walmart stores, the Tres Leches Cake Kits are super easy to prepare and you can make them the day before Valentine’s Day! This cake needs to be refrigerated for a minimum of 4 hours, but overnight works great! If you want to dress the Tres Leches Cake up even more, cover with fresh fruit or chopped up pieces of chocolate! I’d love to hear what fun toppings you come up with. Make the day before and you have got an easy Valentine’s Day meal ahead of you!

Easy Valentine's Day Dinner with Dessert: I Heart Chicken Parmesan and Tres Leches Cake #Valentines4All Dinner #shop

My Valentines this year are my kids whom I adore. I am excited to spend a day (or every day) doting on them and can’t wait to make this Valentine’s Day extra special! To help me plan and prepare for my family Valentine’s Day, I spent an evening with a great friend and we created a practice meal to enjoy with one another.  I think it turned out fantastic and I have no doubt that my kids will love every bit of it!

5.0 from 2 reviews
I Heart Chicken Parmesan
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to be about ½" thick
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 2 eggs
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 Tbs canola oil
  • 1 containers Buitoni Marinara Sauce
  • 1 lb spaghetti
  • 6¼" slices of mozzarella
  • 12 slices of pepperoni, cut into heart shapes
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400°.
  2. Heat oil in a large frying pan, at medium high heat.
  3. Place flour in one shallow dish. In a separate shallow dish combine eggs and milk. In a third dish combine Panko breadcrumbs and parmesan.
  4. First dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess. Then dip in the egg mixture and lastly, coat with breadcrumbs. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces.
  5. Place chicken in hot oil and lightly brown both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side.
  6. Stick browned chicken in a large casserole dish, or 9x13 pan and cook for 25-30 minutes. Do not overcook. You want chicken to have an internal temperature of 165.
  7. While chicken is cooking, heat pasta sauce in microwave or sauce pan, and cook pasta according to package.
  8. Remove cooked chicken from oven and top with about ¼ cup warmed sauce, heart shaped mozzarella slice and pepperoni slices. You can decorate the chicken with cheese and pepperoni, however you'd like.
  9. Return pan to oven and cook for 2-3 minutes, until cheese is slighty melted.
  10. Serve over spaghetti and more sauce.

 

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Emily Buys

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