Michelle Blanchard Ardillo

So, today, we returned home from 10:30 Mass, all of us hungry and no one feeling like preparing a big meal from scratch. We had on hand a bag of Perdue Perfect Portions, boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I checked the pantry to see what could I do with them that would be more exciting than a quick saute in a little olive oil. I found a jar of sun-dried tomatoes, a jar of roasted red bell peppers, and a small (8 oz) can of tomato sauce. Three reds, right? I had in mind something vaguely reminiscent of the tasty.com video of the “meatball bake” that has meatballs arranged in a pan bathed with marinara sauce and then covered in mozzarella and parmesan (very good by the way, and very low in carbs). I rinsed and patted dry the chicken breasts and arranged them in a 9×13 pan sprayed with Pam. I seasoned the chicken breasts on both sides with kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, garlic powder, and dried Italian herb blend. Then, in my food processor, I blitzed the drained sun-dried tomatoes, the drained roasted red bell peppers, and the tomato sauce. I spooned that evenly over the five chicken breasts and covered them with a nice fluffy white blanket of grated mozzarella. I covered the pan with foil and baked in a preheated 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. During that time, I microwaved a bag of cauliflower rice and tossed chopped romaine hearts with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. When the timer went off, I took the foil off the pan and sprinkled the chicken breasts with shaved parmesan cheese (the real thing). I put the pan under the broiler (on high) for 3 minutes until they were bubbly and brown. Not a gourmet meal by any stretch, and more heavily reliant on bottles and jars than I usually open for a meal, but in under an hour we had a lovely meal on the table before anyone could get “HANGRY” and ruin our nice post-Mass Christian feelings! Happy Sunday, everyone!