Life's A Dance: Bon Appetit!

One of Benny's coworkers happened to move into the same condos we live in! They knew each other from Iowa State. Since our kind neighbors made dinner for us our first night here, we thought we should return the good deed and make dinner for his coworker and roommate. I had a lot of fun making something different since I cook the same three meals every week it seems like. So we broke out the new cookbooks, picked out something that looked good (Benny will only let me make it if there is a picture of it!) and went to buy the ingredients. I, of course, took pictures of the process so we could always remember the first (and hopefully not only) REAL meal I ever cooked. It turned out delicious...in my opinion and according to Benny. I thought I would include the recipe (it was super easy) and some pictures. I was having a Rachael Ray moment, so don't judge! Bon appetit!

Savory Chicken Dinner

Prep: 10 Minutes

Bake: 45 Minutes

Ingredients:

2 Envelopes savory herb with garlic soup mix (Our store didn't have this exact thing, so we used packets of a similar salad dressing and it worked fine!)

6 Tablespoons water

4 Boneless skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each) -- We made 6 halves

2 Large red potatoes, cubed -- We used 3 because we LOVE potatoes

1 Large onion, halved and cut into small wedges (This was the first time I EVER cut an onion and I thought for sure I was going to die from my burning eyes!)

In a small bowl, combine soup mix and water, pour half in a large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken. Seal bag and toss to coat. Pour the remaining soup mix in another resealable plastic bag. Add potatoes and onion. Seal bag and toss to coat. Drain and discard marinade from chicken. Transfer to a greased 13x9x2 in. baking dish. Pour potato mixture and marinade over chicken. (I don't eat onions, so I cut up a separate potato and just put potato cubes and half a chicken breast in a different dish to bake for me!)

Bake uncovered, at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until vegetables are tender and chicken juices run clear, stirring vegetables occasionally.

Yield: 4 servings (We got 6 out of it!)

We also had asparagus -- my favorite and it can be cooked 100 ways-- and cooked carrots (I boiled them and then put them in a skillet with butter, covered, and let them simmer---they were GREAT!) We covered all of it (veggies and chicken) with hollandaise sauce (which came in an envelope packet & was definitely necessary!)