Sunday was going to be hurried, jam-packed, and a little tiring. But, we knew we still wanted to have our Sunday night dinner since we’d be together. So, that’s where a couple hours on a rainy Saturday come in handy! A little preparation can go a long way! This is true in many important things in life. Today, we are just going to talk about Sunday Dinner. Obviously, there are certain things that are easier to do ahead of time than others. We had a hankering for chicken parm and thankfully it’s one of the better things to prep ahead.
C loves his chicken parm flattened out, so he got out the mallet and went to work. I worked on the breadcrumb mixture. I use an Italian Seasoning one and then add some of my own herbs to it. For the typical mix I usually add some salt and pepper, basil, oregano, parsley, red pepper flakes, and grated cheese. If I am in a hurry I will just do garlic salt (then a little less regular salt). But, since this was for Sunday dinner- I got out the garlic press. It is a little extra work, but when you get a nice little crispy bit of garlic on your chicken, it totally makes it worth it! That all gets combined and then you crack an egg and mix with a little milk in another bowl for the wet ingredients.
Chicken cutlet prep
We breaded and fried our chicken cutlets. The house smelled so good! We set the chicken aside on a baking rack to cool a little and get some of the oil off. Then we stored that away at that point for the next day. The most time consuming part was done! A little preparation can go a long way!
chicken cutlet
When C left to go back to work I worked on the gravy and broccolini side. I dropped a several garlic cloves in to almost boiling water and let them cook for a little so they wouldn’t burn when I sautéed them with the broccolini. I used that same water and threw the veg itself in there for about 4 minutes or so to soften. Then, I rinsed with cold water and put aside to drain.
garlic and oil
Next up…more garlic! I began sautéing the softened garlic in some olive oil. Honestly, does anything smell better than olive oil and garlic?? After a minute or so I added the broccolini. I turned down the heat a bit and let it cook away. Be sure to add salt, pepper, and fresh basil. It makes such a difference!
broccolini
Only thing left to do was the gravy. Again, more garlic in olive oil. I was just squishing the tomatoes with my hand to keep the gravy a little chunky. When I do that (as opposed to using the burr mixer), I make sure to cut the garlic smaller since I won’t be blending it. After the garlic just started to smell, I started squeezing the tomatoes (we use canned San Marzano whole tomatoes) directly in to the pot. I added the herbs, parsley, basil, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper and let it cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes or so then let it simmer for a little. I knew we’d simmer it for a bit Sunday too.
gravy
Once everything cooled, we stored it to finish the next day. Unfortunately we forgot to take finished pictures on Sunday…too hungry I guess! But, just take a look at our Instagram, we have plenty of chicken parm pictures there! 😉 With a little planning ahead of time, we were still able to enjoy a comforting Sunday night dinner when we were pressed for time. A little preparation can go a long way!
Cheers!