1 Dish, 1 Hour Chicken Dinner

Follow my blog with Bloglovin While I have seen this recipe floating around Pinterest and Facebook, I was first introduced to it by my best friend. She made it for me last year and since then I have made it several times. The pictures that I have are actually some she took when she made it for lunch one day so that I could use the recipe here. It is one of the simplest and most delicious quick dinners. Who doesn't love a meal that only uses one pan? Hello easy clean up.

May I present to you 1 Dish, 1 Hour Chicken Dinner.

One of the great things about this recipe is how easy it is to set you to make. It only takes a few ingredients (most of which we had at the house) and is so versatile that you can change stuff up and make it completely different.

Ingredients: 

Boneless, Skinless Chicken- to fill you pan, I think we used about 10 of the small pieces. 

Vegetables of your choice- we used red potatoes, carrots, and green beans

Butter- one stick

Dry Dressing packet- we used Ranch dressing but Italian is good too

How to make it: 

Take your chicken and lay it in a pan like this. We used a casserole pan so that everything would fit in it. You want your chicken to be completely thawed out for the best results. 

Next, open your cans of vegetables  and cut your potatoes if you need to. We used red potatoes and just cut them in quarters. 

Next is the fun part, making it all fit in the pan. Put them all of either side of the chicken. And if it gets on top of the chicken, that is fine. It won't hurt it, I promise. 

Now, you have two options with the butter and dressing packet. You can either melt the butter, mix with the dressing and pour over the chicken and vegetables, or you can cut the butter into small slices and lay over the food and sprinkle the dressing onto that. I typically melt the butter so that I get a more even spread, but it doesn't matter which way you do it. 

Once you have the dressing on the chicken and vegetables, just put it in the oven at 350 for 1 hour. 

Your whole house will smell great while it is cooking and after an hour, take it out. The chicken should be fully cooked through (if it isn't you can put it back in the oven for a few minutes). Serve it up on some plates and enjoy. It also saves very well to make as left overs for the rest of the week. 

Deliciousness- 10/10: This is one of my favorite go-to recipes because it is so good

Easiness- 10/10: just put it in a pan and in the oven
Affordability- 9/10: Anything with meat can get expensive, but considering how many meals you can make out of one pan (if you are feeding yourself or friends and family) it is very cost effective.
College Friendliness- 10/10: This is something that is great for when friends come over or we have a house dinner with my roommates. It is simple to make and feeds a lot of people with a little cost. 

Does anyone else have a go-to quick dinner recipe I should try? What was your favorite meal in college?

Stay hungry my friends,

Felecia

Dear Trojan Football

Dear Trojan Football,
Last night we lost a football game. I say we and not you because I am in the band and the Sound of the South is there fighting for you the whole time. We cheer and play from early in the morning to after the score board is turned off. The band is your biggest supporters and last night, after a devastating loss to a team in a lower conference, we felt the loss as well.

During Trojan Walk, when the football team is walking to the stadium through a tunnel of band members, students, fans and supporters, many of the football team walks through on their phones and listening to their music. But the biggest look we get is one of complete and utter boredom. Football players, please understand that we are there for you. We get out there, in our full uniform (which includes a thick jacket, pants, and helmet) to cheer you on and pep you up before a football game. So please, show a little excitement. Why not at least get a little excited if you're about to go play a football game, which is suppose to be your main goal on a Saturday? Sing the fight song with us, clap your hands, get pumped up. Who knows it might surprise you that it can be fun and you might even play better.

Now with all of that being said, it probably sounds like I hate my football team, but that is not true at all. I love my Trojans and am proud to go to Troy University, even if I get frustrated with the players. But I want to say thank you to #31, Tyler Parker.

He was the only player, and the only player in my four years of Troy football, to come over and stand and cheer with the band and students when we played the fight song after a game we lost. So thank you for restoring my faith in the Trojan football team by reminding me that at least one of you care and appreciate what we as fans and a band do. I got on Facebook last night expected to see a verity of posts about "how awful the Trojans played" or "how terrible of a team we are" and while there were those posts sprinkled throughout my news feed, the most common thing I saw was a thank you to #31. A number who I didn't recognize, but we all soon learned his name and now say thank you by name.

Photo Credit: Doug Dobos

This picture has been the biggest statement of last night with over 100 shares on Facebook from the original source alone. Here is a football player, who ran the other way from his team and came to acknowledge the band and the few students who were still there after the game. Yes it had been a long game with two lightning delays and yes we lost but this lone Trojan came to show his appreciation for those who were still there and this brought a band of over 300 people to a very emotional state. You sir, brought us all the reminder of what being a Trojan is all about.

The words to our fight song we sing before every game when the team walks through Trojan Walk, during pregame, when the team scores, and win or loose at the end of the game says "We are Trojans one and all." Thank you for demonstrating this last night. As it has been said over and over on Facebook and other social media outlets, you have over 300 new supporters, fans, and friends.

I want to challenge the rest of our football team to follow suite of Tyler Parker and remember the words to the fight song and strive to be a true Trojan. Strive to be a Trojan family, win or loose. And as Tyler Parker said himself to a member of the band who expressed her gratitude, what he did should "be the expectation not the exception."

5 Things Required in a College Students Kitchen

When a student goes to college, especially when said student moves into an apartment, there are certain things that are essential for survival. While some students love to cook, not everyone does, and there are some things that make life easier for any college student, regardless of how they feel about cooking. So today I am looking at the 5 Things Required in a College Students Kitchen. I had a list in my mind but I decided to go to Facebook and ask my friends because hey, we're all a bunch of hungry college kids. So here is the list (not in any particular order) 1. A Coffee Pot/Maker: In my apartment we have a Keurig and we LOVE it. It is perfect for a house of a bunch of different people. It is a single serve coffee maker so I don't waste coffee by making a whole pot because I only make what I am going to drink. Another high point of it is that because of the ability to make only 1 cup at a time, you can make different types of coffee or drinks. Keurigs can make tea, hot chocolate, coffee or basically anything else. But in general, coffee is an important staple in a college student’s life. It is what keeps you going when you spend late nights studying or pinteresting.

2. George Foreman Grill: This is something that I haven't used that much in college but I have friends who use them all the time. They are beneficial if you want to make a quick grilled cheese sandwich or a burger, and most schools allow small George Foreman Grills in dorms. The best part; this little thing is quick to clean, because no one likes to clean a lot of dishes.

3. Microwave: A microwave might seem like a standard thing for an apartment but sometimes you don't realize a great thing until you are without it. Especially for students stuck in a dorm. It is the fastest way to cook something and it is in my opinion one of the most versatile things that you can have. I mean this thing can cook popcorn, defrost chicken, or make macaroni and cheese!

4. Crock-pot/Slow Cooker: Once the weather starts to cool off, and the fall semester is in full swing, nothing is better than being able to put something in a crock-pot in the morning and then go to class, come home and everything be ready to eat. That is the major benefit of a slow cooker. You can cook soup, a roast, or even a cake. And again, the convenience of a crock-pot is amazing.

**Tip for using one: invest in the crock-pot liners. They are about $2 at Wal-Mart and make clean up even easier!**

5. Food: Now this might really seem like a crazy thing to put on here because I mean you have to have food to eat, but that’s the problem. A lot of times people forget that food actually has to be bought to be eaten. Some of the foods that were mentioned by my friends were ravioli, chocolate, cereal, and peanut butter. (Well the peanut butter isn’t in my house, but everyone else has some).

And an extra one in honor of Justin and Andrew: drugs, the legal kind. Things like Advil or Tylenol, fiber pills, or Vitamin C powder. Things like this are important to keep you healthy during the stressful times and the changes in the seasons when everyone seems to get sick.

 So with that, what are some things that you think are important for a college student to have in their kitchen? What was your favorite thing in college to use to make/eat food? I would love to hear from you!

Stay Hungry my friends,
Felecia