"Melt in Your Mouth Chicken"

Because I often buy chicken breasts in bulk from my local discount warehouse store, I'm always on the lookout for a good weeknight chicken recipe. I've seen the "Melt in your Mouth" chicken recipe all over Pinterest and thought it would be a good recipe to test out early on the blog and, if it was great, might even become a staple meal for our house.

I'll start with the basics on this one...
Link to Pin: http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966383239617/
Link to Actual Recipe*: http://www.food.com/recipe/melt-in-your-mouth-chicken-breast-37336

melt in your mouth chicken breast: 
1/2 c parmesan cheese
1 c greek yogurt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp pepper
spread mix over chicken breasts, bake at 375 for 45 mins

*It should be noted that Pin recipe calls for nonfat greek yogurt where the actual recipe calls for mayonnaise. I followed the pin instructions and used the yogurt.

Accuracy of Recipe- 4
I think this dish could be greatly improved by using less salt/season salt and reducing the cook time. I followed the recipe and my chicken was dry and overdone and very salty.
Ingredient Availability-9
I like that it used very few ingredients and none were rare or hard to find.
Ease on the Waist Line-7
The use of the non-fat yogurt really lightens up this dish from the mayo version. Also, the quantity of cheese used is very reasonable so I would guess this is a somewhat low-cal dish.
Prep Mess-8
I mixed all ingredients and coated the chicken in a ziploc bag so my cleanup was just tossing the bag and cleaning my casserole dish.
Overall Difficulty-EASY
The prep time for this was less than 5 minutes. Super easy weeknight option
Overall Taste- 5
Like I said, could have been greatly improved by a shorter cook time and less salt
Hubby Rates It-5
He expressed that it had potential but missed the mark
Ease of Clean Up-8

I would be willing to try this recipe again but it definitely needs some work.
MY SUGGESTIONS:
Reduce season salt to 1tsp
Reduce cook time to 30-35 minutes (maybe 25 if using thin chicken breasts). Check chicken for done-ness after 30 mins by cutting through the thickest part of the meat and making sure it is cooked through. Also, mix all ingredients in a ziploc bag and throw in chicken to coat. Transfer to your baking dish, then spread remaining mixture on top (pics below)

Ready for the oven

I served this with Roasted Okra and Kale Salad with Maple Poppyseed Dressing...reviews of these recipes coming soon!

Cini Minis

In light of my introduction, I thought my first official test kitchen post should be about this morning's Cini Mini recipe! I'll rate each recipe on a scale of 1-10 (1 being the worst, 10 being the best) in the following categories:
Accuracy of Recipe
Ingredient Availability (easy to find/normally on-hand ingredients vs. hard to find specialty items)
Ease on the Waist Line
Prep Mess
Overall Difficulty
Overall Taste
Hubby Rates It
Ease of Clean Up

I'll also include some pics of how my recipe turned out, tips and observations on the overall process, and whether or not I would do it again...Please feel free to request any additional ratings/categories you'd like for me to provide and report on! This blog is intended to be helpful to you so let me know what you want to hear from the test kitchen!

Cini Minis
Link to the pin: http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966381966115/
Link to the actual recipe:http://lifestooshorttoskipdessert.blogspot.com/2010/12/mini-cinnies-bite-sized-cinnamon-rolls.html

Mini Cinnies - Bite Sized Cinnamon Rolls (adapted fromYou Made That?)

Recipe:

Ingredients

1 can of Pillsbury crescent rolls

4 T brown sugar

1 t cinnamon

1 T butter

1 T flour

1/2 C powdered sugar

2 t milk

Directions:

Use half of package at a time so the dough stays cold.

In a small bowl mix together a tablespoon of slightly melted butter, cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour. Open crescent rolls, take half of dough and separate at the vertical seams. Press the diagonal seams of dough together so that the dough is smooth. Spoon half of the cinnamon mixture onto dough, roll short side up then continue with the remainding dough. Cut 2 inch slices and place all the rolls on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

When rolls have cooled, mix powdered sugar with  milk. Add more sugar/milk to get frosting to the consistency of your liking. Drizzle the sugar over the rolls then let dry. 

Accuracy of Recipe- 10
I followed this recipe exactly and thought the proportions of everything were right on.
Ingredient Availability-10
I had everything I needed for this on-hand without a special trip to the grocery store.
Ease on the Waist Line-4
They get a few points in this category b/c they are super small portions...but then again, I ate about 10 so that negates that! Definitely an indulgent breakfast treat...not recommended for everyday consumption!
Prep Mess-6
I used the same cookie sheet for prep that I baked on and 2 small mixing bowls.
Overall Difficulty-EASY
If you own an oven and a cookie sheet, you should be able to do this.
Overall Taste- 8
These were pretty good sweet, gooey treats for a Saturday brunch!
Hubby Rates It-7.5
His exact words were "If a 7 is what I was expecting it to taste like, it was a little better than that."
Ease of Clean Up-4
These were truly sticky buns and stuck big time to the cookie sheet. Also, I drizzled the icing while they were still on the cookie sheet and had a big sticky mess to deal with. I had to soak the cookie sheet for awhile to get it cleaned up. To prevent this in the future, I would have covered my cookie sheet with tin foil before starting the process. Would have made the clean up a lot easier!!

The dough separated into rectangles, smeared with cinnamon mixture

Rolled it up into long rolls (see right) then sliced it with a knife

Baked exactly 10 minutes- next time I might reduce a little because I like them gooey!

Served with scrambled eggs (made our favorite way with a little Tony's Cajun Seasoning mixed in before cooking) and, of course, milk to wash it down!

Case in point, this was my cookie sheet after the fact! Cover with foil before you start and spray with a little cooking spray and it will greatly reduce the mess and clean up time!

I would love to hear what Pinterest recipes you want to see reviewed and hear your feedback on the categories! Until next time...Happy Pinning!