Hi Foodie!

DAD may have taken a break from blogging but he has not forgot about you. Let's make chicken parm.

 Long post. Click to continue.

Dad heats his oil to 350 F. The cast iron pan keeps the temperature from fluctuating too much. If after adding the chicken the oil temp drops below 300, it can make the chicken oily.

Dad usually puts the chicken into a gallon size Zip-Loc bag and beats it flat. This time though he did not. He just dipped it into flour, egg wash, and seasoned Panko. The breading is 2/3 breadcrumb to 1/3 Parmesan and seasoned with oregano, basil, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper.

Once breaded, it ready to fry. Dad doesn't let it sit around. The breading will become gluey. 

Too much above 350 F. the oil can begin to smoke. Below 300 F. and it becomes oil logged.

They will take some time to cook so Dad takes advantage to snap a picture of his two favorite ladies. 

At 160 F. Dad pulls the chicken. There is enough mass there to carryover to 165 F.

Dad then browned whole milk mozzarella and provolone on top. While heating up some red sauce. Dad just buys Classisco and runs it through the blender. He has found that making his own red sauce is time consuming and unfulfilling.  Classico is good, well good enough for the price he pays at the membership store.

Adorable

EJ needs a hug.

They are very empathetic to each other. Liesel will say, "That's okay." when he is upset. 

This morning EJ sneezed. She said, "Bless you." He replied, "Thank you." She followed with, "You're welcome." It was the cutest exchange. Where do they learn this stuff?

But pictures can be deceiving. What was happening above was actually a manipulation. Liesel wanted the toilet paper roll he was holding. He didn't want to let it go. So she grabbed his head and hugged him as an attempt to distract him so she could grab it from him. It didn't work.

"Quit Jumping on the ____________ (bed, couch, chair, choose one)"

SAYING "no" and "stop" or "quit" all of the time gets tiring so Dad wanted them to have an alternative. So they received a bouncer for Christmas.

Dad's Christmas Gift

DAD has a fondness for certain types of candy (especially when it is marked down for clearance). Grandma sent some along for Christmas. The kids got to them first. By the time Dad went to eat some, this is what he found,

Normally there are two trays of five cordials each. Dad was lucky to get two.

Sleeping Bags

GRANDMA gave EJ and Liesel sleeping bags for Christmas. So far the Twins seem happy with them.

Donna please let Heidi know that Dad is blogging again.