Day 15: Mommy-Daughter Dinner Date: Popcorn Chicken, Fries, Veggies

What a way to welcome Monday: found out that Randy would be working late and go right from his first job to his second, I had a meeting at school, and the roads were so horrible I almost go into 2 accidents (didn't, though!) and made it home an hour and a half later than usual.  Both kids needed baths, and Noah is still awake, fussing in his crib right now.  Welcome, Monday!

I was going to make carbonara for dinner, when I thought my husband would be home, but it didn't seem worth it for just Abby and me.  Not wanting to blog about serving cereal, I defrosted a chicken breast and used up the last of the frozen french fries in our freezer.  I love this meal for my toddler; it's fun, fast, and much more healthy than going out.

Here was the plan:
I started the fries in the oven on half a baking sheet. (400*)
I cubed the chicken breast and breaded it.  (To bread, I dip in a flour/salt/pepper mixture, then an egg wash, then in a bread crumb/parmesan cheese mixture.)
I took out the fries and added the "popcorn" chicken to the other half of the baking sheet.  They cooked for about 15 minutes.
I displayed 3 different dips: ketchup, barbeque sauce, and ranch dressing.  It makes it a little extra fun for her to pick her dip with each bite!
I'm lucky in that my daughter loves veggies, especially peas.  I keep a bag of frozen peas and corn in the freezer at all times.  I defrosted a little of both and served that with the chicken and fries.  We ate on the couch while watching her most recent video rental from the library. 

A fun date like that can really melt some stress away! :)