Dinner and a Movie

Dinner at 6:00! The menu, a creamy gorgonzola sauce over fettuccine mixed with vegetables, cheese and mustard coated baked chicken thighs, tossed green salad, rosemary and olive bread, and for dessert - ice cream. The ingredients are ready and recipe handy - I'm ready to start cooking!

The table is set.

A salad of assorted fresh greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumber chunks and red onions is tossed together and chilled.



In olive oil, I stir fry garlic, red peppers, red onions, asparagus and green beans until the vegetables are tender.



Adding the artichoke hearts and cherry tomatoes, I continue to cook the vegetables for a few minutes longer.


Melting butter in a pan, I wisk in flour and cook for a few minutes until it is thick and bubbly. I whisk in a little vegetable broth and a couple of cups of milk, cooking until the sauce thickens.


Then, gorgonzola cheese is crumbled and added to the sauce. I continue to cook and stir until the cheese has melted and the sauce is once again creamy and gently bubbling.

Next, I prepare the chicken.

I wisk together melted butter and a little mustard to coat the chicken pieces, then roll them in flour and sprinkle with a little pepper and parsley.

Once the chicken is placed in the pan, I sprinkle some grated parmessan cheese on the top of each piece.


Baking at 400F degrees, the chicken smells absolutely wonderful and is crisp and beautifully browned once done only 45 minutes later. That seemed just a little too easy!


After cooking the fettuccine, it is drained and mixed with the cooked vegetables. Piled onto a serving platter, the gorgonzola sauce is poured over the top of it all, then sprinkled with a little grated parmessan cheese. It is ready to serve!


The rosemary and olive bread, having been warmed in the oven, is ready to serve with the meal. What a great combination of flavors!

After dinner, it is movie time.

And time to enjoy spoonfulls of dessert!

The movie, Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School, has a great line up of actors - Robert Carlyle, Marisa Tomei, Mary Steenburgen, Sean Astin, Donnie Wahlberg, Danny DeVito, and John Goodman. An absolutely great movie with a heart warming story line and excellent acting! Definitely a must see!

Later, looking at the task of cleanup, it does not seem too daunting as I know I will be able to enjoy the leftovers from this wonderful meal for several days to come.

Yum!

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Favorite Quotes from the Movie

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"Dance is a very powerful drug. If embraced judiciously, it can exorcise demons, access deep seated emotions and color your life in joyous shades of brilliant magenta that you never knew existed. But, one must shoulder its challenges with intrepid countenance if one is ever to reap its rewards."

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"What color is magenta?"

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"When destiny leads, love follows."

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