Italian Herb Chicken & Rice

Today we had a miracle in our home and I had to document it. We had Italian Herb Chicken, Nice Rice, homemade oven baked french fries, and orange jello with whipped topping on it for dinner. (A lettuce salad would have been a nice addition as well.) Paige ate everything and asked for a cookbook of her own to record her favorite recipes. And she wanted to include the chicken and rice recipes from dinner!!! So here they are if you'd like to try them. I made enough chicken that I'm looking forward to using it in the Chicken Caesar Salad Pizza I put in the newsletter a year or so ago.

ITALIAN HERB CHICKEN

1/2 cup Miracle Whip Salad Dressing
1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 1/4 lbs)

Mix salad dressing and seasonings. (I pounded out my chicken so it was thin because I wanted it to cook quicker and my chicken breasts were gigantic. [I almost left the second "chicken" out of the previous sentence, but knew I'd get some comments from my astute family.]) Brush chicken with half of salad dressing mixture. Place chicken on grill over medium-hot coals or rack of broiler pan. Grill or broil for 8 to 10 minutes. Turn; brush with remaining salad dressing mixture. Continue grilling or broiling 8 to 10 minutes or until tender. Makes 4 servings.

NICE RICE

1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
2 cups water (though it may need more because my rice was still a little chewy, but the water was all soaked up)
1 Tbsp. instant chicken bouillon (or 3 cubes)
1 cup long grain rice

Put the butter and water in a 3-qt microwave-safe casserole. Microwave uncovered on 100% power for 5 minutes until boiling. Stir in the bouillon and rice. Cover with a lid or vented plastic wrap. Microwave on 100% power for 3 1/2 minutes. Stir. Microwave covered for 12-14 minutes more at 50% power stirring once or twice until moisture is absorbed. Allow 5 minutes standing time. (I just had the thought that this might cook up easier if I just did it like I normally do rice on the stovetop. Then I might not need the extra water. What a concept.)