Parmesan Chicken

I love cheese and parmesan cheese is one of my favorites. So, when I found this recipe by Barefoot Contessa on the food network for parmesan chicken, I had to save it immediately. Tonight was the night for it to tempt my tastebuds. It was so moist and I loved the yummy goodness. I have become a master at making dinner in about 30 minutes and tonight I didn't let myself down. The only flaw -- and it's a big one -- I forgot to take a photo. I was so impressed with myself that I had dinner on the table in exactly 30 minutes from the time I walked in the door, I completely forgot. Don't let my lack of photo stop you, go make this recipe.


P.S. I will say it again, I am in love with Barefoot Contessa.


Parmesan Chicken
4 to 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 extra-large eggs
1 tablespoon water
1 1/4 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
Unsalted butter
Good olive oil

Pound the chicken breasts until they are 1/4-inch thick. You can use either a meat mallet or a rolling pin.

Combine the flour, salt, and pepper on a dinner plate. On a second plate, beat the eggs with 1 tablespoon of water. On a third plate, combine the bread crumbs and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Coat the chicken breasts on both sides with the flour mixture, then dip both sides into the egg mixture and dredge both sides in the bread-crumb mixture, pressing lightly.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan and cook 2 or 3 chicken breasts on medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Add more butter and oil and cook the rest of the chicken breasts. Serve with extra grated Parmesan.

Dijon Chicken in a Skillet

Awesome. Easy. Yum.

I frequent a board on the Nest called What's Cooking. It's a really fun board, lots of fantastic bloggers and a wealth of information. There's great camaraderie among these ladies and I enjoy visiting it every night. Lauren recently hosted a recipe exchange and I quickly jumped on board. The only requirement was that the dish had to be simple. On Saturday, I received my recipe to try, and boy was it good. My husband is often a picky eater but he cleaned his plate tonight. Yea!

I can't wait to find out what nestie submitted the recipe so I can thank them for a new favorite.

Dijon Chicken in a Skillet

1/4 c prepared ranch dressing

1 T Dijon mustard

4 boneless chicken breasts halves

2 Tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter

3 Tablespoons white wine or chicken broth

In bowl combine dressing and mustard and set aside. In skillet cook chicken in butter and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add wine/broth and simmer another 20 minutes. Whisk in mustard/dressing mixture until blend with liquid in skillet and heated through. Serve over rice.

Baked Chicken Breasts with Parmesan Garlic Crust

I am always on the lookout for yummy recipes that look like they will be easy to make. I hit the jackpot with this one, thanks to Made by Melissa. I love Parmesan cheese and garlic. Mix the two and I am in heaven. This recipe is incredibly simple and according to Melissa, it is from America's Test Kitchen.

Sorry about the crazy photo that doesn't look so good. My little one hurt himself, wouldn't leave my side and I realized I hadn't taken a picture as I was putting the last bite in my mouth. This was still in the baking dish, so I took a quick photo. It is now in the fridge waiting to be devoured tomorrow. Yum yum. Enjoy.

Baked Chicken Breasts with Parmesan Garlic Crust

1 cup bread crumbs, preferably fresh (see note) (I used Panko)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
Pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds), trimmed
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
1/4 cup mayo (I used light mayo)
Lemon wedges for serving (optional)

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan, garlic, oil, salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl.Pat chicken dry with paper towels and transfer to 9×13-inch baking dish.

Combine basil and mayonnaise in small bowl and spread mixture evenly over chicken. Sprinkle bread crumb mixture over mayonnaise, pressing lightly to adhere.Bake until crumbs are golden brown and instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of chicken registers 160 degrees, 18-22 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

Note: To make fresh bread crumbs, process 2 slices of hearty white sandwich bread in a food processor until coarsely ground.

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

I heart garlic. So, imagine my delight when I found a recipe that uses 40 cloves. Woo Wee. It was really easy to make and delicious. I was in a hurry which isn't good for this recipe. Peeling 40 cloves of garlic ain't something you can do in seconds. There are a lot of variations out there, but I used one from the Food Network. Sorry, that there aren't any pictures...I did mention that I was in a hurry when I was making this, right?

Hurry + hunger = no pictures (I completely forgot).

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
40 unpeeled cloves of garlic ( 3 heads)
3 1/2 pound chicken
Salt and pepper
Softened butter
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup chicken stock
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Lemon juice, to taste
Chopped parsley, for garnish

In a saucepan blanch garlic cloves in boiling water to cover for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and peel. Sprinkle chicken inside and out with salt and pepper. Rub outside of chicken with butter and truss. Spread a flameproof baking dish with softened butter and arrange the chicken on 1 side. Roast in lower third of a preheated 425 degree for 10 minutes. Turn and roast, on the other side, basting, for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 375, turn breast side up and add garlic. Roast for 20 minutes more, or until juices run clear. Transfer chicken to platter stand for 5 minutes, remove truss strings. Transfer garlic to platter. Keep warm covered.

Add 1/2 cup wine to pan and deglaze. Pour into saucepan and reduce to 2 tablespoons. Add 1 cup chicken stock and reduce to 1/2 cup. Remove pan from heat and swirl in tablespoons softened unsalted butter and add lemon juice to taste. Garnish with parsley.

Crispy Yogurt Chicken

The Pioneer Woman is amazing. I haven't tried a recipe of hers that I don't like. That's the case with Crispy Yogurt Chicken. It has been in my reader for a while and it seems like every food blog out there has already tried it. So, tonight was the night that our taste buds had the opportunity to determine for ourselves if it was all that. My friends, it was. So moist, so crispy, so delicious. It took me five minutes to make it and ya'll know how much I love anything that's easy to make. My only hint: cook it a little longer than an hour to achieve extra crispy delight.

Crispy Yogurt Chicken

1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken thighs
2 cups plain, unflavored yogurt
2 cloves garlic, minced
Parsley
1 lemon juice
Kosher Salt
Butter
1 ½ cups Panko bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 350. Coat baking dish with butter. Combine the yogurt, garlic, and parsley in a bowl; mix well. Add the lemon juice.

Rinse the chicken, and salt it well. Pour Panko breadcrumbs into a second bowl and season with salt. Dip chicken into yogurt and coat it well. Place chicken in bread crumbs and roll around to coat thoroughly. Place in the baking dish.

Place a slice of butter over the large part of the chicken so the bread crumbs don't get dry. Cover in foil. Bake for 1 hour, removing foil for the last 15 minutes so the chicken gets brown and crispy.

Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss

When you see a recipe on three different blogs, you know it must be good. That's the case with Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss. It was everywhere -- Melissa, Lauren and Brooke (fellow Nestie's) all raved about it. So because I am no dummy, I had to try it. Let me tell you -- I made it in 20 minutes flat which was a good thing since I walked in 30 minutes past my normal arrival time. I thought it was good (I added too much lemon, so a tad bit tangy) and I think if my husband was in a better mood, he might have enjoyed it more. That's another story (didn't bother to call him to mention I was running late, he was having a horrible day, combined with a toddler who was having tantrums... you get the idea). Anyway, I'm gonna try and wow him again with it since I consider it a keeper.

Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 1/3 pounds chicken breast tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white wine
1 lemon, juiced
1 cup chicken broth or stock
3 tablespoons capers, drained

1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 pound penne rigate pasta, cooked to al dente
Chopped or snipped chives, for garnish

Heat a deep nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of EVOO and the chicken to the pan. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken until lightly golden all over, about 5-6 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and return the skillet to the heat.

Reduce heat to medium. Add another tablespoon EVOO and one tablespoon butter, the garlic and shallots to the skillet. Sauté garlic and shallots three minutes. Add flour and cook two minutes. Whisk in wine and reduce liquid one minute. Whisk lemon juice and broth into sauce. Stir in capers and parsley. When the liquid comes to a bubble, add remaining 1/2 tablespoon butter to the sauce to give it a little shine.

Add chicken back to the pan and heat through, 1-2 minutes. Toss hot pasta with chicken and sauce and serve. Adjust salt and pepper, to your taste. Top with fresh snipped chives.

Finger Lickin' Chicken Drumettes

OMG! I discovered this great recipe on Stephanie's Kitchen about a week ago, realized I haven't made chicken drumettes before and decided to try it out. Let's just say, I have no idea why it never occurred to me to make chicken wings before. It was incredibly easy -- my toddler even helped me make it -- and it only took a few minutes to mix the ingredients, baste the chicken and into the oven they went. My only regret is that I didn't buy a lot of drumettes -- three for me, one for my son and six for my husband. Never fear, I have learned a valuable lesson -- it won't happen again.

Side note: Check out Stephanie's blog. I have no idea how I discovered it, but it is now a favorite. I even added it to my side bar.

Brown Sugar Barbeque Chicken Drumettes

1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
course salt and black pepper
2 pounds chicken drumettes, patted dry

In a medium bowl, whisk together ketchup, sugar, worcestershire, and vinegar; season with salt and pepper. Set aside 1/2 cup for tossing raw chicken; use rest for baked chicken.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place drumettes on baking sheets and toss with 1/2 cup sauce.
Bake chicken until opaque throughout, 20-25 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Toss baked drumettes with a little more sauce and serve the remaining sauce on the side.

Chicken & Rice Casserole

Bad day. No, horrible day. There weren't too many bright spots in the day. Thankfully, this is such an easy recipe to make that I prepared it last night. Yep, I actually made two dinners last night. So, tonight, despite my grumpiness, I didn't have to yell at the oven for not having dinner ready for me. Instead, I was able to give it some love and walk away. That's when my day got better.

Want an easy recipe that I promise will be gobbled up? If so, this one is for you...

Chicken and Rice Casserole

Uncle Ben's original long grain rice

4-6 deboned, skinned chicken breasts

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

Chicken broth

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Prepare the rice according to the directions on the box, with one slight change: I substitute 1 cup of chicken broth for the cup of water. Don't cook it as long as the box suggests since you are also going to cook it in the oven. Salt and pepper the chicken and saute in olive oil. Cut into bite size pieces. Mix the two soups with two cans of water (if condensed). In a casserole dish layer the rice, chicken, soup mixture. Repeat. Cook at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.