So I have always believed in the motto: Go Big or Go Home. Therefore I decided that we were not going to start off Daniel's cooking lessons with some easier than pie recipe (no pun intended). So no, we did not start with a soup or a salad, but a full fledged, fill your tummy, and still want to eat more kind of dish. And of course mashed potatoes were involved, because they are the epitome of comfort foods (indulgent memories of mom's home-cooking). So below is one of my fav GO TO meals. Because I usually have most of these items in my fridge/freezer/cupboards. If you don't have a CAN of crushed tomatoes but have a ton of regular tomatoes, go ahead and dice those bad boys up, add some white onion, and any italian type spices you want and you can pull off the same effect. In fact I often make myself JUST the chicken and have it with a salad, or a quick side of pasta. Definitely parts of this meal are do-able as single serving. Also for my vegetarian friends out there, this can easily be done with thick cuts of egg plant or zucchini. Think of this meal as a much simpler version of a chicken or eggplant parmagiana. As for what wine pairs well with this meal. With the bold flavors of the tomato sauce and cheese, I would definitely drink/serve a red. However a lighter cab or pinot noir would definitely be one of my first choices.
COOKING TIP: buy your chicken breasts in bulk. Then clean them and put them individually into ziploc sandwich bags. You can then freeze them. This way you can thaw out JUST one, or as many as you will need to serve a crowd!
Italian Breaded Chicken
(Paired with Mashed potatoes, baby carrots, and garlic bread)
Ingredients
(pre-heat your oven to 325 F)
• 3 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
• fresh basil (1/3 of cup) or 3 tblsp dried basil/Italian seasoning
• 6 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1 small white or yellow onion (chopped fine)
• shredded mozzarella (8 or 16 oz bag)
• Italian breadcrumbs
• Flour
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups milk
• Olive Oil
• Red skin or Yukon gold potatoes
• 1 french baguette
• 1 x 8oz block of cream cheese
• salt and pepper
• garlic powder
• baby carrots
• 3 sticks of butter or margarine
• seasoning salt or Creole seasoning
1. Place can of tomatoes in a saucepot on low heat. Add your garlic, basil, and onion. Let simmer, stirring occasionally. Salt and pepper to taste.
2. In large pot, wash and cut up all your potatoes. Completely cover them with water, and bring them up to a boil (cover pot). Once they boil turn on low to simmer. Check them after 20-30 minutes with fork to see if they are tender enough. If tender dump out as much water as possible. Place back on stove over LOW heat. Add 1 stick of butter/margarine, and the cream cheese. Use handheld mixer to whip them. Add your seasoning salt and pepper to taste!
3. Put 1 stick of butter into pot (large enough to hold all your carrots). Melt butter on low heat. Add carrots and some dried basil. Cover and steam carrots til tender (mix occasionally to get carrots off the bottom).
4. While potatoes and carrots are cooking….Filet the chicken breasts so you have 6 breasts in total. If they still look sort of thick use a meat mallet to thin out.
5. In medium size bowl (or pie plate) mix together flour and breadcrumbs in a 1:2 ratio (1 cup of flour for every 2 cups of bread crumbs)…season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. In another medium size bowl scramble 2 eggs with 2 cups of milk.
7. Take a chicken breast and dip it in the egg/milk, then thoroughly dredge in the flour/breadcrumbs. Dip into egg/milk again, and coat with the flour breadcrumb mixture. Set to the side on a dry surface and finish the rest of the chicken the same way (do not lay chicken on top of each other).
8. In large frying pan add enough olive oil to coat bottom. Bring up to medium/high heat. Place two chicken breasts in pan, fry until nice and crispy brown on both sides. Then place to the side on cookie sheet. Finish the rest of the chicken in the same fashion. (add more olive oil to pan if seems necessary)
9. Place cookie sheet with chicken in preheated 325 degree oven for about 30 minutes.
10. Cut your baguette lengthwise (like making a sandwich). Take 1 stick of butter, bring to room temp so pliable or slightly heat in microwave. Mix in 1 tblsp garlic powder, 1 tblsp dried or fresh basil, pepper, and salt to taste. Spread evenly on both sides of open-faced bread. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese. Place in oven with chicken til mozz is melted and desired crustiness.
11. Once chicken is cooked all the way through, add enough of the marinara sauce to cover the top. Then add shredded mozzarella. BROIL chicken till cheese is bubbly and slightly brown.
12. Serve mashed potatoes with marinara sauce as the ‘gravy’.
COOKING TIP: by adding the cream cheese to your potatoes, not only will it cut down on the soupiness that sour cream/milk causes, but these potatoes will be just as delish and creamy the following day. In fact I have made these a day a head for a party, and simply reheated them in the oven!
So it may seem a lil more costly if you have to buy EVERYTHING on the list of ingredients, however if you are like me, you should have the dry spices, flour, breadcrumbs, and often even the chicken hiding in your cupboards, fridge, or freezer. This meal in itself is meant to feed AT LEAST 6 people. I guarantee that in the long run, in terms of how many other meals you will get out of this instead of eating lunch out or ordering in dinner, it is WELL worth it!
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