Ok, Toph LOVES this chicken recipe. He BEGS for it often, and he's even willing to eat it cold for lunch. I figured I'd post the recipe so that everyone can enjoy it. I make a TON when I make it, and then we eat it all week--either as leftovers or in other dishes. Makes a smokin' great chicken salad for sandwiches. Also excellent in a quesadilla. Enjoy!
Parmesan Chicken
12-16 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 4 c. bread crumbs (FRESH only)
1 ½ c. parmesan cheese (or less) ½ c. parsley flakes (fresh or dried)
2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Pepper 1 ½ c. melted butter (or WAY less)
Directions: Bread crumbs: MUST be from fresh bread. Save crusts in freezer until ready to make crumbs, or use from the loaf. Combinations with some sourdough bread give the best flavor (Maree prefers 1:1 ratio of sourdough:wheat bread—good color). Make bread crumbs in a food processor. Leftover crumbs CAN be saved in a ziplock in the freezer—even after the chicken has been in them. Just make sure you COOK them before eating. :-)
Mix bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl or ziplock baggie. Dip each piece of chicken in melted butter and then dip into bread crumbs—pressing into crumbs to get them to stick. Arrange pieces so that they don't overlap in a shallow baking dish—cookie sheet with sides. Can pour on left-over melted butter (Maree doesn't). Bake at 375 for 1 hour—check periodically and pull from the oven when the first piece is done. If you're using smaller pieces (breast tenders), cook a shorter time--start checking after 30 minutes.
Variations: about 10 minutes before chicken is finished cooking, spoon some spaghetti sauce over the chicken, add some mozzarella cheese and continue baking until done.
*******It is very important to try to make all of the chicken pieces close to the same size, so that they cook at an even rate. Dry chicken is yucky, so watch it and get it out of the oven when it's done.
**Don't have to use that much chicken—just save bread crumbs in a ziplock baggie in the freezer until you want to make it again.
Leftover chicken: You can use leftover chicken in chicken salad, or re-heat it and use it with the spaghetti sauce and mozzarella over noodles for another meal.
Homemade Rice Pilaf
2 c. rice
Vermicelli or Orzo pasta (vermicelli broken into pieces)--as much as you like
½ c. butter (or less)
5 c. chicken broth**
**Chicken broth: can use powdered or canned. Powdered is more convenient and much cheaper. Prefer KNORR brand, “caldo de pollo.” It is found on the Mexican food aisle or with the soups. Use 2 tsp. Per cup of water.
Directions: Melt butter over medium heat in large saucepan. Brown pasta in melted butter and add rice when pasta starts to brown. Add chicken broth, stirring well. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer and cook 25 minutes, until all liquid is absorbed.
***Fat note, both recipes: You CAN successfully use less—up to 1/2—butter than the recipe calls for.
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