Don't be a chicken

I am fairly skittish when it comes to cooking chicken. I have a fear that my husband, whom I love dearly, will die a slow and painful death of salmonella poisoning. (That, or the chicken will be tough and rubbery and dry, which although not nearly as tragic as death-by-salmonella-poisoning, it runs a close second.) Thus, I usually steer clear of recipes that call for cooking chicken, roasting chicken, boiling chicken, and the like. Unless, of course, I can use the ever-popular rotisserie chicken, canned chicken, Purdue Shortcuts, or something of the like.

But y'all make me adventurous and want to live life on the edge.

Last week, I cooked us some chicken. And lived to tell about it. (Patrick is alive and well, too.)

I have to say, it was good. (My photo doesn't do it justice - it tasted much better than it looks. I need to work on my photography skills.)


Oven-Baked Chicken Parmesan
Recipe from goodthingscatered.blogspot.com
4 large chicken breasts (about 3 lbs.)
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
2 cups of bread crumbs (I used Panko bread crumbs)
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, finely chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups pomodoro/marinara sauce (make your own, defrost what you have or store bought is just as delicious)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Cooked pasta of your choice (I used spaghetti)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a shallow dish mix together egg and milk.
In separate shallow dish mix together bread crumbs, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, paprika, and salt.
Rinse and pat chicken breasts dry.
Pound to tenderize chicken breasts to about 1 inch thickness throughout.
Preheat olive oil in a oven proof skillet over medium heat.
Dip chicken breasts into egg/milk mixture and then cover in breadcrumb mixture.
Place coated chicken breast in hot oil and saute each side until lightly browned (about 1 minute per side).
Place skillet directly into oven.
When internal temperature of chicken reaches 160 degrees, carefully remove pan from oven and place a spoonfull of sauce and 1/4 of the cheese on top of each.
Place skillet back into the oven and bake until internal temperate reaches 170 degrees (about 15 minutes total).
Remove from oven and serve on top of pasta.