Oh, lawsie. It's been a while (again). You see, I had to do this thing called graduate.
And once I defended, a fog lifted. I started enjoying my life again, which is a weird feeling, y'all. I haven't enjoyed cooking (and most other normal things) for probably over 2 years. Graduate school will do that to the best of us: suck out the fun in life and replace it with misery and fear.
But, y'all aren't here to hear me whine or rejoice---you're here to get your grub on. Boy, do I have a treat for you!
I love eggplant parmesan, but it is a real pain in the rear to cook (the eggplant sweating, frying, blah blah). The taste, however, is to die for. The hubcap and I are trying to incorporate more healthy protein into our diet, and when I found the recipe for Skinnytaste's Baked Chicken Parmesan, I knew I had to give the recipe a shot.
This baked chicken parmesan is simple, fast and satisfying--what more could you ask for? I like to serve it with either a fresh garden salad or steamed broccoli--yum!
Baked Chicken Parmesan
(adapted from Skinnytaste's Baked Chicken Parmesan)
Serves 2
Ingredients:
2 large chicken breast filets, halved to make 4, thinner filets
2 Tbs butter, melted
1/4-1/3 c breadcrumbs or panko (I tried it both ways--I actually prefer the extra crunch of the panko!)
1/4 c grated parmesan cheese, divided
1/2-2/3 c pasta sauce (use as much as you like, really)
1/3 box of Barilla angel hair pasta
Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 450F. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Brush both sides of each breast filet with butter, then dip in the mixture of breadcrumbs and about 2-3 Tbs of parmesan cheese.
3. After assembling all of the chicken breasts onto the baking sheet, spray the top again lightly with cooking oil.
4. Bake for 450F for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, heat up the pasta sauce in a saucepan and cook the angel hair pasta per the package instructions (it cooks quicker than normal pasta--about 5 minutes in boiling water should do it!)
5. After 20 minutes, flip the chicken breasts over and add 1 spoonful of sauce and a dash of parmesan cheese on top. Bake at 450F for another 5 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and gooey.
6. Serve over a bed of angel hair pasta layered with a bit more sauce--and perhaps a bit more parmesan cheese on top if you're like me and adore parmesan (or, let's be honest, really any cheese that crosses your path).
Bon Appetit!