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Our two sons and their friends have repeatedly asked my husband and I to write a cookbook. We decided to create this blog instead as we thought that it would be fun to share with a wider audience.

Enjoy & hopefully you share our motto that "Cooking is fun" !!!

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Chicken Parmesan

You can substitute a jarred sauce for this recipe, but it won't taste like mine  :-)

Sauce:

1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup grated carrot
2    large cloves garlic
1    tablespoon each - basil, parsley, oregano & salt (mix all together in a little bowl)
1    28 oz can crushed tomatoes (Tuttorusso preferred)
1      8 oz can tomato sauce
2    tablespoons olive oil




Add the oil to a medium size pot and then add the onions and a pinch of salt.  Turn the heat to medium low and cook the onions until they are transparent about 5 mins.
Add the grated carrot and cook for  2 -3 minutes.  Peel and crush the garlic into the pot and cook until fragrant (do not brown the garlic).  Add the herbs and cook for 1 minute to release their oils.



Add the tomatoes and tomato sauce and stir to incorporate all the ingredients.  Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook for about 1 hour or so.  Stir every so often so that it does not stick to the bottom of the pot.


Chicken Parmesan

1 1/2 lbs chicken boneless chicken breasts
1       egg beaten with one tablespoon of water
1 1/2 cups Italian flavored breadcrumbs (4 C recommended)
6 oz  shredded 4 cheese pizza blend or mozzarella
vegetable or canola oil for frying

Trim all fat from the chicken breasts and place one breast on a cutting board.  Cover with a large piece of plastic wrap and pound out until thin.  Do not make them too thin as they will tend to dry out when cooking.  Cut the chicken into manageable pieces.




Mix the egg and water very well until frothy.


Put your breadcrumbs onto a platter or large plate.


Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Dip one cutlet into the egg mixture allowing the extra to drip back into the bowl and then coat it in the bread crumbs on both sides.  Make sure to really press the chicken into the crumbs so they are well coated. Place it on to a plate or cooling rack and repeat for all pieces.


Coat the bottom of a large skillet with vegetable or canola oil until it begins to glisten.  At this time put a couple of pinches of the bread crumbs into the pan and if they immediately start to sizzle the oil is ready.




Add a few pieces of chicken at a time, do not crowd the pan or the oil will loose some of it's heat.  Cook on one side until lightly browned which should take only 2 mins.


Turn the chicken over and cook for 2 mins.  Remove all chicken to a baking sheet and repeat with any other pieces.



Top the cutlets with a generous amount of sauce.  This is very important as the sauce keeps the chicken oh so moist !


Place baking sheet in the preheated oven and cook for 8 mins.  Remove the pan and top the chicken with  the cheese.  And place it back in to the oven for 2 -3 mins until the cheese has melted.



Remove and sprinkle with parsley if desired and serve with either crusty bread or some pasta.



Enjoy !!

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