Supertastic Chicken

The Vegas crew have been gone a few days and I think the dust is finally settling. Good Lord, entertaining 3 kids with very different personalities is exhausting! In addition to the kids, there was Mom, Auntie and my not-so-baby baby brother. They were actually very good guests, always cleaning up after themselves. As an added bonus, Mom and Auntie did all the cooking during their visit. It was like I was the guest in my own home, which I’m not at all complaining about. Problem is, now that they are gone, I can’t seem to find anything in my kitchen and I have to get back into the habit of shopping and cooking. Quite honestly, I'm not in the mood.

As you can imagine, we ate a lot of Thai food, and I hope to share some recipes in the (nearish) future. However, this time, I’m going to share a chicken dish taught to me by my auntie. It’s an Italian-style breaded chicken recipe she learned from her Polish MIL. I realize to most, breaded chicken doesn’t sound particularly exciting, but the beauty is in its simplicity, versatility and supertastic deliciousness. Throw in the fact that I’ve never seen my auntie cook or eat anything besides Thai food, so this was a really nice surprise!

Italian-style breaded chicken (aka chicken parmesan)
Feeds 3 to 4

• 2 large chicken breasts
• 1 cup Italian bread crumbs
• ½ grated Parmesan cheese
• 1.5 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 to 2 eggs, beaten
• oil for pan-frying
• 2 cups of your favorite marinara, warmed
• a handful of shredded mozzarella (or shredded Parmesan)to top

In a deep plate or pie dish, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan, garlic and onion powders. Mix thoroughly and set aside.

Butterfly the chicken breasts to get 4 pieces. Pound each piece thin (think scaloppini or paillard).

In a large bowl, mix the chicken, eggs and a pinch of salt.

Warm enough oil (about 1 inch or so) in a frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, dredge the chicken pieces in the bread crumb mix, make sure they are coated well and add them to the frying pan. Don’t crowd the frying pan otherwise the chicken will end up extra greasy (NOT yummy!). Flip over once, and when they are done remove to a paper towel or rack above a cook sheet (my preference).

Serve Olive Garden-style (hey, don’t laugh! That was THE Italian restaurant in Vegas until about 1999…no kidding) ladled with warmed marinara and mozzarella sprinkled on top and a big bowl of spaghetti. Or eat it like my Auntie does, sans marinara, with rice and chili dipping sauce. For realz.

Now that you've read so far, you get to see cool pics of the Vegas crew!

Baby brother. I freely admit he got the looks and I got the brains :-)

The Three Stooges, better known as Moody, Tweeny and Whiny (from left to right). Whiny's mine; the other two are his cousins.

Mom and Auntie acting like tourists. Oh, right! They are tourists.