Double Breaded Chicken Parmesan

Here's a recipe that my wonderful hubby came up with, and it turns out that he is a GENIUS!!! This chicken parmesan is perfect, and it's really not that complicated to make.  It is also super easy to make it your own by adding in your favorite seasonings.

(The shortened version is at the bottom!) 

First off, we're only a family of two, so I half almost every recipe I make, so with the recipe and ingredients I use, it will serve 2-4 people.  But, you can double it as much as you need for your family size.

Here is what you'll need:

• One big or two small chicken breasts, fileted or cut into smaller portions (the thinner they are, the faster they'll cook)
• 2 eggs, slightly scrambled
• Seasoning: Italian bread crumbs, paremesan cheese, any other seasoning you want to use (we have this fabulous "Italian Grinder" that I love because it adds just a little spice)
• A large glass pan, greased with cooking spray (I used my 9x13 here)
• Several slices of mozzarella (or any Italian) cheese.

Here is my breading line.  It's good to have everything close together because it can get messy with the egg and breading.  First prepare your breading.  About 1-2 cups of bread crumbs, sprinkle in some parmesan and your other seasonings and mix it up a bit.

So, cut your chicken into smaller pieces.  I attempted to filet it but was only partially successful.  The top ended up bigger than the bottom, so I cut the top in half again.

Then, dip each piece into the scrambled egg.  Make sure it's well-coated.  Then dip it into the breadcrumb mix.  Make sure it gets well-coated here too.  In my opinion, the more breading, the better!

Then, repeat.  Dip it into the egg again and then breadcrumbs again.  We found that double breading the chicken adds so much more flavor, and it really locks in the juice of the chicken so it doesn't dry out in the oven.

Once you've got two thick layers of breading, lay the chicken in the prepared glass dish.

Repeat with all of your pieces of chicken.  Here's mine, all ready to go!

 Bake the chicken at 400 degrees for about 20-30 minutes, flipping each piece about halfway through.  The baking time really just depends on the size and thickness of your chicken pieces.  Since I fileted it, the baking time was about 20 minutes, but it may take longer in your oven or with thicker chicken.  The best way to be sure is just to cut one of the thickest pieces open and make sure it's done inside.

Once the chicken is cooked all the way through, pop it out of the oven, and turn on your broiler.  Cooking each side with the broiler helps to make the breading that little bit crispier.  Once the broiler is on, pop the chicken in for just a minute or two, just until it starts browning slightly.  Then, take it out, flip the chicken and repeat with the other side.  *The second side always cooks faster as the broiler continues to heat up, so seriously, it takes like 30 seconds to a minute.

After broiling both sides, take it out again, and add some sliced cheese on top.  Pop it into the oven just one more time, for a minute or two, just to melt the cheese.

So, here's the finished product, just out of the oven.

 And finally, serve with your favorite pasta and sauce.  Thomas requested angel hair pasta for his birthday.  And I served it with some Peasant Bread that I found on Pinterest.  *Also, it really bothers me that you can't see anything green in this picture, but we have salad just off to the side!  ;)

So there you go!  Delicious chicken Parmesan in less than an hour!

Here's the concise version!

Double Breaded Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients:
1-2 chicken breasts, fileted or cut into smaller pieces
1-2 cups Italian bread crumbs
Grated Parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning, optional
2 eggs
2-3 slices mozzarella cheese
Pasta and pasta sauce of choice

Directions:

1. Preparation: Pour bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and seasoning into a small pan and mix.  Crack two eggs into a flat-bottomed bowl and scramble slightly.  Spray a glass baking dish with cooking spray.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Dip a fileted chicken breast piece into the egg and coat well.
3. Dip into bread crumbs and coat.
4. Repeat, dipping the same piece into the egg again, and then into the bread crumbs again.  Make sure it is well-coated each time.
5. Place the chicken into the prepared baking dish.
6. Repeat for all pieces of chicken.
7. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20-30 minutes (depending on thickness of chicken), flipping each piece about halfway through.  *To make sure the chicken is fully cooked, cut into the thickest piece to check and see if it's done.
8. When chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the oven, and turn the broiler on.
9. Place chicken in the oven to broil until just starting to brown.  Flip chicken and repeat.
10. When both sides are slightly brown, remove and top with sliced mozzarella cheese.  Place it back in the oven until the cheese is just melting.
11. Serve with your desired pasta and sauce!  Yum!

I hope you enjoy your Monday!  "Little Lovely" post to follow on my wonderful Monday off!