This might become a classic around our house

Crunchy Baked Chicken
Entertaining With The Sopranos Copyright 2006

2 large eggs
1 tablespoon water
1 large clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups plain dry bread crumbs, preferably homemade from Italian bread
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
¼ cup olive oil
1 chicken (about 3 ½ pounds), cut into 8 pieces, skin removed (or you can used skinless chicken parts)

In a shallow dish, beat together the eggs, water, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.

On a piece of wax paper, mix the crumbs with the cheese Drizzle with the oil and stir until blended.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Dip the chicken inn the egg mixture, then roll the pieces in the crumb mixture, patting it so that crumbs will stick. Place the chicken on a rack, skin side up, and let the coating dry for 15 minutes.

I made 3 drumsticks and 3 thighs and I had a lot, A LOT, of the breadcrumb mixture left over that I had to toss. What a waste (of Pecorino Romano). Keep that it mind if you make this - at least keep some of the mixture aside so that if you don't need it all, it doesn't all get contaminated with eggs and raw chicken like mine did. Then you can save it for next time.

Oil a baking sheet and arrange chicken pieces on it. Bake 20 minutes. With tongs, carefully turn chicken pieces, so as not to disturb the coating. Bake 20 minutes more, or until the chicken is browned and cooked through when cut into the thickest part.

Serve hot or at room temperature.
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Sometimes a cookbook just sings to me and this is one of those cookbooks. Every recipe looks do-able. I can't vouch for their authenticity, not being Italian, but they seem like the real deal. Of course, the real bonus is all the commentary. I've never even seen 30 seconds of the Sopranos but I still love this cookbook. I checked it out of the library but I'll be buying my own copy soon.

The book is sectioned into different occasions for entertaining. 'Man food' for poker games, lady-like food for all-female get-togethers, holiday recipes, etc. I believe this chicken recipe was in the section of recipes that would be appropriate for baptisms, communions and confirmations. I could just see a big platter of this chicken at such an occasion.

I made this the night before and reheated it. That worked great. This is basically and oven-fried chicken and I'd have to say out of all of the recipes for oven-fried chicken I've tried, this was my favorite. Although next time I might use the seasoned breadcrumbs or add more seasoning to the breadcrumbs.

Question of the Day: Do you watch the Sopranos?