Delish!

Crumb-Coated Dijon Chicken
America’s Quick Cuisine Copyright 2004

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
¼ cup panko (Japanese-style breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon each grated Parmesan cheese and minced parsley
2 whole chicken breasts (about 1 lb each), skinned, boned, and split
Dijon Sauce (recipe follows)

1. In a wide, shallow bowl, blend butter, mustard, and garlic. In another bowl, mix panko, cheese and parsley.
2. Dip chicken in butter mixture to coat, then dip skinned side of each piece in panko mixture. Place chicken in a single layer, crumb sides up, in a shallow rimmed baking dish.
3. Bake, uncovered, in a 500 degree oven until crumbs are golden and meat in thickest part is no longer pink when slashed (about 15 minutes). Meanwhile, prepare Dijon sauce. Serve breasts whole or cut crosswise into thick slices. Accompany with sauce.

Dijon Sauce
Mix ¼ cup mayonnaise with 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard.

Makes 4 servings. Per serving of chicken: 211 calories, 27 g pro, 6 g carbs, 8 g fat, 80 mg chol, 422 mg sodium.

Per tablespoon of sauce: 72 calories, 10 g pro, 99 g carbs, 8 g fat, 5 mg chol, 200 mg sodium
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These were some of the best baked chicken breasts I've ever made. I think it was the high-heat or maybe it was the chicken - I don't usually buy Purdue breasts. But for $1.19/lb I couldn't resist. The chicken was so moist and delicious. The coating was not as crispy as I had expected it to be but it was very flavorful and delicious. I had never used panko before but I'll use it again.

I thought I might have trouble with the high heat because the chicken breasts were so big. Forget Dolly Parton, think Ice-T's wife, Coco. I'm used to the smaller individually frozen breasts, and I hardly ever buy those either. I usually buy the tenders. I thought the outside would burn before the chicken could cook through but that wasn't a problem. I did have to cook my chicken longer than 15 minutes but I didn't time it. I think it was more like 30 minutes but I'm sure for smaller breasts it would be closer to 15 minutes.

I'm not sure if I would try this recipe with toasted breadcrumbs. The panko starts out stark white and you can see how brown it got. However, if you had smaller chicken breasts and a shorter cooking time, the toasted breadcrumbs might be okay.

Don't forget about the cookbook giveaway. I'm leaving it open until the end of the month.

Blast From The Past: Confetti Orzo Salad from January 2006. This was very good and healthy but I mainly remember it because it was one of the most photogenic recipes I've ever made. I also remember that the garlic was very strong.

Question of the Day: Have you ever used panko?