Wednesday and Thursday eats

I made the bestest chicken for dinner last night!  I try not to sautee or fry breaded chicken, but baking breaded chicken is almost always slightly disappointing.  It's kind of soggy, never crisp.

But last night, I finally realized why.  I have always just laid the chicken right there in a pan.  The trick is to get the chicken up in the air, via a cookie cooling rack.  That way, the heat gets up underneath the chicken and crisps it just right.  I made a double batch, and froze some for my daughter's 'nuggets'.

Here's the recipe:

• 2 cups breadcrumbs (panko, if you've got them)
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons freshly minced thyme leaves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/4 -inch thickness

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place a cooling rack over pan and spray rack with nonstick cooking spray.

In a shallow dish, combine bread crumbs, cheese, 2 tablespoons olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper, to taste. In a separate shallow dish, combine mustard, water, salt and pepper, to taste, and remaining olive oil. Coat each chicken breast with mustard mixture; dredge each in bread crumb mixture. Place on prepared rack in pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until chicken is golden brown. Serve immediately. 

Heavenly.  I served with some garlic dill steamed green beans.

Breakfast today was my usual radish homefries with a spinach mushroom egg white omelette.  I won't bore you with photographs.  You've seen it before.

And lunch was a rerun of yesterday's black bean soup, but I added some frozen corn and two big tablespoons of hot sauce.  Much, much improved.

Off to start tonight's dinner!  Though I'm not sure what that will be.....