Chicken Milanese

Patrick and I both enjoyed some time off together over the Christmas holidays. Well, I didn't really have time off per se but I did have off the afternoons after going to work at 6:45am! We had watched Giada on Food Network (love! love! love! Giada!) and wanted to try her Chicken Milanese with Tomato and Fennel sauce recipe. With an afternoon to prep we also decided to make tiramisu (stay tuned; that's the next post). This was our first time cooking something with fennel so a merry time was had by all! We served this with green beans and a holiday wine from the Peaks of Otter winery -- Cinfulicious! A cinnamon stick in every bottle! We enjoyed apples in the fall (apple pie) from our Peaks of Otter trip and saved our wine for the holidays.

Chicken Milanese with Tomato and Fennel Sauce

Ingredients

Chicken:

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/4 cups plain bread crumbs

2/3 cup grated Parmesan

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 teaspoon dried thyme

4 (6 to 8-ounce) boneless and skinless chicken breasts, tenderloins removed

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup vegetable oil

Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

My fennel!

2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and thinly sliced

2 1/2 cups (12 ounces) cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

Directions

For the chicken: Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a wire rack.

Using 3 wide shallow bowls, add the flour to 1, the eggs to another and to the third bowl combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, basil, and thyme.

On a work surface, put the chicken between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Using a meat mallet, lightly pound the chicken until approximately 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour to coat lightly, then dip into the beaten eggs, allowing the excess egg to drip off. Coat the chicken with the bread crumb mixture, pressing gently to adhere.

In a large, nonstick saute pan, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add 2 pieces of the breaded chicken into the oil and cook until light golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken to the prepared baking sheet and keep warm in the oven. Repeat with the remaining chicken. Reserve the cooking juices in the saute pan.

Nice, golden brown

For the sauce: Using the same saute pan, add the olive oil to the reserved cooking juices and heat over medium heat. Add the fennel and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the cherry tomatoes, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, garlic and thyme. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes until the tomatoes are tender. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the mascarpone cheese and stir until the mixture is creamy. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Before the mascarpone was added.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and spoon the sauce over the top before serving.