Oven Crusted Chicken

Last night's dinner was a request from Puppy Daddy. It is so easy that it's one of my go to recipes when I need something quick and simple. It's also very versatile. You can change up what you use for the crust for lots of different tastes. Last night I used up what was left of the massive crouton overage left from a salad bar party that I hosted.

All you need is chicken breast, mustard, mayonnaise, and something crunchy. Usually I use regular boneless, skinless breast. I pound it out so it's thin and  cut it in half to make two portions because they are so big. This time I used thin cutlets from the store because they were on sale and were cheaper than the regular breasts. For the crunchy I used garlic croutons, but I've also used flavored crackers, potato chips, Doritos, etc. You can also use something less flavored like plain crackers, corn flakes or panko and add in flavor such as dry onion soup mix or any other seasoning blend you like.

To get the right consistency for the crunchy coating just chop you topping in the food processor. If you don't have one you can put it in a plastic storage bag and smash it up.






Now it's time to coat the chicken. Mix your mayo and mustard and put it in one container. Put your crunchy coating in another. First dip your chicken in the mayo and mustard, covering both sides. Then it goes in the crunchy coating. Be sure you get full coverage.

The secret to getting both sides crunchy is cooking on a rack over your baking sheet. This way the heat can get all the way around the chicken.

While the chicken is cooking, I like to whip up a dipping sauce. Last night it was honey mustard. Just combine mayo, mustard, a little apple cider vinegar and Splenda. You could also use sugar, but I'm diabetic so I avoid it whenever possible. Ranch dressing also makes a good dipping sauce.

Just 20 minutes in the oven and here's what you get. Yummy and oh so easy!

Ingredients
2 chicken breast cutlets, or one chicken breast pounded thin and cut in two pieces
1 1/2 cup garlic salad croutons
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup dijon mustard

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup dijon mustard
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 Tb Splenda
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grind up croutons in food processor. Combine mayonnaise and mustard. Coat chicken first in mayo/mustard and with ground croutons. Place on a rack on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes or until chicken is not pink in the center.

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Mix first four ingredients together. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Try this recipe and let me know what you think!