Chicken Parmesan

I was watching Tyler Florence on the Food Network on Saturday morning on his "Ultimate" recipe show and he made the most appealing Chicken Parmesan recipe.  I often get inspired watching that show and he makes everything look so darn easy and looking at him is so darn easy too!

This is an easy dish to put together, particularly if you make the tomato sauce the day before.  I always think that's a good idea anyway because the flavors have more time to meld together.  Served with some garlic bread and a Caeser salad, you have a great dinner.

Chicken Parmesan
(Adapted from Tyler Florence's Ultimate Recipe)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 bunch fresh basil leaves
1 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, drained and hand-crushed
Pinch sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (about 11/2 pounds)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
1 cup dried seasoned bread crumbs
1 (8-ounce) ball fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
Freshly grated Parmesan

Coat a saute pan with olive oil and place over medium heat. When the oil gets hazy, add the onions, and garlic; cook and stir for 5 minutes until fragrant and soft. Add some hand-torn basil. Carefully add the tomatoes, cook and stir until the liquid is cooked down and the sauce is thick, about 15 minutes; season with sugar, salt and pepper. Lower the heat, cover, and keep warm.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Get the ingredients together for the chicken so you have a little assembly line. Put the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board and lay a piece of plastic wrap over them. Pound the chicken breasts with a flat meat mallet, until they are about 1/2-inch thick. Put the flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly. In a wide bowl, combine the eggs and water, beat until frothy. Put the bread crumbs on a plate, season with salt and pepper.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high flame in a large oven-proof skillet. Lightly dredge both sides of the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour, and then dip them in the egg wash to coat completely, letting the excess drip off, then dredge in the bread crumbs. When the oil is nice and hot, add the cutlets and fry for 4 minutes on each side until golden and crusty, turning once.

Ladle the tomato sauce over the chicken and layer with mozzarella,  then sprinkle on Parmesan. Bake the Chicken Parmesan for 20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.  Garnish with slivered fresh basil.