Bruschetta Parmesan Chicken

I was looking for inspiration for a quick weeknight meal when I stumbled upon an appetizing looking recipe for Bruschetta Chicken. If you know me, you know I'm a pretty big fan of tomatoes. I make it my mission to find ways to incorporate them into almost every meal. I cut them up to put on salads, mix them in with pasta, eat them with hummus, add them to soups and stews, serve them up on crusty bread...heck, I've even made tomato pie! Get my point? I LOVE TOMATOES.

Enter bruschetta chicken. Chicken is great for winter months because it can quickly and easily be roasted in the oven, and there are thousands of different ways to season it depending on what you are in the mood for. As mentioned above, I'm always in the mood for tomatoes, and when I saw bruschetta was involved, there wasn't even a second thought before I knew what was for dinner.

Step One: Gather the ingredients. You'll want about 1.5 cups of diced tomatoes. 

Adjust ingredients for whatever size tomatoes you find.

Step Two: Rinse the chicken, coat with flour, and dip in an egg wash. Place egg-washed chicken in a 9x13 roasting pan. Mix up the parmesan/garlic crouton breading, then spoon onto top of chicken. 

Step Three: Loosely tent with foil, and roast for 30-40 min. at 375 degrees, or until chicken 

is slightly browned on top. Remove foil, and spoon bruschetta mix over the top 

for an additional 5-7 minutes, or until heated through.

Recipe adapted from Flickr

BRUSCHETTA PARMESAN CHICKEN | Yield: 4 Servings | Total Time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (approx. 1.5-2lbs)
1/2 C all-purpose flour
2 eggs, whisked
1/2 C parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 C garlic croutons
2 Tbsp butter, melted
2 large tomatoes
3 Tbsp fresh basil, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt
pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x13 baking dish and set aside.

Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towel. Get out two separate shallow bowls (you'll be using these to coat the chicken, so pick bowls large enough to hold a chicken breast). Add flour to one bowl, and whisk the eggs in the other. Dip chicken into flour first, then into whisked eggs. Transfer to a 9x13 baking dish. Repeat with all chicken breasts.

*NOTE: You can sprinkle the chicken with a little salt and pepper at this step if you'd like some extra flavor.

Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a microwave safe medium bowl. Put 1/2 C garlic croutons in a plastic bag and crush with a meat mallet or bottom of a heavy glass. Once the butter is melted, add 1/2 C parmesan cheese and 1/2 C crushed garlic croutons, stir to combine. Top each chicken breast with parmesan garlic topping and tent baking dish with foil. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until topping is browned and chicken is cooked through.

While chicken is cooking, dice tomatoes, mince garlic and basil. Combine in a medium bowl, drizzle with olive oil, and add salt and pepper to taste. When chicken is cooked, remove foil and spoon bruschetta mix over the chicken. Continue to cook for 5-7 minutes, or until tomato topping is heated through. Serve immediately.

Do you have a favorite recipe that used tomatoes?