sentimental food

the other day i was at a loss for what to make scott and i for dinner. i knew i had chicken breasts thawed, so i figured i would do something with that. sometimes chicken breasts can be boring. i wasn't sure what to do when scott mentioned something about a recipe his mom used to make when he was a kid. he said, "why don't you try making chicken milanese?"

he's requested this dish before, but honestly, i was afraid to make it because it held sentimental value for him. he says his mother isn't known for her ability in the kitchen, but this dish was one she used to make all the time. i didn't want to screw it up and ruin his memory of one of his favorite meals. but that night i guess i was willing to take that risk.

oddly enough we had all the ingredients necessary for the recipe. i vaguely knew what chicken milanese was, but to the internet i went anyway. after searching around a little bit, i ended up on epicurious.com. it's such a great website! i found a recipe for lemon chicken milanese. i made just a few adjustments to the original, but it turned out anyway.

basically, all you have to do is flatten out your chicken breasts until they're about 1/2 an inch thick. they then get a bath in eggs (or eggs and milk, whichever you prefer). after that, coat them in a mixture of panko (or bread crumbs), parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. i had grated asiago cheese on hand, as well as crushed red pepper, so i added those to the panko mixture.

make sure to thoroughly coat both sides of the chicken. heat about 3 tbsp oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. saute the chicken until they're golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. keep an eye out so they don't burn.

after mine were done, i placed them on plates, squeezed a little lemon over them and they were done. i served them with a simple arugula and spinach salad with olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, grated asiago cheese and tomato wedges on the side.

after his first bite, scott said, "this tastes just like i remember. i haven't had this in probably 10 years." that was the perfect reaction - just what i was looking for. i didn't ruin his memory of his mom's chicken milanese...just added to it.