Recipe Monday: Lemon Chicken Bake

For home cooking, there's no method of preparing chicken I prefer over baking. When I started cooking, three years ago, I couldn't cook chicken on the stovetop without burning it, drying it out, or both. I ruined entire pans trying to emulate Rachael Ray and her propensity for sauteeing chicken in extra virgin olive oil. Baking chicken, on the other hand, is easy to master and very unlikely to start a fire.

In this recipe, scallopini chicken breast is coated in a heavenly lemon butter, breadcrumbs, and then baked. I compare the taste to chicken piccata without the capers.

LEMON CHICKEN BAKE

• 1lb thin sliced chicken breast
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice (1 lemon should do it)
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 c. Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

1. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add in lemon juice, zest, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

2. Transfer lemon butter to a shallow dish. Dip chicken pieces in butter and then coat with bread crumbs. Place chicken in a non-greased 13 x 9 glass or ceramic baking dish. Drizzle any extra lemon butter over the chicken.

3. Bake at 350 degrees in a preheated oven for 20 minutes. Use a meat thermometer to make sure chicken reaches 160 degrees in thickest part. If using a dark colored metal pan or baking sheet instead of glass dish, check after 15 minutes.

Source: adapted from Allrecipes