Recipes

[kate2357]

I was looking for a version of chicken parmigiana where the chicken was not breaded and somehow stumbled onto the Little Spice Jar site. This recipe looked so delicious I just had to make my own version. 

The original recipe calls for making a quick tomato sauce, which is quick and is probably tasty. But I make my own sauce, which granted takes more than 30 minutes, but I usually have some sauce put away in my freezer. I think if you know of a great premade pasta sauce you already love, you could put this meal together in UNDER 30 minutes.

The other way I departed from this recipe is I cooked my chicken all the way thru, heated up my sauce in same pan, put chicken breast back in pan, covered w/ whole milk mozzarella, covered pan w/ lid and took off heat. Cheese got all melty and I did not have to turn on my oven.

I've served this w/ risotto, w/ pasta, by itself w/ garlic bread. It's really tasty and you can easily add/subtract ingredients you love.

30 Minute Mozzarella Chicken in Homemade Tomato Sauce - Little Spice Jar

Ingredients
 4 small chicken breasts
 1 tablespoon EACH: olive oil AND minced garlic
 ½ cup chopped onions
 1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
 ½ teaspoon EACH: Italian seasoning AND red pepper flakes (see notes)
 ¼ teaspoon dried basil
 1 tablespoon sun-dried tomato pesto 
 salt and pepper + ¼ cup water
 4 slices mozzarella cheese (or 1 cup shredded) (I use whole milk mozzarella)

Instructions
CHICKEN: Sprinkle the chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with the olive oil. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for about 3-5 minutes per side or until the chicken is completely cooked through, remove to a plate. If you are planning on serving this with pasta, get the water going and cook the pasta according to package directions.

TOMATO SAUCE: Preheat the oven on the broiler setting. Add the onions to the oil remaining in the pan. If there isn't any, add in about ½ teaspoon and sauté the onion for 2-3 minutes until they soften, add the garlic and let cook for 30 seconds. Add the crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, dried basil, and pesto and stir to combine. When the sauce reaches a simmer, add a ¼ cup of water, lower the heat, cover and allow to simmer for 10-12 minutes or until the sauce thickens a bit. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

ASSEMBLE: Nestle the chicken breasts into the sauce and using a spoon, cover the chicken with sauce. Top each breast with a slice of cheese. Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese gets nice and bubbly and just melts. Top with chopped parsley or basil ribbons.

Notes
Though I do recommend using sun-dried tomato pesto for this recipe as it really enhances the flavor of the sauce and makes it taste like it was simmered all day, basil pesto will also work in the recipe.

Also, you can use more or less red pepper flakes to taste. Omit for a milder sauce.

[JeanLouiseFinch]

 I do a quick version of this using RAO's Marinara as a shortcut.  

[kate2357]

@JeanLouiseFinch 

That sauce gets mentioned a lot as being tasty. I don't know if my store carries it or not, but I need to take a look and read ingredients,  etc. Might be a nice, quick sauce to use when the grandbabies are over.