Basil Cream Chicken

This is delicious, but by no means a quick fix. Nor is it super healthy, but you have to live a little sometimes, right? You can always buy fat-free half-and-half (Land o' Lakes makes it). And I used Panko bread crumbs because they give an extra crunch, but you can use regular or Italian-style bread crumbs too.

Make sure you don't do what I did and let the sauce boil after adding the Parmesan. Duh. It gets curdled that way. Still tastes awesome but loses something in presentation. I had too many irons in the fire while making this. I need a nap!

BASIL CREAM CHICKEN
adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to even thickness
1/2 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, divided
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup bread crumbs
1 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup half-and-half
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 cup shredded or grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Put flour and 1 tsp. garlic powder in quart-size Ziploc. Mix breadcrumbs and 1 tsp. garlic powder in a shallow dish.

Heat butter and olive oil in skillet on medium heat. One at a time, shake breasts first in flour, then dip in egg, then coat with breadcrumb mixture. Place in skillet and cook for a couple of minutes on each side or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove breasts to foil-lined baking sheet and put in oven to keep warm.

Reduce heat of skillet to low. Slowly add half-and-half and chicken broth, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan. Add tomatoes, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, and black pepper. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan and basil.

Remove chicken from oven and serve with sauce over top. Garnish with more Parmesan, if desired.