Chicken parmesan is one of my favorite meals to make. I started making my version of chicken parmesan (shown below) over 10 years ago when a good friend of mine made it for me. I instantly fell in love with the ease of preparing the meal and of course it tastes amazing! A combination of pasta with marinara sauce and chicken smothered in melted cheese is so savory and comforting. This dish does not disappoint, and it is my go-to meal when I am in a crunch and need to prepare food for a group of people….and it heats up well for leftovers.  I’ve made this particular chicken parmesan meal for several different people and it has been a hit every time. So without further ado, I present to you the recipe for my version of chicken parmesan.

A quick note before I go into the recipe. Chicken parmesan is name as such because normally the chicken is topped with melted parmesan cheese. However, I use mozzarella cheese in my recipe. I am sure this recipe or one similar exists somewhere else, but this is how I was inspired to make it from my friend over 10 years ago. I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 23.5 oz. of marinara sauce (I love to use Prego Farmers’ Market Classic Marinara Sauce)

1 16 oz. package of spaghetti noodles

2 cups of Italian bread crumbs

¼ stick of butter melted

3 eggs

1.5 lbs. of chicken breast (about 4 to 5 pieces)

1 package of 8 oz. mozzarella cheese

1 dash of salt

1 dash of pepper

1 9×13 lightly greased baking dish

Directions:

Set oven to 350 degrees. Pour 2 cups of Italian bread crumbs into a bowl and mix in melted butter. Mix well until bread crumbs appear to be coated with butter. In another bowl, whisk the 3 eggs together. Next, season your chicken with a dash of salt and pepper on each side. Be careful not to over salt the chicken because this dish is packed with flavor and seasoning from the Italian bread crumbs.

Now that the prep work is done, assemble a line of ingredients starting with egg, next bread crumb mixture, then a lightly greased 9×13 or larger baking dish. Take one piece of chicken at a time and dip chicken into eggs coating all sides, next coat chicken with bread crumbs (coat well), lastly transfer the breaded chicken to the greased baking dish. Repeat these steps until all of your chicken has been coated with bread crumbs. Note: Depending on how large your chicken breasts are, you might need an additional baking dish if you run out of space with your first baking dish.

When all of the chicken has been coated with bread crumbs, bake breaded chicken for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked completely and golden brown. While chicken is baking, simmer the 2 23.5 oz. jars of marinara sauce in a sauce pan on low. Also cook the spaghetti noodles according to package directions. After chicken has been cooked completely, spread a generous amount of marinara sauce on each piece of chicken and top with mozzarella cheese (to your liking…I like a LOT of cheese, but some may not). Chicken will most likely have to remove from the oven to top with sauce and cheese. After each piece of chicken has been topped with sauce and cheese, bake chicken an additional 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted.

After cheese is melted, remove chicken from the oven and add to plate. In my photo, I placed spaghetti noodles on a plate and topped with a generous portion of marinara sauce. Next, I added parmesan chicken to the plate along with a green beans. For additional color, I sprinkled the entire plate with parsley flakes.  Let’s EAT!