Baked Parmesan Chicken

Ease: 4/5     Taste: 5/5     Kid-friendliness: 3/5     Time: 3/5

Parmesan chicken is one of my husband's favourites. It's a good Father's Day dish. Of course, he likes his battered but that's adding a whole n'other step, not to mention a bunch of fat we don't need. Both my kids love pasta sauce too, so recipes that "mask" meat and veggies using pasta sauce, are always on my list.

This is a favourite recipe from my current favourite cook book: Williams-Sonoma The Weeknight Cook: Fresh & Simple Recipes for Good Food Everyday

Truth moment: I don't know what kale is so I used spinach (the black blobs in the picture) I had in my fridge that would otherwise have gone out with the trash this week.

If you're looking to reduce the fat, use less cheese as I find this recipe calls for a lot of cheese.

What you'll need:

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• salt and pepper
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 bunch spinach (or kale), stems removed and leaves torn into large pieces 
• 2 C purchased tomato-basil pasta sauce (my favorite is Prego)
• 8 slices fresh mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 C fresh parmesan cheese, grated (I used about half this amount)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and brown both sides, turning once (~7 minutes). Remove to a plate.

Add the spinach to the pan and saute over medium-high heat until wilted,~ 1 minute. Return the chicken to the pan and pour the tomato sauce over the chicken and spinach. Place 2 mozzarella cheese slices (I only used one) on each chicken breast and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese. Bake until the cheese is golden and the chicken is cooked, about 20 minutes. Serve to your husband with a kiss!