My Newest Most Heavenly Recipe

A couple weeks ago we went to Mimi's Cafe for dinner and I had the most heavenly meal.  I got the Artichoke Asiago Chicken Spaghettini (crispy parmesan chicken with artichoke and asiago cream, spaghettini, garlic spinach, tomatoes, diced asparagus and tomato cream sauce) - pretty heavenly huh!  Anyways, I've really been wanting it again, but since dinner out every night isn't really in the budget I decided to try and replicate it.  Mine isn't quite the same (I didn't add the artichoke and asiago cream - cut out a few calories there and I wasn't going to pay $5.99 a lb for asparagus so I omitted that too - although when it's in season and a more reasonable price I will add it), but it was still pretty tasty and was enough to satisfy my craving.  So here is my recipe:

Pasta and Parmesan Chicken with Tomato Cream Sauce

Parmesan Chicken:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

(1/2 c) Italian seasoned bread crumbs

(1/8 - 1/4 c) Grated parmesan cheese

Dash of dried parsley

Dash of garlic powder

Salt and pepper

Egg, beaten

Olive oil

I'll be honest, I don't really measure things so much when I make up my own recipes, so just throw enough mix together until it smells good and will coat your chicken.  Dip your chicken in the egg and then in the bread crumb mix and coat completely.  Heat up a little olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and brown/cook the chicken - about 2 - 3 minutes on each side. 

Note: I actually only use two chicken breasts and then cut them in half lengthwise so they are thin.  This also helps with portion control and it makes our meat go farther.

Tomato Cream Sauce:

2 T butter

2 T olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c chicken broth

1 - 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 c heavy whipping cream (maybe I'll try half and half on time to cut fat)

Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley to taste

Basil to taste

Heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and cook until the garlic is tender, but not brown.  Add the chicken broth and turn the heat up to medium high.  Reduce the broth by half - this makes the sauce less runny and soupy.  When the broth has been reduced add the tomato sauce and whipping cream.  Add the salt and pepper and taste.  Turn the heat to low and keep the sauce warm.  Add parsley and basil to your liking.  I used dried because that's what I had, but I'm sure fresh herbs would be great too.  Let the sauce simmer, but don't let it burn on the bottom.

Begin boiling the pasta and cook according to package directions.  I used angel hair pasta since it's my favorite, but really anything works.

Garlic Spinach:

Heat a little olive oil on medium.  Saute garlic and spinach for a minute or two.  Use as much as you like - again I don't measure anything.  If I had asparagus, I would have cut it up and thrown it in to saute first and then when it was almost cooked I would add the garlic and spinach.

Bringing it all Together:

When pasta is cooked, mix the tomato cream sauce, garlic spinach and pasta together.  Add the chicken on top.  Enjoy!

This meal was definitely more work than I usually put into my recipes, but it was so worth it.