Chicken Crunch

So if you're a regular visitor to Vittles and Bits, I'm sure you've noticed that I completely revamped the design of my blog.

In fact, I apologize if you came to the site at all yesterday, because you probably saw some cra-zazzle things. 

I'm unfortunately pretty inexperienced with blog 'design', so it took a lot of tweaking to get the site looking the way it does now.

I guess it would have been smarter to work on it late at night or on a weekday?  But once I get something in my brain, I can't rest until I do it.  (I have a similar problem with recipes, if I am struck by an idea I must make it immediately!)

In any case, you're not the only people to whom I owe an apology for yesterday's blog madness - poor Mr. Vittles would not stop complaining that I wasn't paying attention to him.

He sulked.  He pouted.  He sat on me.  He tickled me.  He threw things at me.  He put our bird's butt in my face.

Basically anything to distract me from the computer.

(FYI, despite how gross 'bird butt' sounds, it's really not.)

Now in my mind, I wasn't really ignoring him at all - but I will say I was quieter and more focused on my laptop than usual.  And as someone who rarely sits still, all this house time with me and my damaged tootsies is probably taking it's toll on him.  I'm surprised he's not climbing the walls yet.

Soooo.... in an effort to make up for my behavior yesterday, I decided to make one of Mr. V's favorite meals tonight - chicken crunch!

This is actually a dish that was introduced to me many years ago by an ex-boyfriend "old friend".  His version was made with cream of mushroom soup as the 'sauce' and he really didn't follow much of a recipe.

But I don't like mushrooms, and I eventually developed my own sauce to avoid using canned soup.

To be honest, I'm not sure where the idea for chicken crunch originated.  Maybe he made it up - today I googled it for kicks, and didn't come up with anything like it, so who knows.

But wherever the idea came from... I stole it, tweaked it to my taste, and made up this recipe.

And it helped me get out of the doghouse with Mr. Vittles.

Or, the 'bloghouse,' as it may be.  Whatever.  But that's the power of the chicken crunch.

Chicken Crunch

• 1 - 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken (breasts or tenderloins)
• 3 1/2 C. dry, crushed (not cubed) herb-seasoned stuffing (with 1/2 C. reserved separately)
• 2 T. butter
• 3 T. flour
• 1/4 t. onion powder
• 1/4 t. garlic power
• pinch cayenne pepper
• 1/4 t. ground mustard
• 1 14-oz. can reduced sodium chicken broth (about 2 C.)
• 1/2 t. dried parsley
• 2 T. heavy cream
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 to 4 T. melted butter (optional)

Make the sauce*:  Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat just until foaming.  Meanwhile, mix flour, onion & garlic powder, cayenne, and ground mustard in small bowl until combined.  Add to melted butter, and whisk until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

Add can of chicken broth and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally.  Lower heat and simmer a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until mixture thickens to the consistency of heavy cream.

Remove from heat and add cream, parsley, and ground pepper.  Stir to combine.  Allow mixture to cool before coating chicken (you can cover loosely and refrigerate 1-2 hours until cooled.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and grease a medium casserole dish (I usually use an 8x8 glass pan).

Reserve 1/2 C. of sauce (for serving) then place 3 C. dry stuffing and remaining sauce in two separate, shallow containers.  Dip each piece of chicken in sauce, then coat with stuffing crumbs.  Place chicken in prepared casserole dish.

Once all pieces are coated, top with reserved 1/2 C. of dry crumbs.  Then pour melted butter over top (if using).  Bake in preheated oven until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink, about 25-30 minutes for tenderloins and 35-40 minutes for breasts.

Warm remaining sauce and serve atop chicken, if desired.

*Time-Saving Tip:  You can either make the sauce a day in advance and refrigerate it, OR you can use a can of cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup sprinkled with ground pepper, onion powder, & parsley and thinned with milk until desired consistency is reached.

Original Recipe


 Hearth and Soul Hop-Volume 33!