Disclosure: This is a compensated campaign in collaboration with Ragú® and Latina Bloggers Connect. As always, all opinions expressed here are honest and my own!
What makes your mealtime Saucesome? 🙂 For my family, there is nothing like cooking and sharing a meal together. This time, we prepared an easy and tasty Baked Chicken Parm with a Twist for one of our weeknight dinners… Needless to say that putting our own spin on a classic was quite fun! Ragú® is recognizing and celebrating everything that makes family mealtime Saucesome. From unique recipes to silly moments to crazy weeknights…it’s all Saucesome with the delicious help of Ragú® Sauce.
Although we love the traditional chicken parm as it is, we decided to be creative, making the recipe (and the happy moments) our own…
… For this, we used Ragú® Old World Style® Marinara Sauce which has a delicious taste our whole family loves — yours will too! Ragú® Hearty Traditional Sauce and Ragú® Chunky Tomato, Garlic & Onion Sauce would also be perfect for our dish.
In addition, we skipped the first step of pan-frying the breaded chicken, baking the chicken directly in the oven… This healthy approach also saved us both time and the stovetop mess. Oh, and that’s not all!
We also substituted cornmeal for bread crumbs and stuffed the chicken breasts with lots of cheese! 🙂
The result? Well, see for yourself…
Our baked chicken parm with a twist was a hit — a dish that the whole family enjoyed. It also brought my family closer together, letting us spend more time together and share more about our day.
How about you? What do you and your family enjoy preparing together?
Well, visit Ragú® website like we did and get inspired by its delicious recipes. Ragú® has the authentic Italian taste that American families love with a variety of great tasting, quick and easy, family favorite recipes. For additional recipe ideas, visit Facebook.com/RaguSauce, Pinterest.com/ragusauce, and Ragú® on Twitter @RaguSauce and #Saucesome.
Also try our family-friendly Baked Chicken Parm with a Twist (Frango à Parmegiana de Forno)… It’s sure to be a hit!
For a chance to win a variety of #Saucesome prizes, click HERE and good luck!
Baked Chicken Parm with a Twist
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups yellow cornmeal
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme (or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme), plus more to garnish top of the dish
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 6 boneless skinless chicken breast (about 3.5 lbs.)
- 1½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese plus 6-12 Tablespoons for stuffing
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1 jar Ragú® Old World Style® Sauce 1 lb. 8 oz.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. In a shallow dish, combine together cornmeal, thyme, garlic powder, and Parmesan cheese. Set aside. Note: If desired, you can add a good pinch of salt to the cornmeal mixture. As for those who is on a low-sodium diet, the recipe is perfect as it is (the content of sodium from the Parmesan cheese is enough).
- Place each chicken breast on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, slit chicken breast lengthwise, almost through -- to make a pocket. Stuff each breast with 1-2 Tablespoons of mozzarella cheese, leaving a small edge to seal. If desired, you can sprinkle a bit of thyme into each chicken breast pocket. Rub a bit of the beaten egg or water around edge and pinch to seal.
- Dip each chicken breast in the beaten egg...
- Then, coat each breast with cornmeal mixture on both sides.
- Arrange chicken in 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Bake for about 20 minutes.
- Pour sauce over chicken and top with 1½ cups of mozzarella cheese. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle a bit of thyme on top. Serve chicken parm with pasta, steamed vegetables, or fresh salad. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
If desired, you can use Ragú® Hearty Traditional Sauce instead.
This is a compensated campaign in collaboration with Ragú® and Latina Bloggers Connect. However, all opinions expressed are my own.
marcela
April 21, 2015 at 8:54 amYes! Definitely! I love it! Sounds fantastic! I am a huuuuge fan of dishes like that! Thanks for sharing!
Deb|EastofEdenCooking
April 21, 2015 at 4:39 pmWhat a wonderful dinner idea! Quick to prepare and full of fabulous flavor!
Denise Browning
April 21, 2015 at 5:36 pmThanks, Deb!
It is indeed an easy,family-friendly meal enjoyed by adults and children.
Mi Vida en un Dulce
April 21, 2015 at 8:06 pmWhat a wonderful and easy recipe!!!
Little Cooking Tips
April 22, 2015 at 4:25 amWow Denise!!! This chicken parmesan looks fantastic!! And the cheese as stuffing… yummy!!! 🙂
Amira
April 22, 2015 at 9:18 amThis is a very simple and elegant dish, I like your twist and I bet my kids will love this too. Your little one looks so happy .. she is cute indeed. May God bless her with a long happy life.
Denise Browning
April 22, 2015 at 11:17 amThanks so much, Amira! May He bless yours as well.
John@Kitchen Riffs
April 22, 2015 at 10:52 amSaucesome anything works for me! This looks terrific — loads of flavor, and an easy dish to put together. Winner! Thanks so much.
Denise Browning
April 22, 2015 at 11:17 amThank you, John! Enjoy…
Shashi at RunninSrilankan
April 22, 2015 at 11:47 amI love that you used cornmeal instead of breadcrumbs – it’s been so long since we had chicken parm – I need to try this soon!
Uplifting Families
April 22, 2015 at 1:08 pmI will be adding this one to my recipe collection. This looks delicious. We love chicken meals. Do you serve this over pasta too?
Denise Browning
April 22, 2015 at 5:31 pmWelcome, Uplifting Families!
You won’t regret making this recipe. It’s easy and very tasty.
It can be served over pasta, or accompanied by steamed green beans or a fresh salad — as desired.
Wishing you a great week!
Juliana
April 22, 2015 at 11:59 pmI love the idea of stuffing the chicken with lots of cheese…looks delicious Denise!
Hope you are having a fabulous week 🙂
Denise Browning
April 23, 2015 at 7:44 amLike wise, Juliana! Yes, this is a family fave…
Judit + Corina @Glamorous Bite
April 23, 2015 at 12:53 pmWe love the melted cheese and the tomato sauce – a winning combination for a comforting meal! A little bit of thyme brings a nice flavor as well. Pinned it!
Denise Browning
April 23, 2015 at 1:37 pmThanks a lot, Ladies!
I love both cheese and Ragú sauce. They make the perfect combo…
Chris @ The Café Sucré Farine
April 23, 2015 at 2:14 pmLooks delightful Denise! I never seem to tire of Italian and I don’t think others do either. It’s just universally loved and you’ve come up with a real winner!
Liz
April 23, 2015 at 8:44 pmStuffed with cheese???? Your chicken parm looks amazing, Denise! My family would approve, too 🙂
Anna @ shenANNAgans
April 24, 2015 at 1:44 amHoly Moly Lady, I love Chicken Parmie (thats what Aussies call it). Especially love your twist, my sister in law would LOVE this. Totes making next family dinner. Yummo!
cquek
April 24, 2015 at 2:02 amThese look amazing.
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef
April 24, 2015 at 6:45 amIt’s been so long since I had anyone to cook with but I have a good memory. My son loved to stuff jumbo shells with cheese and sausage and top them with sauce and cheese. He always ‘cooked it all himself’ but maybe mom helped.
I love your chicken parmy.
Gourmet Getaways
April 26, 2015 at 8:49 amNice colours, great photos and a great recipe!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Sugar et al.
April 27, 2015 at 4:23 amI love your delicious spin on chicken parm. Makes it all the more irresistible for me. Cooking with my boys is my favorite time in the kitchen so I can relate:-)
Ash-foodfashionparty
May 4, 2015 at 12:02 amNot sure where my previous message went:(. Well, anyways I totally understand cooking with family. I enjoy cooking with my boys too, so much bonding. I haven’t made parm in long long time. Your creative take on chicken parm is very nice. Great job darlin.
Ash-foodfashionparty
May 4, 2015 at 12:05 amI totally understand your love of cooking with kids, I enjoy that and it’s such a bonding experience. Your take on chicken parm is awesome. Haven’t made it a long time, I will make it soon. The use of Ragu is great.
Kate
May 6, 2015 at 7:21 amI LOVE chicken parm! The addition of cornmeal sounds amazing! This would be great over pasta or in a sandwich, yum!