Chicken Milanese

We got pulled over by the cops today. Surprising, since Maui is the kind of place where people ride motorcycles without helmets and let their dogs and kids ride shotgun in the back of their pickup trucks. Maybe it was our white Countryman Mini Cooper with New York license plates that caught the cop's eye. Who knows?

No matter where you are driving, it is never fun to be stopped by the police and it definitely a bummer to start your day with a major traffic violation. I had Jada on my lap in the back seat. She was strapped in with me but that wasn't good enough. They gave us a summons.

Now, I would never have tried to pull this off in New York- or even on the local highway here- but a five minute drive on Front Street at fifteen miles per hour a.) did not seem like a real risk compared to some of the aforementioned antics of drivers here and b.) seemed like a small price to pay to get Jada to stop her incessant pleas for me to not to "leave" her for my 9am yoga class.

Needless to say, I never made it to my class and we were completely wrong in our sleep deprived decision making process. We're probably getting a little too relaxed here too. But have no fear, my fellow mainlanders, Mike and I were snapped back to our natural, stressed out states after our run-in with 5-0. So, stressed out, in fact, that we immediately began making lunch as soon as we got back home.

Chicken Milanese are pounded, thin chicken breasts, breaded with eggs, flour and breadcrumbs and pan-fried. We use panko-flakes in lieu of breadcrumbs though, better texture.

This stuff is as comforting a piece of southern fried chicken, without the fat and calories, because it is quickly pan fried and guilt-free. If you need a speedily prepared meal that it going to level you out, lunch or dinner, try this. Super kid-friendly too, it is the same recipe that I used for Ryan a while back:

Pound your chicken breasts until they are uniformly thin. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Then, pour 1/8" of vegetable oil in to a skillet and get it nice and hot on medium-high heat. Next, scramble and season two eggs in a shallow bowl. Spread out a generous layer of flour on a large plate. Sprinkle this with salt and pepper too. Do the same with some panko flakes. (See, it's just like making fried chicken?) Dredge one chicken breast in the egg, then the flour, the egg again and then the panko flakes. Test your oil by flicking a little bit of the batter off of your fingers to make sure that you see and hear the appropriate sizzle in the pan. Drop in your chicken. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may be able to fit another breast in to the pan but don't crowd them. They will take longer to cook and you want this process to be as quick as possible. Four minutes on each side should do the trick. You are looking for a golden brown crust and a juicy interior.

Plate the chicken and top it with a heap of arugula and halved cherry tomatoes.

You'll feel better after the first bite.