Crispy Onion Baked Chicken 

We never tire of eating chicken in our house. But more and more the thought of preparing yet another dinner at home with the family is enough to send me weeping from the kitchen. When I am at a complete loss for inspiration, I often turn to my collection of vintage cookbooks and magazines. I look around my kitchen, survey my available ingredients and search for a recipe I can throw together with minimal effort and even less clean up. I recently came across a version of this very old recipe and made fast work of adapting it for my weeknight meal rotation.

This dish comes together quickly with very few ingredients and delivers a satisfying meal packed with flavor in under an hour. I was feeling particularly lazy last this week, so I used a ready made packet of onion soup mix. But if you're feeling ambitious, you can easily create your own seasoning mix from scratch. The addition of some freshly roasted carrots adds nice color to the plate along with some extra vitamins to help build your immune system. Something we can all use in the cold winter months. 

Foraging in local thrift shops and used book stores for vintage cookbooks
is one of my favorite hobbies. 

With some chicken and a few staple pantry ingredients, dinner is ready in a snap.

The addition of panko adds some nice crunch.

Nestled in my vintage Corelle baking dish the chicken is
dressed and ready for dinner in minutes!

Crispy Oven Baked Chicken 

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1-1 ounce envelope of your favorite dry onion soup mix 

(OR 3-4 tbsp of your own dry onion soup mix-recipe follows)

3/4c panko breadcrumbs

4 split boneless chicken breasts, skin on

1 egg

water

2 tbsp butter, melted

additional salt and pepper, as needed*

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

1. Add the soup mix, (or homemade seasoning) and panko to a shallow dish with sides. I like to use a pie plate. Using your hands, crush together to combine.

2. In another shallow dish or pie plate, beat the egg with a splash of water.

3. Wash and dry the chicken breasts. Dip the skin side of the chicken in the beaten egg and press into the crumb mixture.

4. Place the breasts side by side in a lightly oiled baking dish, piling on any excess crumb mixture if desired. Drizzle with melted butter.

5. Bake for about 30 minutes or until chicken is crispy and reaches a temperature of 165 degrees. Slice and enjoy with your favorite side dish.

Homemade Dry Onion Soup Mix:

Ingredients:

1/2c dried onion flakes

1 tbsp dried parsley

1 tsp pepper

1/4c onion powder

2 tbsp garlic powder

3 tbsp beef bouillon powder

1/2 tsp paprika

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Store in an airtight container like a mason jar.