Almond Encrusted Chicken

This is one of the first recipes I made up myself, and I have no idea how I came up with it. It's a weird combo for a new chef, but it's one of my favorites. Tonight I am making it with regular ol' sliced almonds, but to really make it delicious, use smoked almonds. You know, snack nuts like... Excited Nesties love Emerald Nuts... they are salty and smokey and really make the meal.

Also, since this is my own personal recipe, these measurements are total guesses! When I wrote it down, I used measurements like "handful" and "7 leaves"- so go ahead an flex your creative muscles when making this- I always do!


Almond Encrusted Chicken

• 1 to 1.5 Lb. Chicken Breasts
  
• 1/2 C. Whole Smoked Almonds
  
• 2/3 C. Plain Breadcrumbs
  
• 2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese, grated
  
• 3-4 Tbsp. Fresh Mint
  
• 1-2 Tbsp. Fresh Plain Parsley
  
• 2 Stalks of Green Onion, broken into pieces
  
• Olive Oil, around 2 Tbsp. plus around 1/4 C.
  
• Salt and Pepper to taste
  
• Chicken Broth or Milk

1. Slice each chicken breast in half to create two thin breast fillets. Alternately, you can pound the breasts to thin them, but I like a solid hunk of meat to fry.
   
2. In a food processor, add nuts, breadcrumbs, cheese, mint, parsley, and green onion. Pour in a small amount of olive oil and pulse. Blend until it is a slightly moist consistency, adding oil as necessary, and until the nuts are broken into very small pieces. Taste the mix and add salt & pepper as necessary and pulse quickly to blend.
   
3. In a medium bowl, pour in either the milk or broth. In another bowl or plate, put in the coating mixture. Dip the chicken breasts in the liquid one at a time and then press the coating on thickly. I find this ends up being a pretty manual process as I push the breadcrumb mix on with the tips of my fingers.
   
4. In a large skillet, add the 1/4 cup of oil. Feel free to use less- this isn't about making the chicken greasy! Heat the oil over medium heat for frying the chicken. Not too hot- no one wants a smokey, oil spattered kitchen, not too cold- you want to crisp the meat, not bathe it with warm oil.
   
5. Fry the chicken fillets until browned and cooked through, only about 4-6 minutes per side.
   
6. Before serving, drain on a paper towel to remove excess oil.