We LOVE Italian food, and although the south has some really great food, it’s hard to find really good Italian food here after living in the Northeast. But you can’t have it all, so I made it! It’s been awhile since I have made my Chicken and Eggplant parmesan, the house smells so good and it was awesome! I love eggplant, my husband totally does not! So quite often when I make chicken parm I also make a batch of eggplant as well. It never disappoints!

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breasts (I tenderize with a meat tenderizer)

1 eggplant sliced and peeled

bread crumbs

2 eggs

milk (about 3/4 cup)

2 regular size jars of traditional spaghetti sauce

2 garlic cloves minced

1 package of spaghetti

Basil

ground black pepper

sharp cheddar cheese (about 3/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a plate spread bread crumbs. In a medium bowl combine the eggs and milk and mix to make a wash. Dip all of the chicken and eggplant one at a time into the eggwash, then coat with breadcrumbs. Place in baking pans, one for the chicken, one for the eggplant because in our house, those two just can’t touch, haha. Pour a jar of sauce over each, making sure it completely covers and gets under the chicken and eggplant. Add minced garlic and  sprinkle with some pepper and basil. Bake for about 30 minutes then top with the sharp cheddar, sprinkle a little more basil on and cook for 10 more minutes. It’s so so so yummy!! I usually serve this with a salad, but tonight I was craving broccoli which my husband and I love ( kids still fight it, even though I’ve been serving it for 12 and 9 years to them!) I make the frozen broccoli as directed, then after I drain it I add a scoop of butter and some shredded cheddar cheese and melt the cheese and serve!