You know how you find a recipe you love, make it over and over again, and then completely forget about it – for years, even? Then one day it pops back into your head. This happened to me recently when out of the blue, this Crispy Parmigiano Chicken blasted back from the past and begged for attention. I’m not sure why I stopped making it, but it probably fell away during my vegetarian days.

I first made this crowd-pleaser when I was a cook in a gourmet market in Newport, R.I., 30 years ago. (I was 12 years old at the time – ha, ha.) I made hundreds of crispy parmesan-and-breadcrumb-coated chicken breasts on full-sized sheet pans in the convection oven. Because the crumb coating kept the breast meat moist, they were good hot, room temperature, or cold – perfect for takeout. 

But I no longer have the written recipe I used back then, so this weekend I recreated a version of it – with generous amounts of Parmigiano in the coating. If you can get in the habit of keeping fresh breadcrumbs in your freezer, as well as Parmigiano and Dijon mustard in the fridge, Crispy Parmigiano Chicken can go right into rotation. No one will complain.

A simple salad and any green veg – say Blistered Chinese Restaurant-Style Green Beans or Crispy Broccoli Florets – would round out the dinner plate nicely.

Or you can go full-on comfort and serve the chicken breasts with Smashed Yukon Gold Potatoes with Roasted Garlic.

While I was rooting around in our potato recipe archives, I spied another recipe I love that I haven’t made in a while: Potato, Greens, Garlic and Chickpea Crush leans more towards main dish rather than side dish, so no chicken necessary.

I’m looking forward to the reopening of The Net Result tomorrow. Hoping to buy some nice halibut for my husband’s birthday this weekend and make a version of this Roasted Fish with Cherry Tomatoes and Olives.

And I haven’t made Oven-Roasted Clams in a Garlicky Tomato Pan Sauce in a long time. I’ll do a wintry version of that with canned tomatoes sometime soon.

If you’re celebrating the Chinese New Year, add Setzu Zeender’s Siu Mai (Chinese Dumplings) to your menu.

And be sure to feature a noodle dish (for longevity) like the Udon Noodles with Stir-Fried Baby Bok Choy and Pork in Garlic-Ginger Broth we featured last week, or these Chinese Egg Noodles with Veggies in Lime-Coconut Broth.

Something sweet? And make-ahead? Abby Dodge’s Vanilla Cheesecake Puddings with a Pretzel Crust.

Let’s hear it for everything crispy, crunchy, and crusty. Have a great week and we'll see you on Instagram @cookthevineyard. Be sure to follow us if you haven't already.

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