Day 22 of The 2012 Apple Challenge: Chicken with Tomato & Apple Sauce

Someone asked me today if I was getting sick of apples.

Truthfully?

A little.

I'm not tired of the fruit itself, but I am getting tired of having to make one apple recipe every day. I love to cook, but required cooking gets a little tiresome. I look forward to the day when planning dinner doesn't come with an apple requirement.

That being said, tonight's dinner was pretty great. The original recipe called for turkey scallops, but I didn't have any, so I went with chicken.

I love chicken.

But I'm not doing a chicken challenge.

Not next month, anyway.

Chicken with Tomato & Apple Sauce

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 eg
• ¾ cup breadcrumbs
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
• Salt and pepper
• Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, to garnish

Tomato & apple sauce

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 14-ounce can chopped tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• Brown sugar, to taste
• Pinch of grated nutmeg
• Scant ½ cup of water
• Salt and pepper

First, make the sauce. Melt the butter with the olive oil in a pan. Add the shallots and apple, and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until softened. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar to taste, nutmeg, and water and season to taste with salt and pepper. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes, until thickened. Remove the sauce from the heat and let cool slightly.

Put the chicken between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and beat until thin and even. Put the flour into a shallow dish and season to taste with salt and pepper. Lightly beat the egg in the separate shallow dish and spread out the breadcrumbs in a third shallow dish.

Dip the chicken, 1 at a time, first in the flour, then in the egg, and, finally, in the breadcrumbs to coat. Melt the butter with the sunflower oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken, in batches, and cook over medium heat for 1 minute on each side, until golden brown. Reduce the heat and cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until cooked through and tender.

Meanwhile, gently reheat the sauce. Transfer the chicken to warmed individual plates and pour the sauce over them. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from 1 Sauce, 100 Recipes by Linda Doeser (Parragon Inc.; Sept. 30, 2011)