Rustic Baked Chicken Breast

You will first want to make a marinade.  I was having another blonde moment and forgot to take pictures of this step.  In a large bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of Dijon mustard, 1/2 cup of honey, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1/2 teaspoon of paprika, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.  (You will notice that I use red pepper flakes a lot.  We like things spicy!)  Pound the chicken breast to about 1/2 inch.  (This is always fun!  You can get some frustrations out!)  Add the chicken to the marinade, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.  In the meantime, fry up some bacon. (Mmmmm bacon!)  Reserve 1/4 cup of  the bacon grease and clean out the skillet.

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Heat reserved bacon grease with 1/4 cup of canola oil over medium heat.  Add the marinated chicken breast to the hot skillet and cook until golden brown.  This should take a couple of minutes per side.

 

Remove chicken to a large baking sheet.  If cooking several pieces of chicken, you just need to repeat the process.  Put chicken in the oven and cook for another 15 minutes.  Remove from oven.

 

Lay a few pieces of bacon over each chicken breast.

 

Sprinkle shredded sharp cheddar cheese over the top of the chicken.

 

Return pan to oven and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the cheese is melted and gooey!

Yummy deliciousness!