Recipe: Garlicky Baked Chicken (using fresh bread crumbs)

GARLICKY BAKED CHICKEN

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups fresh bread crumbs, from about 6 slices of day-old firm white bread
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
8 chicken thighs or 4 bone-in single chicken breast halves with skin (cut in half if very large)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the garlic and pour it into a shallow bowl.

In a pie plate or shallow bowl, mix bread crumbs with salt, pepper, and cheese.

Dip the chicken pieces one at a time into the garlic butter, coating them well. Then dip them into the bread crumb mixture, patting the crumbs on so the coating is thick.

Place the chicken pieces skin side up in a shallow baking pan and pat on any remaining bread crumb mixture. Drizzle any remaining garlic butter over the chicken.

Bake the chicken for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until crisp and golden brown.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Servings: 4
Source: The 150 Best American Recipes by Rick Bayless, Fran McCullough, and Molly Stevens