One of the housemates favourites..Chicken Parmigiana with Steamed Buttered Rice

Good day people. Hope I find the viewing populace in good health.  Last night's dinner was a very tasty Meatloaf, served with rosemary and garlic roast potatoes, honey roasted carrots and parsnips, steamed brocolli and homemade meatloaf gravy. It was devoured at pace by the fellow housemates.

Tonight's dinner is one of the housemates favourite..Chicken Parmigiana with Steamed Buttered Rice.

CHICKEN PARMIGIANA

For the Tomato Sauce;
a few sprigs of basil
olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
3 anchovies
1 fresh red chili
2 x 400g tins of tomatoes
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Chicken;
200g of fresh breadcrumbs
a few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 lemon
150g plain flour
2 large free range eggs, beaten
4 chicken breasts, flattened to a thickness of 2cm
1 x 125g of buffalo mozzarella cheese

Preheat your oven to gas 6/200C/400F. Pick the leaves of the sprigs of basil and put them into a small bowl of water to keep them fresh. Finely chop the stalks. Put a pan on a medium heat and add a splash of olive oil, the chopped basil stalks, garlic and anchovies and cook for a few minutes. Prick the chili a few times and add to the pan. Allow everything to sizzle for a minute or so, then pour in the tinned tomatoes. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes. season to taste with salt and pepper

If you can't be bothered to make the sauce from scratch, you could always use a large jar of good quality pasta sauce.

Meanwhile, prepare your chicken. Mix the breadcrumbs in a bowl with the thyme leaves and Parmesan. finely grate your lemon zest into the breadcrumbs, mix again, then lay out three plates in front of you. Put the flour on one and season it with salt and pepper, pour the eggs on to the next plate and put the herby breadcrumbs on the third. Dip the chicken, one at a time, into the flour until well coated. Shake off any excess, then dip into the egg. Let the mixture drip off, then lay the chicken in the breadcrumb mixture. Sprinkle a handful of crumbs over the top and press them down. Make a real point of getting breadcrumbs on to every part of the chicken.

Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add a good splash of olive oil. Let it heat up a bit, then add your chicken. If your pan isn't big enough, you may have to do this in batches, adding a little extra oil if needed. Cook for a few minutes on each side until lightly golden, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. Get yourself a snug-fitting baking dish and spread the tomato sauce in the dish. Lay your chicken on top, side by side. Tear the buffalo mozzarella into pieces and dot these over the dish with a few basil leaves.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden, bubbling and deliciously cooked. Sprinkle the rest of the basil over.

STEAMED BUTTERED RICE

400g Basmati or other long grained white rice
600ml (1pint) water
a knob of butter

Put the rice into a large bowl and wash it in several changes of water until the water becomes clear. Drain and transfer to a heavy saucepan with the water. Make sure the water comes to 1 inch above the surface of the rice. If necessary, adjust the amount of water.

TIP: place the tip of your thumb onto the surface of the rice and the water should be level with your first thumb joint.

Bring the water to the boil and add the butter. Continue boiling  until most of the surface liquid has evaporated. This should should take about 15 minutes. The surface of the rice should be pitted with small indentations.

At this point, cover the pan with a very tight-fitting lid, move to the smallest burner, turn the heat down as low as possible for as possible and let the rice cook unditurbed for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat.

There is no need to 'fluff' the rice. Just let it rest, covered for 5 minutes before serving.