Ingredients
1 13-oz box Barilla penne pasta
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 pinch salt and pepper, to taste
1 1/2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, pounded thin or sliced in half
1 cup 4C breadcrumbs
1/2 cup Bertolli olive oil
2 tablespoons Kerrygold butter
4-5 large/thick slices bacon
2 med/lg tomatoes, diced
1 med onion, diced
1 12-oz bottle honey barbecue sauce
3 TBS Dijon mustard
1 1/2 cups Kraft grated cheddar cheese
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Pour into a deep 9×13 baking dish.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper.
Dip the chicken breasts in the egg mixture then roll in breadcrumbs to coat.
Heat the olive oil and butter in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry chicken breasts until the juices run clear and they are well browned on both sides (about 5-10 minutes per side). Be sure to cook them well, but be careful not to burn the breading. Remove to paper towels to drain. Drain all but about 1 TBS of excess oil from frying pan.
While the chicken is cooking, place bacon in another large deep frying pan. Cook over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from frying pan, pat to remove excess grease, then crumble and set aside.
Return the frying pan that had the chicken in it to medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5-10 minutes, or until beginning to soften and get translucent. Add tomato and cooked bacon, then cook for about 5 minutes or until onion is completely tender.
Pour in the barbecue sauce and mustard. Simmer for 5 minutes. Pour the sauce over the pasta in the dish then place the chicken on the top and cover with grated cheese.
Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven. Remove foil, return to oven until cheese is completely melted, chicken is no longer pink in the middle, and dish is heated through.
