Aurora's Chicken Pepperoni

The other night I was up late alone.  Everyone had gone to bed and I was on my last load of laundry to wrap up.  I turned on the tv to help pass the 40 minutes of time for dryer and started channel surfing.

I stumbled on a movie I have not seen in so long, and completely forgot about..."Seems Like Old Times".  This is one of my favorites (of course, aren't they all!)  My mom and I used to watch this movie together all the time.  We used have a long running joke about "Aurora's Chicken Pepperoni".

I sat there and laughed so hard for the next hour and a half...way past the time my dryer was finished.
I had giggle tears in my eyes at a few points in the movie that I remembered.  This is such a funny in a slapstick kind of good old fashioned humor way.  I highly recommend this to everyone needing a good laugh. Needless to say, I ended up going to bed at midnight, but it was so worth it!

As there has never really been an official "Chicken Pepperoni" recipe, as in the movie, over the past 30+ years, many people, as it turns out, have created their own version.  I searched them all out and landed this one.  WOW was it amazing!  I can't even describe how incredible the sauce is...so much flavor!  The entire family loved and I will most definitely be adding it to my recipe books.

Like Glenda's 6 dogs in the movie, ours also love to cook with us!

"Little Chefs", as my daughter affectionately calls them.

I repeatedly like to refer to them as our "speed bumps" in the kitchen.

Aurora's Chicken Pepperoni

Adapted from Kelly@Wildflowerskitchen.com

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

salt

pepper

2 Tbl butter

2 Tbl olive oil or canola oil

1/4 cup red wine

1 cup chopped onion (1/2 medium onion)

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1-1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1-1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 (28 ounce) crushed tomatoes

1 (15 ounce) tomato sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste (about 2 oz.)

8 oz. whole spicy pepperoni, sliced, then cut into matchsticks

1 (16 ounce) bag shredded mozzarella and provolone cheese

dried (or fresh) parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pound chicken breasts 1/2" thick (or) I decided to cut the chicken breasts in half (crosswise), so each breast was the portion size of a small fist.

In a large deep ovenproof frying pan or dutch oven, heat butter and oil over medium high heat, stir to mix.  When hot, season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides and sear until lightly browned on each side.  Do in batches if needed, to not overcrowd.  Remove browned chicken to a plate, cover, and set aside.

Remove pan from heat (do not drain oil and butter), add wine carefully, let steam subside and stir and scrape bottom of pan.

Return pan to heat and lower to medium.  Toss in onion, crushed red pepper flakes, dried oregano, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder. Saute for 5 minutes adding pepperoni during last minute, stirring occasionally.

Add crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste and the rest of the ingredients (except for the cheeses and parsley).  Stir well to mix, bring to a low boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring as needed, occasionally, making sure it is not sticking to bottom of pan.

Nestle the browned chicken breasts down into the pan under the sauce making sure that they aren't overlapping.

Put pan into preheated oven and bake, uncovered for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and turn up to a low broil.

Top each piece of chicken with large handfuls of cheese.  Sprinkle top with parsley, and put back into oven and broil until cheese has fully melted.  Watch carefully as it will brown quickly if you're not careful.

One Year Ago: No Post

Two Years Ago: Watermelon Bruschetta

Three Years Ago: One Skillet Tuscan Chicken

Four Years Ago: Lemon-Blackberry Olive Oil Cake

Five Years Ago: Gloria's Shrimp and Avocado Dip

Six Years Ago: Pickling Cucumbers

This photo actually isn't too far from my reality!