Chicken + Mozzarella w/Tomato Sauce

So I found a treasure at the store, finally... fat-free mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.  Surprisingly tough to locate.. Safeway had the cheddar, Albertson's had the mozzarella.

Naturally I was all, "Oh snap. I can cook something awesome with these.. I'm allowed fat-free dairy."

Then I said.. "Chicken Parm. It has to be done."

I made an oat-bran based breading and some home-made simple tomato sauce, and then sauteed up some zucchini on the side.  For Dawn I cooked up some Trader Joe's "meatless meatballs" in the oven, since she is a Veggiesaurus.

This was so tasty. A good start towards curing my food boredom!

           Ingredients:

• 1 pound chicken - skinless, boneless, cut into tenders
• 15oz can low-sodium tomato sauce
• 1 small tomato, seeded and diced
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp oregano
• About 4 tbsp oat bran (or breading)
• salt + pepper
• 2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
• 1 cup water
• Small bit of olive oil

Tomato, Onion and Garlic Sauce:

1. In a saucepan, saute the onion + garlic with a tiny bit of olive oil, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the diced tomato, saute another minute

3. Add tomato sauce, 1 cup water, pinch of salt if desired, and oregano

4. Simmer on medium-low for 30 minutes, uncovered, to thicken.

Chicken 'parmesan':

1. Rinse + pat dry chicken tenders w/paper towel
2. In a bowl, combine oat bran, corn starch, pinch of salt + pepper
3. Lightly dredge chicken in breading. (Take it easy, we're not deep frying here)
4. In a large skillet, brown the chicken over medium heat until cooked, about 4-5 minutes per side.

Zucchini side dish:

1. Put a tiny amount of olive oil in a saute pan, heat to medium
2. Add slices of zucchini

3. Lightly sprinkle some salt, pepper, or other herbs

4. Saute for just a couple of minutes. Don't overcook.

Serve chicken with sauce over the top, sprinkle on fat-free mozzarella (or a cheese of your choice).

Nom nom nom