Pioneer Woman's Ranch-Style Chicken

Y'all...this is good. Really good. You should make it, and you should make it today. This recipe comes from The Pioneer Woman. If you haven't seen her site, go and take a peek. In addition to the delicious recipes she posts, she also blogs about photography, homeschooling, and home and garden. The marinade for this chicken is great and it is the perfect copycat of Outback Steakhouse's Alice Springs Chicken (which I order every time I go there). The Pioneer Woman says nothing about Alice Springs Chicken, but that's what it tastes like to me.Instead of following the directions the first time, we grilled it. Don't get me wrong- the flavor of the marinade still came through. It was just not the version of Alice Springs I had hoped for. So, the next time I made it, I followed directions...and it was pure yumminess (is that a word?)! Too bad I didn't get a picture the second time around- so you get the grilled version. =) We also added mushrooms the second time, which made it even better. I served it with fries, and a copycat version of Outback's honey mustard, which you'll find below. If you make it, let me know how you like it!

~Pioneer Woman's Ranch-Style Chicken~ I used 5 smallish boneless skinless breasts

Marinade:

* 1/2 c. dijon mustard

* 1/2 c. honey

* juice of 1/2 a lemon ( I didn't have one, so I used a couple of teaspoons of the bottled stuff)

* 1/2 teaspoon paprika

* 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix together in a large bowl.

1.) Rinse your chicken breasts under cool water, and pat them dry.

2.) Placing them between two sheets of wax paper (one at a time), pound them to about 1/2-3/4 inch thickness.

3.) Add the chicken to the marinade bowl, and make sure they are coated well. Place in the fridge for at least an hour (I did mine more like 3 hours).

4.) While the chicken is marinating, go ahead and fry your bacon (we used 1/2 pound I believe- the kids didn't eat it on theirs).

5.) Clean out your skillet, but reserve about 1/4 of the bacon grease.

6.) Preheat oven to 400.

7.) Remove chicken from fridge and pour off excess marinade.

8.) Heat reserved bacon grease with an equal amount of canola oil in your clean skillet over med-high to high heat.

9.) When the grease is sufficiently heated, add chicken to skillet, taking care not to overcrowd. (I split it up and did 3 the first time, then the other 2.)

10.) Watch the chicken, and when it starts to get brown/black on the underside- flip, and do the same to the other side. Each side should cook for a maximum of 1-1 1/2 minutes. (I'm pretty sure mine took a little longer, but I have OCD when it comes to the doneness of meat or poultry).

11.) Place all chicken breasts on a baking sheet (I used a 9x13 dish), and put them in the oven to continue cooking for about 10 minutes.

12.) Remove the pan from the oven, and place a couple of bacon slices on each piece (and mushrooms if you are using them).

13.) Top with grated sharp cheddar cheese (we used a mexican blend), and return to the oven for an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bacon is sizzling.

Serve immediately.

~Outback Honey Mustard~ so good! We all even dipped our fries in it instead of ketchup.

1 1/2 cups real mayonnaise

1/2 cup dijon mustard

1/2 cup honey

Stir all together, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.