(Aussie)ome Chicken

It's Monday, which means menu planning day. As my routine would have it (and I love a good routine), this is the day I analyze my week and decide which nights I'll be cooking a scrumptious dinner for my man. How 1940s of me, I know.

This evening, I'll make my very organized grocery list and get all the goods I need to cook with this week. In a bit of a food funk, I commissioned the help of my dear sister-in-law last week. She came through with this delicious winner-winner chicken dinner recipe, and I thought perhaps it could help a gal or two with their menu planning.


Alice Springs Chicken is a longstanding favorite dish at Outback. What's not to love about a chicken breast topped with bacon, mushrooms and cheese — besides the calories, let's not think about those. So, Ashley had a simple recipe on how to make this at home and it turned out perfectly.

Here you go, try this for yourself. You'll need ...

For the marinade

1 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup honey
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice

— Combine, stirring for about a minute.
— Pour half of mixture over chicken in a gallon Ziplock and marinate for 1 to 2 hours. (I use this time to get in a quick workout. Better to burn off in advance, right?)
— Chill remaining marinade to serve with chicken.

For the chicken

4 to 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 slice of bacon per chicken breast
3 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

— Preheat oven to 375.
— Put oil in a frying pan. Heat and sear chicken on both sides.
— Transfer chicken to an oven-safe pan and brush with marinade.
— Meanwhile, in a frying pan add butter and saute mushrooms.
— Season chicken breast with salt, pepper and paprika.
— Stack bacon across each breast, spoon mushrooms on each and sprinkle with cheese.
— Cover pan with foil and bake 7 to 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.