coconut crusted chicken with grilled pineapple salsa

whelp, the school year is winding down..  My younger two kiddos are finishing up their classes at college and will be home next week! 

I was talking to my daughter yesterday and she asked what I was making for dinner.  And I told her. Poor thing…  Usually I don’t talk about what I’m cooking, because I know how tired they are with college food.  It just slipped out.. 

I swear. 

Coconut crusted chicken with grilled pineapple salsa 

For the salsa: 

Pineapple slices ( I used fresh, because the hubs had a pouty face at the store last week when he saw it.. And I told him we didn’t need a whole pineapple for the two of us . I got cheese, he got the pineapple. That’s how you stay married for 25 years 😉 

But you can use canned, just dry with a paper towel ) 

1 jalapeño

Handful of cilantro. ( if you don’t like cilantro,sub parsley.  It’s not your fault, the cilantro taste is a gene thing ) 

A few green onions

Juice and zest of one lime ( I used lemon because I had it.  Just pretend it’s a lime ) 

Sea salt and pepper 

*** Coconut oil 

Start by heating your grill or grill pan .

Coconut oil is solid if it’s under 60 degrees.  So heat it up either in a pan, in the microwave, or in a heat safe dish right on your grill! 

Brush veggies with coconut oil and grill until you get nice grill marks 

Remove from heat and immediately sprinkle with sea salt. 

When cool enough to handle, rough chop veggies ( except lemon) and toss together in a bowl 

  Squeeze lemon juice atop and set aside. 

For the chicken : 

2 chicken breasts

About 1/3 cup coconut flour

1 egg, lightly scrambled 

About 1/2 cup coconut flakes

Coconut oil for Cast iron skillet

Preheat oven to 350 

Start by seasoning your chicken with salt and pepper 

Dredge chicken in coconut flour, then egg, then coconut flakes 

Heat oil in oven safe dish (like cast iron 😉 ) and cook chicken on each side until  golden brown . Be careful not to let the coconut burn.  Chicken will not be fully cooked yet..

From here, transfer to oven and let finish cooking until internal temp is 165. Pull out, let rest for 5 minutes, then slice. 

I served ours on a bed of baby spinach with the salsa on top and a sprinkle of toasted slivered almonds 

I’m so excited to have my kiddos come home so that I can cook for them again! 

Enjoy! 

more meals featuring grilled fruit 

Pork chops with mango jalapeño sauce

Grilled watermelon salad