Pecan Crusted Chicken

I've been wanting to make pecan crusted chicken for a while and I don't know what took me so long. I love pecans... I love chicken. It was really easy and really moist! I was surprised how much the chicken absorbed the paprika by soaking in the buttermilk for about 30 minutes. I'd definitely make this again. It was easy and relatively little prep (food processor mostly).

I paired this recipe with baked onion rings and sauteed spinach with garlic.

Pecan Crusted Chicken
adapted from Whole Foods

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
1 tablespoon garlic powder
4 (6-8 ounces) boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets
1 cups corn flakes
2 cups whole wheat bread crumbs
1 cup whole pecans

Directions

Position oven rack to middle shelf; preheat to 375ºF. Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray; set aside.
Whisk together buttermilk, cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt and garlic powder. Add chicken; marinate 10 minutes.
 
While chicken is marinating, coarsely grind corn flakes and pecans, separately, in a food processor. Mix together in a large bowl; season with remaining salt.
 
Lift a chicken breast out of buttermilk allowing excess to drain off into bowl; cover entire chicken breast in corn-flake mixture; transfer to baking sheet.
 
Repeat with remaining chicken. Throw out any remaining buttermilk.
 
Bake 20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 170ºF on instant-read thermometer.