Coconut-Orange Chicken with Fried Coconut-Breaded Eggplant

What do you do when you go home to an empty fridge and cupboards, save for some chicken breasts, 1 eggplant, 1 orange, coconut oil and coconut flour?

You make your own 'poor-man's food' and you make it taste delectable!

 I put the recipe in order of prep, in order to allow for the oven pre-heat.

Coconut-Orange Chicken (with Fried Coconut-Breaded Eggplant)

Ingredients:
5 -6 Free-Range Chicken Breasts or Thighs
1 Organic Orange (absolutely MUST be organic)
1/4 cup Organic Coconut Oil
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Coconut Flour
2 tsp Thyme
2 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Pepper
1 tsp dried Oregano
1 tsp dried Basil
1 tsp dried Rosemary (ground)
1 tblsp Garlic Powder
1 Eggplant

Pre-Prep:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 325.
2. Prep the pan for the chicken by adding 1/8 cup of the (solid) coconut oil to the bottom.
3. Slice the Orange and squeeze one of the halves into the pan with the coconut oil.
4. Place pan in oven to melt the oil.

Eggplant Breading Prep:

1. Put the coconut flour and the following seasonings into a mixing bowl:
1. 1 tsp of Thyme
2. 1 tsp of Sea Salt
3. 1/2 tsp of Pepper
4. 1 tsp Oregano
5. 1 tsp Basil
6. 1 tsp Rosemary
7. 1 tblsp Garlic Powder

Chicken Prep:

1. Place chicken in pan, on top of the oil and orange juice.
2. Drizzle the other half of the orange's juice onto the top of the chicken.
3. Sprinkle the chicken with salt, pepper & 1 tsp of Thyme.
4. Grate and sprinkle the Organic Orange Rind over the top of the chicken pieces.
5. Place into pre-heated oven.
6. Cook for 40 - 45 minutes (or until cooked to desired liking).

Eggplant Prep:

1. Heat skillet on stove with coconut oil on medium - medium high.
2. Peel Eggplant and slice into 1/2 - 1 inch thick rounds.
3. Crack 2 eggs into bowl and lightly beat.
4. Dip each eggplant slice in the egg mixture and then coat in the Eggplant breading mix.
5. Place each 'round' into the hot oil in the skillet and fry/ saute until most of the breading on the top becomes 'wet' in appearance, which is an indication to flip it over.
6. Saute until entire eggplant has been cooked and serve with the chicken.

It's pretty easy to tweak this, as you can use any concoction of herbs and spices for the eggplant breading (a little cayenne pepper or cumin or even curry would be fabulous (I know, I've tried 'em all!).

The flavor of the orange and the orange rind is what allows the chicken to have it's delectable flavor and if you don't use an organic orange for the rind, may God have mercy on your soul!

No, really, you don't even want to know the toxins, waxes and other foreign materials that you would be consuming if you used non organic orange rinds!

Try it, tweak it and let me know what you did. I'm always up for learning more, as I am a horrible cook (proper methodologies are still being learned), but every so often I do have some fabulous flavor inspirations!

Bon Appetit!