Sticky honey and chilli chicken with a crushed cornflake crust

Fans of a simple – and relatively healthy – chicken breast + spud + veggie dinner in the middle of the week will love this flavourful and unfussy upgrade on the classic.

The long and short of it is: you bash the chicken out so it’s loads bigger and a bit thinner (this reduces cooking time and results in a moister, tastier bit of meat), coat it in cornflakes, bake and then drizzle with a sauce that’s super simple to whip up. What you put with it is up to you, but in the interest of keeping cooking time down, I suggest caesar salad with avocado and paprika-sprinkled sweet potato chunks.

Serves 2

You’ll need:

2 chicken breast

150ml buttermilk

2 mugs cornflakes

1 tbsp flour

Salt & pepper

Olive oil

50g butter

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp powdered garlic

1/2 tsp powdered onion

Place each chicken breast between two pieces of clingfilm and use a rolling pin to evenly bash them until they’re about half as thin as they started.

Pour the buttermilk into a mixing bowl and add the chicken breasts, swirling them around so they’re properly covered.

Use a blender – or if you don’t have one, a plastic bag and that trusty rolling pin again – to blitz the cornflakes. Stir in the flour and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and then pour onto a large plate.

Drag the chicken breasts through the cornflake powder, making sure both sides and the edges or any folds are completely covered.

Lay the chicken breasts on a baking tray, drizzle the tops with olive oil and bake for 20 minutes at 180. After 20 minutes, turn them over, drizzle with a little more oil and cook for a further 5-10 minutes before checking they’re cooked all the way through.

While you wait for the chicken to cook, melt the butter in a saucepan, then pour into a small bowl and stir in the honey, chilli powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic and onion. Mix well and pour over the chicken breasts when they’re done.

If you’re doing the paprika-sprinkled sweet potatoes they can go in when you put the chicken in buttermilk and are done after 30-40 minutes. And while the chicken is cooking, chop up some lettuce leaves, slice and avo, maybe add some tomatoes and slather in Caeser dressing. Et voila!