1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a rimmed sheet pan (I use a stone baking pan, but a casserole dish or half sheet pan would also work) with cooking spray.

2. Carefully slice chicken breasts in half through the thickness to make 8 thinner chicken pieces. Pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of dry chicken as desired.
3. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat.

4. Meanwhile prepare the ingredients for breading. Sprinkle flour on a large plate. In a shallow dish or pie plate whisk together eggs and water. In another shallow dish or pie plate combine bread crumbs, lemon zest, and parmesan cheese.

5. When oil sizzles with a drop of water, it is ready to cook the chicken. Take each seasoned chicken piece and coat both sides with the flour, dip both sides into egg mixture, and coat both sides with bread crumb/zest/cheese mixture. Then carefully place in hot oil.

6. Repeat step 5 with 1 or 2 remaining chicken pieces until the sauté pan is full. Cook chicken in hot oil 2-4 minutes on each side just until the outside is golden brown (chicken will still be raw in the middle at this point). Place chicken in prepared baking pan, trying not to overlap chicken as much as possible.

7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 until all the chicken pieces are browned. Bake chicken in preheat 350 oven for 20-25 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Watch carefully and check with a baking thermometer so chicken does not get overcooked.

Lemon Cream Sauce:

1. Meanwhile, prepare lemon cream sauce by melting butter in large saucepan. Add 1 cup onion and saute until onion is translucent, about 5-8 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until aromatic.

2. Add flour and whisk, cooking about 1 minute. Then whisk in chicken broth. Cook until thick. Add cream, Italian seasoning, lemon juice and parmesan cheese. Taste and add salt and pepper, if needed. Simmer on low until chicken is ready. 

For Serving:

1. Once cooked to temperature, remove chicken from oven and preheat the broiler. You can serve this dish individually on oven-safe plates or family style in the pan. Add sauce and grated mozzarella cheese, as desired. We usually add about 1/2 the sauce over the cooked chicken and sprinkle cheese on top. Place plates or pan under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes until cheese starts to melt and becomes bubbly and golden brown.

2. Serve immediately with lemon slices, if desired. A little squeeze of lemon over everything is very tasty. We usually serve it over cooked bow tie pasta (topped with extra sauce) with a salad or steamed vegetables. Mashed potatoes would also be delicious.