We were planning to make cod for dinner tonight … pending the availability of cod at Harris Teeter. Sadly, they were out and the other seafood was too rich in price for our blood. So we went with Plan B — chicken breast.

This is the day before Christmas eve … plain ‘ole chicken breast will NOT do. So I purchased prosciutto and brie, with the intention to make a variation of Chicken Cordon Bleu.

I’ve done variations on this (both boneless breast and thigh) — it’s all the same basic recipe — stuff chicken with cheese and bake it. It never comes out pretty like in the magazines, but it always tastes delicious. But I didn’t feel like frigging with stuffing the chicken, so I did a “stack”:  chicken, prosciutto, and cheese.  Read on!

Chicken Cutlets with Prosciutto & Brie

• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• bread crumbs and/or cracker crumbs
• 2 eggs, beaten
• salt, ground black pepper, granulated garlic
• milk
• 1/2 lb prosciutto, sliced thin
• 1/2 lb brie
• 2 to 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 to 4 Tbsp butter

If the chicken breasts are thick, slice horizontally in half. Cover the chicken with plastic wrap and pound with the flat side of a meat mallet to an even thickness. I aim for about 3/8″. [For this recipe I used 4 breast halves and the result serves 6 to 8.]

For crumbs I ground (using a food processor) the remains of a bag of blue corn tortilla chips and a box of Cheez-Its, plus plain ‘ole bread crumbs to extend what I had. Whatever you use for a coating will be fine. I typically use the remains of bags of pretzels, potato chips, tortilla chips, crackers, etc — whatever we have is what gets ground up, including cereals.

Spread the crumbs on wax paper in a thin layer.

Beat the eggs with seasonings (to taste). I go lightly on the black pepper as too much bothers Lorraine’s stomach, and go gonzo on the granulated garlic. Add 2 to 4 Tbsp milk to thin the egg mixture — I don’t measure this and honestly have no clue how much I use.

Dip a chicken cutlet in egg to coat, letting excess drain back into the dish. Place on the crumbs and flick the excess crumbs to coat the top of the cutlet. I use a big enough piece of wax paper that I can use a section to press the crumbs into the chicken to set the coating. Repeat with remaining cutlets, adding more crumbs as necessary.

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

In a large saute pan, heat 1 Tbsp each olive oil and butter over medium high heat until the butter is melted and sputters. Add cutlets to fill the pan without crowding too much and reduce heat to medium. Saute about 2 to 3 minutes, or until browned. Flip the cutlets and brown the other side. Place cutlets on a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cutlets, adding 1 Tbsp each butter and olive oil for each batch.

Place a slice of prosciutto on each cutlet and cover with thin (1/8″) slices of brie. You may not use all the prosciutto and brie … but I came close. This is NOT a “healthy” dish. It’s a celebration dish. Enjoy it!

Bake the chicken for 10 minutes — the cheese will melt and the prosciutto will curl a bit. Serve.

Note: You can use any deli ham and any cheese you want. My family likes prosciutto (which is expensive) and brie … but any ham and cheddar work just fine.

The breasts we get at Harris Teeter need to be split horizontally. They’re typically thick. Pound them thin (3/8″) so they cook evenly.

They look beautiful on the baking pan!

Add the prosciutto and brie. I used nearly 1/2 lb each of prosciutto and brie for 8 servings.

After 10 minutes at 425F the cheese melts nicely.

We served it with brown rice and sweet potatoes (not pictured). This doesn’t come out “beautiful”, but it’s a rich dish to be enjoyed!

Since I made this last I purchased Herbes de Provence. I’m going to try the recipe again, using that instead of marjoram. That may do it.

Chicken Scaloppine in Creamy Marsala Sauce

butter & olive oil for frying
1/2 lb mushrooms, washed & sliced in half
1 lb boneless chicken breast
cornstarch for dredging (or use flour)
1 cup Marsala
2 cups chicken stock
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp marjoram
salt & ground black pepper
2 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup cold water
1/4 cup whipping cream

Melt 2 Tbsp butter with 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute mushrooms until lightly browned. Remove and keep warm.

While the mushrooms are cooking, either pound the chicken breast to 1/8″ thick or slice 1/8″ thick. Dredge in cornstarch. After mushrooms are removed from the skillet, add more butter and oil (equal parts) as needed. Lightly brown the chicken, in batches as needed. As each batch is done, remove from the skillet and keep warm.

Increase heat to high and add Marsala to the skillet, scraping up browned bits. Let simmer until liquid is reduced to about 1/8 cup. Do not let this go dry — it will burn!

Add chicken stock, lemon juice, marjoram, salt, & pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Add cornstarch dissolved in water, stirring constantly. The sauce will thicken a bit. Stir in whipping cream and simmer an additional 2 minutes.

Serve sauce over chicken and mushroom, with pasta on the side.

Notes: I actually made this with turkey cutlets. Should work fine with chicken or veal. Would also probably be good with boneless chicken thighs. I used 1/2 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper when seasoning. This came out right.

Problem? I’m not fond of cabbage excepting sauerkraut. So I substituted mung bean sprouts for cabbage and the following recipe took shape!

Chicken Egg Rolls

2 chicken breasts, shredded
1 tsp salt
2 cups fresh mung bean sprouts
1/2 cup green onion (or 1 bunch), chopped
12 oz fresh mushrooms, chopped
1 can water chestnuts, chopped
1 can bamboo shoots, shredded
soy sauce

Add salt to chicken and set aside. Stir fry bean sprouts and onion for 2 minutes. Remove from skillet and set aside. Stir fry chicken until cooked; add mushrooms, chestnuts, and bamboo shoots. Stir fry for 2 minutes; add bean sprout/onion mixture, and soy sauce.

Drain and cool, at least 4 hours.

Fill egg roll skins and fry. Serve with sweet-n-sour sauce or hot mustard.

Bourbon Chicken

Marinade:
1/4 cup bourbon
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1 Tbsp dried minced onion
Chicken:
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, each breast sliced in half horizontally

Marinade: Combine the marinade ingredients in a 1 gallon ziplock bag. Add the chicken, seal the bag and manipulate the bag to coat all pieces. Put in the refrigerator and allow to marinate at least 4 hours, up to 48 hours. Turn the bag periodically to help ensure all the chicken is coated.

To Fry: Remove the chicken from the marinade. Pan fry in a mixture of olive oil and butter over medium heat until barely done, typically 2 to 3 minutes per side.

To Grill: Pre-heat grill. Turn heat down to low and place a layer of aluminum foil on the grate. Arrange the chicken in a single layer on the foil. Cover and cook until barely done, flipping after 2 to 4 minutes (depending on grill heat). Note: The chicken can be grilled directly on the grate, although it will come out less moist.

I thought about cutting the chicken in stripes and threading on skewers, satay style, but haven’t done it yet.

The prosciutto was not just for flavor — when stuffing chicken breast I often have trouble getting it to seal so the cheese doesn’t leak out. The prosciutto was included, in part, to help fix the problem.

It doesn’t hurt that it’s delicious!

Oven Fried Chicken Breast Stuffed with Prosciutto and Brie

4 large boneless chicken breasts
1/3 lb prosciutto, sliced thin
1/2 lb brie
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp ground mustard
ground black pepper and seasoned salt
coating mix

Butterfly the chicken breast by cutting each breast horizontally, not cutting all the way through. Lay it out on a heavy cutting board, cover with plastic wrap, and pound it thin with a meat mallet or piece of 2×4. The meat should be of uniform thickness; be careful to avoid making holes.

Cover with overlapping sheets of prosciutto. The goal is to cover the chicken with a solid layer of prosciutto. Cut the brie in four equal parts. Place a portion on the edge of a breast portion, and roll it up, Securing with toothpicks if desired. Repeat with the remaining three pieces.

Mix the mayonnaise, mustard, pepper, and salt. [I don’t measure but probably use 1/4 tsp pepper and 1/2 tsp salt.] Carefully roll the chicken in the mayo mixture to lightly coat it, then in coating mix.

Place the chicken on an ungreased baking sheet and bake in a pre-heated 425 F oven for 30 minutes.

Note: My coating mix is whatever happens to be handy. It can include bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, and any kind of cereal, cracker, tortilla chips, and/or anything else found in the cupboard. I often go through the boxes and anything with just a bit left gets dumped in the food processor and ground up.