Chicken Cordon Bleu

Recipe:

PREP TIME	15 Min
COOK TIME	45 Min
READY IN	1 Hr

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 6 slices Swiss cheese
• 6 slices ham
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

DIRECTIONS

1. Pound chicken breasts if they are too thick. Place a cheese and ham slice on each breast within 1/2 inch of the edges. Fold the edges of the chicken over the filling, and secure with toothpicks. Mix the flour and paprika in a small bowl, and coat the chicken pieces.
2. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook the chicken until browned on all sides. Add the wine and bouillon. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.
3. Remove the toothpicks, and transfer the breasts to a warm platter. Blend the cornstarch with the cream in a small bowl, and whisk slowly into the skillet. Cook, stirring until thickened, and pour over the chicken. Serve warm.

Review:
One word...Fabulous!! This was so delicious. As usual, a few things were changed. First, we scaled the recipe for four servings but only prepared two chicken breasts and kept the sauce recipe to serve four. We did have a little sauce left over, but not much and it was worth it to have a little extra to use on side dishes (steamed asparagus this time). Next, we replaced the white wine with chicken broth and replaced the heavy cream with skim milk and a bit of butter. We just don't keep cream around the house and we're skim milk people, so that's what we used. Next time I think I'll leave the extra butter out because the sauce has corn starch and doesn't really need the butter in order to thicken. And we pulled the chicken out about four minutes early because it was done already.
This worked great as Sunday meal because it took a bit of time that we usually don't have on weeknights. Plus it's just one of those fancy-ish type meals that I try to reserve for special days. It was fairly easy to prepare; probably moderate in level. Definitely worth a try if you're looking for a new chicken recipe!