~ "By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; Through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures." ~ "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing" ~ "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy." ~ "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."~

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu...

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Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu... I have been making this recipe for years now. It is such a wonderful and tasty dish...not to mention that you can prepare it in advance. You can easily have dinner on the table in about 20 minutes...

I always fall back on this recipe when I have guests coming. It is pretty nice to be able to enjoy their company without worrying too much about dinner. I usually prepare the chicken rolls in the morning, place them in the refrigerator and then bake them right before dinner. I make a salad and mashed potatoes to accompany the chicken. You can prepare the salad beforehand as well... and add salad dressing right before serving. I also get the potatoes prepped in advance. I peel the potatoes, cut them in chunks and place them in a pot. I then completely cover the potatoes with water and keep them covered until ready to make them into mashed potatoes. It is important to keep the potatoes immersed in water so that they will not turn black on you.

How many chicken rolls you make depends on the number of family/guests you will be serving. That is the neat thing about this recipe...you can make one or two or enough for a crowd. You can also cut the chicken cordon bleu in slices(after they have been baked), and skewer them onto a bamboo stick for a quick appetizer. The spiral shape looks quite pretty.

I usually use Swiss/Gruyere cheese and thinly sliced deli ham for the filling. If the cheese/ham slice is bigger than the actual chicken piece you are using, trim it to fit. I use simple, white, sliced bread for the bread crumbs. It works just fine. Actually, I never use store bought dried breadcrumbs. I find that the fresh bread crumbs have a better taste. You can easily add your own spices/herbs to make it your own. I often mix in some shredded Parmesan with the bread crumbs...but, I have done it without as well. So, if you don't have shredded Parmesan readily available, don't panic...it will still taste delicious. Hope you enjoy...

Tip: you can also add the dried herbs in to the fresh bread crumb mixture. If you have some leftover bread crumbs(after you've finished assembling), you can just sprinkle them on top of all the rolled chicken pieces at the end...patting it ever so slightly so that it adheres a bit.

It is easier to make the fresh bread crumbs using frozen bread slices( cut in a few pieces)...this way the bread doesn't clump up on you when you process it to crumbs.

You will need: amounts can be adjusted according to your needs...I used 5 chicken breasts for this recipe.

5 chicken breasts, split in 2 (total yield 10 pieces)
4 tsps onion powder, divided
3-4 cups fresh bread crumbs
3/4 cup shredded Parmesan
salt/pepper to taste
4 TBS butter, melted
3 TBS olive oil, or canola
10 slices deli ham,sliced thinly
10 slices Gruyere/Swiss cheese
optional sprinkle with basil/parsley

Directions:
1. Process a few slices of bread( simple white sliced bread....the fluffy kind) in food processor to make about 4( or so) cups of fresh breadcrumbs. Add Parmesan and 2 tsp onion powder...and herbs if you like. Set aside.
2. Melt butter in a bowl and mix with oil. Set aside.
3. Wash and clean chicken breasts.Pat dry and cut each breast into two pieces. You will have two pretty thin slices.
4. Place a chicken piece on a cutting board. Lay a plastic wrap over the chicken piece and pound with a mallet to about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Take care not to pound too hard because the meat may tear or create holes. Do the same thing with all the chicken pieces. You should have 10 chicken pieces to the original 5.
5. Season each chicken piece with a bit of salt/pepper and the remaining 2 tsp onion powder. Be careful not to over salt the chicken as it is quite thin and the cheese and ham are also salty....
6. Bring all the other ingredients in close proximity. Take out the deli ham and place on a plate. Take cheese out...I usually like to cut the cheese slices in half in case I have to overlap them.
7. Take a chicken piece and place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese(or 2 if you cut the original in half).
8. Roll chicken, jelly-roll style, ...making sure you tuck the sides in as much as possible(this prevents the cheese from oozing out too much in the final baking time). You can secure it with a toothpick. I have, as of lately, started to omit this step. But if you are doing this for the first time, it might help to secure it with the toothpicks.
9. Take the chicken roll and dip into the melted butter/oil...make sure all the sides are well coated.
10. Take the butter coated chicken roll and then roll it in the breadcrumbs/Parmesan mixture.
11. Place in a casserole dish or plate. Finish with the rest. You can sprinkle some dried herbs of your choice...if you haven't mixed it into the bread crumbs. I sprinkled some dried basil...
12. Place in the refrigerator for at least an hour to ensure that the breadcrumbs stay put on the chicken:).
13. When ready to bake, place each chicken roll on a parchment lined jelly roll pan(this will help with the cleaning later) making sure you don't overcrowd them.
14. Bake in a pre-heated 375 oven for 15-20 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle. The time depends on how thinly you pounded the chicken.
Place the pan on the top third rack. This way it browns a bit better.... Don't over cook the chicken. You can easily bake the rolls in a toaster oven as well.

21 comments:

Abi said...

Thanks for posting the step-by-step photos! I made this tonight (used Swiss and Parrano for the cheese) and while it was a little energy intensive (the pounding!) I have to say that my husband and I were both super-impressed with the result.

Ellie said...

Abi, Thanks for the comment...I am sorry the pounding was difficult. Did you cut each chicken breast in half first? That helps a bit. But, I am so glad you both liked it! Thanks again for the feedback.

Chrissy said...

mmmmmm thank you so much for this recipe! it was sooo yummy=d Im definitely making this again=D

Ellie said...

Chrissy,
I am so glad you like it...thanks for the comment and the feedback. It is always nice to hear that someone likes a recipe. Glad you enjoyed it, 'cause we like it too:)!~Ellie

Victor J. Banis said...

when pounding out the chicken breasts, I use the plastic bags from the produce section of my market. They work beautifully. Save them in an empty kleenex box for convenience.

Anonymous said...

I found about this recipe on Saveur and it sounds great! Looking forward to making it!

Ellie said...

Victor, Thanks for stopping by and for sharing such an excellent tip! I am all for making things simpler in the kitchen. So, thank you...

Anon, Oh, I hope you enjoy it...It is one of my favorites:)!

Anonymous said...

Great idea. Thanks.

Nancy in Missoula

Ellie said...

Nancy, You are welcome...I hope you can give the recipe a try.

Lovely to know you are in my neck of the woods. Thanks for stopping by~Ellie

M Family said...

Omg Ellie I finally made this today, gonna take some practice to get the technique down pat but it was fantastic! I used some homemade sweet potato bread crumbs instead of plain white and definitely use the grated parm. Yummy! Thanks again!!!

Ellie said...

M Family, You are always so, so creative...and I love that about you:)!
Sweet potato bread crumbs sound delicious! I can only imagine how pretty the color of the bread crumbs look against the chicken...I am assuming it has a nice orange tinge.
This dish is a favorite of ours...and yes, once you make it a few times, it becomes much easier. You'll learn the tricks and tips that's most helpful to you... the chicken is easier to work with when it's pounded thinner( cook's quicker too) and the cheese is thinly sliced so that you can roll it up much easier.
But I am thrilled you tried it ...and liked it:)!
Thanks so much for your feedback, and for stopping by.

M Family said...

Ellie, you are too kind, the sweet potato bread crumbs were a need to use as the top of my bread machine bread came out funky, so...bread crumbs! I hope to hit up another book marked recipe soon, they are few and far between for me right now with the crazy kid house I have, but when I get a chance to try something new it makes me happy :)

Ellie said...

M Family, See what I mean about you being creative?... You made excellent use of the sweet potato bread! You are so like me:) I dislike throwing things out...even if they are a flop. For me the challenge is to make something wonderful( or at least edible) out of my flops:)...
I too LOVE trying out new recipes... Makes our meals interesting and definitely NOT boring:)
Glad you have some time to try a few recipes every once in a while...one day the kids will help you in the kitchen :).
Thanks for taking the time to write, as I know your time is precious.
Have a great day!

barbara said...

hi, this recipe sounds delicious and easy, i have my sons graduation party saturday and i am thinking of using this recipe for mr chicken dish. we will have lots of other food, but have about 90 people coming. do you think it will work for my buffet? i will need to make it ahead of time, I'm not sure if that will work ok. thanks!

Ellie said...

Hi Barbara, I don't see why you couldn't make it ahead of time.... You could definitely roll the chicken and refrigerate and then bake it last minute. But you can also bake it ahead and re heat it... It really is up to you. I prefer baking it at the last minute. You can make a trial a few days before and see how it goes for you. Hope you will like it and that you have a wonderful meal.

Unknown said...

Looking forward to making this tonight!! Sounds yummy..

Ellie said...

Elaine,

Hope you enjoy:)!

It is one of our favorites... made it not too long ago, and still loved it:). We even enjoy it for leftovers, reheated in the toaster oven.

Anonymous said...

Do you think this could be made in a nesco?

Ellie said...

Anon, Hmmm... never owned a Nesco but if it acts like an oven, or a toaster oven, then it should work. But I am not familiar with the Nesco appliance so I couldn't really tell you if it works or not... Give it a try, and maybe just make one roll.

Julie said...

Do you think making it the day before would gave good results? Thanks for posting this. It looks easier than my original recipe. Julie

Ellie said...

Julie, Yes, it will work assembling them a day before and then baking them. The baking time will differ( a bit more to compensate for the chill factor). I've had wonderful results with this recipe and I hope you will too:). Thanks a bunch for stopping by!