Chicken Cordon Bleu with a Cranberry Chutney

I set out to make something healthy for dinner tonight and came across Chicken Cordon Bleu. I know it's not the healthiest of chicken dishes but if served with a salad it's not that bad.  That's exactly what I did!  I prepared the chicken with Italian Prosciutto and Swiss Cheese.  I also made a Cranberry Chutney which is almost like a cranberry sauce but with a stronger taste.  It was great to learn what a chutney is!  It's basically a side sauce made with a fruit cooked with vinegar, sugar, and spices.  I made mine with red wine instead of vinegar.  It's awesome because once you know how to make a Cranberry Chutney you can use it with any other dish and with other fruits as well.  So here's how I prepared this meal.

First I laid my chicken breasts on my cutting board and covered them with plastic wrap.  Why you ask?  So I don't splash bacteria all over the place when I smash it with a meat mallet (hammer).  After I got all six breasts down to about 1/4 inch in thickness I seasoned them with Adobo.  I love adobo!  If you don't have any go to BJs and buy the big container.  I then placed my breasts (that's what she said) on top of a large piece of plastic wrap.  Next I laid down a thin slice of prosciutto on the breast followed by a slice of swiss cheese.  I pretty much kept it within the boundaries of the breast.  The next part was quite tricky due to inexperience but it was fun nonetheless.  I rolled one breast at a time on top of plastic wrap. Then I rolled the plastic wrap around it like a you would wrap a piece of candy.  I had never done this before and it was great because by the time you are done with all the breasts the chicken takes it's shape.  

The next step was to season (I season every step of cooking) all purpose flour with some black pepper and salt.  Then I melted some butter! About 3 tbls. Everything good has butter in it. Next I used a breadcrumb that I just came to know.  It's called Panko!  What an amazing crumb this is!  I took the melted butter and mixed it with the crumbs along with more salt, pepper, and thyme.  When using fresh thyme only use the little leaves.  I took 3 eggs and beat them with more salt and pepper.  

The fun part is putting the all purpose flour on the rolled up breasts, then dipping it on the eggs, then rolling it on the Panko breadcrumbs.   After you have a good amount around the rolled breast just place it on an oven safe pan covered with some olive oil.  Do not use a cookie sheet.  I find that it makes the chicken dry.   I baked it at 360 for about 25 minutes.  Just keep checking it to make sure it's not burning.  The crust should be crispy and a little brown.  


To serve it I placed it on a board and cut it like sushi.  Then I layered it over some spinach that were seasoned with kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, extra virgin olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.  

Back to the cranberry chutney.  It wasn't easy finding cranberries at the supermarket but since I shop at Publix someone stopped what they were doing and found the few bags that were left for me.  Basically just put 2 cups of fresh cranberries in a small sauce pan with 1/2 cup of red wine, 1/4 cup of sugar, and lots of ground black pepper.  This is optional for the meal of course but it was suggested as a side sauce for this chicken on the food network.  I thought it was awesome!

Today was definitely a learning experience.  I now know a new breadcrumb and how to use it in other dishes.  I plan on doing a post later just about breading your meats!  I also learned what a chutney is.  I plan on trying it with different fruits like raspberries for instance!  I will try to post more pictures next time.

The cheese was perfectly melted and the chicken was very juicy! You have to try this dish this weekend!  Just go for it! If you have any questions just ask!