Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Bored with chicken?

I feel like chicken can get a little boring in the kitchen. Today, I've decided to post two recipes I've made that are really delicious. They are both pretty easy, but feel fancy. Serve them up with some healthy vegetable or salad as a side. People will think you slaved over a hot stove far longer than you actually did!

The first recipe is kind of fun to make. My hubby enjoyed battering the chicken and beating it flat. The lemon zest really makes this dish for me.

Flattened, breaded chicken with lemon and sage
Serves 4
4 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup toasted bread crumbs ( Can be homemade. I cheated and used the store bought wheat type. I suppose you could use panko as well, but that might be too crunchy for this recipe.)
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp all purpose flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp olive oil
4-6 fresh sage leaves, chopped
salt, pepper to taste. (I always use ground pink himalyan or austrian salt with meat.)

Directions
1. Sandwich the chicken breasts between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet or the side of a rolling pin until very thin and evenly flattened. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Combine the bread crumbs and lemon zest in a bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Mix together and spread on to a plate. Put the flour on another plate. And the beaten egg on to yet another plate. Coat the chicken first in the flour, then the egg and finally the bread crumbs. Repeat for all of the chicken.

3. Heat the oil on high heat in a large heavy frying pan. Cook the chicken two pieces at a time or 8-10 minutes, turning once, until golden. Add oil if needed. Transfer to a warm platter and squeeze lemon juice into the pan, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, and mix in the sage. Scrape the mixture over the chicken and serve hot.


Chicken breasts stuffed with goat cheese and basil.
Yes, this is as delicious as it sounds. And it's easier than you'd think.

Chicken
4 boneless chicken breast halves, skinned

1/2 cup fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet) (about 4 ounces)
2 green onions, thinly sliced
3 basil leaves, shredded or 1 teaspoon dried, crumbled
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 egg, beaten to blend
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter melted

For chicken:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Pound chicken between sheets of waxed paper to thickness of 1/4 inch using meat mallet. Pat chicken dry. Combine cheese, green onions and basil in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Spread cheese mixture lengthwise over half of each chicken piece. Tuck short ends in. Roll chicken up, starting at one long side, into tight cylinders. Tie ends with string to secure. Dip chicken in egg, allowing excess to drip into bowl. Roll in breadcrumbs, shaking off excess. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Refrigerate.)
Place chicken in 8-inch square baking dish. Pour 2 tablespoons melted butter over. Bake until cooked through, about 20 minutes.

For the original recipe:
Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Chicken-Breasts-Stuffed-with-Goat-Cheese-and-Basil-2749#ixzz1C6sBlNxS

This recipe can be made in conjunction with a sauce, it is found on the epi.cur.ious website. I found that I did not need the sauce.

1 comment:

  1. this sounds really really good....I may just have something to make for dinner tomorrow...I'll have to go to the grocery store today!

    ReplyDelete