Chicken Cordon Bleu

This classic American novelty is believed to have originated in the 1960’s and is French for ‘Blue Ribbon’.  The beauty of a recipe like this is the potential you have to truly make it your own. You could use chicken or veal as the main meat and stuff with any type of cheese you want.  I LOVE a recipe like this because I can try many variations and my husband doesn’t realize we are essentially having the same thing for dinner a couple nights a week.

When I hear ‘Chicken Cordon Bleu’, the first thing that comes to mind for me is the frozen chicken you find somewhere like Sam’s. That is how I first experienced Chicken Cordon Bleu. Little did I know that as delicious as this was, it was (eek!!) FULL of fat (see below) and really only half as good as it has the potential to be.

I have managed to put a twist on a recipe I found to make this much lower in fat than its counterpart. It’s easy, delicious, and my hubby has requested it to be added to our regular dinner rotation (that’s really saying something!).

Here’s what you’ll need:

Chicken Breast

Swiss Cheese (I used the sandwich slices)

Deli Ham

Low Fat Parmesan Cheese (instead of breadcrumbs)

Italian Seasoning

Sauce:

1 Can Fat Free Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 Cup Fat Free Sour Cream

1Tbsp. Lemon Juice

Pound out your chicken until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Season both sides with salt and pepper.



See how big?! This makes it cook evenly and easy to roll.

  Place half a piece of cheese in the middle of the chicken. Place a couple of slices of ham on top and then add the other half of the cheese.

Tightly roll and secure with a few toothpicks.

Mix some Italian seasoning with the parmesan cheese and...

coat each chicken breast.

Place in a cooking dish, seam side down and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. While the chicken is cooking, you can prepare the sauce. Combine the ingredients in a saucepan and heat through.

Easy, huh? This sauce is totally optional, but is a good addition to the meal. If you are making rice as a side dish, this is a great topper for that as well.

Here’s where you can mix it up a little…

Remove from oven and spray with cooking spray to brown the top or top with a little more cheese. Place under the broiler until desired doneness is reached.

 

Wow! I can't wait to dig in!



The cheese is so ooey gooey, you won't believe how yummy it is!



Prep, prep, prep…This is a good recipe to make in advance. You can roll up the chicken the night before, and coat the chicken with the parmesan cheese right before time to cook. I hope this twist on a classic will inspire some of you followers to try something new. Let us know how it turns out!

Anna