Chicken Cordon Bleu

Brian and I love cooking Julia Child’s recipes. Her recipes are simple and easy to follow with fresh ingredients! One of our favorites is her Chicken Cordon Bleu. We actually just made it for his mom for dinner!

This Chicken Cordon Bleu is delicious with layers of tender chicken, Gruyère cheese, prosciutto, ham, and mornay sauce! It’s a dinner you will dream about!

Seriously stop what you’re doing right now, and grab what you need to make this amazingly delicious chicken cordon bleu!. Not only will this easy chicken recipe make everyone come running for dinner, but it will also leave them wanting seconds or even thirds.

While I love all parts of chicken cordon bleu, I’ll have to say, the mornay sauce is to die for! Mornay sauce is a classic béchamel sauce (one of the five French mother sauces) enriched with cheese and Parmesan. Trust me you will want to make this sauce to spoon over just about anything. And you easily switch out the cheeses to whatever your heart desires! 

Grab a glass of Scout and Cellar Gallivant Chardonnay and let’s go have some fun in the kitchen! Like Julia says ““The more you know, the more you can create. There’s no end to imagination in the kitchen.”

INGREDIENTS

• 2 skinless boneless chicken thighs
• 2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
• 2 ounces thinly sliced Black Forest Ham
• 4 ounces Gruyère cheese
• Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups dry bread crumbs
• Vegetable oil, for frying

Mornay Sauce

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Salt and Pepper
• 1/4 cup coarsely grated Swiss cheese
• 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
• Salt and Pepper
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
• 2 tablespoons butter (optional)

Instructions

Wash the chicken and pat dry. Place the chicken on a sheet of waxed paper or plastic wrap. Cover them with a second sheet of paper or wrap and, with a flat (not textured) mallet, lightly beat them until flattened to a uniform thinness of less than 1/4 inch. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 315F. 

Grab three bowls… Beat egg into one bowl. Spread the crumbs on a second bowl. 

Spread the flour in the third bowl.

Lay the chicken pieces on a flat work surface skinned side down. Lightly spread the inside of each thigh with a little mustard (don’t use too much or the mustard will overpower the other flavors). 

Stack one slide of prosciutto, then 2 slices of cheese and a slice of ham in the center of each. Roll the thigh, making sure that the filling is completely encased. 

Roll the chicken first in the flour, shake off the excess, and dip each thigh in the egg, allowing the excess to flow back into the bowl. 

Lay it in the crumbs. Roll it, patting the crumbs into all sides. When the piece is coated, lay it on a clean, dry plate and repeat until all the pieces are breaded. Set aside for at least half an hour to allow the breading to set.

Fill a deep Dutch oven or frying pan, with enough oil to come halfway up the sides. Over medium-high heat, bring the oil to 375°F (hot but not smoking). Add the chicken and fry until golden brown, place on a sheet pan and palace in the oven until thighs reach an internal temperature of 165F.

Mornay Sauce

In a small saucepan, heat to just a boil, while stirring, the 2 cups of milk and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Remove from heat and set aside.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan, over low heat. Blend in the flour and cook slowly, stirring continuously until “the butter and flour froth together for 2 minutes without coloring,” thus creating a roux. (Julka tip!)

Remove from heat. As soon as it stops bubbling, pour in your hot milk all at once. Immediately start beating with a whisk. Make sure you gather all of the roux from the sides, bottom and edges of the pan.

Return to a low heat and stir until the sauce comes to a boil. Boil and stir for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and beat in salt and pepper to taste.

Beat in the cheese until they have melted and are well blended into the sauce.

Season with nutmeg, cayenne and salt and pepper. Stir in the butter until melted and blended.

Pour over chicken and serve immediately.

http://www.scoutandcellar.com/whiskawaykitchen

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Lasagna Soup Remix

The ultimate comfort food in a bowl!

Who doesn’t love lasagna and a nice salad for dinner? Well how about that dinner but in soup form… that’s exactly what this soup is! I received my inspiration for this recipe from a Publix Apron’s recipe. It’s a quick and easy recipe with easily-found ingredients.

The broth of this soup consists of chicken broth and a jar of your favorite pasta sauce! I mean it doesn’t get much easier than a jar of pasta sauce. When my grandparents, Papa and Meme were not making their own homemade sauce, my Meme would have my Papa buy a jar of Ragu. I know, can you believe it… Ragu! Now, for me my go-to jar is Barilla. But this is your creation so you pick what your go-to sauce is. No judgement!

After browning the ground sausage, you start with “humble beginnings”. Have you ever heard of that? Maybe you have heard of Sofrito, Mirepoix, or the Holy Trinity of cooking. These are all the foundation of some of the world’s greatest dishes. It’s simply a group of vegetables sauteed together, disappearing into the dish as it cooks. But their flavors linger and would most definitely be missed if left out. In this soup, we make a “humble beginnings” of carrot, celery, onion, bell pepper, and garlic to start the soup. 

Most lasagna soup calls for lasagna noodles, you know the long thick noodles that are for a baked lasagna. Well I just don’t agree that those noodles should be in a soup, they end up taking up the whole bowl. So I used a package of Buitoni Three Cheese Tortellini, it usually can be found in the refrigerated section near the cheese. These little tortellinis are stuffed with creamy ricotta, aged Parmesan and Romano. You simply plop them into the soup and you have the noodle and all the delicious cheeses in one bite. 

Do not skip the salad kit’s toppings and dressing, trust me!. I used the Fresh Express Sweet Kale salad kit, it comes with broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, chicory, dried cranberries, roasted pumpkin seeds, poppyseed dressing. That’s 7 superfoods! The cranberries and the poppyseed dressing give the soup a sweet tangy twist, that cuts through the acid from the tomatoes, it’s a delicious combination!! But you can use any salad mix, a Cesar salad kit would be tasty too. If you buy a kit, it comes with everything which means you don’t have to buy a bunch of different ingredients. 

Lastly you plop a nice size dollop of Ricotta cheese into the bowl and you have yourself the perfect one-bowl meal!

Serve on a cold night with a crusty baguette, a glass of Scout and Cellar Fieldhouse Pinot Noir and you are set!

Ingredients

• 1lb mild ground Italian sausage
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning. 
• 3 cups or  24 ounce of your favorite  jar pasta sauce
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomato pesto
• 1 (9 oz) package cheese ravioli
• 1 (12 oz) Fresh Express Sweet Kale salad kit
• 1 (12 oz.) low fat ricotta cheese

Instructions

Preheat a large stockpot 2–3 minutes on medium-high. 

Brown sausage 5–7 minutes, stirring to crumble meat, until no pink remains.

Remove sausage and drain pot. 

Add a teaspoon of olive oil to the pot.  

Saute the veggies for about 4 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low. 

Stir in pasta sauce, broth, and pesto; simmer 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until hot.

Stir ravioli into soup; cook 4–5 minutes or until ravioli is tender 

Add sausage back to the pot and simmer for one hour. 

Meanwhile, mix the salad kit together, expect the dressing. I personally like to drizzle the dressing over the soup but again totally up to you. This is your creation!

Divide soup evenly among bowls. 

Top each bowl with even amounts salad greens and salad toppings, 

Drizzle the dressing over the top. 

Place a dollop about a tablespoon of ricotta cheese on top and serve.

Pear & Pecorino Ravioli with Pancetta and Walnuts

Ravioli stuffed with a fresh pear and cheese filling and sauteed in a buttery sauce with crispy pancetta, this ravioli recipe is a fancy dinner made easy!

The sweetness of the pears complements the salty and creamy cheese filling of these easy ravioli. It’s sweet and savory, my two favorite flavors! 

As you know by now, I love making homemade pasta and that doesn’t stop with the basics like spaghetti and fettuccine – I also enjoy making homemade ravioli. 

First, you will want to make the filling. 

Peel and core the pears. Then using the fine side of a box grater, grate the pears and Pecorino into a bowl and combine. Add ¼ cup of  the mascarpone, 2 Tbsp. of the chopped parsley, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Set to the side. 

If you are making your own pasta, which I highly recommend, follow my Homemade Pasta recipe blog post. 

If you don’t want to make your own pasta dough, you can also use store bought wonton wrappers to cut down on time.

Roll pasta dough into long strips.  I used a pasta machine attachment on my stand mixer to make it easier.

Press a ravioli cutter stamp or circle cookie cutter into the flour and then press down firmly to cut out raviolis or wonton wrapper. Place on a prepared lightly floured cookie sheet. 

This is a ravioli cutter, I purchased from Williams Sonoma.

Scoop about 2 tsp. of the filling into the center of the ravioli. Place another ravioli round on top. Using a pastry brush dipped in water, moisten the exposed pasta around the filling. Starting in the center, gently press and shape the dough around each mound, working out to the sides and forcing out any air. 

Repeat this process until all ravioli is made.  Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

In a large pot of boiling water, add ravioli and once they float to the top, cook another couple of minutes, save about ¼ cup of the water and drain the rest. You will want to use the reserved pasta water to help thicken the sauce later.

For the sauce, melt the butter and sauté the shallots and garlic. I love shallots, while similar in taste to an onion, I think they have a bit more “refined” flavor and are more delicate, and softer. 

Once the shallots and garlic are slightly brown, add in the chopped pancetta. Pancetta is an Italian salami made of pork belly meat that is salt cured. You can find pancetta in the deli at most local grocery stores, like Publix. If you can not find Pancetta, bacon will work too. Cook the pancetta until crispy. 

Add the stuffed ravioli to the same pan, and coat with the buttery sauce for about 2-3 minutes. Slowly add the reserved pasta water, a tablespoon at a time into the pan, this will thicken the sauce slightly. Continue to sauté the ravioli for about 2 more minutes, you want to heat the ravioli all the way through. Lastly, stir in the chopped parsley. 

Place the cooked ravioli on a plate, spoon the buttery sauce over the top and sprinkle with toasted chopped walnuts. Yum! 

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 lb. Bartlett pears, peeled and cored
• 8 oz. Pecorino Toscano cheese
• 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
• 3 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 lb. fresh pasta
• 4 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chopped pancetta
• 2 shallots, diced
• 3 Tbs. chopped toasted walnuts

DIRECTIONS

Using the fine side of a box grater, grate the pears and Pecorino into a bowl. Add the mascarpone, 2 Tbsp. of the parsley, salt and pepper and stir to combine.

Kitchen Aid Pasta Roller: Using the roller attachment, roll the pasta into a thin sheet and cut into 12-inch-long pieces.

Hand method: Roll out the pasta and cut into 12-inch-long pieces. 

Press a ravioli cutter stamp or circle cookie cutter into the flour and then press down firmly to cut out raviolis. Place on a prepared floured tray.

Scoop about 2 tsp. of the filling into the center of the ravioli. Place another ravioli round on top. Using a pastry brush dipped in water, moisten the exposed pasta around the filling. Starting in the center, gently press and shape the dough around each mound, working out to the sides and forcing out any air.

Transfer the ravioli to a lightly floured baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before cooking.

Bring a large pot two-thirds full of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add half of the ravioli and cook until they float and are al dente (tender but firm to the bite), 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the ravioli to paper towels to drain. Repeat to cook the remaining ravioli. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water.

In a large, deep sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Sauté the chopped shallots and garlic for 2-3 minutes. In the same pan, add the pancetta and cook until crispy. Season with salt and pepper. Add the ravioli and gently stir to coat with the butter. Add the reserved cooking water as needed to create a sauce. Stir in the remaining 1 Tbs. parsley.

Transfer the ravioli to a warmed serving bowl, sprinkle with the walnuts and serve.

 Inspired by Lidia Bastianich