Chicken Cordon Jill

So I had some nice comments from some friends today who had read my blog.  I didn't know if anyone was actually reading or not, but to those of you who are: thank you!  It made me that much more excited to do another post tonight! 

I wasn't sure if I would have the energy to cook dinner tonight after working a 12 hour shift.  Not to mention having the energy to cook after working 12 hours AND huffing and puffing through a pain-inducing workout!  (Pain inducing workout consisted of 20 minutes of a butt and leg workout DVD by one sister of a famous alliterative reality show "Klan" on TV.  Anyone who knows me can tell you I'm obsessed.)  Anyway, great workout.  Legs are shaking and butt is cramping.  Success!  

So after my workout I was STARVED.  (Are you shocked?)  I found this recipe for Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu the other day on Cleverly Inspired.  It looked quick and easy enough to throw together after work, and I had most of the ingredients (again: broke until payday, and I didn't particulary want to go to the store).  I made a few substitutions but it turned out great!  Her original recipe is chicken breast with the classic Cordon Bleu flavors (ham and swiss) with a yummy looking creamy sauce on top.  

I had some chicken tenderloins in the freezer, so I put them in the fridge to thaw out last night.  The original recipe for the sauce calls for heavy cream and chicken stock (with some herbs and spices) that simmer together a few minutes until thickened.  I didn't have any heavy cream (and I wanted to keep things somewhat healthy- I didn't do that workout for nothing!), but I did have skim milk (which won't thicken without an agent to help it along).  I also had some butter margarine (lol) and a few tablespoons of flour.  So I made a roux with the margarine and flour, then added in the milk and stock (I used beef stock- it's what I had in the fridge, and it made the sauce taste nice and rich).  I also threw in some parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.  I like my food a bit spicy so I was a little heavy handed with the red pepper flakes.  You can leave them out if you don't like spicy food. 

Now for the weird "non-traditional" part.  Chicken Cordon Blue is supposed to have ham, right?  Well I didn't have ham.  I asked my buddy J- at work for a few slices of ham off his sandwich today, but he said no.  Even if I wrote about him in my blog.  Well, the joke is on him because I used TURKEY instead.  (And maybe the joke is on me, because I mentioned him anyway.)   Anyway,  turkey and chicken...poultry overkill?  Nah, not so much.  I had some cajun roasted turkey breast from the deli for sandwiches, so the cajun seasonings added a nice kick.  In fact, you could probably use any deli meat you want, and it would be pretty good. 

Anyway, this whole meal took about 15 minutes to make (and an hour to write about!).  And this recipe is just enough for one person to have dinner and some leftovers for lunch the next day (perfect for me!).  You can always double the recipe if you're cooking for two.  I served the chicken with some Steamfresh green beans (yum!).  So I'll quit blabbering.  Here's the recipe:

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Chicken Cordon Jill

Adapted from Cleverly Inspired

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter (or margarine)

1 tbsp flour

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup chicken, beef, or vegetable stock

1 tsp parsley

1 tsp oregano

salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste

2 tbsp olive oil

5-6 chicken breast tenders (or 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts)

a few slices of deli meat (turkey, ham, roast beef, bologna..whatever)

a few slices of swiss cheese

1.  In a small saucepan on medium heat, melt the butter.  Add in flour and whisk constantly until flour is golden brown.  Whisk in milk and stir until lumps are gone.  Add in stock, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally.

2.  Heat a large skillet with olive oil. 

3.  Place chicken between two sheets of wax paper and pound to thin out a bit.  Dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.

4.  Place chicken in heated pan and cook on medium heat until browned on both sides (4-5 minutes on each side). 

5.  Turn heat to low.  Place a slice (or two, or a few) of deli meat on each piece of chicken and top with cheese (be careful of oil splatters!!).  Cover skillet with lid and let melt about 3 minutes.  Spoon sauce on top of chicken and eat! 

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If you make this or any of the other recipes I've put on here, I'd love to know how they turned out!!!! 

P.S. Sorry my pictures aren't all that great.  My camera is a little pink point and shoot camera (I call it the Barbie Camera).  I love it, though and I will NEVER give it up!  :)