Authentic Compassion

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

1,2,3 - easy as can be


We were having company over for supper last night and Joy in the Morning I had all the ingredients (without a trip to town) for a simple chicken dish - literally 3 ingredients (unless you are picky and want to count freshly ground pepper as 4). You'll need boneless skinless chicken breasts (unless you like the skin on - I'm not judging you here). Pound the chicken out to about 1/2 inch thickness -you'll need it to be flattened and big enough to roll up.
Slice Gouda very thinly - I used one of those little cheese slicers you drag across the cheese but had to give up once the cheese got warm and use a tomato slicing knife. Slice up most of it then plan on cutting into tiny chunks the bits left. I'll tell you why later - suspense is a technique in writing - I didn't say good writing - just writing.
Back to our story of the chicken and the cheese - well here comes the exciting ingredient Ta DA -bacon. Use thick sliced bacon any kind you fancy, pepper bacon might have been a thrill but we had plain hickory smoked.
Put a piece of chicken on a work surface - add some cheese (how much you ask - I say - enough but not too much ( if you overload with cheese you get big time melt out/burn in your pan) on the chicken, roll it up and wrap a slice of bacon around the tidy bundle of deliciousness. If you need to - stick a toothpick in there but remember you did it or somebody will get a bad surprise.

With the 8 ounces of gouda - I made 7 chicken bundles and had enough to make a cheese sauce to serve over it (very optional and this is the suspense reliever - that's what I do with extra 1/3 of the cheese). Grind some pepper over the bundles before cooking - there's that stealth ingredient number 4.

Spray a broiler pan with olive oil (BTW check out a Misto sprayer for inexpensive way to have decent quality spray cooking oils without propellants in Pam type sprays) .
Place the bundles on the rack of broiler pan and bake at 375 for -- I guess 30 minutes - sorry I didn't time it and basically it was until the chicken was done. I thought I had a picture of this process but obviously I was busier than I realized making the meal.

The sauce was a simple white sauce =melted butter, whisk in flour, whisk in chicken broth and milk - then add cheese and stir until melted - season to taste.

We served the chicken with basmati rice cooked in broth and water mixture, steamed green beans, fruit salad and cheese drop biscuits. Dessert was one of my recurring oatmeal bar things -this time with a cheesecake and diced dried mango filling. Yep - yummo.

I need to get busy - house is still far from ready for weekend company. This week is about spiritual preparation and lots of cooking (if done correctly the two mingle well!) Enjoy some easy food - I'll be back very soon! It smells GOOD on Buhlaland.




















9 comments:

Anonymous said...

your recipe sounds really good, Linda...I wonder if I could use prosciutto bacon instead as its the only kind that doesn't contain sugar for Alan (diabetic) probably huh?
what is your oatmeal bar cooky recipe like? that sounds intriguing too...or did you post it already?

Lanny said...

That does sound really good! Have fun preparing for this weekend. We're sort of changing it up a bit this year. And it has been hard for me to break away from all the things we do.

KathyB. said...

Thank-you for posting this recipe, I will be making it. How can you go wrong with chicken, cheese, and BACON ?! Now where is that oatmeal cookie bar recipe? Yum!

And yes, for sure, cooking , eating, and spiritual things are intertwined and made for each other, don't you think?

Yesteryear Embroideries said...

I just love recipes like this! Thanks for sharing. Have a blessed Easter. blessings,Kathleen

LindaSue said...

Dani - as I wrote you - I originally tasted this dish made with prosciutto so definitely. The oatmeal cookie bar was back here
http://buhlaland.blogspot.com/2009/03/ive-noticed-pattern.html and I subbed a cheesecake filling with minced dried mango (or any dried fruit of your choosing) absolutely yummy the next day when dried fruit married the cheesecake filling - is that legal in al 50 states? anyhoo - Lanny - I know what you mean - although I'm finding the Lord will make the changes if I don't go willingly along a new path He opens - so I'm working on that one.KathyB - absolutely bacon and/or cheese improves most any chickeny thing. Kathleen - you have a good Easter also - we have had more wind than normal so I can empathize with what West Texas must be getting!

Paula said...

Wow, that sounds wonderful, Linda Sue! It's got my two favorite ingredients... cheese and butter! Yum! LOL

teamwilhite said...

Yummo! It does look super easy, but could you just MAKE it FOR me?

LindaSue said...

So April - you hinting for a dinner invite? well not this weekend! LOL - a little overwhelmed at this moment with all I still have to do for Sunday dinner for just 17 people!

Mary Humphrey said...

My belly growled as I read through your post, and I just had lunch. :) Thank you for your comments on my blog. Goats are such a blessing to me.

Good luck with your dinner. This is such a special time. In my mind, nothing compares, and is always there!