Chicken Cordon Bleu from Scratch

Making chicken cordon bleu from scratch can seem, to many people, a rather daunting task. While it may be a bit more complicated than many meals, making chicken cordon bleu from scratch is definitely a task that you can undertake. Best of all, think about the bragging rights you will get when you are finished.

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)
• 4 slices of ham
• 4 slices of Swiss cheese
• 1 large egg
• 6 tablespoons of fine bread crumbs (panko style would be best)
• 3 tablespoons of flour
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Recipe:

1. Season and flatten. Lay out a bit of wax paper, and place a single chicken breast in the middle. Season the chicken breast with a dash or two of salt, and then place another piece of wax paper over the top of the chicken. The easiest way to work with the chicken is by flattening it, so grab a mallet or heavy pan and begin pounding. Pound the chicken until it is about 1/4 inch thick, and then repeat the process with each piece of chicken that you are cooking.
2. Layer it. Remove the covering piece of wax paper, and begin building your layers of chicken cordon bleu. Do this by placing a piece of Swiss cheese in the middle of the chicken, and then covering the cheese with a piece of ham. Set aside each piece of chicken as you finish it.
3. Create the breading. Place the egg, bread crumbs, and flour into three separate bowels. It is best to set them up in the order of flour, egg, and breadcrumbs since that is the order you will be using the ingredients. Make sure that you beat the egg completely, kind of like you do when making French toast or scrambled eggs.
4. Fold, pin, and dredge. Fold each piece of chicken over so that the ham and cheese are now on the inside of the chicken. When you have them folded over, use a toothpick to pin them together. With the chicken now folded and pinned, you can begin dredging the chicken. Carefully dredge the chicken through the flour first, followed by the egg, and then give them a coating of bread crumbs. Set each piece of chicken off to the side as you finish it.
5. Heat the skillet. Grab a large skillet, and pour the olive oil into it. Begin heating the olive oil and skillet with medium heat, and get ready to begin cooking the chicken.
6. Cook the chicken. Once you have the olive oil completely heated up, you can begin cooking the chicken. Cook the chicken for six minutes per side, they should have a nice golden color to let you know they are ready to eat. If you like, you can season the now do a bit of additional seasoning with salt and pepper to your taste.

Chicken cordon bleu is best served while it is still warm, preferably hot. This means that while you may want to let the food cool down a bit, you shouldn't let it get too cold, or it won't taste as good. For a side dish, you may want to consider steamed asparagus or some other kind of greens. Hollandaise sauce is a great choice for a sauce to go along with a meal like this as well.