Friday, March 9, 2012

Country Ham & Manchego-Stuffed Chicken Breasts


Howdy!

The wedding countdown is on.  Less than 2 months away, we're starting to chip at what we have left to  do bit by bit.  The past week or so, my engagement ring has been at the jeweler's in order to get the bands molded.  I almost feel naked without it!  Like men are just gawking at me like I'm a single woman.  Hehe, I'm pretty vain aren't I?

The end of this quarter of Culinary School is almost upon us.  And I'm definitely ready for the break.  The middle of the month is also my last day at my day job at the pharmacy.  I've worked there for 7 years and it'll be hard to say good-bye.  But I know I've been lifelong friends and it won't be good-bye to those people.  But it also marks the day I'll be moving on.  Really getting on.  I'll be able to work at the restaurant more, especially since I'll be switching to Day-time classes for the next quarter.  Nights and weekends were alright, but I'd be there double the time.  Day-time classes allow me to finished faster (and cook more!) - as well as being able to work at the restaurant more often. 

But all in all, everything is great - except for the fact I've cut myself twice in the past two weeks.  Once on my pinky (sliced the sucker right open) while cleaning my knife - and the second time was just this past Sunday at work - with a bread knife.  Not pretty.  And by the time I went to the Immediate Care Center (my stubborn ass went the next day instead of right after work), it was too late to get stitched up.  So I'll just have to suffer with the battle wounds for now.

Anyway, this is an easy weeknight dinner that's tasty and quick!  Let's get at it!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
2 pieces of country ham
2 slices of manchego cheese (or cheese of your choice)
1/4 cup flour
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil (or olive oil)

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Wrap your chicken breasts loosely in plastic wrap.  You want it loose enough that they'll be able to comfortably expand, but not too loose that they're "expand" in little pieces all over your kitchen when you smack the crap out of them.


Take a meat mallet or bottom side of a pan and get to smacking.  Flatten the breasts to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness.


Remove plastic wrap from chicken breasts.


Place a piece of country ham on chicken breast.


Place a piece of manchego cheese on top of country ham.


Using butcher's twine or toothpicks (these are more ideal), wrap the chicken breast around the ham and cheese.  If I had toothpicks handy, I would have used those, but the twine sufficed.


Place the flour in a shallow dish.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dredge the chicken in the flour, shaking off any excess flour.


Heat the oil in an oven-proof skillet under medium high heat.  Place the chicken in the pan, seam-side up.  Cook chicken until you get a nice golden crust, about 3-4 minutes.  Flip chicken over and cook for an additional minute.

Transfer chicken to the oven to finish, about 10 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165F.


Serve chicken with barbecue sauce (or sauce of your choice) and side of your choice.  We paired this with macaroni and cheese for a nice comforting meal!

50 comments:

  1. I am sure you have been busy with all the wedding planning, but it is a fun process all the same!
    It has been awhile since I have had stuffed chicken so this is a delicious reminder. It does look tempting and tasty. Glad you posted this-yum! Enjoy the weekend.

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  2. Wow. This really upps the ante on stuffed chicken breasts. Great recipe!

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  3. Yum, what a great chicken dinner!
    Good luck with the last few wedding details!!!

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  4. Stuffed chicken sounds perfect for dinner. I have all of the ingredients on hand to make this however I don't know of a flour that I can substitute since I just found out I have a gluten intolerance. Any suggestions?

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  5. One of my last classes had this clown who would always leave his chef's knife at the bottom of the sink. I cut myself more times on his knife than I ever have with my own! And I've burned myself a few times pretty dang good. I guess now we know why seasoned cooks have no feeling left in their hands!

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  6. wow, what a great recipe! thanks for sharing!

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  7. This looks amazing!
    Things are really moving along for you--endings and beginnings, sounds like great things to come!

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  8. What delicious looking dish :) I would love this, especially because of the manchego!

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  9. Seems like you are heading for a very time with the wedding on the way. Its all worth for the special day in your life.

    I can see that the chicken it cooked to just nice in texture and the pics says it all.

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  10. This chicken looks so wonderful!! Great step by step instructions too. :) Congrats on the wedding getting closer!! Wow.. only two more months!! How exciting. :)

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  11. That's awesome! So easy to follow with step by step method....

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  12. 2 months to go! how cool :) I pray everything is as stress-free as possible so you can enjoy this special time! :)

    This dish sounds really yummy! I love manchego and this would really be a great meal for me! Thanks for sharing :)

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  13. What beautiful photos!
    I love that you gave us step by step instructions. I must give this a try!
    Thanks for sharing.

    Kay Johnson
    andtheniateit.com

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  14. Look at that fancy sauce on the plate! Must feel like you're eating at a restaurant in Paris!

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  15. I would have chopped my hand off or burned it off by now, so I say you are doing great with two cuts. I bet a couple cut scars would make you look tougher at the school :)

    Looks elegant. I agree with Mr. Pineapple, fancy!!

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  16. Lots of exciting things coming your way! I know what you mean about the ring thing. I actually bought a back-up wedding band that has just a few diamonds in it so I had something to wear when I have to send my rings off! I got it on Overstock and it was really cheap!

    This chicken looks awesome! I haven't had manchego in forever!

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  17. Fantastic and beautiful!!....good to see you again!!.....Abrazotes, Marcela

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  18. OMG!Amazing, toooo amazing! Such a simple way to make a fancy dinner. love love love it! :D

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  19. The presentation is lovely. Bbq sauce and stuffed chicken: sign me up!

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  20. it make me feel hungry, i really want to eat it. i need to add it in my list hihi.
    love it :x

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  21. What, is the wedding really that close?? Oh my goodness, time flies. Your cooking is really looking professional. And I guess a real chef must have those scars, right?

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  22. I already tried this one and i super loved it :)
    the sauce is the best finale hihi.

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  23. Wow...I want to make these tonight! Delicious and easy--just how I like my meals! :-)

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  24. Congratulation Peggy!

    Sorry that I've not been visiting your blog and now I am happy for you that you are counting down to your big day.

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  25. i love this post, looks so good :)
    just looking at it makes me hungry. nice putting some cheese i loved it :)

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  26. So delicious! This is very much like chicken cordon bleu which I really love!
    Oh, I'm so excited for you, Peggy! I know that wedding prep can be exhausting, but it's all worth it in the end. :)

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  27. I've never done this with Manchego...but I'd love to try. What a yummy idea :) And you are so busy...I can't believe your wedding is so soon!!! Such an exciting time for you...with all the good changes :)

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  28. i really like this one. i already tried this before but its different hahas.

    well congrats hihi!

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  29. I loved how you wrapped up the chicken breasts with ham and cheese, so that the flavours get mingled up nicely! This recipe looks great and something I'm going to try for sure!

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  30. It's the final countdown (cue tune-age)! You must be so excited! And culinary school ending, so many good things going on right now! I love the elegant swirl on the plate... very fancy ;)

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  31. These look and sound delightful.

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  32. I am sure this is such an exciting time for you... Yayyy....

    B/W This stuffed chicken looks so so good...
    Yumm!!!

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  33. lol its also my dream wish my prince charming will come this year :)
    no doubt its a 100% delicious!

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  34. Ouch! At least I'm sure your battle wounds look pretty cool, right? :) This recipe looks delicious! I love stuffed chicken, mine never turns out as pretty as yours though! The ham and manchego combo sounds too good, yum!

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    Replies
    1. Just wanted to drop by again to let you know I nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award :) I love love love following your recipes!!

      Have a great weekend!!

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  35. Any excuse for Manchego cheese and I'm there. What a good way to make a chicken breast a bit more interesting!

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  36. I love love love this..I am hungry now just by looking at your photos, honestly! Got to try it soon!!!
    Have a lovely weekend!!!

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  37. Ouch! Sounds painful. You are certainly a very busy cook. How exciting to be on the wedding countdown. My son is getting married in July. Since we are on the groom's side, we don't have as much to do and try to help wherever we can. The chicken looks delish. I can't imagine where you find the time to turn out such a nice meal.

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  38. That's exactly how I flatten my chicken breast ;-)
    This looks so delicious!

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  39. I can't believe the wedding is only two months away!! So exciting. And culinary school must be flying by! Sorry to hear you cut yourself :-/ This chicken looks amaaaazing. So simple but also feels fancy.

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  40. Wow! wedding is beautiful part of life congratulation and lots of good luck for ur life in advance:). ur stuffed chicken looks delicious.

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  41. Hi Peggy,
    The dish cudnt look better than this. Have a good day...cheers, sonia

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  42. Oh dear Lord Girl! I know you are all kinds of busy with everything but PLEASE come make me this. It looks so freakin good.

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  43. This is super delicious!! Thanks for sharing.

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  44. Peggy: You've done a fantastic job with this. Looks great.

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  45. First of all, lots of excitement leading up to your wedding! Good luck with all your last minute arrangements. Sorry again to hear about your finger :( In my opinion, cuts are WAY worse than burns in the kitchen. Your chicken looks great! Almost like a cordon bleu but with different cheese. Bet it's delish!

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