Chicken Cordon Bleu

OK...we are going to try eating healthier in our household so I have been on the search for tasty recipes. I just refuse to give up taste to save calories. So I am making a lower-calorie Chicken Cordon Bleu, Sesame Green Beans and Parmesan Sage Potato Wedges. We are also having a nice green salad made with red leaf lettuce, cucumbers, celery, carrots, radishes and green onions. I made the homemade Herbed Ranch Dressing (see prior entries for recipe) but we'll be sparing with it - and I used 1% buttermilk instead of the wonderful, full-fat stuff! I found all 3 recipes through the 3fatchicks.com website.



Chicken Cordon Bleu

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 oz smoked ham, thinly sliced and divided into 4 portions
2 oz Swiss cheese, thinly sliced and divided into 4 portions
2 large egg whites
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 TBSP Dijon mustard
2/3 cup unseasoned dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 lemon wedges

Preheat oven to 400°. Coat a baking rack with cooking spray, then place the rack on a baking sheet and set aside. Butterfly each piece of chicken by slicing into the breast horizontally so you can open it like a book. Lay one quarter of the ham and cheese on one side of each breast, leaving 1/2" at the edge uncovered, then close each piece. (Here's what I do next: I tightly wrap each breast in cling wrap, twisting the edges and then refrigerate for 30 minutes...this should help keep the cheese from melting out). In a medium bowl combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Gently dip each piece of chicken in the crumb mixture, then into the egg white mixture, then again in the crumb mixture. Set on a baking rack. Bake 30 to 35 minutes (or longer if the breast are quite thick) or until crisp and lightly browned, and the chicken is no longer pink inside. Serve with lemon wedges.

This was actually very tasty and everyone enjoyed it very much.

Parmesan Sage Potato Wedges

For our starch I made these, which also came from 3fatchicks.com

Parmesan Sage Potato Wedges

1 large (6 oz) potato, well scrubbed, cut into 1/4" wedges
2 cups cold water
1 tsp oil
1 TBSP Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp sage
dash pepper

Bring water and potatoes to a boil until crisp-tender (4 or 5 minutes). DO NOT OVERCOOK. Rinse with cold water until cool. Pat dry. Heat oil in non-stick pan. Saute potatoes until lightly browned. Sprinkle with cheese and seasonings.

These were pretty tasty as well. The photo is under the Chicken Cordon Bleu recipe.

Sesame Green Beans

The side dish for tonight's dinner is Sesame Green Beans. I found this recipe online from 3fatchicks.com as well.

Sesame Green Beans

1 lb green beans
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 TBSP rice vinegar
1 TBSP reduced-sodium soy sauce (I used regular soy sauce)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Heat 1" water to boiling in 2 quart saucepan. Add beans. Boil uncovered 5 minutes. Cover and boil about 5 minutes longer, or until crisp-tender. While beans are cooking, heat sesame seeds in 6" skillet over medium heat about 2 minutes, stirring frequently until browning begins, tehn stirring constantly until golden brown. Stir in remaining ingredients; heat through. Drain beans. Pour sauce over beans; toss until evenly coated.

I will let you know how we liked this and what I did a bit differently.

We liked these and I used regular soy sauce instead of the reduced-sodium. the photo of these is under the Chicken Cordon Bleu recipe.

Italian Chicken with Cream Sauce for the CROCKPOT

Hey there bloggers!Tonight I'm making my creamy Italian chicken and the smell is making me crazy. This is a super-simple easy-breezy recipe that I'm sure will become a quick family favorite!

This chicken dish is rich, creamy and very tasty. It is delicisou served over fettucine with a garden salad on the side...but tonight I'm cooking artichokes.



ITALIAN CHICKEN WITH CREAM SAUCE FOR THE CROCKPOT

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder
1 cube butter
1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix
1/2 cup water
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 can (10 1/2 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 (4 oz) can mushrooms, drained (optional - I never use these)
16 oz fettuccine, coooked and drained

Season chicken with salt, pepper & garlic powder. Melt butter in saute pan (don't use non-stick for this) and brown chicken breasts over medium to medium high heat...just a few minutes per side - only long enough to make it a nice, golden brown. Place the chicken in the crock pot. Drain the butter but leave all the beautiful browned bits in the bottom of the saute pan. Making sure the saute pan is still on the heat and pour in the 1/2 cup of water and scrape up all the browned bits. Turn off heat and add the package of Italian salad dressing mix. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low for about 3 hours. In a glass bowl, beat the cream cheeese and soup until well blended. Stir in the mushrooms and pour mixture over the chicken. I will stir this into the liquid already in the pot as good as I can. Cook about 1 hour longer. Serve over the cook fettuccine.