Chicken Cordon Bleu

When I made out my menu for the last couple weeks, I warned my family that we would be trying new food.  No one wants to give me suggestions lately.  I think their favorites are even getting old.  They loved the Pineapple Grilled Pork Chops we tried last week, and this dish was another favorite.  I'm trilled they are excited to eat dinner and I have new menu items to chose from.  I almost didn't feel like cooking anymore.

We've eaten Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole before and the $1 breaded Chicken Cordon Bleu you can find at Aldi, but I don't really care for either.  So I was excited to try this recipe since these are flavors we like.  I do have to say it was rather fun beating the snot out of the chicken!  (Not literally, of course.)

Chicken Cordon Bleu

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
6 slices Swiss cheese
4 slices cooked ham
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 7x11 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Pound chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness.

3. Sprinkle each piece of chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Place 1 cheese slice and 1 ham slice on top of each breast. Roll up each breast, and secure with a toothpick. Place in baking dish, and sprinkle chicken evenly with bread crumbs.

(On the left is my "spread" to make this recipe -- chicken already pounded out.  I love the sectional plate, albeit Toy Story, for coating the chicken roll-ups in breadcrumbs.  The picture on the right is the chicken roll-ups ready to go in the oven.)

4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from oven, and place 1/2 cheese slice on top of each breast. Return to oven for 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese has melted. Remove toothpicks, and serve immediately.

Special Note:  I purchased 5 slices of cooked ham at the deli and cut them in half to fit on the chicken.  Next time I will have them cut them about 2xs the thickness of regular sandwich slices because the hubby wanted more ham flavor.  I used chicken tenderloins rather than chicken breast because that's what I had.  I think I liked them better anyway because they were great portion sizes for the kids and they cooked in about 20 to 25 minutes rather than 30 to 35 minutes.  I also rolled the chicken roll-ups in breadcrumbs rather than sprinkling them.

I have had two people (family and friend) already try this recipe, and they also gave it rave reviews!

We had Smashed Potato Pancakes and herbed corn (come back next week for that recipe) with our Chicken Cordon Bleu.  Don't think we'll be making the potato pancakes again.  It's an easy recipe in the aspect that it's not complicated, but it takes a long time to make (and I even used leftover mashed potatoes).  And I prefer not to load my body with that much grease!  (Recipe calls for 3 Tbs, but I had to keep pouring and pouring and pouring in more to get the pancakes to brown.)  Curious to know what YOU would serve along side this recipe??