Chicken Cordon Bleu

I'm including this recipe for sentimental reasons. It's certainly not haute cuisine but it's what won my husband's heart.

You see we'd just started dating. It was about this time of year, give or take a month, and things were in the early stages. I invited him over for dinner and I decided to pull out all the stops for this guy which meant I put away the Ramen and Prego and whipped up a batch of this trusted favorite from my youth.

I served it up and while we were eating a girl next door came by to deliver a message. Now this particular girl was a cute, perky blond Barbie who had had her eye on my guy for quite some time but when I opened the door and she saw him sitting there eating real food she knew she had to admit defeat. He was mine from then on out.

It's not fancy, unless compared to mac and cheese, but it's quite tasty in a homey way and you can make it up ahead and bake it when you need it quite easily. We had it a while back so I thought it might as well be included here.

four skinless boneless chicken breasts
four thin slices of ham
four cubes of Swiss cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Shake-n-Bake seasoning
1/4 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
toothpicks

for sauce:
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons finely minced onion
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 tablespoon flour
1 14-ounce can chicken broth
dash of salt
dash of pepper
pinch of thyme
dash of Worcestershire sauce

Take each chicken breast and with a piece of plastic wrap over the top pound flat with a kitchen mallet to about 1/4-inch thickness. Lay ham slices, one for each breast, on chicken then add cubed Swiss cheese on each as well. Roll up and secure with toothpicks.

Mix the Parmesan, Shake-n-Bake, salt and pepper and parsley in a bowl and roll each chicken roll in the mixture to coat thoroughly. Bake in a greased pan at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, for sauce melt butter in a saucepan and saute onions and mushrooms until soft. Add flour and mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper then slowly add chicken broth, whisking it to prevent lumps. Bring to boil, stirring and scraping bottom, then cook one more minute. Add thyme and Worchesteshire sauce. When chicken are done drizzle sauce over the top of each roll and enjoy.

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