All-hands stuffed chicken breast

6 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
12 Chicken breasts; skined, boned
⅛ cup Olive oil
2 Cloves garlic; crushed
1 pounds Fresh spinach; chopped
Salt & pepper to taste
½ pounds Feta cheese; crumbled
½ cup Milk
4 Eggs; beaten
1 cup Italian-flavored bread crumbs
Peanut oil for frying
2 tablespoons Butter
1 cup Sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon Flour
1 cup \"Chicken Soup Stock\" or canned chicneh broth
1 cup Dry white wine
½ Lemon; juice of
¼ cup Chopped parsley; for garnish

Directions

SERVES 6-8

James Brown, of Engine Company 81 in the Bronx, New York, won the contest with this dish. You can tell just by reading the recipe that this fireman knows his stuff. I can imagine the pleasure that Company 81 gets when this man turns on the fires . . . on his stove.

He calls this dish "All Hands" because the line refers to that difficult situation in a fire when absolutely everyone is needed. I can tell you that all hands will show up when you cook this chicken dish.

Officer Brown gives help to everyday cooks as when he points out that this dish "has the advantage of holding in heat in case of an alarm or they can sit for a while and be reheated." (At about six each evening, doesn't your house sound as if there is about to be a four-alarm fire?) You will enjoy this and it is not really difficult to make. I am not giving you his proportions, as they might seem a bit large for a family of four. So, cut down. I have already cut it in half! Using a heavy water glass or wooden mallet, pound each breast between 2 sheets of plastic until about double in area size but not torn.

Heat a large frying pan and add the olive oil and garlic. Stir for a moment and add the spinach. Saut‚ the spinach until barely wilted. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cool and drain in a colander.

Lay each chicken portion flat on the counter and salt and pepper to taste. Place 1/12 of spinach in a layer on each piece of chicken and add a bit of the cheese. Roll up and hold together with toothpicks.

Mix the milk with the eggs and dip each piece into the egg wash and then dredge in the bread crumbs. Pan-fry in a bit of peanut oil until golden brown, turning once. Or deep-fry in oil at 375ø until golden brown. I really prefer these pan-fried. Remove the pieces to a pan and cover. Bake in a 350ø oven for

30 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare the gravy. Drain the fat from the frying pan, leaving the scrapings in the pan. Heat the pan and add the butter and mushrooms. Saut‚ until tender and then stir in the flour, being careful to keep stirring as it thickens. We don't need lumps! Add the chicken stock, wine, and lemon juice. Cook until thickened, stirring with a wire whip.

Check for seasoning of salt and pepper.

Pour the gravy over the chicken rolls and serve with a parsley garnish.

For a winner menu, serve this with Frittorta and Corn Oysters (see recipes).

From <The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American>. Downloaded from Glen's MM Recipe Archive, .

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