Creamy Chicken Cordon Bleu

The sauce was almost a meal in itself...so, so good!

Long time, no blog, eh? So, the last few days has been filled with comfort food for me. My husband and I had both secretly planned to cook for each other on Valentine's day. I had just got done cleaning the whole kitchen when Hubby got home, requesting me to vacate the premises. Being valentines day and that I do tend to enjoy being pampered...I let him win. He made a delicious New York strip steak dinner and dessert for me! It was amazing!


I decided to make my dinner the next day. First time making Chicken cordon bleu and I will certainly be making it many times more. It was super creamy, flavorful and hit the spot. A couple changes and it will be perfect! Chicken cordon bleu is traditionally made filled with ham and Swiss cheese, but I was imagining a much creamier dish and decided to experiment, using brie instead; and a very successful experiment it was. So here is my version of chicken cordon bleu! Enjoy.





Creamy Chicken Cordon Bleu with Brie

• 4 chicken breast halves, pounded to 1/4-1/2 inch thickness*
• 4 slices deli-style ham of your choice
• approx. 4 oz. Le Brie cheese (spreadable, if you can get it)**
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2-3 tbsp bread crumbs (any style)
• herbs Provence (or herbs/spices of your choice, optional)
• salt & pepper
• 3/4-1 cup buttermilk (reg. milk may substitute) 
• toothpicks
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp butter
• about 1/3-1/2 cup dry white wine (I used a dry, lightly oaked Chardonnay, but any Chard or Sauvignon Blanc will do as they both pair well with chicken and cheeses and are generally dry)
• 1 tsp chicken bouillon granules (or one bouillon cube crushed)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

 Note: This recipe makes enough sauce for as much as 6 servings, just increase the chicken halves, ham and brie to 6.

1. Place the chicken breast halves between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound to about 1/4-1/2 inch thickness using the flat side of a meat mallet. *Depending on the size of the breast, you can pound a whole breast. If they are large (what you generally find in the supermarket) you may have to carefully fillet them in half, making sure your knife stays at about half the thickness at all times, and then pound each half out; this is what I did. 

The chicken all thinned out. You'll really have to take the mallet to those suckers! Just be gentle so they don't tear.

2. Mix together the flour, paprika, bread crumbs, herbs, and salt & pepper (to taste) in a shallow dish or plate. Set aside. Place the buttermilk in a bowl and season with salt and pepper if you like. Dip each chicken breast in the buttermilk mixture, coating all over and shaking off any excess, set aside.


3. Top each breast with one slice of ham, and spread about an ounce of the brie on top, mainly in the center; this will help contain it as you roll them up, **especially if you use brie with the rind on it like me...which was messy because I am particular about removing it. So, if you used spreadable brie, this step may be easier if you're picky like me. :-)


4. Carefully, roll each filled chicken piece up, jelly roll-style, and secure the end onto it using 2 toothpicks. Next, carefully roll and generously coat each one in the flour/breadcrumb mixture. Meanwhile, heat the oil and butter together in a large skillet or saute pan, over med-high heat.

5. Once the oils are heated, place your chicken rolls into the pan and brown on all sides. (Careful when turning them with tongs, as the coating may easily "scrape" off.) 

Browning nicely, just look at all that color come out!

6. Stir together the wine and chicken granules, and more herbs/spices if desired. Once your 'chickens' are mostly browned, and no pink is showing, add the wine mixture to the pan and give it a gentle stir with a spoon to combine with the fats. Cover with a lid, lower heat, and simmer for 20-30 mins, until chicken is no longer pink and giving the juices a stir every now and then.


7. Remove the chicken (and any fleeing brie) to a plate to rest. (At this point, you may remove a little of the fats in the pan if you desire, as the sauce was a little heavy/oily. I didn't mind, but next time, I would remove 1/3 to half the fat in the pan. It will be creamier and healthier.) Mix the cornstarch and heavy cream. Raise the heat to medium/med-hi again and stir the cream mixture into the pan juices and fats until thick. You may have to bring it to a light boil, stirring frequently. Sauce will thicken more once off the stove.


8. Spoon the sauce over the chicken cordon bleu and serve immediately. Mmmmm!

This is the next day (leftovers) so they don't look as "melty", but just to show the rolled look...

Photos by The Chocolate Cookie