Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce; the Weekly Menu

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce

It's a rainy day here in the Lot et Garonne. 

I'm torn….

There's a part of me that wants to go out and work in the garden, regardless.  I made a good start over the last few nice days and I would love to get back at it until it's done – except, that would take weeks of constant labor.

The other part of me wants to sit quietly at my computer and finish all the projects I have started over the last few weeks and months; you know: tidy up the blog, index recipes, update web pages, sort through a few thousand food photos that I now have no clue as to what I actually did to prepare the food.

I could clean the house… Let me check my list… No, that's not on it!

I think I'll let the rain dictate and have another cup of coffee.

Rather than get into any details about mon mari's diabetes on this blog, I have started another (sigh…).

We don't really have to make any major changes to daily menus, but there are a few tweaks – not to the recipes themselves, as we eat only fresh, local produce and cook everything from scratch, but to the combination of foods.  That seemed to go rather well with my new website so I attached the blog to that domain (I do like to keep things tidy and interconnected).

New blog: Blog at Easy Gourmet Dinners  Remember…it's new

Don't forget to have a meander through me internet cook book, Easy Gourmet Dinners;  – and please – any hints to make it more useful? 

Looking for something yummy and impressive for dinner tonight?

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce
    These are easy to make: slice a pocket, fill and tie. The Prosciutto wrapping infuses the chicken with flavor and helps keep it moist. The Pimiento Sauce adds just a bit of spice to it.

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
1 – 2oz (50gr) Gruyère or other hard cheese, thinly sliced
4 slices Prosciutto (about 3oz, 90gr)
1 tbs olive oil
kitchen string
Pimiento Sauce

With a sharp knife make a long slit in the edge of the chicken breast – cutting horizontally and being careful not to cut through the other side. Make the cut on the 'straight' edge of the breast. You should have a pocket the shape of the breast with 1/2 inch of 'uncut' chicken around 3 sides.
Tuck the sliced cheese inside.
Lay 2 slices of Prosciutto side by side. Close the chicken breast and lay it on the Prosciutto at a slight angle, Roll and wrap, covering the chicken breast completely in the ham, as best you can.
Wrap the entire parcel with kitchen string to hold it together – and keep as much cheese inside as possible.
Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and brown well on all sides, about 10 minutes total. Reduce heat to low, cover and let finish cooking, another 10 – 15 minutes.
Or, you can cook on a barbecue grill for 8 – 12 minutes per side over indirect heat until Prosciutto if starting to crisp and chicken is cooked through.|
Remove chicken from heat. Snip the string in a few places and remove. Spoon some Pimiento Sauce onto the plates, place the chicken in the center and serve, any remaining sauce on the side.

Pimiento Sauce

4 – 5oz (150gr) pimiento (pimento) or roasted red peppers, drained
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbs tomato paste use the stuff in the tube
1 tbs Greek or plain yogurt
1/4 – 1/2 cup (2-4oz, 60-120ml) chicken stock

Put pimiento/pepper, garlic powder and chili powder into a blender. Add just enough of the chicken stock to enable it to purée. Pour into a small saucepan and stir in tomato paste. Gently heat until it starts to simmer. Stir in yogurt.

In addition to the above, for the week of April 24 we have Asparagus and Green Garlic Tarts, Snapper with \lemon Mustard Sauce, Spring Salad with Chicken, Asparagus and Avocado, Risotto with Fava (Broad) Beans….

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