CHICKEN CORDON BLEU WITH HONEY MUSTARD CREAM SAUCE

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and coat a 9” x 13” baking dish with non-stick spray.

Place all of the sauce ingredients in a large saucepan and whisk to combine.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a very low boil.  Let the sauce bubble away and thicken, whisking occasionally, while you prepare the chicken.

Cut the breasts in half lengthwise (butterfly) creating 2 thinner filets.   Place each piece in a large ziplock bag, one at a time, and pound each into an even ½” thickness all over.  Lay them side by side on a large cutting board (with the ‘smoother’ or top side down) and season with the salt and black pepper.

Lay one piece of the ham on each cutlet to cover, folding in the sides so the ham is approximately the same size as the chicken and won’t be sticking out when you roll them up.

Place a mound of the shredded cheese (about ¼ – ⅓ cup) in the center of each cutlet.  Fold the ends of the chicken over cheese, jelly-roll style, and seal together with a couple of toothpicks to hold them in place.  Push any cheese or ham that is sticking out back into the rolls.

Creating a breading station, by beating the eggs in one shallow baking dish or pie plate and put the breadcrumbs in another.

Heat about ½” of olive oil in the bottom of a large saucepan over medium high heat.

Dip each of the chicken rolls into the egg and then place them in the breadcrumbs and press firmly all over to coat.  When the oil is hot, place the chicken in the pan, seam-side-down.  Cook for 2-3 minutes per side, turning carefully with tongs, until they are golden brown all over.

Place them, seam-side-down, in the prepared baking dish and bake for 20-30 minutes until cooked through – the chicken should measure 160 degrees and the cheese should be melted.

Serve the chicken topped with lots of that yummy cream sauce with a green salad and rice or potatoes.  DEVOUR!!!