Chicken Cordon Bleu with Asparagus
Chicken Cordon Bleu with Asparagus is our version of the French classic! Crunchy-crusted chicken breasts rolled up with ham, cheese and asparagus spears. Oven-baked to a crispy golden brown and served with a creamy tarragon sauce.
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Servings: 4 Servings
Calories: 803kcal
Ingredients
- 1-½ cups Panko breadcrumbs
- Oil spray
- Salt/pepper
- 2 large chicken breasts about 1-1/4 pounds
- Fresh tarragon leaves
- 4-8 slices deli ham
- 4-8 slices Gruyère or Swiss cheese
- 8 asparagus spears
- 1-½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- Toothpicks
- Tarragon sprigs for garnish
- Creamy Tarragon Sauce
Instructions
For the Breadcrumbs:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the panko breadcrumbs in an even layer onto the parchment paper and transfer to the oven. Bake the breadcrumbs for 3-5 minutes until very light golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. (turn off the oven for now)
Prepare the Chicken:
- Place the chicken breasts on a cutting board and slice each one in half horizontally for a total of 4 cutlets.
- Working with one cutlet at a time, lay a piece of plastic wrap on the cutting board, place a cutlet on the plastic and cover with another piece of plastic wrap.
- With a meat mallet, pound the cutlet to a ¼ inch thickness. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Distribute the chicken cutlet with tarragon leaves.
- Add 1 or 2 slices of ham and 1 or 2 slices of cheese to cover; then place 2 asparagus spears at the lower end of the cutlet and begin rolling the cutlet. Secure the cutlet with a toothpick. Set the rolled cutlet aside on a plate and continue the process with the remaining cutlets.
- Set up a 3-dish breading station with flour in the first dish, two lightly beaten eggs in the second dish, and the cooled breadcrumbs in the third dish.
- Roll each chicken first in the flour, then the egg mixture, and finally, into the breadcrumbs, pressing the crumbs firmly to adhere to the chicken roll. Slide a toothpick into the chicken to secure the roll. As each chicken roll is completed place on a plate. Cover the plate with plastic wrap and transfer the plate of completed chicken rolls to the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
Bake the Chicken:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Remove the plate of breaded chicken from the refrigerator and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spray the rolls lightly with oil spray, (this helps to give that nice golden color to the breadcrumbs).
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes to a golden brown.
- Remove the toothpicks and serve with Creamy Tarragon Sauce.
Notes
- Pre-sliced chicken breasts are available in some grocery stores. You can also ask the butcher to open a package of chicken breasts and slice each one into cutlets.
- A rolling pin or a can of vegetables wrapped in plastic wrap will sub for a meat mallet.
- When pounding the chicken breast, be gentle to avoid pounding holes in the chicken.
- Choose a melting cheese. Gruyère, Provolone, Gouda, Mozzarella and Fontina are good choices.
- The long, 4-inch toothpicks work best as they can be inserted on an angle from one end to another. If using the short, regular toothpicks you may need 2 picks in each roll.
- Set the unbaked chicken rolls in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes to set the breadcrumbs.
- Spray the chicken rolls lightly just before baking to encourage browning.
- You can make the chicken rolls in advance and hold them in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours before baking.
- Be sure to remove the toothpicks before serving.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 803kcal | Carbohydrates: 92g | Protein: 51g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 190mg | Sodium: 1232mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 6g