Chicken Cordon Bleu Over Noodles with Bacon Sauce

Despite being unemployed I am an extremely busy individual with a very full routine. Thus I have fallen waaaay behind in posting. So today I will post a recipe I cooked a few days ago. After this I will only be behind by one. The meal has been the banner on my site for some time now, and is one that I consider to be my best. 

My mother was a full-time worker, as most mothers are today. I can remember many an evening when, after returning from a hard day’s work as a school teacher, she would open a can of cream of mushroom soup and pour it over a few chicken breasts with salt and pepper. She would cook some egg noodles and a vegetable, and that would be dinner. I loved it. 

So when I started cooking for myself, I would many times find myself in the same situation, and I would make the same meal. However, I would always try to improve upon it. One time with cheese, another time with sour cream. Adding this, adding that, until one day I had a revelation (one that probably would have come to any other intelligent person a long time ago). Why not make the soup from scratch? No... Why not make the make the soup from scratch, add bacon, and make the chicken into chicken cordon bleu? So, that is exactly what I did. 

It may not be a quick meal anymore, but at one hour to prepare and cook, its not too bad... Lexie gives a 10 out of 10 to...

 

Chicken Cordon Bleu Over Noodles with Bacon Sauce 

Ingredients:

Chicken Cordon Bleu:

4 chicken breast fillets

4 slices of provolone cheese

4 slices of ham

1 egg, beaten

½ cup plain dry breadcrumbs

½ cup corn oil

all purpose flour, for coating

Bacon Sauce With Egg Noodles:

2½ tbsp butter

1 tsp lemon juice

4 spring onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp thyme

3 mushrooms, sliced

½ tsp white pepper

7 strips bacon, precooked and chopped

chicken trimmings (from cordon bleu)

1 tbsp all purpose flour

4 cups chicken stock

pinch celery seeds

chicken trimmings

1 cup heavy whipping cream

3 tbsp all purpose flour (to thicken)

3 cups of egg noodles, boiled

Preparation Instructions:

1. Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat and then fry the garlic, onion, and thyme. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Then add the lemon juice, mushrooms, white pepper, and some salt. Continue to stir occasionally.

2. Cook until the mushrooms just begin to brown and soften. Add the bacon and chicken trimmings and then cook for a minute or two longer.

3. Add the first tablespoon of flour and stir. Let cook for one minute more.

4. Simmer and begin to add the stock slowly while stirring gently. Next add celery seeds and bring to a boil. Continue to stir.

5. Reduce heat and stir in the cream. Mix the the remaining flour with ½ a cup or less of water at room tempterature and add to sauce.

6. Return to low medium heat and stir occasionally until sauce thickens.

Season with salt and pepper and serve over chicken cordon bleu and egg noddles.

Serves 4

 

Stuffed Zucchini Parmesan

  So Lexie, Harrison, and I are now pretty much settled in at our new home. Dan and Jackie, our friends (more like family, actually) that are allowing us to stay with them until we get on our feet, are just about the most awesome couple you will ever meet. Very easy going, kind, and generous, we are eager to help out around the house in any way we can, and there is plenty to do.

Before we can actually begin construction on the house, there is a load of prep work to be done. The first thing that needs to be completed is the garage. The electric needs to be run and the ceiling needs to be drywalled and finished. However, the space has been used to store all sorts of tools, equipment, materials, and various household items for some time. So, before anything else was touched, the garage needed to be cleaned out. In the past two days alone, I estimate that I have moved more than two tons of paraphernalia! Its been fun, its been great to actually have something to keep me occupied.

As far as job hunting, Lexie and I continue our search day by day, and night after night. Despite the fact that our house is being foreclosed on, we refuse to allow ourselves to feel defeat. In fact, thanks to Dan and Jackie, and our God, Jehovah, we ultimately feel encouraged and are able to keep from getting depressed about the situation we're in. We're really happy to have friends like them.

Lately, I have been going through the phone book and calling every electrical company in alphabetical order. Thus far, I have called businesses all the way up through "G." A lot more lines have been disconnected than I thought there would be, and not a single company that I called was hiring. On top of the crappy economy, this is usually the slow season for electrical work, so finding a job now will probably be pretty much beyond the bounds of reality. But that won't stop me from looking. 

The calling has not been entirely in vain either. I have found two companies, so far, that told me to call back at the beginning of the new year, as they may have work then. I will continue my calling through the yellowpages' contractors over the next few days. Hopefully, "H" through "Z" will be more fruitful.

Cooking has been pretty entertaining the past few days. My cooking equipment is mostly all packed away, and getting used to Jackie's kitchen has been interesting. Although it took me a while to find out where everything was, now I am comfortable enough with the arrangement.

Last night I tried something new; a combination of three recipes. Unfortunately, Lexie has been to busy to be taking pictures of the food preparation, however, she did photograph the final results. Lexie rates it 10 out of 10. Dan and Jackie loved it.

     

Stuffed Zucchini Parmesan

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey

1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds

2 teaspoons paprika

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons sage

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

2 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 zucchini
1 onion, finely chopped
3/4 cup rice, cooked
2 tomatoes, chopped and lightly stained
1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 teaspoons oregano
2 cups marinara sauce
6 slices provolone cheese
1 teaspoon basil
8 oz box spaghetti, al dente 




Preparation Instructions:
1. In a medium sized bowl, mix the turkey, fennel seeds, paprika, sugar, sage, red wine vinegar, black pepper, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the minced garlic. Knead the ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate for 2-3 hours.

2. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise. With a spoon, hollow out the halves, carving out the pulp until the halves are 1/8 to 1/4 inches thick. Finely chop up the pulp. Refrigerate.
 
3. After the allotted time, take the ground turkey out of the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. On medium heat, cook the turkey in a medium saucepan with half the zucchini pulp, the onion and the rest of the garlic. When the meat is cooked through, drain.

4. Return meat to saucepan and add rice, tomatoes, one teaspoon of oregano, and the rest of the salt.

5. Fill the zucchini halves with the turkey and place in a large baking dish side by side. Sprinkle the rest of the pulp, oregano, and basil randomly around the dish. Pour the marinara sauce over the stuffed zucchini and pulp. Arrange provolone slices on top. 

6. Cover the dish and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the zucchini is soft. Serve on top of spaghetti.

Serves 4-6.