Week 15: Chicken Valdostano

This will be the last recipe for awhile - I'm off on vacation for 3 weeks, and will have no chance to cook while I'm away. I hope to catch up and post recipes retrospectively once I return, but we'll see what happens.

The Recipe
1 tbsp flour
3 chicken breast halves
1 tbsp butter
10 fresh mushrooms, sliced (~250g)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
White pepper
3 slices prosciutto
3 slices cheese

Lightly flour chicken breasts, shaking off excess flour. Melt butter in a large skillet. Add chicken and saute until lightly browned, about 2 minutes each side. Remove and set aside.

Decrease the heat to medium low. Add mushrooms and cook until juices are rendered, about 4 minutes. Add wine and simmer until reduced by 1/4, about 3 to 4 minutes. Increase heat to medium high. Add stock and pepper and simmer until sauce is reduced, about 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to low. Top each chicken breast with a slice of prosciutto and a slice of cheese. Return chicken to skillet and cook just until cheese melts. Transfer chicken to individual plates and top each with some of the mushroom sauce before serving.

The Verdict
Tastes really good :) The first time I made it I pounded the chicken breasts flat - I forgot to do that this time, and it made absolutely NO difference. Since it made the dish a lot easier/quicker to make, I'll be making it this way in the future. The prosciutto and cheese (I used Gouda chili this time - YUM!) kept the chicken nice and moist.

Week 14: Nudel-auf-lauf

I guess it's a bit of a misnomer to call this a "new" recipe. I've had it for probably around 13 years, and back in 1996-1997 had it made for me very often. However, I'd never actually made it myself, so I think it still counts :)

My hostmother made this for me all the time, and since I'll be seeing her again in just over a week, I thought it was appropriate to finally try to make it myself.

The Recipe
500g cooked noodles/pasta
200g cheese cut into pieces
150g diced ham
1 bell pepper cut into pieces
3 eggs
milk
butter
bread crumbs
salt, pepper, oregano

Put layers of pasta, cheese, ham and bell pepper into an oven proof dish. End off with a layer of pasta. Top with a few pieces of butter.
Mix eggs with a bit of milk, salt, pepper and oregano and pour over the dish. Sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Bake in oven at 200*C for 45-60 mins. Serve with ketchup or chilli sauce.

The Verdict
Every bit as good as I remembered it! This is comfort food at its best. Easy to make, even if it does have to bake for ages and just plain satisfying. I don't know why it took me so long to get out the recipe and try to make it for myself, but now that I have, I will definitely be making it more often!