Pairing My Cordon Bleu Tooth

Another turkey recipe in time for the holidays. And it's an easy one. I've done many Christmas themed classes through the Loblaws cooking school for the last 4 to 5 years and I figured it's time to post a few of them.

Cordon Bleu is simply a dish where meat is stuffed with cheese. That's it. That's the meaning of the fancy term. And there are many versions of Cordon Bleu with the chicken likely being the most famous. Where a chicken breast is butterflied, flattened, stuffed with emmenthal cheese and ham (or prosciutto), breaded and fried. I'm unaware of any connection to the Le Cordon Bleu (the Blue Ribbon) culinary schools and if anyone knows of any, I ask that they let me know in the comments section below.

I remember reading that Chicken Cordon Bleu is actually an American invention. Curious to know the validity of this.

I made Lyonnaise potatoes with this dish. I thought the caramelized onions went well with the honey dijon sauce. Give a a try!

Well, this blog post is pretty flat. I guess I better wrap it up.

Turkey Cordon Bleu with Honey Dijon Sauce

2 Large Turkey Breasts, butterflied

200 g Emmenthal Cheese, cut into long sticks

200 g Black Forest Ham, sliced

2 Tbs. Dijon Mustard

2 Tbs. Liquid Honey

1 Red Onion, finely diced

500 ml 35% cream

250 g Panko Bread Crumbs (1 Cup)

6 Eggs

250 g A.P. Flour (1 Cup)

½ Stick of Butter

Bunch of Sage, finely chiffonade

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lay out turkey breast and slightly flatten with tenderizer. Lay down slices of ham and cheese side by side. Roll up turkey breast and slightly season.

Make a breading station by laying out three bowls: 1 for flour, 1 for eggs and 1 for panko bread crumbs. Start by coating turkey with flour, then roll into egg wash and then into bread crumbs.

In a large frying pan, pour generous amount of oil and allow to get hot. Fry breast until golden on seam side down first. Then carefully turn over and continue to sear. Be sure to add any oil if frying pan is too dry. Place turkey into oven and cook for 35 minutes. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

In a separate frying pan, heat butter until frothy. Cook onions for 2 minutes. Add honey and Dijon and allow to get hot. Add cream and bring to a boil. Whisk thoroughly. Season to taste and garnish with sage. Serve with turkey breasts.

Serves  6 - 8.

A Humble Chef's tip: if you like to tie up the breast, it's better to show in person or with images. Try a search of tying up chicken breasts and see if that helps.

Variation: Instead of Emmenthal and Ham, I also like Gorgonzola and Salami. But I never get to do it since I'm the only one in my family who likes blue cheese.