Pistachio Crusted Chicken Cordon Bleu with Creamy Honey Dijon Sauce

Posted on Nov 18th, 2015

by Johanna

Categories:

Notes from a Messy Kitchen

I didn’t learn to cook from my mom. It wasn’t that she couldn’t cook, it just wasn’t until more recent years that she has enjoyed it. Besides breakfast for dinner (which I still to this day love), Mom had several signature dishes that we all remember fondly. Perhaps because they were good, perhaps because they were rare, perhaps a bit of both. They were mostly rich comfort foods: beef stew, shepherd’s pie, a killer cracker-crusted mac ‘n cheese…

And Chicken Cordon Bleu. Chicken Cordon Bleu can be a bit of a labor of love, particularly in the blueberry pancake era. It requires stuffing, rolling, breading, baking and making that special sauce. Ironically – like many of her former signature dishes – Mom can no longer eat Chicken Cordon Bleu since she gave up beef and pork about ten years ago. But that doesn’t mean we can’t! Since Mom was in Florida this weekend, missing our customary Sunday family dinner, I decided it would be a good time to make this dish for Matt and Courtney!

This is not your traditional breading… it’s mostly roasted pistachios (also a labor of love, since Safeway only had them in the shell!), ground up and mixed with a little bit of bread crumbs. I took several steps to lighten up the original recipe, stretching the breading and filling among six chicken breasts instead of four (it still had an ample amount of both, for the record!) and replacing olive oil with egg whites. I also made this dish much lower in dairy by replacing the cream starter the recipe called for with light coconut milk, and I really loved the resulting flavor of the sauce. While I debated using the shredded parmesan we already had in the fridge, I was glad I ultimately splurged for a block of Gruyere which I then grated by hand, as the sharp, nutty flavor complimented everything about this dish. Both beautiful and delicious, this dish is totally dinner-party worthy. In fact, I thought this Chicken Cordon Bleu absolutely knocked it out of the park – making me wonder why I even waste money at restaurants – and I will definitely be making it again!

Pistachio Crusted Chicken Cordon Bleu with Creamy Honey Dijon Sauce

Adapted from Carlsbad Cravings

Ingredients:

6 5 oz. chicken breasts, pounded thin
6 slices Black Forest ham
1 cup (~4oz) Gruyere cheese, shredded

Pistachio Breading

1 cup roasted pistachios, shelled*
1/2 cup Italian Bread Crumbs (I used Gillian’s Gluten-Free)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons honey
3 egg whites

Honey Dijon Cream Sauce

1 ½ cups light coconut milk
1 tablespoon tapioca flour (can sub cornstarch)
2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with spray with cooking spray.
Finely grind pistachios in food processor, careful not to allow to turn to paste. Transfer to a bowl and mix with bread crumbs. In a separate bowl, mix 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons honey, and egg whites.
Lay 1 slice of ham over each chicken breast then sprinkle evenly with cheese. Fold in the edges of the ham over the cheese as you roll the chicken up (to keep the cheese from oozing out). Secure chicken roll with toothpicks.
Very carefully dip chicken in honey/Dijon/egg white mix then dredge in Pistachio breading, turning and pressing crumbs firmly into chicken.
Transfer to prepared baking sheet and bake at 350F degrees for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through. If not browned by end of baking, broil until golden.
Meanwhile, whisk together all of the Honey Dijon Cream Sauce ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer until slightly thickened.
Spoon sauce over chicken and serve!