Yesterday, I could have joined the cast of the worst cooks in America.
I can bake, like "baked" goods and stuff, but NEVER can I EVER cook, bake, boil, roast-whatever- chicken to save my life. Can't do it. It usually turns out a rubbery, dry something that resembles what used to be a chicken - or - it's still squawking and for some reason I keep trying, and I still can't. get. it. right. So, why cook chicken ever? I don't. BUT, yesterday was my hubstons birthday and every time in the last 15 years when I ask him what he wants for dinner he tells me..."Chicken cordon blue". (Now it's kindof a running joke around here.) I've tried making it for him early in our marriage and -yeeeah- didn't work. I figured since I've got a little experience under my belt cooking these last 15 years, I'm a gonna give it another shot and surprise my guy. I just completely tossed out the window that chicken and I don't get along. Yesterday, we were going to become friends and I was going to get this right.
I started with this recipe Chicken Cordon Blue. It seemed really easy and something I could do. I mean, I'll just follow the recipe to the letter. How could it go wrong?
I pounded out my chicken.
I forgot to get a picture of them rolled. Silly me.
I rolled them in the flour and paprika (made a huge mess) and put them in the pan with the butter and wine. It smelled wonderful! and I was so excited it was all coming together and looked like it would work.
After I let it cook for about 25 min or so...(the recipe said 30, but I knew I would turn them into little chicken hockey pucks if I went that long so 25 min was long enough for me. Yeah--later to realize, too long. There will be NO Salmonella around here, no sir. ) I put them on a plate and went to my soon to be sauce. It's smelled so mouthwatering I was starting to drool a bit. I was pretty proud of myself at this moment but we all know what happens with pride and all. Yup. a big ol fall.
I had mixed up my "cornstarch" and cream and had slowly poured it into my sauce, that smelled heavenly with all those brown bits and butter and wine. Then I say to myself...."hmmm that's funny... Why is it foaming? I've never seen that before, maybe it's the "cornstarch" and cream mixed with the wine." I just kept stirring and stirring and stirring and it never thickened. I was wonder what the heck I did when suddenly my mind got a picture of the box I had the "cornstarch" in and I thought, feeling much defeated, I think I put in baking soda. I opened the cupboard and grabbed the box and sure enough. Baking Soda. The two boxes look very similar. "CRAP!" I yelled quite loudly. My husband says, "uh oh". I tasted my beautiful wine/brown bits and butter with the baking soda and cream and thought " Neat. The ocean just met my beautiful sauce." It was so salty it couldn't be saved. I had to dump it and be reeeeeal mad. Stupid chicken. I thought "well, I'll just start over!" I dumped some wine and butter in the pan, let it boil, threw some cornstarch and cream in there and sigh. It clumped and separated. I have NO idea what happened and I gave up and tossed that too.
No sauce. And!!! it was dry. But my hubston ate it and proudly said "Yum" enough times to make me feel like he didn't hate it as much as his chewing was giving away. Oh! and the salad dressing on the greens right there? I got that at How Sweet it Is. It's Parmesan Greek Yogurt Caesar dressing and it's sooooooo good. Her blog is the bomb too. Am I too old to say that? Anyhoo......She'll make you laugh right out loud and want to lick the PC her pictures are so good. Unlike my food pictures, but hey, we all start somewhere eh?
We finished off the dinner with this little number and me telling myself "Never ever ever" are chicken and I getting back together. Ever.
Courtesy of Costco. Yum.
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