Fondue Dippers Bacon Wrapped Chicken With Spinach Blanched Vegetables And Apples Recipes

BACON-WRAPPED CHICKEN STUFFED WITH SPINACH AND RICOTTA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic; cook and stir until it begins to brown, about 30 seconds. Quickly stir in spinach, and continue cooking until the spinach has wilted. Transfer the mixture into a bowl, and set aside to cool.
• Slice through the chicken breast horizontally to within 1/2 inch of one long edge, then open the meat like a book. Place each opened chicken breast in between two pieces of plastic wrap, and pound with a meat mallet to a thickness of 1/4 inch.
• Stir the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, garlic salt, and onion powder into the cooked spinach until blended. Evenly divide this mixture among the chicken breasts, then roll each into an oblong shape, like a burrito, tucking in the ends. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Wrap each breast with 2 strips of bacon, and secure with toothpicks. Place into the prepared pan.
• Bake in preheated oven until the bacon is brown and crispy, and the chicken is no longer pink, 45 to 60 minutes. Remove from oven, and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before removing toothpicks and serving.

BAKED CHICKEN AND BACON-WRAPPED LADY APPLES

Steps:

• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, turning over once, until edges are lightly browned but bacon is still flexible (it will continue to cook in oven), 6 to 8 minutes total. Transfer to paper towels to drain, reserving fat in skillet.
• While bacon cooks, core apples, if desired, from bottom, with pointed end of a vegetable peeler or a paring knife, leaving stems intact. Wrap a slice of bacon around each of 8 apples, securing ends of bacon by piercing with stem or using half a wooden pick.
• Brush a 3-quart (13- by 9-inch) shallow baking dish with some bacon fat, then add apples to dish and bake, uncovered, 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, pat chicken dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat bacon fat in skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook chicken, turning over once, until browned, about 8 minutes total. Transfer chicken with tongs to baking dish, rearranging some of apples so that chicken fits in bottom of dish, and bake, uncovered, 5 minutes.
• While chicken bakes, pour off fat from skillet and add cider, vinegar, and marjoram sprigs to skillet. Boil, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until reduced by half (about 3/4 cup), about 5 minutes. Pour sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a measuring cup, pressing on and then discarding solids. Add butter and chopped marjoram to sauce, stirring until butter is melted. Pour sauce over chicken and apples and continue to bake, uncovered, until chicken is cooked through and apples are tender, about 20 minutes more.

BACON-WRAPPED CHICKEN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Place chicken between 2 sheets of plastic wrap or parchment paper and use a frying pan to gently pound the breasts to an even thickness. (They should be about 1 inch thick.)
• Combine flour, salt, and freshly ground black pepper in a wide, shallow dish and mix thoroughly. Coat each breast by dredging it in the flour mixture then shaking off excess flour. Wrap one piece of bacon around each piece of chicken and secure with a toothpick.
• Heat oil in a medium, heavy-bottomed frying pan over medium heat. When it shimmers, add chicken breasts and cook until bacon is well browned, about 5 minutes per side.
• Add the juice, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until cider is reduced by 1/3, and chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Remove from heat and remove toothpicks.
• To make a sandwich, spread mustard evenly on cut sides of bread. Layer half of each endive and apple slices alternately on one piece of bread, top with a chicken breast, drizzle with pan juices, season with freshly ground black pepper, and close sandwich. Repeat to make a second sandwich.