Chicken with Smoked Mozzarella, Prosciutto and Mushrooms with Lemon Roasted Broccoli

A stuffed/rolled chicken breast is a fabulous way to use a combination of ingredients left lying around in the refrigerator. Our classic is probably a prosciutto with roasted red pepper and goat cheese. This time around - we opted for a smoky theme with prosciutto, smoked mozzarella, and sauteed mushrooms.

Preparation is quite simple and can be open to interpretation.

The basic steps that we took were:

1) Make sure chicken is not straight out of the refrigerator - it should sit out at least 15 minutes before preparing the meal.

2) Place chicken on a flat surface and cover with saran wrap or wax paper. Pound meat with a mallet or other heavy tool so that the meat is thin (but not broken) and even throughout.

3) Season both sides with salt and pepper.

4) Meanwhile, saute sliced mushrooms (we used cremini) with a little bit of butter and thyme (if you have white wine, that would be a good addition as well) until the mushrooms have released their liquid and are tender. Set aside.

5) On the inner 2/3rds of each piece of chicken, lay a piece (or two) of prosciutto. Top with a layer of mushrooms. Sprinkle liberally with grated smoked mozzarella.

6) Carefully roll the chicken breast from top to bottom (versus length-wise) and secure the ends with toothpicks. Alternatively, if you do not have toothpicks (we did not) use kitchen twine to wrap the chicken so that it is secure and will not fall apart during cooking.

7) Dip chicken pieces in flour and pat of excess flour so that there is a light coating around the entire chicken breast.

8) In a skillet, heat some EVOO and add the chicken pieces to brown each side but not cook through - about 1.5 minutes on each side.

9) Place chicken (either in the same skillet or on a baking sheet) in a pre-heated oven at 325 degrees to finish cooking the chicken so that the internal temperature reads around 160 degrees (accepted temp is 165 - but the chicken will rest and likely continue to heat).

10) Let the chicken sit for about 5-7 minutes before serving.

Best presentation would have been to slice the chicken in 3-4 pieces - but clearly, we did not do that for the photo.

We served the chicken with some roasted broccoli that we blanched for 2 minutes and then dried and roasted, coated in EVOO and salt and pepper, until it started to turn brown. Then I added some lemon zest and lemon juice to finish it off.

not the best foodie picture, I know. oh well.

The smokiness of the chicken was stellar. The prosciutto with the smoked mozzarella was a perfect pairing - and then the mushrooms added a nice extra burst of texture. And I can't forget the broccoli (which was my task) that was so fabulous with the lemon. It adds a fantastic bright element that really brings out the best in the vegetable.