There might be nothing I enjoy more after a looong day than whipping up a quick, unplanned dinner using nothing but items that I already have on hand. (Well, maybe if someone else whipped up dinner and left me alone with a chilled bottle of wine.)

While grocery shopping is usually at the top of the list of chores that I actually like to do, I’ve been feeling particularly lazy lately. Blame the holiday fury or blame the wicked cold I’m just getting over. Never before have I actually started the year with a negative score on my resolutions – I’m usually good for a week, sometimes 10 days 🙂

I’m not sure why we haven’t tried this dish before. I always have every ingredient on hand and I should have known it would have been a hit with Jason: meat-topped meat comes in second only to meat-stuffed meat. It was quick and a hit!

Print

Chicken Saltimbocca

Chicken topped with crisped prosciutto and a lemon pan sauce.

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts, pounded to 1/3-1/2 inch thickness
• 8 slices thinly sliced prosciutto
• 1 bunch sage leaves
• All-purpose flour, for dredging
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 4 Tbsp dry white wine
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• Lemon wedges, for sauce and serving

Instructions

1. Top the flattened chicken breasts with sage leaves (laid flat; I used 4 large leaves per). Cover each chicken breast with 1-2 slices of prosciutto (depending on the size of the chicken).
2. Cover the chicken with a piece of plastic wrap and gently tap with the tenderizing side of a meat mallet to make the prosciutto and sage adhere.
3. Put some flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper.
4. Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess.
5. Heat the oil and 2 Tbsp of the butter and in a large skillet over medium flame.
6. Put the chicken in the pan, prosciutto-side down first. Cook for 3-4 minutes to crisp it up and then flip the chicken over and saute the other side for 2-3 minutes, until golden.
7. Transfer the saltimbocca to a serving platter and keep warm.
8. Add the wine to the pan, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan; let the wine cook down for a minute to burn off some of the alcohol.
9. Add the chicken broth, the juice from one lemon wedge, and remaining butter, swirling the pan around.
10. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the saltimbocca, garnish with sage leaves and lemon wedges; serve immediately.
11. (Optional) Drop several sage leaves into the pan during the last few minutes of cooking, before starting the sauce, turning once after a minute. Remove with slotted spoon and use as garnish.

Notes

Yields: 4 servings

Adapted from Food Network

Estimated time: 30 minutes