An Italian Dinner Party

Saturday night we had friends over for dinner. I made chicken roulade (rolled chicken) with a prosciutto, pesto, goat cheese and roasted red pepper filling. With it I served linguine with homemade marinara sauce, which was surprisingly easy and much tastier than the stuff in the jar (thanks Giada!). To top it off, I shaved my own Parmesan. Friends brought the salad, bread and a delicious dessert of homemade Italian apple cake and spumoni ice cream (also homemade!). I need to get their recipes! We all enjoyed the food and a refreshing raspberry lemonade alongside it.

Chicken Roulade

Yields 4 servings

• 2 chicken breasts
• Kosher salt
• Pepper
• 4 slices prosciutto
• 2 ounces chevre cheese
• 4 teaspoons pesto
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped roasted red pepper
• Canola oil

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butterfly the chicken breasts. Place half of the chicken breast on a cutting board and cover it with plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound out each breast half until it’s approximately 1/8 inch thick being careful not to tear a hole in the meat. Sprinkle each breast with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine the chevre cheese, pesto, and roasted red peppers. Spread a layer of the mixture onto each breast half. Place one slice of prosciutto on top of the cheese mixture. Starting with the narrow end of the chicken, roll each breast up tightly. Fasten with two toothpicks. (Don’t use colored toothpicks like I did — the color will bleed into the meat!) Heat an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Coat the bottom of the skillet with canola oil. Once the oil is sizzling hot, place the breasts, seam side down, into the pan. Cook for about 30 seconds, until the meat is browned. Rotate the chicken, cooking until all the sides are golden. Cover the skillet and place it in the oven for approximately 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through (the center of the chicken should be 165 degrees). Remove the toothpicks before serving.

Homemade Marinara (from Food Network)

Yields 2 quarts of sauce

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 small onions, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 – 32 ounce cans crushed tomatoes
• 2 bay leaves

To a large pot over low heat, add the oil, onions and garlic. Cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add the celery, carrots, salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to medium and cook for 10 more minutes, until the veggies are soft. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer the sauce over low heat until it thickens, about 30 minutes. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. See…easy!

Raspberry Lemonade

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 6 ounces raspberries
• 2 cups of ice cubes
• 1 1/2 cups lemon juice (about 6 fresh lemons)
• 6 cups cold water

In a small pan bring the sugar, water and raspberries to a boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil, stir until the sugar is dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and allow it to stand for a few minutes. Meanwhile, juice the lemons. Pour the raspberry mixture through a sieve to strain out the raspberry pieces. Add 2 cups of ice cubes to cool the strained syrup. In a pitcher, mix together the lemon juice, the cold water and the raspberry syrup.

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