Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken and Green Beans

I have been pretty busy lately, and I have been using a lot of recipes from others and not my own. I just don't have the energy to do any creative cooking; and I don't particularly feel inspired, either. I must say, having three kids is kicking my ass a little bit lately. I am having a really hard time finding a balance between caring for my family, getting everything that needs to be done accomplished, spending time with the hubs, and carving out a little personal space for myself. I would like to make up more of my own dishes, and I sometimes find following a recipe a bit stifling. With that said, I just can't devote a whole lot of mental capacity to coming up with anything original in the kitchen. Sigh. Maybe when my girls get a little older and the boy is in school full-time, I can start cooking more "off the cuff" again.

Until then...this is another great recipe I found on my friend, Claire's blog. She turned my on to Cook's Illustrated special recipe issues (like the one this dish came from) which seem to always have a ton of good stuff to try. Anyway, her family loved it; so I knew it would be a tasty no-brainer. A great recipe without having to think too much about it...definitely up my alley.

Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken with Green Beans
From: America's Test Kitchen 30-Minute Suppers Summer 2010

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup pitted mixed olives
1/4 cup lightly packed sage leaves
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
8 thin slices prosciutto
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 pound green beans, stem ends trimmed
1/4 cup water

Directions:
Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Process butter, olives, and sage in food processor until smooth.

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Spread butter mixture on 1 side of each chicken breast. Working with 1 breast at a time, slightly overlap 2 slices of prosciutto on work surface. Lay chicken, butter side down, in center of slices, then fold prosciutto over chicken. Repeat with remaining prosciutto and chicken.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add chicken, seam side down, and cook until well browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to baking sheet and bake until chicken registers 160 degrees, about 8 minutes. Transfer to platter and tent with foil.

Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic to skillet and cook until lightly browned, 1-2 minutes. Add green beans and toss to coat thoroughly. Add water, cover, and cook until bright green and tender, 8-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve chicken with green beans.



The Result:
This was really good. I used garlic green olives from my grocer's olive bar, and I just steamed a bag of frozen, whole green beans with some garlic salt to save some time. We all really liked this meal! The only word of caution I would like mention is to go lightly on the salt when seasoning the chicken. The prosciutto and olives are both fairly salty, and this can get outta hand with the salt pretty quick. Mine turned out fine, but was on the verge of being over-salted due to my heavy hand. I would definitley make this dish again, but I would just be more careful next time with the seasoning.