So far, it has seemed more like summer during September than it has for most of the actual summer months. The weather forecasters are predicting a return to more normal September weather by the end of the week for most of the country, though.
One of Eric’s favorite summer memories from childhood is going crabbing with his family. Most of the family vacations he took growing up were in the mountains, as were mine, but his family sometimes went to the seashore, either in New Jersey or Maryland. And part of the vacation would be spent crabbing. They would bait their crab traps with chicken parts or fish heads and crab until they had enough to make a meal out of them.
Eric also vividly remembers when his family would go into Philadelphia with friends to a crab shack type restaurant. They would get buckets of whole, boiled crabs and wooden mallets and smash the crabs open to get at the succulent meat inside. I can imagine a young Eric having a ball doing that! In fact, he, Andrew, Gilbert & all the other males in the family probably still would!
Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Crabmeat (adapted from allrecipes.com)
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
- 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 small onion, minced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/8 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 4 ounces fresh Dungeness crabmeat
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1/2 – 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions
In a medium bowl combine the cream cheese, onion, parsley, dill, garlic and lemon pepper.
Mixing together the filling ingredients.
Add the crabmeat and mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste. The filling can be prepared up to 2 hours ahead of time.
The crabmeat is added into the filling after the rest of the ingredients have been mixed.
Pound each chicken breast to about a half-inch thickness and cut them in half. Place some filling in the center of each breast and roll it up, starting from the short side. Secure the chicken rolls with tooth picks along the length of the roll and along the ends of the roll.
Pound out the chicken then put some filling in the middle & roll the chicken breasts around it.
Season the flour with the salt and pepper. Coat each chicken roll in the seasoned flour, then dip it into the beaten eggs and finally, coat the rolls thoroughly with the bread crumbs.
Flour, egg & bread crumbs make up the coating for the chicken.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the filled, breaded chicken breast halves to the skillet and sauté them until they are golden brown, turning them to brown on all sides.
Pan fry the rolls just to get a crispy outside.
Remove the rolls from the skillet and place them in a casserole dish with a half tablespoon of the butter on each.
Add the butter to the chicken rolls before putting them in the oven.
Bake the rolls in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes, until the chicken registers 165° internal temperature on an instant read thermometer.
Wow! This was an impressive dish with just a little effort & time!
I love when summer lingers on into September! ~Linda
Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Crabmeat (adapted from allrecipes.com)
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
- 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 small onion, minced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/8 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 4 ounces fresh Dungeness crabmeat
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1/2 – 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions
In a medium bowl combine the cream cheese, onion, parsley, dill, garlic and lemon pepper. Add the crabmeat and mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste. The filling can be prepared up to 2 hours ahead of time.
Pound each chicken breast to about a half-inch thickness and cut them in half. Place some filling in the center of each breast and roll it up, starting from the short side. Secure the chicken rolls with tooth picks along the length of the roll and along the ends of the roll. Season the flour with the salt and pepper. Coat each chicken roll in the seasoned flour, then dip it into the beaten eggs and finally, coat the rolls thoroughly with the bread crumbs.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the filled, breaded chicken breast halves to the skillet and sauté them until they are golden brown, turning them to brown on all sides. Remove the rolls from the skillet and place them in a casserole dish with a half tablespoon of the butter on each roll. Bake the rolls in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes, until the chicken registers 165° internal temperature on an instant read thermometer.