Chicken Saltimbocca (no, not THAT Saltimbocca)

Hi, Derk here--posting the Chicken Saltimbocca recipe Christine found. We're all sad that the "real" Saltimbocca closed, and are busy trying to find the recipe for their amazing chocolate pudding. In the meantime, here's some good chicken to make and eat.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

4-8 thin, boneless chicken breast cutlets (we only made four, but used two boneless chicken breasts and cut them in half (I'd say "lengthwise," but that's too imprecise--take your chef's or santoku knife and cut the breast in half with your knife parallel to the cutting board. You're trying to make the breast thinner, not skinnier.)

1 Tbsp minced fresh sage leaves, plus one large fresh sage leaf per cutlet

4-8 thin slices prosciutto (again, as many slices as you have cutlets)

4 Tbsps olive oil

1/4 cup dry vermouth or white wine (we use "Ariel," a wine that's been de-alcohol-ed--we buy it at Emigration Market)

2 tsps lemon juice

4 Tbsps unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces and chilled

1 Tbsp minced fresh parsley leaves (we used dry parsley flakes and it seemed okay)

Table salt

Fresh ground pepper

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200 degrees. Combine flour and 1 tsp pepper in shallow dish or paper plate.

2. After cutting breasts into cutlets, pat cutlets dry with a paper towel. Dredge chicken in flour. Lay cutlets flat and sprinkle evenly with minced sage. Place one slice prosciutto on top of each cutlet, pressing lightly to adhere. Set aside.

3. Heat 2 Tbsps of olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. If using whole sage leaves, add these to the oil and cook until the leaves begin to change color and are fragrant, about 15-20 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, remove the sage to a paper towel-covered plate, set aside. Add cutlets to pan (as many as will fit--four at a time is usually okay), prosciutto side down, and cook until light golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side until light golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Transfer to wire rack on a baking sheet (or a roasting pan, as we did), and keep warm in oven. If you have more cutlets, add the rest of the oil and repeat this step with the remaining cutlets. Place remaining cutlets in oven and prepare sauce.

4. Deglaze pan with vermouth or wine, scraping up any browned bits, and simmer until reduced to about 1/3 cup, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Reduce heat to low. Whisk in butter one piece at a time. Remove from heat, stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper. At this point, I wasn't sure if the chicken was completely done, so I returned it to the pan, turned the heat back to medium, and let it cook for 5 more minutes. Plate chicken, place one cooked sage leaf on top of each cutlet, and pour a little of the sauce over the cutlet, and serve.