February 02, 2011
The Pork Switch-Out: Chicken Cordon Bleu
Even before I made recipe development and food writing my full-time job, we cooked outside the box. What I mean by outside the box is we tend to fly by the seat of our pants, mixing and matching ingredients and flavors, looking for new ways to incorporate our favorite foods and flavor combinations into our family dinner.
So, when considering how to take the chicken cordon bleu profile of ham and Swiss cheese wrapped in chicken and turn it into something new, we decided to flip it back on itself. A small piece of pork tenderloin with Dijon and Swiss gets wrapped in ham and bacon. Yes, bacon because why not?
My kids were thrilled that dinner came with a bacon wrapper, and it was a great way to use up the leftover spiral ham we had in the fridge, further proving that buying a large roast and using it multiple times is the way to go. Next up? Split pea soup.
Inside Out Pork Cordon Bleu
- 1 pound Smithfield Spiral Ham
- 12 ounces All Natural Pepper Medley Pork Tenderloin
- 1 pound Smithfield Naturally Hickory Smoked Bacon
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard
- Fresh thyme leaves
- 4-5 ounces Swiss cheese, thinly sliced into 3" strips
Instructions
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the spiral ham slices off the bone and trim fat into 3"x1" strips. Slice the pork tenderloin the short way across, making 10 or so strips. Place the slice of pork on one end of the bacon. Spread a teaspoon of Dijon on the pork slice and sprinkle with thyme leaves. Top with cheese and the ham slice. Wrap completely with bacon and secure with toothpick. Bake on the top rack of a shallow roasting pan at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes until pork tenderloin is cooked through. Makes 5-6 servings.What are your favorite recipes and how could you switch them up?
