Herbed Chicken Saltimbocca

One great advantage to keeping sage in the garden is being able to use fresh, young sage leaves in saltimbocca, an Italian favorite. Although my recipe doesn't use veal, it's still delicious, with an earthy and herby flavor that will sing the praises of your garden without you saying a single word.

Herbed Chicken Saltimbocca Recipe

6 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (pounded to 1/2 inch thick)
6 Slices Prosciutto
6 Fresh, young, sage leaves
1/2 Cup Flour
1/2 Tsp. Pepper
1/2 Tsp. Salt
3 Tbsp. Olive oil
2 Tbsp. Butter
1/2 Cup White wine
1/2 Cup Chicken stock
2 Tsp. Lemon juice
2 Tsp. Minced Parsley
2 Tsp. Minced Chives

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.

While oil is heating, dredge chicken in flour, salt, and pepper mixture. Shake to remove excess.

*Place one sage leaf on each breast and top with a slice of prosciutto. Press lightly.

Saute chicken with prosciutto in skillet until lightly browned, about two to three minutes on each side. You may need to do this in two batches. Remove from skillet to drain. Set aside. (If you set the chicken prosciutto side down in the skillet first, the layer of ham will stick to the chicken and make turning the breasts easier.)

Remove all but a couple of teaspoons of oil from the skillet. Add white wine and chicken stock. Stir. Allow to simmer until reduced by about a third. Add lemon juice.

Add butter to the mixture in two batches, whisking briskly until the sauce thickens. Add parsley.

Remove chicken to a serving platter. Top with sauce. Add chives and place a sprig of parsley and a slice of lemon on the platter for garnish.

*To distribute the sage flavor across the entire breast, try chopping each leaf into about six pieces and sprinkling the pieces on each breast. This is really effective if the breasts are large.

If you've been looking for a recipe to show off the bounty of your herb garden, this is the one.

Photo of sliced prosciutto courtesy of RobertDiGiorgio under free GNU license.