Runaway Birds

Another delicious dish I learned in Italy. The sage leaves make the chicken look like it has wings and might run away!

6 chicken breasts halves, pounded thin

6 slices prosciutto

6 slices pecorino cheese

6 slices pancetta

18 sage leaves

2 large, thin scrambled egg omelets cut in 6 pieces

2 T butter

3 T oil

String

Layer the following on top of the chicken breast:

Sage leaf

Piece of omelet

Slice of prosciutto

Slice of cheese

Roll up and wrap with a slice of pancetta.

Tie with string, tucking another sage leaf on each side of the rolled up bird.

Heat butter and oil in a large skillet and fry birds until cooked through. The outside should be a deep brown and crispy.

To serve, remove the string and cut in half.

Coccolare - A Little Bit of Heaven

In Italian, Coccolare means "to cuddle." One of the most memorable foods I ate in Italy was called coccole, which my hosts told me means the same as coccolare.

Coccole is fried pizza dough sprinkled with salt. At the table, I was instructed to wrap the dough in the finest prosciutto and pop it into my mouth.

My taste buds were dancing. The dough was light and puffy with a little bit of a crunch on the outside. The prosciutto was paper thin but with a bold flavor.

I've been afraid to try it since I've been home for fear of it not living up to my memories. Maybe one of these days I'll give it a shot.

Figs, figs, figs, figs ...

I LOVE FIGS!

I stumbled on this by way of Chowhound. It's in the oven now and smells fantastic!

Copyright 2006 by Cooking With The Single Guy

http://singleguychef.blogspot.com/2006/10/figs-with-puff-pastry.html

Update: August 2012. This is heavenly. I just made it again this year and it was as wonderful as I remembered.

OBX

We spent last week in Duck, NC.  Had to work all week, but working from the OBX is better than commuting to Arlington every day.

Vacation for me means cooking more, not less. One night I made a scallop pasta dish that turned out well. I started with a cream sauce -- basic -- butter, flour, milk, and nutmeg, then added some Parmesan. Crisped and crumbled some prosciutto but kept some out and sliced it thin. Seared the scallops with some of Tommy's Steak Seasoning.

Added the sauce to the drained pasta, sprinkled with more parm, and topped it with the scallops.

Not so good for my heart but it sure warmed my soul.