Very Bored Cook

St Swithun has had his beastly way with the weather… It’s raining; it’s been raining for 5 days. My tomatoes are out of control, I’m about to have a surplus of homegrown courgettes (although there are those that say one can never have too many courgettes) and the boyfriend has almost finished building a window seat for the sitting room! He only started it yesterday – that  is how much rain there has been.

So last night, it had to be comfort food. And if you’re looking for a quick, easy supper that will please pretty much everyone, look no further than this recipe.

Serves 2

2 chicken breasts
6 slices of Parma Ham (or smoked bacon if you’re on a budget)
3 tbsp Sun-dried tomato Philadelphia (or cream cheese and stir through some pesto)

• Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees
• Turn the chicken breasts over so you can see the underside. Score along the chicken breast and open it up so it looks ‘butterflied’
• Smear the philly down the middle, taking care to get it into all the nooks and crannies
• Season with black pepper

• Lay the Parma ham on a chopping board, each slice just overlapping (3 slices per chicken breast)

• Place the chicken diagonally onto the ham and wrap it up

• Now take some tin foil, fold it in half, then fold the each of the side edges and scrumple them up

• Gently open the top up and gently press the bottom corners so that the packet has a flat ish bottom and but is also sealed down the sides

• Place the wrapped up chicken breast into the bottom of the packet, close the opening by scrumpling them together – it’ll look a bit like a metal pasty

• Repeat for the other chicken breast
• Place the parcels onto a baking tray and place in the oven for 25 minutes
• While the chicken is cooking get your potatoes cooked and mashed as well as your courgettes cooked
• Serve!

This dish is absolute comfort in our household. The boyfriend makes it when we’re feeling down. Just the perfect pick-me-up dish and is also quite decadent without breaking the bank.