Prep. Time: 5′ Cooking Time: 25′ Serves 4
Ingredients:
- For the chicken fillet:
- 4 chicken breast fillets
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 1/4 cup cognac
- 1 cup chicken broth
- Salt
- Pepper
- Dried apricots and plums
- A little cooking twine
- For the filling:
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 100g ground beef
- 2 tbsp finely chopped onion
- 2 tbsp pine nuts
- 4 finely chopped dried plums
- 4 boiled and finely chopped chestnuts
- 1 grated apple
- 4 tablespoons cognac
- 4 tablespoons vinegar
- Zest and juice of 1 orange
Instructions:
Let’s start with the filling so it can cool in time.
- Heat the olive oil and sauté the ground beef for 6-7 minutes until browned.
- Add the onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes until it becomes translucent.
- Add the pine nuts, dried apricots, chestnuts, and apple. Mix well.
- Pour the vinegar and cognac and let the liquid evaporate.
- Add a little orange zest.
- Season with salt and pepper at the end.
- Remove from heat and let it cool slightly.
- Pour orange juice over the filling.
- Mix the filling and let it cool slightly before using it to fill the Christmas rolls.
Now, for the stuffed chicken:
- Prepare the chicken fillets by opening them with a sharp knife to increase their surface area.
- Pound them with a mallet or a heavy object to flatten and make room for stuffing.
- Grease the fillets and season them well with salt and pepper from all sides.
- Distribute two tablespoons of the filling on each fillet.
- Roll them into a log and tie each roll tightly to prevent them from opening during cooking.
- Heat the olive oil in a large deep pan or pot with a thick base.
- On high heat, brown the rolls on all sides for 2-3 minutes each. Be careful, the chicken rolls should brown evenly for the best result.
- Add the dried fruits and thyme.
- Pour over vinegar and cognac.
- Let the liquid evaporate completely to trap the aromas.
- Add the broth and simmer for 15 minutes over medium heat to cook the fillet and glaze the thick sauce. If desired, add a piece of cold butter, about the size of a walnut, to give some extra shine to the sauce.
- Stir the pan to melt the butter with the heat of the other ingredients.
- Cut each fillet diagonally and serve, garnishing with dried fruits and a thick glazy sauce.
- Enjoy!
