Chicken Rollatini with Bacon, Cheese, Spinach and Ham

Every year, in our Town, we have a holiday parade the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  The floats are made by local organizations, schools, scouts and families.  Santa and Mrs. Clause are at the back of parade, in a fire truck, wishing everyone a “Merry Christmas”.  The parade concludes on our Town green where Santa lights the tree and the community sings Christmas carols, welcoming the Christmas season.  Stores and restaurants stay open late and our town is humming with activity.  Fortunately for us, it passes right by our house.   During the parade we have several dozen people gather with their chairs and blankets on our front lawn.  We have hot cider and a wonderful spread for our parade watchers.  After the parade the second gathering of friends and family, who were in the parade, come back for dinner and seasonal beverages.  We served our double-coated chicken rolls at one of them and got rave reviews.

• 10 strips bacon
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 c fresh spinach
• 10 chicken cutlets
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 t minced garlic
• 1 c parmesan cheese
• 10 slices imported ham
• 10 slices swiss cheese
• 3 cups flour
• 2 c milk
• 5 large eggs
• 4 c bread crumbs
• 2 T parsley, chopped
  

Grease the bottom of a 13” x 9” baking pan and set aside.

In a medium skillet, cook bacon and set aside, leaving grease in skillet.  To the skillet, add onions and cook until light brown.  Add the spinach and cook until just begins to wilt and set aside.

Place one cutlet at a time, on a piece of wax paper.  Spread a ½ t of minced garlic on the cutlet. Sprinkle with salt pepper and parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with parsley.

Place a piece of the ham, a piece of the cheese, and bacon, onion and spinach mixture over the swiss cheese.

Roll the chicken into a log tightly wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.  (the rollatini can be tied with kitchen twine at both ends, but refrigerating them should set them enough that you don’t need to.)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Take our four wide and shallow dishes.  In this order, place the milk in the first, flour in the second, eggs in the third and bread crumbs in the fourth.   Taking one chicken rollatini at a time, place in the milk, flour, then in the egg, and finally in the bread crumbs. Then, place in the egg and then the bread crumbs one more time. Put the prepared cutlets in the prepared baking pan.  Bake for forty minutes.  These are great served with rice and chicken gravy.