The fourth hour advanced foodies went French recently when the class made Chicken Cordon Bleu with a creamy dijon sauce.

Ingredients for Cordon Bleu

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 8 slices of Swiss cheese
• 1/2 pound ham, sliced or 18 slices of deli ham
• 4 teaspoons flour
• 1 to 1 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• salt and pepper
• cooking spray

Ingredients for creamy dijon sauce

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9- by 11-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

Place a chicken breast into a plastic bag on a cutting board and pound with a meat mallet or rolling pin until about 1/2-inch thick. Remove chicken from bag and sprinkle each side of chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder, coating evenly. Place a layer of Swiss cheese, then ham. If using deli ham, use three slices to cover the surface of the inside of the chicken. Then cover that with another slice of Swiss cheese. Roll up each breast as tight as possible. Secure with two or three toothpicks. Do not let the roll loosen.

Dredge the chicken in a mixture of the flour and eggs and and then coat in the breadcrumbs. Transfer chicken rolls to prepared sheet pan. Lightly spray chicken rolls with cooking spray.

Bake chicken for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through. The center should register 165 degrees on a kitchen thermometer. Rest for five minutes and remove toothpicks.

While the chicken is cooking make the sauce by melting the butter for the sauce in a 1.5-quart saucepan on medium heat. Add in garlic and cook until soft. Add flour and whisk for one minute. Add milk and whisk until fully combined with the flour-butter roux. Continue to whisk until the mixture comes to a simmer and has thickened. Add in dijon mustard, salt, pepper and parmesan cheese. Whisk to combine and set aside.

Slice chicken after removing toothpicks and serve drizzled with dijon sauce.

NOTE: To have extra tight chicken rolls, wrap the chicken in plastic wrap before using toothpicks, twisting the excess plastic and rolling the chicken on a flat surface. Tie off the excess plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes before dredging in egg mixture and breadcrumbs. You can also fry the chicken roll in a pan of oil at 325 degrees at five minutes per side or until outside is an even golden brown. Internal temperature should be 165 degrees. If not, finish in 325 degree oven.