Grilled Chicken Roller

This is another one of those quick BBQ recipes that makes summer official! The prep on this chicken literally takes all of about 5 minutes, and as you can see by the ingredient list-- is not at all complicated. They are simple flavors that create an unforgettable dish. The recipe comes from the latest Kraft, Food and Family magazine so they are all about using Kraft Singles as their cheese. While this worked perfectly well for my American Cheese addict of a husband, I'd like to play more with different cheeses the next time we make this. The American Cheese was very good, but I am thinking that there are many great variations that woud give it a completely different taste. It might be fun to experiment with! I did also add an extra piece of bacon to each roller to help hold the cheese in. I wrapped one piece going horizontally and one going vertically. Can you ever really have too much bacon?

The only problem we had when cooking this chicken was that the fat content of the bacon caused the bacon to cook MUCH more quickly than the chicken. This isn't a dish that you can simply throw on the grill and ignore. It does require some attention to make sure that your bacon doesn't burn while waiting for the chicken to cook through. While parts of our bacon did burn a bit, the chicken stayed moist and really had a great bacon flavor throughout.

Grilled Chicken Roller
3-4 small, boneless chicken breasts

3-4 slices American Cheese (or substitute cheese of your choice)

6-8 slices center cut bacon

3-4 tablespoons Balsamic Vinaigrette salad dressing

Garlic salt to taste

Heat your grill to medium heat. Place your chicken breasts onto plastic wrap and cover with another piece of wrap. Pound each breast to about 1/4 inch thickness. Sprinkle garlic salt to taste on each piece. Top each pounded piece of chicken with cheese and roll up tightly. Wrap one piece of bacon around the long sides of the roll to cover any exposed cheese. Stretch the bacon as necessary. Take a second piece of bacon and wrap the chicken roller across the short side of the roller. Secure carefully with toothpicks.

Grill for 15-20 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165 degrees and no longer pink. Turn the chicken frequently to prevent the bacon from burning. For the last 5 minutes of grill time, brush each roller with the vinaigrette. Carefully remove all toothpicks before serving.

Source: Adapted from Kraft Food and Family (Summer '09)

Pesto Barbeque Pork Medallions

This is a nice simple meal that is perfect for summer grilling. A friend of mine from school used to make a version of this and it quickly became a favorite. It's a recipe that comes together very quickly and has a very unique flavor. I'm almost embarrased to post this as a recipe, as it is so incredibly simple-- but the flavors cannot be beat. You can use any pork chop to make these-- I have used a thin cut, thick cut, bone-in, boneless, and now these medallions. All work well and it's nice to know you can use whatever is on sale! I haven't tried it on a tenderloin yet. . . that might have to be next! My outdoor grill is still broken, so I used a grill pan to make mine. I do think I prefer the outdoor grill for these, but they certainly work inside if you options are limited.

Pesto Barbeque Pork Medallions
Pork medallions
Pesto sauce (either homemade or jarred)
Barbeque sauce (I use Sweet Baby Rays)
Garlic salt
Pepper

Rinse pork medallions and dry well. Season to taste with garlic salt and pepper. Use a pastry brush to coat both sides of the pork with pesto sauce. Allow to sit for about 20 minutes. Place on a hot grill and cook through. For the last few minutes, brush with barbeque sauce on both sides.