Deconstructed Chicken Parmesan

Tomato Soup with Chicken in Puff Pastry
Deconstructed Chicken Parmesan

This is my first foray into "deconstructed" cooking. I saw something about it on the Food Network and tried to look up exactly what it was. I found everything from flavored beef foams making a deconstructed steak to a jar of peanut butter, jar of jelly and a loaf of bread being a deconstructed sandwich.

That makes my fridge a deconstructed buffet.

I am currently of the opinion that there isn't one definition of deconstructed cooking, it's up to the cook - and that throwing "deconstructed" in front of a typical meal makes it sound that much more posh, chic, impressive to The Wife.

This cook is taking a typical meal, separating and rearranging the ingredients yet keeping them all in the same dish, with a similar concept.

Wanting to try my hand at deconstructing - this is a dish I came up with (all on my own!) for Sunday Supper.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts – flattened to ¼ to 1/8 inch thick
Salt
Pepper
1 tablespoon Minced Garlic
½ cup V-8
1 Tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 frozen pastry sheet ready to use cut into quarters
1 cup grated parmesan/Italian cheese, plus ¼ cup parmesan
1 28 oz can of whole tomatoes
1 8oz can of mushrooms
1 Egg beaten
2 Tablespoons of Splenda

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350

After flattening chicken breasts, lay flat and place ¼ cup of cheese on each chicken breast and roll, like jelly rolls salt and pepper sides of rolled chicken.

Place pan on medium low heat add a tablespoon of olive oil and a tablespoon of minced garlic.

Place chicken in pan to lightly brown sides – cooking one minute per side.

Remove chicken when lightly browned, but not cooked and set aside.

Deglaze pan with ½ cup V-8 juice – stirring so it does not burn – about 30 seconds.

Add can of tomatoes and their juices and turn heat to medium.

As tomatoes are simmering, break them open, add red pepper flakes. Reduce heat and let simmer.

Roll 1 quarter of pastry sheet flat enough that a chicken roll will fit diagonally inside. Fold up ends and roll like an egg roll. Repeat for all chicken rolls.

Place chicken on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, slice diagonally across parchment to make a steam hole in the top of pastry and brush pastry with egg wash.
Place juice from mushroom can into tomato mixture.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until pastry turns a dark golden brown.

In a Food Processor combine ¾ cup sour cream, tomato mixture from stove, ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese and 2 tablespoons of Splenda (it cuts some of the acidity). Turn on and process for 30-60 seconds, until mixture is smooth. Return to pan and reduce heat to low to keep warm. Stir in canned mushrooms.

When browned, remove Chicken from oven and let set for 5-10 minutes. Slice diagonally into 4 pieces and place over tomato soup.