Chicken breast with crisy prosciutto, parmesan, thyme

This post continues my long-standing man crush on Jamie Oliver. I can't help it. He's irresistible. On Jamie's Ministry of Food, he attempts to spread his gospel of cooking fresh food to the town of Rotherham, England. In the second episode, he demonstrates this dish to a group of men. One guy is an older miner who surprises himself with how much he enjoys making this dish despite having never cooked in his life. Watch the video and tell me he's not f$#king adorable, looking like a puppy who just discovered he's allowed to run around outside.

One minor problem: I rarely cook chicken breast. It's relatively pricey, easy to dry out, and often flavorless. Regardless, people love it because it's familiar, easy to cook, and unintimidating. This recipe adds "tasty" and "interesting" to that list of descriptors. The crispy prosciutto provides nice texture contrast with the tender chicken. It also helps season the chicken and keep it moist. Parmesan, thyme, and lemon zest ensure that this dish is tasty enough to avoid the ridicule of your foodie friends who turn their noses at chicken breast. Plus, if it's good enough to inspire a miner who's "built like a brick s%#t house" to cook, it's damned well good enough for me and you to try.

Ingredients (serves 2)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 lemon
6 slices prosciutto
~1 tbs. grated Parmesan
6 sprigs fresh thyme
extra virgin olive oil
salt + pepper

• Grate Parmesan. Pick thyme leaves off the stalks.
• Score the chicken breast in a diamond pattern, with cuts ~1 cm apart, 1/2 cm deep.
• Season chicken lightly with salt (the prosciutto will add plenty of saltiness) and liberally with black pepper.
• Sprinkle chicken with most of the thyme leaves, Parmesan, and grate some lemon zest.
• Lay 3 prosciutto slices on each chicken breast, overlapping them slightly.
• Drizzle a bit of olive oil and sprinkle the remaining thyme leaves.
• Put a layer of plastic wrap over each breast and pound them with a heavy pan until they are ~1/2 in thick. This will help the chicken cook more quickly and marry the flavors.
• Add olive oil to a frying pan and heat over medium high. Remove the plastic wrap and add chicken breast, prosciutto side down, to the pan. Cook for 3 min.
  
• Turn heat down to medium, flip chicken over, and cook on second side for 3 min.
• Drizzle with some olive oil and serve with lemon wedges.

I served the chicken with sauteed kale and smashed red potatoes. A simple salad or asparagus (as in the video clip) would be nice as well.

From: Jamie Oliver, Jamie's Food Revolution