Parmesan chicken breasts with crispy posh ham recipe

Ingredients

• 30g Parmesan cheese
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 2 skinless chicken breasts, preferably free-range or organic
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lemon
• 6 slices of prosciutto
• Olive oil

Method: How to make Parmesan chicken breasts with crispy posh ham

To prepare your chicken

1. Grate your Parmesan.
2. Pick the thyme leaves off the stalks.
3. Carefully score the underside of the chicken breasts in a criss-cross fashion with a small knife.
4. Season with a little pepper (you don’t need salt as the prosciutto is quite salty).
5. Lay your breasts next to each other and sprinkle over most of the thyme leaves.
6. Grate a little lemon zest over them, then sprinkle with the Parmesan.
7. Lay 3 prosciutto slices on each chicken breast, overlapping them slightly.
8. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with the remaining thyme leaves.
9. Put a square of cling film over each breast and give them a few really good bashes with the bottom of a pan until they're about 1cm thick.

To cook your chicken

1. Put a frying pan over a medium heat.
2. Remove the cling film and carefully transfer the chicken breasts, prosciutto side down, into the pan.
3. Drizzle over some olive oil.
4. Cook for 3 minutes on each side, turning halfway through, giving the ham side an extra 30 seconds to crisp up.

To serve your chicken

1. Either serve the chicken breasts whole or cut them into thick slices and pile them on a plate
2. Serve with some lemon wedges for squeezing over, and a good drizzle of olive oil.
3. Lovely with mash and green veg or a crunchy salad!