How to Make Chicken Cordon Bleu

Born and raised in Irissarry, France -- a Basque village of 600 people, where a 450-year-old building in the center of town houses his family's restaurant, patisserie and boulangerie -- Roger Minhondo, the charming owner of San Rafael's , now calls Marin County home. 

In 1970, a friend of a friend was looking for a chef to work in California. By that time, Minhondo had graduated from hotel school in Biarritz and was training at L’Auberge d’Armaille in Paris, where he interviewed for the job.

“Many Basque people dream about living in California because of the similarities in climate, mountains and ocean. So, for me, it was a ‘yes’ without hesitation,” said Minhondo.      

The restaurant was Chalet Basque, which opened in 1962 in the same location where it is now, just down the road from San Rafael Civic Center. After several years there, Minhondo left to start his own place, The Normandy, in San Rafael -- and later The Guernica in Sausalito. 

“When Chalet Basque came up for sale eight years ago, I decided to buy it. I call this my retirement,” he laughed. “Now I’m back where I started.” He and his wife, who attended Dominican College and is a special education teacher, raised three sons in Novato. David teaches, Pierre makes documentaries on extreme sports and Patrick manages Chalet Basque.      

Located in the south-west of Europe, the Basque country spans both sides of the Spanish and French borders and is rich in seafood from the Atlantic Ocean and lamb from the valleys from which the Pyrenees mountains rise. 

The region is mostly Spanish, with only one fourth of the country in France. Much of Europe’s current gastronomy has Basque influence and many of the well-known chefs come to train there, primarily in Bilbao.  Like California, it is a wine-growing region. The appellation is Irouleguie. 

According to Minhondo, the Basque "family style" of dining originated with the sheep herders who migrated to California in the 1800’s.  After an extended solitary existence in the mountains, they returned to their families and came together for communal meals, camaraderie and conversation. In the 1970s, San Francisco’s North Beach had many Basque restaurants. 

Minhondo created the Chalet Basque menu in the 1970, and though it has been updated a little, many of the original dishes are still there. Rabbit Chasseur, duck confit, French onion soup, boeuf Bourguignon, frog legs and fresh seafood like rock cod á la Basque are some of the classic dishes that receive rave reviews. A recent hearty special was lamb shanks with white beans, sheep herder's style. Because of the enormous demand, the kitchen excels in items not often served in Marin such as beef tongue, tripe, calf liver and sweet breads.  

It is not unusual for Chalet Basque to have a hundred people or more for lunch or dinner in their two dining rooms, and outside in the vine covered patio. There is a full bar (where you can also dine) and an interesting wine list.  

Chalet Basque has always been a magnet for well-known San Francisco French chefs like the late René Verdon (San Francisco's Le Trianon and the White House chef under the Kennedys) who often enjoyed having lunch outdoors. You know a restaurant has great food when it is frequented by talented chefs who come to relax and dine on their days off. 

Chalet Basque Chicken Cordon Bleu (Serves One) 

1 – 8 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast

      (Note: Restaurant uses “airline breast” which has part of the wing attached)

2 slices prosciutto di Parma

3 slices imported Swiss cheese

2 slices of diced white bread, crust removed

2 ounces flour

2 whole eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon each salt and pepper

½ cup clarified butter

1 ounce unsalted butter 

Cooking Instructions: 

Remove filet from chicken breast, cover with saran wrap and pound until thin.  Pound filet in same manner. 

Wrap cheese with prosciutto and lay on top of breast. Bring sides and ends around cheese and top with filet to seal cheese inside. Dip breast in flour, then in beaten egg. Cover on all sides with diced white bread. 

In medium frying pan pour ¼ cup clarified butter. Set breast into pan. Pour remaining clarified butter to saturate bread and place unsalted butter on top. Bake in 375-degree oven for 30 minutes, turning chicken after fifteen minutes. Serve with rice or light pasta and steamed vegetables.

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