Chicken n Cheese Rolls

Come the Fridays (Oh yeah that's right, weekends are Fridays and Saturdays in UAE) and the desire to try out something new in the kitchen erupts. We desperately needed a snack to pump us out of our laziness into action! I had a chicken breast in my fridge and mozzarella cheese too. Well, Friday magazine also published a recipe of Beef and Mushroom rolls which came as my inspiration.
So it was decided, I am gonna make a roll and I am gonna bake it as well.

I made the Filo pastry for the rolls as well, I must say it came out pretty good - definitely worth a try.

Ingredients

For the Filo pastry

1. All Purpose Flour - 2 cups
2. Warm Water - 3/4 cup
3. Salt - 1/2 tsp
4. Olive oil - 3 tbsp
5. Corn Flour - for dusting

For the filling

1. Chicken - 200 gms
2. Onion - 1 big finely chopped
3. Garlic - 1 tbsp finely chopped
4. Parsley - a handful chopped
5. Pepper powder - coarsely ground
6. Tomato sauce - 1 tbsp
7. Mozzarella cheese - 200 gms
8. Salt to taste
9. Oil - 2 tbsp

Method

To make the filo pastry, take a bowl with sieved flour with salt. Gently add warm water, forking it out gently to let the moisture settle into the flour. Add the olive oil and bring together to make the dough. Make smaller balls out of the dough and roll it in corn flour. Place this on a tray and cover with a cling film. Allow this to rest for 1 to 2 hours.

Cook the chicken with a little pepper powder, salt and water.  Once cooked, shred the chicken into smaller pieces.

Heat oil in a skillet, add the chopped onion and garlic and saute it for 5 minutes.Add the shredded chicken, chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper. Saute for another 5 minutes, Switch off the flame and add tomato sauce to this. Let this cool.

Back to the Filo pastry. Flatten the balls using a roller until thin and cut this into squares of 10*10 cms. Brush olive oil onto the surface. Layer it on cling films or plastic so that it does not stick to each other.

Place sufficient filling along the side of the square. Add cheese of your desired quantity. Roll it over once and fold in the top and bottoms of the square. Complete the rolling and stick the ends using a little water.

Pre-heat the oven for 20 minutes to 200 degree centigrade. Place the rolls on a greased baking tray with the outer rolled end facing the bottom. Brush the surface with egg white to make it crisp and give the baked rolls a darker shade. Bake for 25 minutes at 180 degrees and then increase to 200 degree centigrade. Once cooked, transfer from the baking tray and serve with your favorite sauce.

Alternatively, you could buy Filo pastry and use the same stuffing. Instead of baking, it can be deep fried too. The choice yours:)