Pesto, Tomato & Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken

I should preface this post by saying that dealing with chicken is my least favorite kitchen duty. I don't love working with any meat really, but I find chicken the hardest! If I were to ever go vegetarian, my aversion to raw meat would be the main reason for my vegetarianism! This recipe involves a whole lot of raw chicken work - bleh! If you don't mind it, this recipe is great for you. If you struggle, as I do with raw meat, please know that the end result is so so worth it!!

My dad actually did the bulk of the heavy lifting in this recipe, but I'm so glad I got to take pictures to share with you! The recipe is from a blog called The Laughing Spatula, you can find it HERE.

Start by cutting 4 chicken breasts in half horizontally, but stop just before you're all the way through the chicken breast. Lay the chicken out on a flat surface and open it up so you can fill the inside.

Put 2 Tablespoons of pesto inside of each piece of chicken and spread it out using a knife or a spatula.

Add 2 or 3 slices of tomato to half of the chicken, then place 4 or 5 pieces of mozzarella cheese on top of the tomatoes. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper inside each chicken.

If your chicken breasts fold right over, that's great! If not, use some wooden skewers to help the chicken stay folded around the stuffing. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil over the top of the closed stuffed chickens.

Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet. Once the oil is hot, sear the stuffed chicken breasts for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

Transfer the seared chicken to a tinfoil baking dish and bake the stuffed chicken in the oven preheated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes. Note that the original recipe suggests baking the chicken for 8 minutes, but our chicken was still very pink after 8 minutes. I recommend keeping a meat thermometer on hand to check the chicken often - when the chicken reaches 165 degrees, it's good to go!

We served the stuffed chicken with some steamed broccoli and it was oh so good!

PESTO, TOMATO & MOZZARELLA STUFFED CHICKEN
yield: 4 stuffed chicken breasts

ingredients
4 chicken breasts
8 Tablespoons of prepared pesto
8-12 slices of tomato
16-20 slices of mozzarella cheese (you could use grated cheese instead!)
salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons olive oil

directions
1. Start by cutting the chicken breasts in half horizontally, but stop just before you cut right through the chicken. Lay the chicken out on a flat surface and open it up so you can fill the inside.
2. Spread 2 Tablespoons of pesto on the inside of each piece of chicken.
3. Lay 2-3 slices of tomatoes on half of each chicken breasts. Then add 4-5 slices of mozzarella cheese over top of the tomatoes. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the inside.
4. Close up the stuffed chicken, by closing one half over the other. You may need to use wooden skewers to keep the chicken sealed.
5. Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet. Once the oil is hot, sear each stuffed chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side.
6. Transfer the stuffed chicken to a tinfoil baking dish and bake the chicken and 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes. I recommend keeping a meat thermometer on hand so that you can check the temperature of the chicken often. Once the chicken reaches 165 degrees it is ready to go!

Let me know if you have questions!