Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breast Recipe

I like to think of myself as an aspiring at-home chef, err, aspiring housewife that likes to cook? I am always looking for new recipes to add to my rotation, and love planning out our weekly meals when I remember have time. And, since the old saying "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" has proven true with B, I hate to disappoint!

I am lucky enough to have a few great friends who are also newlyweds and like to spice things up in the kitchen, so we get to trade recipes back and forth often. So, this week, I plan to impress woo Hubs with the newest recipe in my repertoire, and I wanted to share it with all of you! This will be my first time making this dish, but I was lucky enough to enjoy it, courtesy of my friend, M, and it was delicious!! I am not typically a big pesto fan, but the blend of cream cheese and pesto was the perfect accent for the chicken breasts, and it's easy to make!

Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breast

Ingredients
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 jar of pesto (she recommended Sicilian, but you can use homemade as well)
1 pack of cream cheese (softened)
Bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese
1 egg (beaten)

Preheat over to 375. Begin by letting the cream cheese sit out at room temperature to soften. Once cream cheese is soft, combine with pesto until smooth. Butterfly the chicken breasts to create a pocket in each. Next, combine bread crumbs and parmesan in small bowl. Dredge the bottom of each chicken breast in beaten egg followed by the bread crumbs/cheese mixture to create a crust. Place partially coated chicken breasts in baking dish. Spoon pesto mixture into each breast to stuff. Cover with foil an bake for 40 minutes.

My friend, M accompanied this delectable chicken dish by preparing some linguine pasta, sauteed spinach and sliced grape tomatoes and then tossing it all together in some EVOO. The pasta was delicious, and in my humble opinion, could suffice as a meal on its own, but paired with the chicken? Yummers. I also prepared a simple salad to add some more veggies to the meal, so it can really be the complete package!!

I'll have to update once Hubs tries it - I hope you enjoy!!

7 comments:

Lauren said...

This sounds delicious! I might just have to try and not burn down myhouse as I try to make it this week!

Pamela M said...

It's super simple and yummy! Let me know if you like it!!

Katie said...

This seems super yummy and right up my alley! Can't wait to hear if it's a hit!

Christi said...

this sounds delicious! we love pesto in our house. i make a huge batch in late summer and use it for the next 6 months (i freeze it into small portions).

Neely said...

Love new recipes!

Pamela M said...

I love new recipes, too!! Let me know if you ladies try it!!

Sarah@grownupnow said...

I love pesto! This recipe sounds awesome, I'll definitely have to try it