Tuesday, May 10, 2011

A Better Stuffing

I went through a phase in grad school where I made a bunch of recipes for stuffed chicken.  Unfortunately more often than not they were bland and tasteless, so I thought it was hopeless



These days, I splurge for better chicken (organic, vegetarian-fed, hormone free...) every once in awhile and decided I'd put it to good use and really punch up the flavor.  I wanted something in tune with the warmer weather, so basil pesto was getting used.  I decided that sundried tomatoes and feta would be perfect partners.


I made this twice, since the first time I didn't have my camera.  The first time I served up the stuffed chicken with some fresh pasta tossed with basil pesto.  The second time, shown here, the side was kale massaged with avocado, lemon juice and coarse sea salt, tossed with some cooked quinoa, apples and roasted beets.  Both ways were delicious :)



Chicken Stuffed w/Pesto, Sundried Tomatoes & Feta
Serves 2-3

Some chopped olives would also be a good addition here, if you like them :)

~1lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2-3 breasts)
2T chopped sundried tomatoes
2T crumbled feta cheese (it's better in a block, and with sheep/goat's milk)
1-2T basil pesto, prepared or homemade
salt and pepper

For the filling, combine sundried tomatoes and feta in a small bowl.  Add pesto, 1T at a time, and mix until the mixture begins to stick together.  Be careful to make sure it's not too wet, otherwise it will ooze out of the chicken.

The thickness of your chicken breasts may determine how you roll them up-- for thicker ones, cut a slice down the middle, fan open and stuff as shown in the above photos.  The chicken should be able to seal over the filling, but you can always secure with a toothpick if necessary. 

If the chicken is on the thinner side, pound them out (between layers of saran, if you'd like), add some of the filling and then roll up.  Secure with a toothpick or twine, so it doesn't unroll when cooking.

Heat a medium (nonstick) pan over medium heat.  Cook, 5-10min on each side (2-4 sides depending on how you rolled it), based on the thickness of your chicken.  You don't want to see any pink, and the juices should run clear.  Remove from heat and set aside a few minutes to rest.  Slice on a bias if you want it to look pretty, then serve!

31 comments:

BigAppleNosh said...

Yum, I love stuffing. It's one of my favorite parts of a meal, actually :)

Janetha @ meals + moves said...

I love stuffed chicken! I do stuffed chicken breasts almost weekly. My favorite is hummus, laughing cow and feta.

Lisa (bakebikeblog) said...

I love dishes like this! And chicken and sundried tomatoes ago so well together!

Elizabeth said...

I would take that side dish any day. What a great mix of ingredients.

vanillasugarblog said...

wish i was your room mate in grad school. i never baked, cardboard boxes all the time. lol

Reeni said...

The stuffed chicken sounds delectable! Love the filling. The kale looks pretty spectacular too.

Fun and Fearless in Beantown said...

I keep hearing so many great things about massaged kale. I've got to try it myself!

Esi said...

I need to try a stuffed chicken recipe. I like the filling you chose here.

Joanne said...

This is definitely a summer-full meal if ever I've seen one! Pesto, I'm convinced, makes all things in life better. Sun-dried tomatoes help too.

Delicious Dishings said...

You filled this chicken with my favorite things... it had to be amazing!

The Purple Carrot said...

Your recipes always look amazing!

Emily @ A Cambridge Story said...

Beautiful. I love how thinly slices the final product was and that the stuffing stayed in place!

Anonymous said...

Mmm...I got a hankerin!

Lauren @ Healthy Food For Living said...

Gorgeous presentation! When I've made stuffed chicken in the past, I could never get it to slice that perfectly. You just can't beat pesto, sun dried tomatoes, and feta together - perfect for spring :).

brandi said...

delicious! If I'm ever in Boston, I want you to cook me dinner - and dessert! :)

Kelly said...

Yum. This looks incredibly gorgeous. I have to admit that because I am not a chicken fan I haven't really made a lot of stuffed chicken dishes, but this looks gorgeous. I love how beautiful it looks from a presentation standpoint and the flavors sound amazing.

I also enjoy seeing what popular dishes are going around and this is the second time I've heard about massaged kale. :-)

Anonymous said...

pesto, sun-dried tomato, and feta sound like a fantastic combination for a stuffing, great flavors!

Maris (In Good Taste) said...

ooh stuffing is the best part of chicken!

We Are Not Martha said...

A chicken stuffed with pesto is obviously a dream come true to me!! And it's so pretty!!

Sues

Erica said...

How fabulous! Stuffed chicken is pretty awesome. I love how easy it is to switch up the stuffing mix. Pesto is a great add. Plus stuff chicken always looks fancy :)

(what runs) Lori said...

Wow- this looks incredible! Melty feta stuffed inside of chicken... oh man!

Cara said...

The chicken sounds great, but, not gonna lie... I really want that salad!

Nutmeg Nanny said...

This looks amazing and beautiful! It's perfect for Spring :)

Kerstin said...

Sun dried tomatoes and feta are two of my favorite ingredients - they just make everything better - sounds amazing!

Simply Life said...

wow! this looks like it came out PERFECT!

Christine said...

I love stuffed chicken. It takes a little more effort, but produces a great dinner!

Also, I really really need to make a light box!

Kristen said...

I am always looking for new ways to prepare chicken! this dish sounds really good, love the presentation!

Unknown said...

stuffed chicken is so good. Pesto, ya that about makes it GOLD! love it shannon.

Chef Fresco said...

We love stuffed chicken! This combo looks delicious. Feta is a great choice.

The Healthy Apple said...

Love your blog and love this stuffing recipe. I just discovered your website and I love it. Such amazing recipes...sundried tomatoes n' chicken. Yummy!

Dianabol said...

I made this and it was just awesome. Thanks for sharing. Diana

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