Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Sundried Tomato Puree

I made dinner for my roommates last night.  In a desperate attempt to avoid doing homework for a little, I took on making my own stuffed chicken breasts, sans recipe, and served them alongside some dinner rolls and zucchini fritters (recipe coming soon).  I’d say my procrastination was definitely worth it; these chicken breasts were my favorite chicken recipe so far (probably because of the obscene amount of cheese in them…) and I can’t wait to make them again!  The sun dried tomato puree was also a huge success…we were eating it plain by the end of the meal.

Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Sundried Tomato Puree

Serves Six

• For the puree:
• 1 jar sun-dried tomatoes (8 oz.)
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• For the chicken:
• 6 chicken breasts, thinly pounded
• garlic salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used a four cheese blend from Trader Joe’s…Parmesan, Provolone, Asiago and Mozzarella)
• 3/4 ricotta cheese
• 1 cup fresh spinach leaves
• 6 slices prosciutto
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• olive oil

Let’s start with the puree.  This can be made up to a week ahead of time and refrigerated.  Pour the jar of tomatoes into a food processor with the garlic.

 

pre puree tomatoes

Puree this mixture until it is smooth.  Add your mayonnaise (side note: I usually hate mayonnaise so I used as little as possible in this recipe…if you want it to be creamier, add more) and lemon juice.

tiiiiny bit of mayo

Pulse the mixture until all the ingredients are blended in.  Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until you are ready to serve!

 

its ok to eat this plain...really, go ahead

Now that we have our puree ready to go, lets start the chicken.  First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  You should already have the chicken thinly pounded (there is nothing worse then a huge, thick piece of chicken).  To pound the chicken, place the breasts between two slices of plastic wrap, and attack them with a meat mallet.  Food preparation and stress reliever in one!

Season your chicken breasts with garlic salt and pepper to your liking.  Reserve them on a plate.

 

“stuff me!!”

Next, start the stuffing.   Take your slices of prosciutto and tear them into small pieces.

 

prosciutto

Add both your cheeses and spinach to the bowl with prosciutto and mix well.  Salt and pepper the mixture to taste, and add about a tablespoon of olive oil for some moisture.

 

you could also eat this plain, i won't tell anyone.

Once the stuffing is done, we can fill the chicken breasts.  Spoon the stuffing mixture onto one half of the chicken breast.  Fold the other half of the breast over the mixture to form a little pocket.  Place a few slices of garlic in with the mixture.  Secure the ends of the chicken with a toothpick, and if you can, shove a little more stuffing in there.

 

there are no words

Repeat this process with the rest of the chicken, transferring the stuffed breasts to a baking dish as you go.  Drizzle some olive oil over the chicken and pop in the oven!

 

waiting to be baked

Cook the chicken for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until your meat thermometer reads 175 degrees.  The cheese should be nice and melty and gooey, spilling out of the chicken.  Yum.

Take your puree out of the fridge and top your chicken with some (or a lot).  Don’t forget to remove the toothpick before eating (sorry roomies….)!

 

this picture does not do it justice...it was amazing.