Pizza Stuffed Chicken

I love pizza. Who doesn't? So I revamped a Rachel Ray recipe I saw on TV the other day to make a pizza stuffed chicken breast. It's awesome. Cheesy and salty, with a yummy basil tomato sauce.

Ingredients:

Boneless skinless chicken breasts (I made 2)
Pepperoni slices (diced into smaller pieces), about 1/4 cup
Mozzarella cheese, shredded, about 1/4 cup
1 TBS olive oil

Chicken broth, 2/3 cup
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 tsp basil
2 gloves garlic

Directions:

1. Make sure your chicken breasts are trimmed of excess fat and connective tissue.
2. Rinse and pat dry.
3. Carefully cut the breast in half, so that it is butterflied. To do this, place your knife halfway down the breast on the long side and cut towards the far side. Do not cut all the way through. It should look like this picture when you're done.
4. Place a small amount of the pepperoni and cheese on one side of the open breast. Leave chicken exposed on all sides of the filling.
5. Fold the piece of uncovered chicken back over the top of the filling.
6. Secure the open side of the breast with toothpicks. (Imagine you are sewing the chicken with the toothpicks.) I seasoned my chicken on the outside with an Italian seasoning mix for extra flavor.

7. Heat your olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. Once warm, add the breasts to the pan and cook about 3 minutes on each side.
8. Transfer your chicken to a broiler pan (or something else that elevates the meat off the bottom of the pan) and bake in a 375 degree oven for 15 minutes or until the chicken is done.

9. While your chicken is baking, pour the chicken stock into the skillet you just used.
10. Add your tomatoes and spices. Simmer, uncovered until the chicken is done.

I served this with pasta and topped the pasta with a little bit of leftover filling. Yummy!

Artichoke Mushroom Chicken

We eat a lot of boneless skinless chicken breast around here. By a lot, I mean at least twice a week. Last night, I made something new with it. Unfortunately, the pictures turned out awful but I am posting them anyways, so you get an idea of what it eventually looked like.

It took me about 40 minutes from start to finish, including trimming and cutting up my chicken. Serves 4 with good sized portions. You might could feed 5 or 6 if you added some bread to the meal.

Final dish

Ingredients:

1 to 1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, trimmed and cut into strips
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
1 small can mushroom pieces
1 can chicken stock
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon thyme
salt and pepper as desired
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:

1. Cut your chicken into the desired size. Season your flour with salt and pepper as desired, and dredge the chicken through the flour.

Frying chicken pieces

2. In a sauce pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces, cooking on each side for 3 to 4 minutes depending on the thickness.
3. Once the chicken is done, remove to a plate and cover to keep warm.

deglazed pan

4. Pour the entire can of chicken stock into the pan, scraping up the crunchy pieces from the bottom of the pan. It may look a little burnt at this point in time. Don't worry!

Simmering

5. Add your drained mushrooms and artichoke hearts. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes.
6. Now to thicken your sauce. Mix together the cornstarch and milk in a small bowl or glass. Pour this mixture slowly into the pan and stir constantly. This will cause the sauce to take on a creamy tinge and thicken.

After thickening 

7. Add your chicken back to the saucepan and toss everything together gently. Top with Parmesan if desired.











We ate this over baby red mashed potatoes with green peas on the side. It was good and filling, with a mild flavor. You may want to consider adding a little garlic or experiment with some other spices to amp it up if desired.