Stuffed chicken breast

It's Sunday, and that only means one thing: I'm getting my cookin' on in the kitchen!  My friends Rachel and Steph came over for a lovely dinner.  Steph brought squash soup which I didn't get the recipe to but was mucho delicioso!  And I made chicken breast stuffed with goat cheese, artichokes, sundried tomatoes, and spinach.  I had thought of it a couple weeks ago and it's been on my mind ever since, and tonight I finally made it! 

Stuffed Chicken Breasts (serves 4)
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 oz goat cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
a handful of sundried tomatoes, dried or in water (5-8 depending on size)
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 cup artichoke hearts (approx 5)
2 tsp olive oil
a pinch of dried rosemary
salt, to taste
roasted red pepper slices, to garnish

Start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees.  Next start prepping the vegetables.  Chop the sun dried tomatoes into small pieces. 

They'll look like this...

Make 'em look like this...

Next prep the artichoke hearts. I bought medium sized hearts and cut them into 4-6 pieces.

They'll look like this...

Make 'em look like this...

Then mince the garlic, either in a garlic press or mince it finely with a knife.  Next chop the spinach into thin(ish) slices.

 Then butterfly the chicken breasts.  That basically means cut them in half, but not all the way through... like butterfly wings. 

 Evenly spread the goat cheese on each split breast. then sprinkle the garlic on top of the goat cheese.  If goat cheese isn't your thing, feta would be a good substitute.

 Do the same with the artichokes, sun dried tomatoes, and spinach.

Then fold over the chicken to seal it, if you have tooth picks you can stick them to make sure they don't flop open. I didn't have any and I managed just fine.  Next spray a baking dish with a little cooking spray and put the chicken in the pan.

Now drizzle each one with a little olive oil, about 1/2 tsp per chicken should suffice.  Then sprinkle with a little salt to taste, some dried rosemary and garnished with a little roasted red pepper.

Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Uncover, drain excess liquid and continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink. 


I served it with whole wheat cous cous (cooked in chicken stock instead of water) and roasted asparagus. 

Rachel was very excited about it!