Basil & Mozarella stuffed Chicken

Well this recipe was created just because I had the stuff in house to make it and it all seemed to go together. I had leftover Mozarella from a party, and the basil was given to me by my wonderful neighbor who grows organic produce and had it leftover after Saturday' farmer's market. It's shown here served with fresh bruschetta and roasted asparagus with garlic. There were Crostini and a much fuller ramekin of bruschetta, but they didn't last until the photo was taken :-). Normally I am an asparagus griller in the summer but the over was already on to do the chicken so I went with it.

So here goes.

Basil and Mozarella stuffed chicken
Chiken Breast- As many as you're doing
Basil Leaves- Chopped, I guess about 2 Tbsp per breast (I eyeball it to taste)
Garlic (1 clove per breast, minced and yes I do like my garlic)
Fresh Mozarella (2 thin half moon slices per breast)
Salt and Pepper to Taste

1) Filet open your chicken breast so they have a pocket like a pita. You will need a nice sharp knife for this and go slow, it's better if you don't slice a hole in your chicken.
1.5) Rub a SMALL amount of olive oil or use spray on your breasts to keep em from sticking to your pan. I suppose you could just grease your pan too... either way is fine.
2) Mix your chopped basil and minced garlic together
3) Put 2 half moon slices of mozarella in each breast
4) Stuff in your basil and garlic mixture
5) Pinch closed but don't worry if a little hangs out, it looks better this way.
6) Sprinkle ground pepper and salt on top of the chicken breasts. (I added some garlic and onion salt too but salt and pepper is minimalistic and just fine)

Bake at 350 for a half hour or until chicken is cooked through. If you want to do the roasted asparagus just add it in for the last 17 minutes (20 is too much 15 is a bit on the al dente side)

If you need the bruschetta recipe I can give you that too but it's basically mixing up garlic, basil and seeded tomatoes with some salt and a smidge of pepper. Think of it as Italian Salsa. Serve with Crostini (recipe for which can be found in Mocktail Party Recipe Post)

Just wait until fall when I unveil my apple stuffed chicken breast recipe. I like stuffing chicken breasts. I feel like I'm giving them tasty and flavorful implants :-)