Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I was excited to branch out into Pesto.  I have never made my own, but I wanted to try to use some prepared pesto in a recipe.  Baby Steps!  So here is my first ever recipe with Pesto.  I found that it adds a lot of flavor to chicken and it freezes beautifully!  

Ingredients:

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts         9.36  
7 oz  prepared pesto                                    4.48
1 Lg yellow or white onion                           .30
8oz tomato sauce                                           .42
         with basil, oregano and garlic
1/2 C grated parmesean cheese                1.00
Salt and Pepper


Directions:

Chop the onion into 1/2" chunks and place one third into each of three 8" pans.   As the pesto cooks inside the chicken the oil tends to leak out and collect in the bottom of the pan.  By putting onions underneath the chicken breasts it lifts the chicken up out of the oil and you get more flavor and less fat.

Place a chicken breast on your cutting board.  Place one hand on top of the breast and carefully slice the breast in half from the side.  Don't cut all the way through the breast and open it like a book.  It will look like the shape of a heart.

Sprinkle the inside with salt and pepper.  Spread the right half of your chicken breast with 1/6 of the prepared pesto.

Fold the left half of the chicken breast back over the right side and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Repeat with the remaining breasts and place into two stuffed breasts into each 8x8" pan.

Open the can of tomato sauce and spoon two to three Tablespoons of the tomato sauce over each breast until all 8oz of the sauce has been used.

Sprinkle each chicken breast with two to three tablespoons of shredded parmesean cheese.

Cover with foil, label and freeze.  When you are ready to cook the chicken please thaw in the fridge for two days.  Then bake 350 degrees for 40 minutes.  Then remove foil and bake 5-10 additional minutes to brown the cheese.   Each breasts feeds two adults. My husband and I like to eat this meal with rice and veggies. 

I was able to make three meals for $5.19.  I hope you enjoy this chicken as much as we do!  I look forward to trying lots of pesto recipes in the future. 

Enjoy!

Christie aka Keeza