Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

So Em wanted to try those frozen broccoli-stuffed chicken breasts that you see the ads for every night; you know- the one with his head stuck in the freezer and the wife says he’s in a dinner coma or something? Well, they’re just under $5 for a package of 2 tiny little croquette-looking things. And they apparently weren’t very tasty. Edible, but bland. So I said “Well I could make those! Those would be easy.” And if you watched Julia Child (“Bon appetit!”) in the French Chef as I did when I first was out on my own, you would know just how easy it is to make these!

Broccoli Stuffed Chicken Breasts

• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• 2 cups broccoli florets, cooked & chopped
• 1/3 cup minced onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 slices provolone cheese
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 cups panko crumbs
• salt & pepper
• oil
• toothpicks

1. Break egg into a pie plate, whisk with 2 TBSP water and set aside. Spread panko crumbs on another shallow plate or wax paper and set aside.
2. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and add the onion. Saute until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook an additional 4 minutes. Don’t let the garlic brown!
3. Stir in broccoli and season with salt & pepper. Remove to a bowl. Stir in shredded cheese. Set aside to prepare chicken.
4. Wipe pan clean and add enough oil to coat bottom by ¼ inch, and continue to heat over medium heat.
5. Pound each chicken breast to about 3/8” thick. Top with a half slice of provolone each. Put about 3 TBSP scoop of broccoli mixture in center of each breast. Pull edges of chicken over and around filling, pinning with toothpicks as necessary to hold filling in place.
6. Dip bundle into egg wash, turning to coat all sides, then dredge with panko crumbs, covering completely. Repeat with other chicken breasts. Place each stuffed breast into heated sauté pan. When crust is deep golden brown, carefully turn and brown other side. We are JUST browning the crust- NOT trying to cook it completely!
7. In the meantime, preheat oven to 375 degrees, and spray a 9” x 9” baking dish with vegetable spray. When chicken is browned on each side, place in baking dish. Bake uncovered for about 18 minutes, or until meat thermometer reads 175 degrees. Serve with rice or noodles.

You’ll just have to imagine the completely finished product- the 2 guacamoles scarfed these babies before I remembered to take one last picture. They said it was excellent. Good to know!