Here We Go!

I decided to start this blog for a couple of different reason.

1.) My hubs and I love food.

2.) I'm learning to love cooking. Not just baking- but actually cooking! When I was single, I made grilled chicken breasts about 5 nights a week, so i'm starting to broaden my horizons.

3.) One of our resolutions for 2012 is to eat healthier. But i don't feel like that limits us to plates full of broccoli

4.) I thought it would be fun to document this journey and share a few great finds that are also healthy

So, here we go!

On the menu:

Herb and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Sauteed Asparagus Spears

I've never stuffed chicken breasts before, so i was a little nervous going into this one. In some ways it was easier than expected but also harder than i expected! Based on the directions, I thought that 1 toothpick would easily hold the stuffed chicken together. Well, I ended up needing 3 toothpicks per breast! So if you try this recipe, it's probably a good idea to have a few extra toothpicks around. I wasn't a huge fan of the mint so next time i'll probably cut that down a bit. But overall, it was pretty tasty!

Ingredients

1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 (4-ounce) package goat cheese

4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

• Preparation

  1. Preheat broiler to high.

  2. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl. Cut a horizontal slit through thickest portion of each breast half to form a pocket. Stuff 2 tablespoons cheese mixture into each pocket; close opening with a wooden pick. Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt.

  3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add 1 tablespoon olive oil to pan. Add chicken to pan, and cook for 2 minutes on 1 side or until browned. Arrange chicken on a baking sheet (browned side up); broil for 8 minutes or until done.

  1. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half)
     Total: 20 Minutes

     Nutritional Information

     Amount per serving

     • Calories: 348
     • Fat: 12.9g
     • Saturated fat: 5.4g
     • Monounsaturated fat: 5.2g
     • Polyunsaturated fat: 1.3g
     • Protein: 46.8g
     • Carbohydrate: 10.7g
     • Fiber: 3.7g
     • Cholesterol: 112mg
     • Iron: 4.2mg
     • Sodium: 579mg
     • Calcium: 114mg