Ingredients

  • olive oil, basil leaves, pine nuts, garlic, lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper, cauliflower, keto pesto, chicken breasts, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, coconut oil
0

Ingredients

0 Mins

Cook Time

0 Mins

Prep Time

Recipe Description

Chicken is always a go-to when looking for something simple, but it can be fancy too. Show off your cooking chops with this scrumptious (and easy) stuffed chicken. Our Ketogenic pesto recipe adds delectable amounts of flavor to this dish and is sure to impress.

 

 

How to Stuff a Chicken Breast

There are two different methods for stuffing a chicken breast. Both will get the job done so choose the option that sounds best to you.

Create a Pocket

The simpler of the methods, you simply cut a pocket in the chicken breast to stuff. Follow these steps:

Place chicken smooth-side down on cutting board.

  1. Being careful not to cut through to the other side, begin to cut into the thickest part of the breast to create a pocket.
  2. Stuff the pocket with your mixture, being careful not to overstuff it.
  3. Press down around the pocket to seal the chicken.

Pound the Chicken

Pounding is better known as tenderizing the meat – and also doubles as a great way to reduce stress! If you pound the chicken enough, it will get thin enough to place your pesto (or other stuffing mixture) on the flattened chicken breast and roll it up. Pounding is the preferred method for stuffed chicken breasts because it evens out the meat, which means even cooking. Follow these steps to tenderize your meat:

  1. Lay the chicken on a cutting board and cover with plastic wrap.
  2. Pound them firmly and evenly with a meat mallet until they are the thickness you want.
  3. Place your stuffing on the breast and roll it up.
  4. Don’t have a meat mallet? Don’t worry! Many other kitchen items will get the job done. Try using a rolling pin, skillet, even a can of tomatoes.

 

Recipe Directions

INSTRUCTIONS

For the pesto:

  1. Place all the pesto ingredients into the blender and blend well.
  2. You will only need two tablespoons for this stuffed chicken breast recipe, but the pesto will store well in the fridge for 3 days.

For the stuffed chicken breast:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C.
  2. Steam the cauliflower florets in a steamer or in the microwave (in a bowl of water). When the cauliflower is tender, let it cook and add to a blender or food processor with 2 Tablespoons of Keto pesto.  Set aside.
  3. In a small bowl, mix together the salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder.  Rub the mixture onto each chicken breast.
  4. Make a deep cut in each chicken breast side so that there’s an opening to stuff into.
  5. Pour the coconut oil into a hot pan and fry on the chicken on both sides until slightly browned.
  6. Place chicken on a clean workspace. They will still be fairly raw on the inside so be mindful of the utensils and your work surface. Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, spoon the creamy Keto cauli-pesto mixture into the pocket of each chicken breast, then place on a greased rimmed baking tray and bake in the oven for an additional 20 minutes until the chicken breast is fully cooked.