Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Hmmmm. I was trying to think of a clever name for this dish, but couldn't come up with anything!! This turned out really good, and I'm disappointed to simply give it the generic title of: "stuffed chicken breasts". It just doesn't do it justice!... So, if you can think of anything better, please let me know! I'll be making this again, and I feel it deserves some sort of recognition... at least a memorable name! Hope you enjoy...

Ingredients:

2 large boneless chicken breasts, skinned and cut in half (to yield 4 - 3oz portions)

... pound chicken breasts pretty thin

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 red onion, diced

1/2 C pecan pieces

1/4 C celery, thinly sliced

1/2 large apple, diced (I used a granny smith)

1/4 C dates, minced

1 C beef broth, low sodium (divided... 1/2 C for the stuffing, and 1/2 C for the sauce)

2 tsp olive oil

paprika

black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until tender. Mix in celery, apples, pecans, dates and beef broth. Simmer for about 5 minutes, or until most liquid is absorbed. Stuff chicken with mixture (I guess I managed to fill each breast with about 2+ T of the mixture). Roll the chicken breast as best you can and secure with a toothpick. Sprinkle the tops of the chicken breasts with some paprika and black pepper. Bake, covered, for about 50 minutes.

While that is cooking.... make a sauce with the remainder stuffing mixture! I added another 1/2 cup beef broth to the mixture and simmered until thick and saucy! I topped the chicken breasts with a little of this sauce just before serving.

Have this with a vegetable side of your choice! I went with steamed zucchini again (just what I had in the frig tonight). A side salad would also be a nice addition! :-)

*Paleo/Zone Challenge is coming to an end! Remember to keep your stats updated for performance based improvements. On Sunday, November 22, we'll have our final meeting where we'll take the "after" photo, and gather all the additional data! Good luck....