Chicken Stuffed with Fontina, Artichokes, and Sundried Tomatoes

As part of my quest to clear out recipes in my "to-do" box, I picked up some Fontina cheese today to make this dish.  On my way home, I thought - stuffed chicken breast... that probably means I'll be standing around beating the fight out of these chickens to flatten them out, which won't really go too well with my shoulder injury.  But to my pleasant surprise, this prep method was quite painless, and didn't require use of a hammer.

This dish came together very quickly, and with the right tools, it's fast, easy, and succulent.  I didn't know what to expect of the Fontina cheese, which is kind of like a Gouda but much softer, and perhaps smelled a bit more ripe.  This pungency survived the cooking process, and added a nice tang to complement the sweet herb flavor of the basil, the tartness of the sun-dried tomatoes, and the mellow garlicky base of the artichokes.  And to top that off, the mix was crammed inside of one of the most juicy chicken breasts I may have ever cooked.  Not too shabby.

I couldn't believe how moist these came out, and how quickly they cooked given their size.  Huge fan of this cooking method now.

Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Fontina, Artichokes, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
from Bon Appétit, February 2008
 

• 1 6-ounce jar marinated artichokes, drained, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup grated Fontina cheese
• 1/4 cup (packed) drained, coarsely chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh basil
• 2 5-ounce skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

The setup

Preheat oven to 375°F. Mix artichokes, cheese, tomatoes, and basil in medium bowl. Using small sharp knife and working with 1 chicken breast at a time, cut 2-inch-long slit horizontally into 1 side of chicken breast. Move knife back and forth in slit to form pocket. Divide 1 cup cheese mixture among chicken pockets (reserve remainder for frittata). Press edges to seal. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.

Make your filling by coarsely chopping the ingredients and tossing together loosely to combine.  Don't squeeze it too tightly, or you'll end up with a cheese log.

This was way too much fun - slice through the side of the chicken breast and make a pocket, like you're opening a pita.  Don't slice through the opposite side, you want only one narrow slit and a huge cavern into which you will cram the filling.

Now spoon that filling in there, but don't overstuff

Heat oil in heavy large ovenproof skillet over high heat.  I vote cast iron, but stainless steel will work if that's what you've got.  Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes.  Turn the chicken over, and immediately transfer the skillet to the oven.  Bake until cooked through, about (note: about, not exactly) 10 minutes.

Note that the filling wasn't so tightly packed that it started escaping out the side.  You'll burn your cheese if you do that, and nobody like that.

Get a nice browned crust on one side, then flip and transfer to the oven.

How do you know when it's done?  Get out your digital thermometer, and test the center.  If it's not at 160 or higher, add another few minutes.  After 10 minutes, mine was at 130.  So I gave it another 5, and it was perfect.  If you want to be safe, bring it up to 170, but even that will start to dry it out too much.  Serve with a starch and some kind of green vegetable, but ideally nothing too powerful to drown out the flavors of this.

 

The finished dish, served over spinach with roasted potatoes

Chorizo Breakfast Frittata

I was stumbling through the shop of a Cracker Barrel recently (don't ask me why, I don't have a good answer) and picked up the Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook, by Pam Hoenig.  Figuring it would be a shameless way to promote Lodge cookware, I was skeptical at first.  But when the first recipe looked like gold and I tried to take a picture of it with my cellphone camera, I figured I might break down and buy the thing.  And so now I have many more excuses to use my cast iron cookware, which is most assuredly a good thing.

If you don't own any cast iron cookware, then shame on you.  Go down south, eat some country cookin', and then come back up to your posh city chic apartment and order some on Amazon.  You won't regret it, cast iron holds heat better than anything out there and develops great flavor by promoting browning.  And it's practically nonstick, since it's "seasoned" with a perpetual layer of stanky cooking oil that just keeps baking deeper into the metal as you use it.  Traditionally, a bride in many families in the southern United States was given an unseasoned (bare metal) set of cast iron, and it was supposed to last for the life of her marriage.  I suppose if this were one of Kim Kardashian's gifts, the thing would have rusted almost immediately.  But a proper kitchen will not use soap on their cast iron, and it will last for a lifetime of delicious, artery-clogging meals.  And so I present to you one of them...

Chorizo frittata - a one pan meal of epic deliciousness, done proper-like in the cast iron skillet

Breakfast Frittata with Chorizo

from the Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook

• 3/4 pound bulk chorizo sausage (casings removed)
• 6 large eggs
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 2 large handfuls baby spinach, Swiss chard, or arugula, washed and well dried
• 8 ounces feta, cotija, or any Mexican firm cheese such as queso fresco, crumbled
• 1 large ripe tomato

All of the ingredients, including queso fresco and some homemade bulk chorizo at right

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Brown the sausage in a 10" cast iron skillet over medium heat, until crumbly and no longer pink.  Remove and drain on paper towels.  Drain all of the fat from the skillet, but leave the residue with the sausage-y goodness in the pan for some extra flavor.

'Brown' in the cast iron - don't just grey your meat, make sure you get some flavor through the Maillard reaction by browning it.  Why use the cast iron if you're not going to take advantage of its benefits?

Place the eggs, cream, salt, black pepper, and red pepper in a large bowl, and whisk until foamy.  Add all of the remaining ingredients, including the drained chorizo, and stir to incorporate.  WARNING: this is messy, so be sure to use a larger bowl than you think is necessary.

Get some air into the eggs.  Come on, work those ova!

"...and mix them all together in a big jug."

Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and cook over medium heat until it begins to set and hold together around the outside edge.  Transfer to the oven and bake until the top of the frittata has puffed up and is golden brown, 25-35 minutes.

Let the mixture set up on the bottom slightly, and then throw in the oven.  Not all of the spinach wilted down before baking, as you can see here.

Slice the frittata into 8 wedges and serve immediately.  You don't need to worry about letting it cool, since the cheese won't melt and make a huge mess.  Feel free to garnish with sour cream, sliced scallions, pico de gallo, cilantro, or nothing at all - it doesn't need anything extra!

Going, going, gone.  Leaving a little of the sausage drippings in the pan added to the flavor of the crust that forms on the base of the frittata.  Everything set up nicely, and was very easy to serve given the firmness of the cheese.