Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breast with Herbed Polenta

I'm not ashamed; I will wholeheartedly admit that I anticipate the end-of-school-year gifts from the families of the children I teach.  I don't look forward to it in an "I am so awesome that they better get me something" sort of way.  It's just nice to have all of my hard work acknowledged, you know?  One gift I received this year was Rachael Ray's Look + Cook cookbook (thanks, Ado!).  Rachael's researchers must have figured out that people tend to make their recipe choices based on how the food looks, because this book exploits that idea to the max.  Every recipe (except the desserts, because RR seems to have a perpetual fear of baked goods) comes with a large picture of the finished product, accompanied by smaller pictures of the preparation process.  It's like FoodBuzz in paperback!

I stumbled upon a particularly palate-appealing picture of "Pesto-Presto Chicken" (then I went out back and picked a peck of pickled peppers), and since my dad was nice enough to give us four chicken breasts at Sunday dinner this week, I figured it was a perfect opportunity to try out this dish.

One of the perks of being married to an apron-wearing Italian is that he can simply look at a pesto recipe and know whether it will work.  After perusing this one, he gave a quick wave of his over-gesticulating hand and said, "I don't think that will work."  He dutifully measured out the ingredients according to the recipe, at which point I came into the kitchen, looked at the pitifully small stack of basil leaves and said, "Are you kidding me?" 

We adjusted accordingly.

Pesto-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Herbed Polenta

(adapted from Rachael Ray's Look + Cook)

For the pesto:

• 6 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted
• 30 - 40 fresh basil leaves (approximately 2 cups)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 2 cloves garlic
• Salt and pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil

For the chicken:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (between 1 and 1 1/2 lbs)
• Salt and pepper
• 1 or 2 heirloom tomatoes, sliced
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• Extra virgin olive oil

For the polenta:

• 1 cup Arrowhead Mills' organic yellow corn grits
• 2 cups milk
• 2 cups water
• Salt and pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Large handful of fresh herbs, chopped (I used parsley, oregano, thyme, and basil)

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Combine the pesto ingredients in a food processor, starting with about 1 - 2 Tbsp olive oil.  Process until smooth, adding more oil if necessary.
3. Butterfly each piece of chicken.  Open the two halves as if you were opening a book.  Pound the split breasts with a meat mallet (or a foil-covered crab mallet like my DH did) until they are about 1/4 inch thick.
4. Season both sides of the breasts with salt and pepper and divide the pesto mixture among the four pieces of chicken.  Fold the chicken in half (like closing a book) to enclose the pesto mixture.
5. Transfer the chicken to a nonstick rimmed baking sheet (I still used cooking spray on mine to make sure it didn't stick).  Top with the tomato slices, cheese, and drizzle with olive oil.
6. Bake the chicken until cooked through and light golden brown, about 20 minutes.
7. When there are about ten minutes left on the chicken timer, combine the polenta ingredients over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until boiling.  Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for about five minutes, or until they reach the desired consistency.  As we've discussed before, a little less than five minutes = creamy, soupy grits.  The longer you cook it, the more polenta-cake-like it becomes.
8. When plating, feel free to garish with some balsamic glaze or fresh basil leaves.  Enjoy.