Parmesan Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This was the main dish at my recent dinner party and was the crown jewel of the meal. Pardon my cliche terminology, but this chicken was fab! Everyone commented on the huge size of the breasts, but all the plates were clean by the end of dinner. It looked really fancy, with the green parsley tucked underneath golden crispy skin, but it was actually incredibly easy.

Definitely use a meat thermometer here. My chicken was done in 30 minutes, as noted below, but I actually relied on my thermometer to let me know the meat was cooked all the way through, without having to cut into the chicken. The benefit to this is, you *know* the meat is done, and it gets a chance to reabsorb all the juices, creating an even moister, juicier hunk of meat.

Also, you do need to use skin-on, breast halves on the bone for this recipe; boneless, skinless chicken won't cut it in the flavor department here.

Parmesan Stuffed Chicken Breasts
Source: Martha Stewart's Great Food Fast
Printable Recipe
Ingredients
1 cup fresh flat-leaved parsley, chopped
¼ cup plain dried breadcrumbs
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.

Mix the parsley, breadcrumbs, Parmesan and lemon zest together in a small bowl. Season the mixture with ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

Divide the parsley mixture into 4 piles. Carefully loosen the chicken skin from the meat, using your fingers; tuck the parsley mixture under the skin. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Place the chicken in a 9 x 13” pan (spray the pan with nonstick spray first) . Bake until the skin is crispy and a meat thermometer (stuck in the thickest part of the meat) reads 165 degrees; about 30 minutes. Let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before serving to allow the meat to reabsorb the juices.