Our Pizza Chicken is simple to make and super delicious. It's dinner wrapped up in one little package! Chicken stuffed with all the pizza toppings you love - cheese, pepperoni & more cheese! And cleanup is a breeze!
I was so excited this past week because my sister Ginger came to visit. She comes down in the winter for a few days each year to get away from the cold of Michigan and then I reciprocate in the summer and visit her to get away from the heat here in Florida. It's not often or long enough visits for either of us but at least we get the chance to hang out, catch up and have a ball together a couple times a year.
While she was here I wanted to fix very easy meals so that we could spend as much time as we could doing the things we love. And we love walking the beach (isn't it beautiful in the morning), shopping along the avenue in Delray Beach (actually shopping just about anywhere is fine with us) and, of course, pampering ourselves just a little with a nice foot massage. By the way, if you've never had a foot massage you've just got to go try it out. It's so relaxing and, to my sister's surprise, they didn't just massage her feet but gave her a shoulder and back massage too! Ah, heaven!
OK, back to the food. There were several dishes I could have fixed such as Slow Cooker Hawaiian Short Ribs, Southwestern Chicken Casserole or Beef Enchiladas but I decided to make something she hadn't had before. This Pizza Chicken was the perfect choice. It is super easy to make, delicious and Italian so I knew she would love it!
I prepared it in the morning and just had to throw it in the oven about 45 minutes prior to serving. I added a tossed salad and our favorite whole wheat pasta to round out our delicious and satisfying meal.
Verdict: It was loved by all, including my wonderful nephew who joined us. Yay! Hope you enjoy!
EASY PEASY PIZZA CHICKEN
Ingredients
- 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 egg
- 1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
- ¾ cup Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese, grated & divided
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ cup sliced pepperoni, halved
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Pepper to taste
- 2 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 ½ cups favorite marinara + additional for your pasta
- ¾ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Take each of the chicken breasts and cut in half lengthwise so you have 8 long rectangles of chicken.
- Place several in a large ziploc bag at one time and pound slightly to thin them out and even out the thickness. Repeat with all pieces of chicken.
- In a medium bowl, combine egg, ricotta, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, garlic, pepperoni, salt, pepper, 1 Tablespoon basil and 1 tablespoon parsley. Mix well.
- Stuff the chicken by laying each piece flat, placing several tablespoons of ricotta-pepperoni mixture at one of the long ends and rolling up tightly.
- Lay in prepared baking dish, seam side down. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.
- Pour marinara over chicken then sprinkle mozzarella, remaining Parmesan, basil and parsley over the top.
- Bake, covered with foil, for 35 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake for another 15 minutes.
- Serve hot with a side of your favorite pasta and additional marinara sauce.
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