I am a junky for cooking shows.  If there is a show that has anything to do about cooking, eating or just talking about food, then I will watch it!!  I was watching Chopped the other day and someone made something called “Fondant Potatoes.”  They looked amazing and immediately I googled how to make Fondant Potatoes.  What I found was a recipe for potatoes that both melt in your mouth and provide that extra crisp that I love in a potato.  After making these potatoes and perfecting the technique, I wanted to find a dish that would pair really well with the potatoes and I found that with stuffed chicken breasts.  I have been reading about stuffed chicken breasts for a while and finally found a recipe that I could adapt to my taste.  I stuffed the chicken breasts with pancetta, basil, and a mixture of mozzarella and provolone.   The two recipes that follow will definitely be a crowd pleaser, with flavors that will keep you coming back for seconds and thirds!!

Fondant Potato Ingredients

• 4-5 medium size Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed in 1″ pieces
• 1/2 stick of unsalted butter
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, smashed with the skin removed
• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1-2 cups chicken stock (you may need more)
• Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Fondant Potato Recipe

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  In a cast iron skillet melt the butter and olive oil and add the garlic cloves and thyme sprigs to sauté.  After the garlic has lightly browned add the cubed potatoes and place the garlic and thyme on top of the potatoes so they don’t burn.  Flip the potatoes so that the golden side is facing up and then add the chicken stock so that it fills the pan half way up the potatoes.  Push the garlic garlic and thyme back into the pan so that they can infuse the stock with their flavor.  Place the pan in the oven and cook for twenty minutes.  After twenty minutes, take the potatoes out of the oven and flip one more time and add more stock so that it is once again half way up the potatoes.  Put the pan back in the oven and cook for another twenty minutes.  Once the potatoes are done, they should have a crispy exterior but the interior should melt in your mouth!!

Stuffed Chicken Breast Ingredients

• 4 large boneless and skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup diced and cubed pancetta
• 1 cup basil, chopped
• 3 tbs. mozzarella and provolone
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup flour seasoned with salt and pepper
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 tbs. lemon juice
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tbs unsalted butter
• 2 tbs olive oil

Stuffed Chicken Breast Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a large caste iron skillet brown the pancetta until it is crispy and has rendered its’ fat.  Towards the end of the cooking process add the chopped garlic until it softens in the pan.  Remove the the garlic and pancetta from the pan and let cool in a medium size bowl.  Once the garlic and pancetta has cooled, add the basil, cheese and lemon juice to the bowl and season with salt and pepper.  Take the chicken breasts and cut a pocket into the breast about an inch deep and two inches wide (all dependent on the size of the chicken breast, if not large enough, cut a bigger hole but do not cut through the breast).  Once the pockets have been cut, stuff the breasts with about a tablespoon of the basil, pancetta mixture.  Dredge the chicken breast in seasoned flour, dip in egg and then role in bread crumbs.

In the same caste iron skillet that you browned the pancetta, melt the butter and add the olive oil.  Brown the chicken breast on one side and then flip and brown the other side.  Once both sides have browned put the skillet into the oven and cook for 6 minutes and then flip the breasts and cook for another 5-6 minutes until the breasts are cooked through.  Once the chicken has finished cooking I like to squeeze a lemon wedge on top of the chicken to add a burst of lemon flavor.

I served this chicken with the fondant potatoes and green beans.

I hope you enjoyed these recipes as much as I did!