Recipe

Ricotta Stuffed & Sauced Chicken Over Pasta

Prep Time: 45 min

Cook Time: 45 min

Serves: 4

Part skim ricotta and Romano cheese combine in a simple and delicious stuffing for this baked chicken and pasta dish. It may sound complicated, but it is easy to flatten the chicken breasts, stuff, roll and smother with tomato sauce for baking.

Contributed By: Developed for CFC by Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc

Ingredients

1 cup (250 mL) ricotta cheese, partly skimmed milk

1/4 cup (60 mL) Romano cheese, fresh, shredded

1/4 cup (60 mL) green onions, sliced

1/4 cup (60 mL) parsley, fresh, minced

2 cups (500 mL) tomato sauce, unsalted

1 tsp (5 mL) basil, dried

1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) oregano, dried

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 lb (0.7 kg) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

8 oz (230 g) brown rice pasta

8 oz (230 g) other whole grain pasta

4 sprigs parsley, fresh (optional)

Instructions

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

2 Combine ricotta, fresh shredded Romano, finely sliced green onion and minced parsley in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.

3 Combine low sodium tomato sauce, dried basil, oregano and minced garlic in another bowl. Mix well and set aside.

4 Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a plastic freezer bag and flatten to an even thickness of 1/4 inch (< 1 cm). An easy way to do this is to put the boneless breasts in a plastic bag and use a tortilla press, smooth side of a meat mallet or a rolling pin to lightly flatten. Try not to tear the meat.

5 Lightly spray a 10 x 10 inch (1 Liter) baking dish with vegetable oil spray. Cover with 1/2 cup (125 mL) of the sauce.

6 Spoon one quarter of the ricotta filling in the middle of each chicken breast. Roll up jelly-roll style starting with the short end.

7 Place the stuffed breasts seam side down and spoon remaining sauce over. Sprinkle with the remaining freshly shredded Romano cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and registers 165°F (74°C).

8 Cook pasta in unsalted water according to package directions.

9 Carefully remove ricotta stuffed chicken from the pan and set aside. Toss the cooked pasta with all of the juices and sauce from baking pan. Divide among four plates, top with a piece of ricotta stuffed chicken and garnish with a sprig of fresh parsley.