Chicken thighs, all fancied up

This is another version of stuffed chicken. If you use boneless skinless chicken thighs, they are all set to stuff, because they’ve been opened up to remove the bone. If you can find them, use Italian San Marzano tomatoes. Since the sauce is seasoned primarily with basil, the San Marzano tomatoes provide nice flavor.

Don’t get all freaked out if the cheese melts out as the chicken cooks. It will season the chicken as it leaches out and then will help season the sauce. I used a buttermilk blue cheese which had a good tanginess to it.

One word of caution regarding organic ingredients. I did my shopping for this dinner at Whole Foods, and they sell lots of organic produce. I’m not a big fan of organic stuff. It is more expensive, and because they don’t use pesticides, it sometimes has pests. Whole Foods only had organic basil. As I was washing and drying the basil leaves, I saw a big green caterpillar crawling on my counter. Since it is February, I know it didn’t come from outside. Don’t worry, if you don’t notice the caterpillars and they end up in your sauce, rest assured it’s ok to eat the sauce. The caterpillars are organic, so they must be ok to eat.

Kitchen twine

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Olive oil

Cajun seasoning

Blue cheese, the best you can find

3 shallots, minced

6 cloves of garlic, minced

Red pepper flakes

1 28 oz. can of tomatoes

1-1/4 cups chopped fresh basil

Salt and pepper

Louisiana Hot Sauce

Preparation

Lay the chicken breasts out, one at a time, on a cutting board, opened up. Sprinkle it with cajun seasoning. Crumble up a thick slice of blue cheese on the chicken. Now add a layer of minced shallots over the cheese and then a layer of minced garlic over that. Sprinkle on some red pepper flakes. Save all the remaining shallots and garlic for the sauce.

Roll the chicken up as tight as you can, replacing any cheese that falls out as you do. Tie the roll up tightly at the two ends using the kitchen twine. Place the chicken on a plate as you tie make up the other rolls. Sprinkle them all with cajun seasoning.

Heat a large skillet and add enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Place the chicken roll in the skillet and cover. Cook about four minutes per side. Add the remaining garlic and shallots to the skillet as you turn the chicken.

When the chicken has cooked on both sides, add the tomatoes and break them up with a knife and fork. Stir in 1 cup of the basil. Let that simmer gently for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Give the sauce eight to ten shakes of Louisiana Hot Sauce and cover for another five minutes. Stir in the remaining basil and turn off the heat.

Serving

To serve this, serve at least two chicken rolls per person. Add a big pile of ziti next to the chicken and cover both with lots of sauce. Sprinkle on some grated parmesan too. Now add some sautéed baby broccoli, a plate of mixed olives, homemade bread and open a bottle of Petite Sirah from California. Unplug the phone. It’s time to overeat!