Feta-Stuffed Chicken Thighs

If I could live on feta cheese and bacon, I would do it. There's something about the combination of the two that just makes my taste buds sing, so when I found myself looking at a partial package of bacon and an open container of feta cheese, I figured it was a sign I should create a recipe for them. Couple that with a package of boneless, skinless chicken thighs that I didn't have room to put in the freezer, and we ended up with an entree that was even more amazing than I'd hoped. I love when that happens!

The ingredients are simple enough: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs, bacon, feta cheese, cream cheese, tomato, fresh basil and chives, and some black pepper. I kept thinking I should add something more, but often simpler is better. The end result proved I was smart to stop here.

First thing was to mix a couple ounces of cream cheese with the feta and herbs. I let it stand for a while after I mixed it because I looked at the clock wrong and started dinner entirely too early. I don't know that you necessarily have to let it stand since they're fresh herbs rather than dried, but I'm writing it into the recipe in case you do use dried so they have a chance to rehydrate.

I then laid the thighs out with the smooth side down. You could certainly use chicken breast instead of thighs, but you're going to want to pound it flat before you add any of the filling to it. Thighs are already pretty thin, so I just divided the cream cheese mixture between them and spread it out, then sprinkled diced tomato on them. I found it easier to wet my fingers to spread the cream cheese mixture, but feel free to use the back of a spoon or a knife if you'd rather.

I then sort-of rolled them up (I say sort of because it's not really rolling, but more like making a packet out of the chicken) to enclose the filling. And then wrapped each one with a slice of bacon to hold it all together. If you're using breast instead of thighs, then you might have to use two pieces of bacon. The idea is to use the bacon to make sure the filling doesn't come out. Then sprinkle the top of each one with some black pepper, and you're ready for the oven.

Just baking them doesn't really crisp the bacon. This was taken at the end of the baking time, while I was heating up the broiler. You don't want to skip the broiler step or your bacon will be soggy, and soggy bacon is not your friend. I didn't adjust the shelf height between baking and broiling because my oven doesn't like bacon on a higher shelf under the broiler, but use your best judgement. And of course if you don't have an electric oven you'll have to preheat your broiler to use it.

Just a couple of minutes is all it needs under the broiler, so be sure you watch it carefully so you don't burn the bacon. Underdone bacon is not your friend, but burned bacon isn't either. You'll notice some of the filling did come out even though I wrapped them carefully, but it was easy enough to scoop up, and then I just dumped it on top after I cut them to eat. The excess grease I left in the pan and trashed later... I love bacon, but there's a limit to how much fat one needs to eat at any given time.

I served these with more bacon, because I could. Since it was such a simple recipe I didn't bother to make it a blog post, but it is posted on my Facebook page, and can be found in the Side Dishes photo album (Sauteed Squash with Bacon). Because... bacon. :)

Feta-Stuffed Chicken Thighs

Serves 4

1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoons neufchatel cheese, softened

1 teaspoon fresh basil, minced

1 teaspoon fresh chives, minced

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 Roma tomato, seeded and diced (about 1/4 cup)

4 slices bacon

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

In a small bowl, combine feta, neufchatel, basil, and chives; cover and let stand about an hour.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Lay thighs on work surface with smooth side down. Divide cream cheese mixture evenly between thighs and spread to cover. Sprinkle tomato over cream cheese mixture.

Roll/tuck chicken to enclose filling, closing all gaps possible so filling does not show through. Wrap each roll with one bacon slice, and place in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle tops of rolls with black pepper.

Bake at 375F for 35 minutes, then broil for 3-5 minutes to crisp bacon. Be careful you don't burn the bacon!

Serving Size: 198g

Calories: 365

Calories from Fat: 178

Total Fat: 19.8g

Saturated Fat: 7.8g

Trans Fat: 0.0g

Cholesterol: 136mg

Sodium: 590mg

Total Carbohydrates: 3.4g

Dietary Fiber: 0.6g

Sugars: 2.1g

Protein: 41.4g