When you want to walk that fine line between healthy and indulgent, your best reason and excuse would be this delicious Jalapeño Chicken Bake. It's inspired by jalapeño poppers--minus the breading but packed with protein. But hey, no one said you couldn't sprinkle it with pork rind crumbs for a little extra goodness! INGREDIENTS:
4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
kosher salt and cracked black pepper
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 jalapeños, sliced thinly
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Carefully cut slits into each breast, making sure not to cut completely through. Place the breasts into a lined baking sheet and season with salt and pepper.
In a bowl, mix the the cheeses and garlic together and season with salt and pepper. Feel free to add some herbs like oregano or thyme. While you can certainly add the bacon later on as a topping, I like to mix my crumbled bacon in a portion of the cheese mix to be added after baking. Spoon the cheese mixture into each slit of the chicken breasts and carefully assemble jalapeño slices into them as well.
Bake for about 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through--generally you'll want that chicken to reach an internal temperature of 165 F. On the last 5 minutes of the cook time, I took out the breasts and heaped my bacon cheese mixture on top and put it back in the oven to cook up the remainder of the time. The cheese gets melty, bacon is extra crispy. Everybody is happy. So good!
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