Chicken Caprese Crostini Bites Recipes

Steps:

• 1. Marinate chicken breast overnight or for a few hours in 1/2 cup of olive oil & 1/4 cup of Balsamic vinegar. Cut into slices.
• 2. Cut baquette into slices (not too thin) and grill for a few minutes to get toasty. (Brush w/ some garlic butter or w/ Italian dressing or balsamic & oil for extra flavor!) Top w/ slices of mozzarella, chicken, & grill until cheese is melted.
• 3. Remove & top w/ tomato slices (I used roasted red pepper in place of tomato for my tomato-hating daughter) and a fresh basil leaf on each crostini slice. Sprinkle with some more vinegar & oil & some parmesan. You can add garlic to this, as you desire.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir garlic into hot oil and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes, stirring often. Add spinach and toss with hot oil and garlic; cover and remove from heat. Set spinach mixture aside to wilt spinach.
• Heat 3 more tablespoons olive oil in an oven-safe skillet. Cook chicken breasts in hot oil until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Season with salt. Layer 1/4 of the wilted spinach, tomato slices, and mozzarella slices on top of each breast. Season with ground black pepper and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese has browned and chicken is no longer pink inside, about 15 minutes. An instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a breast should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

Steps:

• Pat chicken dry. Cut a lengthwise pocket into the thick side of each breast without cutting all the way through to the other side. Season breasts inside and out using 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
• Stuff each breast with a quarter of the mozzarella, 2 to 3 tomato slices (depending on size) and 4 to 5 basil leaves. Enclose the filling as much as possible by pulling the chicken over the filling. (The chicken can be prepared to this point, covered and refrigerated up to 24 hours.)
• Heat olive oil in a large 12-inch nonstick pan over medium heat. Sauté garlic, stirring, until golden, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, scoop out garlic and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the oil in the pan.
• Increase heat to medium-high and sauté chicken until golden on the bottom, about 6 minutes. If the breasts darken too quickly, lower heat. Flip and cook for 5 minutes, then cover and cook 2 to 3 minutes more, or until chicken is cooked through and filling is hot.
• Using a spatula, carefully transfer chicken to a platter or four plates. Pour pan juices over the chicken. Garnish with pesto, reserved garlic and remaining basil leaves.