recipe: stuffed roasted red pepper chicken

this was one of the first recipes i ever made, back in the hayday of our old apartment. it's super easy, but looks very cute when done. i don't think i've made it in over a year (or two?) so yesterday seemed like time to give it another run when i was feeling like making an italian din din. it's the Stuffed Chicken Valentino recipe from allrecipes.com, and looking back i think i made it verbatim from the original.

ingredients list:
- 4 boneless chicken breasts
- 3/4 tsp dried italian seasoning
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
- 1 (6 oz) jar roast red peppers, drained
- 1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
- 4-6 tbsp mozzerella cheese, shredded
- salt & fresh pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp olive oil

to make: preheat oven to 350 degrees. slice each chicken breast in half lengthwise, leaving the halves attached on one side (open and laid flat, the chicken should now resemble a butterfly. i always have a horrible time slicing this and am lucky when it doesn't look like a butterfly with holes in it :-/ ) place chicken between two sheets of plastic wrap, and pound flat.

combine parm cheese with italian seasoning and chives, and sprinkle over chicken breasts. at one end of each breast, place 3 strips of roasted pepper. top with 1-1.5 tbsp shredded cheese. roll each breast up, starting on the side with the peppers & cheese. insert a toothpick in each roll to prevent unrolling. place in prepared baking dish. season with salt & pepper, and drizzle with olive oil.

bake for 20 minutes, then set oven to broil and continue cooking for an additional 5 - 10 minutes. allow to sit a few minutes before serving.
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this one is always yum. i use a little less italian seasoning than the recipe calls for since it's such a strong flavor, but i think even if that was switched out for garlic & onion powder and some paprika concoction that would be yum. rating 6.5******~ (it's delish, but not the MOST flavorful recipe ever. just a solid old go-to).