WOW - Stuffed Chicken Breast

Last night I made a delicious meal of Chicken breast stuffed with mushroom ragu, and goat cheese accompanied by a light lemon and garlic kale.

To make filing, saute lardons of bacon until they've released their fat and are slightly crispty. Remove and reserve the bacon, leaving the bacon fat in the pan. Saute finely diced onion and shallots in the bacon fat until soft and starting to darken. Deglaze the pan with a bit of white wine and simmer until the alcohol has evaporated and the wine has become syrupy. Add an assortment of diced mushrooms (I used regular white, oyster and fresh porcini) and saute until they've released their juices. Remove from heat and add the reserved bacon and minced chives. Let cool, then incorporate into goat cheese. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed (Optionally, add a few drops of truffle oil to add that extra punch of earthy flavor). Texture should be smooth with chunks of mushroom. Cover and chill until ready to assemble chicken.

Using skin on, frenched chicken breasts, cut a small pocket into the center of the breast. You should be able to make one incision, moving the knife laterally to carefully expand the pocket the length of the chicken breast. Carefully stuff the pocket with the mushroom cheese mixture - take care not to overfill and burst through the skin or flesh. Using tooth pics, seal up the pocket. Salt and pepper the exterior of the chicken. Heat an oven proof skillet to medium, and melt butter with olive oil. Saute the chicken, skin side down until it has developed an nice golden exterior. Then flip, and move 325 degree oven for 12 - 15 minutes to cook through. Watch the breast carefully to avoid overcooking.

While the breast is in the oven, melt butter and olive oil in a pot. Add garlic scapes, and chili flake. Then add sliced kale. Add a bit of moisture to help the kale cook down - i use chicken stock. Once cooked, remove from heat and finish with a bit of lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, pepper and a bit of olive oil.

Plate the kale and serve the chicken breast slightly askew over the kale.