Apple and Cheddar Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I have to admit that I am addicted to my iPhone. As I told one friend, it has everything I've been missing all these years. One of reasons I love it is all of the different apps that I can use on it -- and not just apps to kill time, but things that actually increase my productivity and efficiency! Among my favorites is the Dinner Spinner from Allrecipes.com. I use it a lot when I am trying to figure out what to cook for dinner. Today I knew that I had to use some chicken breast, so I pulled out my trusty iPhone, typed it into the Dinner Spinner search engine, and the very first result that came up was for chicken breast stuffed with apples and cheddar. It sounded yummy, and bonus! -- I had all of the ingredients already in my kitchen. The original recipe can be found here, but I made a few changes and tweaks. This is my version of the recipe.

Apple and Cheddar Stuffed Chicken Breasts
(serves 2-4)

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 cup chopped Granny Smith apple
2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon panko
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 /2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon Colman's English dry mustard powder
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

-- Combine apple, cheese, panko, curry powder, allspice, and dry mustard. Set aside.
-- Flatten chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness.
-- Divide apple mixture between chicken breasts, and roll up each breast. Secure with toothpicks.

-- Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Brown stuffed chicken breasts.
-- Add wine and 1/4 cup of chicken broth.
-- Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink.

-- Transfer chicken to a serving platter.
-- Combine 1 tablespoon of chicken broth and cornstarch; stir into juices in pan.
-- Cook and stir until thickened. Pour gravy over chicken and serve.

This was really easy and didn't take long at all. While the chicken was cooking, I roasted some fingerling potatoes, and sauteed some sugar snap peas. It turned out to be a tasty meal and the house smelled delicious when my husband came home from work. The chicken recipe is one I think could be very flexible -- you could choose a variety of different spices to add to the apple mixture like cinnamon or nutmeg or cayenne. And as my friend Tracy says, pork makes everything taste better, so next time I might also add some prosciutto or bacon to the apple mixture.