Bacon Wrapped Chicken

You know the saying "Tastes like chicken"?  Well....chicken doesn't honestly taste all that special, so what we really should have is a better saying like "Tastes like BACON"!  Bacon is special, bacon is also the chocolate of meat.  What better then to wrap really good bacon on some plain chicken thighs.  You can use any cut of chicken, but we prefer chicken thighs as they are more tender and smaller, so there's more bacon to chicken ratio.  We also prefer PC thick cut bacon, it's the best out there, and it makes EVERYTHING taste like bacon...and you can't go wrong there.

BACON WRAPPED CHICKEN 

Serves: A many as you want!

approx prep time: 15min

approx cook time: 15min

INGREDIENTS: 

- Bacon (1 strip per chicken thigh)
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs (2-3 per person)
- Cheddar Cheese (extra old, or smoked works best), shredded or cut into strips.
- Italian Seasoning

HOW TO MAKE IT:

- Open the chicken thighs up, so that they become a flat piece of chicken.
- Sprinkle the inside lightly with Italian seasoning
- Place a small pile of shredded cheese (or a strip of it, if cutting into strips) in the center of the chicken.
- Wrap the chicken around the cheese.
- Carefully wrap the chicken thigh with a single strip of bacon.
- Sprinkle the top with a tiny bit of shredded cheese.
- As you complete each one, lay them out flat on a non stick cookie sheet.
- Bake at 425 F for 25 minutes.
- Serve hot!

Stuffed Pasta Shells

What else can you do with jumbo sized pasta shells?  We like them stuffed with veggies and chicken!

STUFFED PASTA SHELLS

Serves: 6-8

approx prep time: 20min

approx cook time: 30min

INGREDIENTS: 

- Large shell pasta
- 1-2 large boneless chicken breasts, or 3-5 boneless chicken thighs.
- 1 jar of your favorite pasta sauce
- 1 red pepper
- 1 zucchini
- 1 handful sugar snap peas
- 1 handful yellow string beans
- 1 small white onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2-3 green onions
- 1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 2tbsp vegetable seasoning
- 1tbsp olive oil

HOW TO MAKE IT:

- Chop vegetables into small (1cm) chunks.
- Mince garlic.
- Dice chicken into small (1cm chunks)
- In a large fry pan heat the olive oil over medium heat. When warm add onions, green onions and garlic. Saute until soft (approx 5 minutes).
- Add chicken, cook until done (approx 5 minutes).
- While the onion and chicken cook, cook the pasta to al dente per the instructions on the package.
- Once the chicken is cooked, add the remaining vegetables, and vegetable seasoning and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring often.
- Add approx 1 cup of pasta sauce, mix well, and simmer on low heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Arrange pasta shells, face up, in a large oven safe dish.
- Carefully (or not so carefully, depending on how pretty you want your end result), spoon veggie mix into pasta shells.
- Drizzle with additional sauce
- Sprinkle with cheese
- Bake until cheese has melted and begins to bubble/brown. Approx 15 minutes.
- Serve fresh out of the oven!