what's for dinner tonight {chicken caprese}.

so i found a new cooking blog that i love, and lately she has posted several variations of chicken roll-ups that just look simply mouth watering. i had this concept stuck in my head and as i was browsing through the aisles of one of my *favorite* grocery places (sprouts; it's like a smaller whole foods with much better sales! i'm obsessed), i thought up my own variation. i am a huge lover of caprese salad; you know, fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil, ocassionally red onion and an italian-type dressing? yeah... yum. so, i decided to try this spin on breaded chicken roll-ups.

(note: i made this for dinner one night for just nick&i, so the measurements will equal two chicken roll-ups... just double or triple according to your needs)

chicken caprese

* 2 chicken cutlets (or you can pound out regular chicken breasts until they are thin)

* ball of fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

* fresh basil leaves

* a few small slices of red onion

* 1/4 c. seasoned breadcrumbs (i used panko and just seasoned it myself with garlic powder, parsley and salt&peper)

* 1/8 c. shredded parmesan cheese

* 1 egg, beaten

* 1 T. italian dressing

- preheat oven to 450 degrees. beat egg in with italian dressing in a bowl. in a separate dish, combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. lightly coat a baking dish with cooking spray, set to the side.

- generously season chicken with salt&pepper. place a slice of fresh mozzarella, topped with a basil leaf, topped with a few small slices of red onion. begin rolling chicken from the top; roll and tuck tightly.

- dip chicken into egg mixture and then in breadcrumb mixture to coat. place seam-side down in baking dish. bake chicken roll-ups at 450 for about 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (adjust cooking time if you double or triple this recipe and are cooking more chicken).

i served these with whole wheat pasta and tomato sauce aaaaand a glass of sweet red wine. yum, yum, yum. flavorful and fresh. try it tonight! and let me know if you come up with any of your own variations for fillings for this recipe.

enjoy!