An ever obsessing fangirl of Deb Perelman at Smitten Kitchen, this recipe was inspired by her recent posting of roasted grape and olive toasts.

While I am in a lifetime love relationship with toast, I do try to limit my gluten/carb/flour intake on a daily basis. So I wanted to see how I could translate this dish into one without toast. I needed a vehicle for the ricotta, but it had to be something that wouldn’t outshine the grapes and olives.

Then I was reminded about my other stuffed chicken recipe, which this is very reminiscent of. I could totally stuff the chicken with the ricotta and those roasty grapes and olives would make that bland ‘ole chicken breast pop! I added some paprika on top for color and done.

Salty and sweet, and just a touch of heat from the ricotta mix. Sound familiar? Do you know my favorite flavor profile by now?

It also looks super pretty, so there’s that.

Stuffed Chicken with Grapes & Olives

Inspired by this recipe from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 cup of ricotta

pinch of red pepper flake to taste

1 teaspoon dried oregano

salt and pepper

4 skinless boneless chicken breasts

1 cup red or black seedless grapes

1 cup assorted olives, pitted

drizzle of olive oil

sprinkle of paprika

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl mix ricotta with red pepper flake, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Using a small sharp knife, create a pocket in the middle of each chicken breast.

Divide the ricotta mixture equally among the 4 chicken breasts stuffing each pocket and pulling them closed. Place the breasts on an oven proof dish or roasting pan. Distribute grapes and olives among the chicken. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and then lightly sprinkle each breast with a little paprika. Drizzle the entire dish with olive oil and throw into the oven.

Roast chicken for about 45 minutes to an hour or until chicken is cooked through and grapes and olives have caramelized and gotten soft and juicy. Toss the grapes and olives a few times throughout the roasting time to ensure even cooking.

When finished roasting, transfer chicken, grapes and olives to a plate and immediately add a little water to the hot baking dish. Using a fork or whisk, scrape up all the brown bits and caramelized goodness to create a simple, quick, pan juice. Season this if needed, and then pour over chicken and fruits and serve.

Serves 4

Do you remember when I teased you all with this on instagram approximately five million days ago?

I think I captioned it something like: “THIS IS THE BEST THING I HAVE EVER MADE. EVER.”

Although probably not so shouty on the gram caption. But that’s how I was saying it in my kitchen as I was shooting the photographs and shoving forkfuls of it into my mouth (in the name of taste testing, obviously.)

I think I also promised it would be posted super soon. According to instagram that was...a month and a half ago. Whoops. My bad.

And unfortunately plum season has come and passed. Again...my bad.

But listen, you could leave the plums out and it’s not that they wouldn’t be missed, but it wouldn’t be the worst. You still get a tiny pop of sweetness from the balsamic reduction to play against the saltiness of the prosciutto and feta. You also could hold off on this until we get back to stone fruit season. It might even be worth the wait.

I just can’t help sharing this now because it can be made other ways. Originally I had wanted to do this with fresh figs, which I am sure would have been hella dreamy, but I missed the season for that. Plums seemed like they would work just as well and clearly I was not disappointed. I was ALSO thinking that some grapes would be terribly delicious here as a substitute, which you could do right now. Whatdaya think?

If you try it with grapes, let me know how it is!!

Stuffed Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken with Roasted Plums

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 cup crumbled feta (I used goat's milk feta, but any will do!)

salt and pepper

4 pieces prosciutto

5 plums, pitted and quartered

few sprigs of thyme

1 cup balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Using a small sharp knife create a pocket in the middle of each chicken breast. Divide and stuff the feta equally among the four chicken breasts. Season each breast with salt and pepper and then wrap each breast in one piece of prosciutto.

Place chicken pieces in an ovenproof baking dish. Distribute plum slices around the chicken pieces. Scatter a few sprigs of thyme around the dish on top of the chicken.

Roast in oven uncovered for approximately 40 to 45 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked through.

While chicken is roasting, place one cup of balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring vinegar to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Let vinegar reduce by half, until thick and syrupy. About 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool, and place in airtight container. Will keep, refrigerated, for many weeks.

When chicken is ready to be served, drizzle with the balsamic vinegar reduction.