1. Cook eight strips of bacon and when cooled, chop it into small pieces.
2. Finely dice the garlic and shallot. Cook both in a pan on low-to-medium heat with olive oil until onions are slightly translucent and garlic is fragrant. This should be a couple of minutes. 
3. Shred the parmesan cheese and put into a bowl. Add the ricotta cheese, the garlic/shallot mixture, the chopped bacon bits, and Italian seasoning. Mix until all ingredients are well combined. 
4. Prep the chicken. Make a cut on the top of the chicken breast, then cut into each side, within the cut you made, to create a full pocket for the bacon ricotta filling. My video shows this well. Repeat the process for all the chicken breasts. Be careful not to cut through the chicken and make a hole. 
5. Crumple sheets of tin foil and stuff it into the pockets of your chicken breast. We need to sear the chicken first to create a nice crust and we don’t want the pocket to shrink or close during that process. So we’ll stuff the pocket with foil. 
6. After all your chicken breasts are stuffed, season with the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and paprika. You can use regular or smoked paprika here.
7.  Heat olive oil in a pan on medium heat. i used an oven-safe pan (fewer dishes to clean!) to sear the chicken and used the same pan later to finish cooking them in the oven. Place the chicken breasts in the pan seasoned side down (the tin foil should be face down). Sear the chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side. I didn’t season the other side of the chicken since there is salt in the bacon and the parmesan cheese and I didn’t think it was necessary. 
8. When the chicken is finished searing in the pan, remove and put on a cutting board or sheet pan. The chicken will be hot, so be careful when removing the tin foil from the chicken pockets. Once the foil is removed, slice the roasted red peppers into strip and lay them at the bottom of the pocket, then spoon the bacon ricotta mixture into the chicken pockets until all the pockets are generously packed with it. 
9. Put the stuffed chicken back in the pan you were using (if it's oven-safe) and bake in a pre-heated oven at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes. If you don't have an oven-safe pan, just use a baking dish. You want to cook it through so there is no pink in the middle. Internal temperature of the chicken should be 165 degrees before consuming.
10. While the chicken is cooking you can chop your parsley garnish if you are using. I forgot to film myself chopping the parsley – sorry! But if you’re using it, now is a good time to chop it. J 
11. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. Garnish with parsley and fresh shredded parmesan.

Enjoy!