Most of you have heard of Caprese salad which is an Italian salad made with sliced tomatoes, mozzarella and fresh basil. It is an incredibly light and delicious offering which, if you are so inclined, may also include a little drizzle of balsamic glaze. I love to make a simple pan seared chicken with a smear of pesto, mozzarella, roasted local tomatoes and fresh basil. This is a very low maintenance and an absolutely delicious chicken Caprese with roasted tomatoes.
What is Chicken Caprese?
Chicken Caprese (or Caprese Chicken) originated on the island of Capri in Italy. Most of us have enjoyed the fresh and simple Caprese salad. Fresh sliced tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese and bright fresh basil - the colors of the Italian flag. Little drizzle of good olive oil and sprinkling of salt and you have a very healthy and satisfying plate of food. Thank you Capri for this incredible and classic combination of flavors. As you can imagine, chicken Caprese takes this incredible flavor profile and adds a protein to the mix. There are a few ways you can prepare this dish: some prefer grilling the chicken, many bake it in the oven, but I decided to do a one-pan, stove-top version.
Roasted Tomatoes Bring Major Flavor to this Easy Chicken Caprese
If you are a regular reader of my website, you know I love roasted tomatoes. They are so easy to make and off-the-charts delicious! I feel the same way about roasted tomatoes as I feel about leeks and eggplant. What aren't we eating more of these in life?!
I like to think of easy things we can do to elevate our home-cooked meals. Placing raw, sliced tomatoes on top of the chicken is, of course, also very delicious. But roasting tomatoes is so easy and it adds a really amazing, deep, rich flavor which I absolutely love. With this dish you can roast the tomatoes the day before which will make for even easier prep the next day when you prepare this meal.
Simple Steps to Roasting Tomatoes:
- Core the tomatoes. Coring tool or paring knife will work here.
- Cut tomatoes in half.
- Pull the guts out (all the seeds and goop).
- Place them in a 9x13 baking dish.
- Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for one hour.
Easy Steps for Making Chicken Caprese
Cooking at Home Has Never Been Easier
Food is an important part of our everyday life for sure. I know it's hard to think of carving out the time to plan the meals, do the shopping and cook the meals. But if you can make a commitment to cooking more at home and taking a little time to plan, you will notice a huge difference in your monthly budget. Take-out, delivery, and sit-down restaurants are very close to pricing themselves out of the market. It is extremely expensive to eat in a restaurant. It is a budget-breaker to think the average person can afford to eat out lunch every day.
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Now is the time to plan your meals and learn how to cook from home more often. Cooking with leftovers in mind is a big practice in my house. If I'm making enough for two or four - it's easy to make a little more. Then we enjoy the leftovers for lunch.
Here are a few Tips for Planning Meals with a budget in Mind:
- Think of a few meals you want to make for the week.
- If you can, choose recipes that share common ingredients to save money.
- Do an inventory of your freezer. If it looks like mine you have a lot to choose from. Don't forget how much money is sitting in your freezer. Use those items.
- Make a chicken you can repurpose for other meals too. For example, grilled chicken - use it for pasta and a salad and a sandwich.
- Look at your local grocery store's weekly flier. Buy things when they are on sale. It makes a difference.
Looking for More Boneless Breast of Chicken Recipes?
- Balsamic Cholula Chicken
- Grilled Sriracha Lime Chicken
- Grilled Lemon Oregano Chicken w/Charred Peppers
- The Best Grilled Chicken w/Marinated Tomatoes
- Meal Prep: Rosemary Grilled Chicken w/Sweet Potatoes & Broccoli
- How to Make Delicious Creamy Chicken Marsala
- Really Awesome Chicken Piccata
Chicken Caprese with Roasted Tomatoes
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour, 9 minutes (see note)
- Total Time: 1 hour 34 minutes
- Yield: 4 portions 1x
Description
This pan-seared chicken Caprese with roasted tomatoes and fresh basil is a super easy and healthy gourmet meal.
Ingredients
For the roasted tomatoes:
- 4 medium to large tomatoes
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon of salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
For the chicken:
- 2 boneless breasts of chicken (sliced in half so 4 pieces total)
- ½ teaspoon salt, divided
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil for cooking
- 1 cup fresh basil (cut in strips/chiffonade style)
- 8 small slices of mozzarella cheese
- 4 teaspoons of pesto (more or less if you want)
- 1-2 tablespoons bottled balsamic glaze
NOTE: The roasted tomatoes only take a few minutes to prep. The one hour cook time is added to the total time of this recipe.
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Instructions
- Roast the tomatoes first. You can do this the day before if you like. Core the tomatoes with a coring tool or paring knife. Cut tomatoes in half. Scoop out the guts/seeds – have a bowl to empty them into. Place tomatoes side by side in a 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Cook in a preheated oven at 400 degrees for 1 hour. My video shows this well. Once cooled, transfer to a plate or container. You can refrigerate overnight if making the day ahead.
- Trim any fat from around the edges of the boneless breast of chicken.
- Slice the chicken in half vertically like you are butterflying it, but make the cut all the way through. This will give you four pieces of chicken. Season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper. Set chicken aside while finishing the prep.
- For the basil. Stack the basil leaves on top of each other, as many as you can (10-15). Roll the leaves up like a cigar. Slice into thin strips/ribbons. Repeat the process until you have one cup of basil. My video shows this well.
- Cut the mozzarella cheese. I used a large block of mozzarella cheese but you can use the fresh white rounds or sliced mozzarella from the deli. If using sliced from the deli, probably just one slice per piece of chicken is fine. I sliced two thin rectangle slices from the block of cheese to place on top of each piece of chicken.
- Have the pesto, sliced mozzarella and roasted tomatoes ready to go when it’s time to cook the chicken.
- Heat olive oil in a large pan on medium/high heat until it’s hot. Add the chicken to the pan and let it cook for 3-4 minutes without touching it. The goal is to get a nice sear on the chicken.
- Turn the chicken over, then put the lid on the chicken and cook for 2 minutes.
- Remove the lid and carefully, with a spoon, spread pesto on top of chicken. Place the cheese slices on top of the pesto. Place two tomato slices on top of the cheese.
- Turn heat down a little and put the lid on the pan. Let the cheese melt for two minutes then take chicken off the heat. Let it rest a couple of minutes before serving.
- Set up the chicken on a small serving platter or plate individually – your choice. Then drizzle the balsamic glaze on top of the chicken. Add a pinch of the fresh basil to the top of each piece of chicken.
- Garnish the platter with sliced cherry tomatoes if you want and any extra basil. You can serve with salad greens, a small portion of pasta with olive oil and garlic or steamed veggies. Enjoy!
Notes
- It was a little hard to give the cook time on this one because tomatoes are one part of the cook time and cooking the chicken is another part of the cook time. The tomatoes take only a few minutes to prep,b ut do take one hour to cook. They are soooooo worth it and you can do the day before which is what I usually do.
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