Pecan Crusted Chicken Stuffed With Mozzarella Cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the bread crumbs and pecans in a shallow plate.

Cut a pocket into the chicken breasts or slice the chicken, leaving one side still attached. Stuff chicken with mozzarella cheese and coat the outside with pesto sauce. If you sliced the chicken instead of making a pocket, you may want to use toothpicks to keep the chicken together while breading.

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium/medium-high heat. Make sure oil is hot, otherwise the breading will be soggy.

Once you have the chicken coated with the pesto sauce, press each breasts firmly into the bread crumb/pecan mixture. Place in heated skillet and cook until each side is golden brown and there is no visible pink spots in the chicken, about 7-10 minutes on each side.

At this point, place the browned chicken breasts in a baking dish and cook until done, which is approximately 20-25 minutes, depending how well you cooked it earlier.

Sprinkle the top side with some extra pecans, turn the chicken over half-way through the cooking time, and sprinkle the other side with extra pecans as well.