Baked Jalepeno Popper Stuffed Chicken (with vegetarian option)

This a healthier version of other "jalapeno popper" chicken recipes that I have seen. I love to cook, but struggle to find time after a long day at work. I like to create easy dinners that are healthy and tasty! This dinner only took about 30 minutes to prepare and about an hour to cook in the oven. 

What you'll need:
2 large chicken breasts
1/4 pound of Monterrey jack cheese (grated)
2 jalapenos
6 oz. cream cheese 

First I preheated the oven to 400 degrees.
Then, I grated the cheese.

Next, I chopped the jalapenos.

I took the cream cheese and heated it up in a large bowl for about 30 seconds.

Once the cream cheese was soft I mixed in the cheese and the jalapenos.

I tried to pull as many seeds out of the jalapenos as possible to reduce the spice.

I took the chicken and cut a pocket into the center.

Using a small spoon, I began to fill the pocket with the mixture.

Once the breast was filled (not over filled), I used toothpicks to keep the pocket closed.

I placed them in the oven and cooked each side for 30 minutes.

*cooking times will vary by breast size*

(Note: some of the cheese will come out of the chicken while cooking, so make sure to use a pan with sides)

Once the chicken has a light golden brown coat, it should be ready to eat! 

Since this was my first time making this recipe, I kept it pretty simple; however, next time I may choose to season the chicken to add some flavor. 

I am not much of a meat-eater myself and I have recently been attempting a vegetarian lifestyle. Since Mark would never consider this, I try to find ways to make him the dinners he loves with a vegetarian option for myself.

For this particular meal, I used the same filling that was used to stuff in the chicken and spread it on the inside of a tortilla. I added a little extra cheese on top and grilled it on the stove. 

Same great flavor without eating meat!