chicken cups

How To Make chicken cups

• 1

  You will need: • Chicken breasts, boneless and skinless and pounded (or butterflied) to ½” thick (one per serving) • Filling (pick your favorite from below) • Foil pan(s) for freezer to oven convenience (pot-pie sized works best, so that each pan is a portion) • Non-Stick spray • Panko [Japanese style crunchy breadcrumbs] (or plain, or Italian-style breadcrumbs, if you prefer) (about 2T per breast) • Oil for drizzling over Panko before baking, to make it nice and browned and crunchy
• 2

  FILLING OPTIONS… prepare enough of each filling-item to provide a heaping tablespoon of “filling” per breast, NOT COUNTING CHEESE!
• 3

  Cordon Bleu Style • Ham (diced) {2-3 sandwich-thickness slices from the deli} • Shredded cheese {approx ¼ cup per breast of your favorite flavor—mine is a 6 cheese Italian blend}
• 4

  Veggie Style • Broccoli (chopped florets) ½” pieces {one small-to-medium stalk will provide enough florets to stuff 2 or 3 chicken breasts nicely} • Shredded cheese {approx ¼ cup per breast}
• 5

  Earthy Style • Bacon (cooked & crumbled) {6 strips should be plenty for 2 breasts} • Mushrooms (sliced) {1/2 a cup should do 2 breasts} • Shredded cheese {approx ¼ cup per breast}
• 6

  Mexican Style • Onions (thinly sliced, separated, and sautéed until lightly browned) {1 cup of raw onion should yield more than enough for 2 breasts after cooking} • Fresh Peppers (jalapeno, bell, banana—whatever you prefer, seeded & chopped) {approx 2 teaspoons per breast} (or 1 can diced, drained green chiles) • Nacho cheese soup/sauce [1/2 can] or ¼ cup pepper-jack shredded cheese, per breast
• 7

  Parmesan Style (this style works best when you put the mozz cheese in first, then spoon the sauce over it) • 1-2 tablespoons pizza or marinara sauce, per breast, to your own tastes • ¼ to ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese, per breast, again, to your preference • 2 teaspoons shredded Parm for topping, on top of the Panko layer
• 8

  Pot-Pie Style • 1-2 tablespoons condensed cream of chicken soup, per breast • ¼ to ½ cup frozen mixed veggies, per breast • a 4”x4” piece of puff pastry, biscuit, or phyllo dough, for topping the “cup” before baking
• 9

  What to do… • Spray your pan with non-stick spray, allowing one pan per chicken breast. • Place pounded chicken into pan, pressing into the “corners” like you would a pie crust. • Tuck a rounded tablespoon of your filling choice down into the middle of the chicken “cup” • Pile on the cheese • Top with a nice layer of panko • Either bake and eat (400 degrees for 35-55 minutes, depending on how big/dense your cups are), or wrap with foil and freeze for another day 
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