Blue cheese, bacon and chive stuffed chicken

I love blue cheese in the way the children love candy.  Its unique flavor first presented itself to me in the form of the blue cheese  dressing at Valentino's.  But now, I dream in blue cheese. 

I truly believe that it makes almost anything better.

And in this recipe, it makes the chicken delicious.  This is a very easy recipe based upon a compound butter and bone in, skin on chicken breasts. 

Make the butter...to one stick of room temp butter, in a small bowl, add 4 strips of crisp bacon, chopped, about 2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh chives and about 4 ounces of crumbled blue cheese.  Mix it well. Divide it into 4 portions.

Next rinse and pat dry 4 bone in, skin on chicken breasts.  You'll need to stick your fingers in between the flesh and the skin to create a sort of pocket.    Stuff 1/4 of the butter under the skin.  With your fingers, simply work the butter into a even layer.  Repeat on all breasts and place them in a roasting pan.  Bake for about 40 minutes in a 425 degree oven. 

What happens here is that the butter bastes the chicken as it bakes. The flavors permeate a bit and it is just darn good.

It is suggested that you can swap ingredients...instead of blue, use brie or sharp cheddar, etc.  Try a different herb, maybe a sun dried tomato, etc.  I think it would be fun to try out other options but I know in my heart that the lure of blue cheese is simply too strong.

Happy Cooking to all!