Making stuffed chicken breasts might seem daunting, but this dish is both elegant and simple to prepare.

Cooking can cause anxiety, especially when you’re trying to conquer new dishes. This recipe for chicken breasts stuffed with red onions and Gouda in white wine sauce might seem daunting for some, who fret over lumpy sauce or imperfectly cut chicken. But armed with these tips from food writer Victoria Abbott Riccardi, you can tackle this entree with confidence.

Creating a pocket in a chicken breast sounds difficult, mainly because the knife can pierce the back (or if you’re really overzealous, your palm). The trick is to use small, slow cuts with a small, very sharp knife. If the knife accidentally cuts through the back of the breast, the prosciutto that wraps around the breast will seal the cut. As for the sauce, a surefire way to avoid lumps is to whisk the flour into a cold liquid first, and then add the mixture to the hot skillet (instead of adding flour to a skillet of bubbling liquid).

This recipe is easy enough for a weeknight, but elegant enough to make for company. For a different flavor, substitute blue or chèvre for the Gouda.

For Chicken:
4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1½ cups thinly sliced red onion (½ large onion)
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 cup shredded, aged Gouda cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
4 (4- to 5- ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
8 slices prosciutto

For Wine Sauce:
½ cup dry white wine
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons flour

1. To make chicken: Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and rosemary. Sauté for 8 minutes or until browned. Let cool; stir in shredded cheese, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

2. Place the chicken breasts on a cutting board and, using a sharp knife, slowly ease the knife across (from left to right) and back into (but not through) the thickest portion of each chicken breast to form a pocket. If you need to widen or deepen the pocket, do so with your knife tip, one small cut at a time.

3. Stuff each pocket with a portion of the onion-cheese mixture. Next, seal each pocket by wrapping 1 slice of prosciutto over left side of chicken breast to cover left half of pocket opening and second slice over right side of chicken breast to cover right half, overlapping in center portion of pocket.

4. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat in the same skillet you used to cook the onion. Add the chicken breasts; sauté for 5 minutes on each side (they will finish cooking in the wine sauce). Next, transfer the chicken to a platter and cover it with aluminum foil to keep it warm.

5. To make wine sauce: Add wine and rosemary to same skillet. Cook over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, scraping up any brown bits that have stuck to bottom. Meanwhile, whisk together cold chicken broth and flour in a small bowl until smooth. Add to skillet, reduce heat to low and whisk sauce constantly until thickened, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer chicken to skillet and coat each breast with sauce. Cook, covered, until chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Serve each chicken breast with sauce over top.

Nutrition Score Per Serving (1 chicken breast plus ½ cup sauce): 351 calories, 38% fat (15 g; 5.4 g saturated), 18% carbs (9g), 44% protein (39 g), 1 g fiber, 129 mg calcium, 2 mg iron, 744 mg sodium

For more delicious recipes and tips on how to be fearless in the kitchen, check out “No Fear No Fail Cooking.”

Photo credit: Ray Kachatorian

The following meal makeover, provided by Barbara J. Rolls, Ph.D., author of The Volumetrics Eating Plan: Techniques and Recipes for Feeling Full on Fewer Calories (HarperCollins, 2005), evokes the hearty traditional flavors of French countryside cooking. It’s also a delicious example of “supersizing” done right. As Rolls explains, pumping up the veggie volume — in this case, with mushrooms and carrots — adds water and reduces energy density, so you’ll fill up on fewer calories. She also replaced dark meat and bacon with skinless white-meat chicken and Canadian bacon, radically transforming a decadent, fatty entree into a heart-healthy, lowfat, protein-packed savory treat.

Bon appétit!

Chicken Merlot
Serves 4

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 cups quartered mushrooms, about ½ pound

2 cups peeled sliced carrots

4 pieces Canadian bacon, cut into ¼-inch-wide slices

2/3 cup Merlot or other dry red wine

2/3 cup nonfat, reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 teaspoons canned tomato paste

¼ cup chopped, fresh flat-leaf parsley

Prep tip: Always wash hands, countertops, cutting boards, knives and other utensils with soapy water if they have come in contact with the raw chicken. Note that is not necessary to wash the raw chicken, as cooking destroys any bacteria that may be present. For more information, check out eatchicken.com.

Directions: Cut each chicken breast crosswise into 3 pieces. Combine the flour, thyme and salt in a resealable plastic bag and add chicken pieces. Seal the bag and shake. Remove the chicken and shake off excess flour. Lightly coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add 1 teaspoon of the oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until chicken is lightly browned on both sides. Remove chicken and set aside.

Add 1 teaspoon of oil to the skillet and sauté mushrooms, carrots and bacon for 2 minutes. Stir in wine, broth and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

Return chicken to skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until it is no longer pink in the center. Divide chicken mixture among 4 plates, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve.

Serving Tip: Try boiled potatoes or whole-grain pasta such as fusilli or penne as side dishes.