Chicken Pesto Roll Ups

Ingredients:

* 2 lbs chicken breasts (4 medium/large chicken breasts)

* 1 tsp Garlic Salt (or to taste)

* 1/4 tsp Black Pepper (or to taste)

* 1/2 cup Pesto sauce (about 8 Tbsp total)

* 8 oz Mozzarella cheese, shredded, (reserve 2 oz for topping)

* 2 tomatoes (medium) thinly sliced into 16 rings

* 1 cup cherry tomatoes optional

* 1 Tbsp Fresh basil leaves shredded, optional garnish

* 1 Tbsp olive oil

* 1 Tbsp unsalted butter

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425˚F. Cut chicken breast in half lengthwise so you have 8 thin chicken cutlets. Pound each cutlet in a quart sized ziploc bag or between 2 sheets of plastic wrap into 1/8″ thick cutlets.

Season both sides of chicken with garlic salt and black pepper.

Spoon and spread 1 Tbsp pesto in the center of each cutlet, top with 2 thin tomato slices and sprinkle with 2-3 Tbsp mozzarella cheese. Roll the chicken up tightly and seal ends with a toothpick.

Preheat large oven-safe skillet over medium/high heat with 1 Tbsp oil and 1 Tbsp butter. Add chicken roll-ups and sear on both sides until golden (4 min per side or 8 minutes total on the stove).

Sprinkle tops with remaining cheese and 1 cup of cherry tomatoes. Place the skillet on the center rack of oven and bake 425˚F for 13-15 minutes (13 min for these these medium chicken breasts and 15 min for larger chicken breasts, or until internal temp of chicken reaches 160˚F on instant-read thermometer.