This recipe from Williams Sonoma Grilling would be a great summer dinner party entrée. Chicken breasts are butterflied, stuffed with fresh sage and mozzarella cheese, and grilled. The cooked chicken is topped with a sage-garlic butter. Cook’s note: Toss the extra sage-garlic butter with cooked pasta for a delicious side dish.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Make sure the cheese and butter do not contain colour or any other additives. The cayenne pepper should be free of colour and anti-caking agents.

Place sage and cheese on one side of a butterflied chicken breast

Grill over medium-high heat

Turn chicken once and grill until it is just cooked through

Top with sage-garlic butter and serve

Ingredients:

For the chicken

Olive oil for coating

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

4 slices mozzarella cheese

8 fresh sage leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the sage butter

½ cup (125 g) salted butter, at room temperature

1 tablespoon (15 ml) chopped fresh sage

2 cloves garlic

¼ tsp (1.25 ml) cayenne pepper

Preparation:

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill over medium-high heat and oil the grill rack.

Using a long, thin, sharp knife, butterfly the chicken breasts: Cut horizontally into the thickest part of each breast to within ½ inch (12 mm) of the other side. Open the breast like a book and place it between sheets of plastic wrap. Pound lightly with the flat side of a cleaver or knife to flatten and even out the thickness. Remove the top sheet of plastic wrap and lay 1 slice of cheese and 2 sage leaves on one half of the flattened breast. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and fold the chicken over the cheese. Coat with oil and sprinkle both sides with salt and black pepper. Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts and filling.

To make the sage butter, with a fork, mix together the butter, sage, garlic and cayenne in a small bowl and blend well. Set aside or form into a log in waxed paper and refrigerate until ready to use.

Grill the chicken on one side directly over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes, then turn carefully with a spatula. Grill on the second side for 3 minutes. Check for doneness by cutting into the centre of one of the breasts. There should be no pink showing. Cook longer if necessary, but be careful not to overcook them.

Top each breast with 1 tbsp (15 ml) or more of sage butter and serve. Serves 4.

From Williams Sonoma Grilling