I loathe boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
Loathe is such a pretentious word. I am pretty sure I sound like the Dowager Countess when I use the word loathe. But seriously, boneless, skinless chicken breast rank about .2 on a scale of 1 to 10 where cardboard is a 1 and fried green tomato BLTs on homemade sourdough are 10. However, chicken breasts are healthy and cheap, so we have to find a way to work them into the menu. Life is about trade offs people. Marinate them, stuff them, grill them, incorporate them into a casserole… whatever blows your skirt up. Personally, I choose to stuff ’em. Which brings us to this dish. Phenomenal, truly (especially considering its meager foundation).
The star of the show from a health standpoint is spinach. Spinach is super food – it contains fiber, cancer fighting flavanoids, Vitamins A, K, C, and E (and probably some we haven’t even discovered yet), folates, fatty acids… The list goes on and on.
Even better, unlike a lot of leafy greens, spinach does not have an overpowering taste. This means you can pack a ton of it into dishes and reap its 1,000,000 healthy benefits without compromising the flavor. Win-win.
Feta and artichokes need no introduction. Individually, they are a party for your taste buds. Together, prepare to be mind blown.
Best part, this dish is super easy. Start to finish 50 minutes (as I said before, I cannot keep up with Ms. Ray). Truth be told, I used to make this dish in a substantially more complicated manner. Unfolding and pounding the chicken breasts, rolling up the chicken with stuffing in side, securing with tooth picks, and browning before baking type complicated. But in the words of Sweet Brown “Ain’t nobody got time for that.” Never again. I have seen the error in my ways. This recipe is 10x easier and just as tasty.
Trust me here people. Make this tonight!
Spinach, Artichoke and Feta Stuffed Chicken
Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30-35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
10 oz fresh spinach
8-10 quartered artichoke pieces (approximately 1 small jar, but more if you are an artichoke fan)
1/3 cup feta cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp black pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sautee spinach in oil (I used coconut oil) over medium heat for approximately 5 minutes until wilted. Drain spinach in a colander and allow to cool. Meanwhile, slice chicken breast down the middle stopping just short of cutting it in half (about 1/2 an inch should left binding the two halves together). Finely chop artichokes. Once spinach has cooled, squeeze excess water out by hand and add to a bowl with artichokes, spinach, nutmeg, pepper and feta. Mix well. Add chicken breast to a greased oven safe casserole dish. Stuff spinach, artichoke and feta filling into each breast, and top with the remaining filling. Bake chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees (approximately 30-35 minutes). Broil chicken on high for 3-5 minutes to brown the top (watch it carefully to prevent burning). Dig in.
