Has Spring found its way to your place on this earth? I sure hope so but I fear some of you are still in for more winter. It’s been wonderfully nice
here this week so far even if it does get a bit chilly at night. Crossing fingers the colder temps stay away from here!
Since it’s been nice outside I’ve put away the soup recipes for now and pulled out my creative thinking hat to come up with new ways to make chicken super delicious. We eat a lot of chicken in this family and keeping it from not being boring can be a challenge sometimes. I think this one hit the ohhhh myyyyy it’s good button because there wasn’t a single complaint and the plates were clean. It has a small prep time but a fast cooking time – both are a must for dinner in this house! This chicken is stuffed with all kinds of cheesy goodness and spinach.
Ingredients:
4-5 chicken boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup Panko breadcrumbs seasoned with Italian seasoning
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
5 egg whites. mixed well and divided
1 cup (or more if you like) fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped
6 tbsp part skim ricotta cheese
8 slices part skim mozzarella cheese slices, divided
olive oil non-stick spray
1 – 1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce or marinara sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly spray a baking dish with non-stick spray.
Pound chicken breasts till they are about 1/4 inch thick. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
Place breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese in one bowl and in another 3 tablespoons of the egg whites.
In a third bowl, finely chop 3 slices of the mozzarella cheese and combine with 2 tablespoons grated cheese, ricotta cheese, spinach, and 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese.
Lay chicken cutlets down on a cutting board and spread about 2 tablespoons of spinach-cheese mixture on each cutlet. Loosely roll each one and keep seam side down. No need for toothpicks!
Dip chicken in egg mixture, then in breadcrumbs and place seam side down in a baking dish. Repeat with the remaining chicken. When finished, lightly spray with the non-stick olive oil spray.
Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven, top with sauce then place back in oven for about 5 more minutes. Remove again and top each chicken roll with a slice of cheese. Place back in oven until cheese is melted and bubbling, about 2-3 more minutes.
Serve with additional sauce on the side and grated cheese, if desired. Add a salad and you’ve got a meal!
