Spinach and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken

I realized the other day that I very rarely cook with chicken breasts.  It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just that I find the thighs and even more so, the wings, much more versatile and fun to prepare.  When I’m trying to eat healthy while dining out, a chicken breast sandwich is usually my go-to, so I figured I would show the breast some love and feature it on my blog.

Carissa loves goat cheese, so I decided to start there.  The spinach and mushrooms followed suit shortly thereafter and before I knew it, I had a pretty good looking recipe going on in my head.  I stuffed and breaded the breasts the night before, so the following night, all I had to do was pop the chicken in the oven.  After the chicken was done cooking, I quickly made a rich and tangy sauce, that I balanced with some vinegar, for a hit of acid to round it all out.

If you like goat cheese, you will LOVE this recipe.  Simple, mostly healthy and satisfying.

Cut a small slit into the thickest side of each chicken breast.  This sounds really...well, weird, but you may need to stick your finger in the..ahem, hole to gently break apart the chicken breast to make more room for the filling.  Seriously?  How else do you write that sentence without sounding dirty?

Cut a small slit into the thickest side of each chicken breast. This sounds really…well, weird, but you may need to stick your finger in the..ahem, hole to gently break apart the chicken breast to make more room for the filling. Seriously? How else do you write that sentence without sounding dirty?

After standard 3-step breading process, the chicken is ready for the oven.

After standard 3-step breading process, the chicken is ready for the oven.

Remove from oven and let rest before slicing.

Remove from oven and let rest before slicing.

Ladle on the sauce and you're good to go!

Ladle on the sauce and you’re good to go!

Spinach and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken

  • Prep time:
  • Cook time:
  • Total time:
  • Yield: 4
  • Difficulty: medium
  • Recipe type: Entree

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 cup chopped baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup goat cheese
  • 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 1/2 cups Panko bread crumbs
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 2/3 cup chicken stock
  • 2 tsp. white vinegar

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a small bowl, combine spinach, half of the goat cheese and half of the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and mix to combine.
  3. Cut a small horizontal slit through the thickest portion of each chicken breast to form a pocket.
  4. Stuff about 2 tbsp. of the spinach mixture into each chicken breast.
  5. Season the outsides of each chicken breast with pinches of salt and pepper.
  6. Place flour, eggs and bread crumbs in separate, shallow dishes.
  7. Mix Parmesan cheese with bread crumbs.
  8. Season flour and bread crumbs with pinches of salt and pepper.
  9. Dip each chicken breast into the flour, shaking off excess, then into the egg and finally the bread crumbs.
  10. Drizzle half of the olive oil into an oven-proof dish. Add the chicken breasts.
  11. Bake in the oven for 20 – 30 minutes until chicken is cooked throughout. Remove from the oven and let rest, loosely covered with foil while you make the sauce.
  12. Add remaining olive oil to a small pan over medium heat.
  13. Saute the rest of the mushrooms and the shallot until softened.
  14. Add wine and let cook for 2 – 3 minutes.
  15. Add chicken stock, vinegar and remaining goat cheese. Cook, stirring often, for 3 – 4 more minutes until sauce has thickened.
  16. Season with good pinches of salt and black pepper.
  17. Drizzle sauce over chicken breasts and serve immediately.

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