Spinach, Chicken, Feta and Almonds...

I know I have mentioned Gojee as a good source for recipes a number of times.  While I get really annoyed with daily emails, I still allow Gojee's because they have some good suggestions and it only comes once a week, so I don't get too inundated.  Recently they sent an newsletter that featured Chicken Stuffed with Spinach, Feta and Almonds, which looked and sounded delicious.  Since it had been awhile since I had done a wrapped chicken (I went through a phase, pre-blog) I figured I should give this a go.

The Ingredients

The Necessities (adapted from Bitchin Camero)

• 1/2 cup of sliced almonds (split into two 1/4 cups)
• 1 shallot - chopped
• 3 generous teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/3 cup vegetable stock
• 8 ounces of fresh spinach
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme 
• Crumbled feta - about a 1/3 cup
• 2 chicken breasts
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• salt

To begin I combined a quarter cup of almonds, paprika and and some olive oil in a small bowl, gave it a good mix and set it aside for later.

Coated Almonds Saved for Later

Meanwhile, I brought some olive oil in a skillet to medium heat and added the other quarter cup of almonds and allowed them to brown.  I stirred them only occasionally, and the browning took about 5 minutes.

Browned Almonds

Once browned up, I added the garlic and the shallots to the pan and allowed them to cook for about 3 minutes so that the shallots cooked through.

Garlic and Shallots

After the base ingredients were set, I added the veggie stock, thyme and spinach.  I allowed the mixture to saute until the spinach was fully wilted.  Using tongs, I turned the spinach over to a few times in order to ensure that the spinach cooked evenly.

Always seems like so much spinach!

I drained the excess liquid from the pan and then added a handful of the feta cheese.

Fully Wilted

I had Nick prepare the chicken by pounding it down to about a quarter of an inch thick.  I placed the flattened chicken breast in a greased casserole dish and adding the spinach, feta and almond mixture to the center portion of the chicken.

Flattened Chicken

I then rolled the chicken up and used some toothpicks to hold it all together.  Finally, I rubbed the almond paprika mixture over the tops of the rolled chicken, covered it with foil and popped it into a 375 degree oven for 10 minutes

Ready for the oven

After 10 minutes I removed the foil and allowed the dish to continue to cook for another 20 minutes - until the chicken was cooked through.

All Ready

As a side I merely cooked off the rest of the spinach with all the left over goodies in the pan after stuffing the chicken.  Finally, I topped both the chicken and spinach side with some feta crumbles and served.

Dinner is ready

This recipe made two HUGE portions that had some unique flavor combinations, which I really enjoyed.  Paprika is a spice I do not use often but when I do, I always enjoy the results.  There are so many ways to adapt this dish to whatever you have in your kitchen or what you may be in the mood for.  With only about 20 minutes of preparation, this makes for a great weekday meal.

I love wrapping chicken as it makes for a great way to combine all sorts of ingredients in a single bite!