Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken {Greek Chicken}

You guys! This chicken is SO good. And (relatively) so easy. And it is super impressive, so it's great for when you have company. Or for when you just want a healthy and delicious dinner. 

This chicken is stuffed with fresh spinach, black olives, mozzarella and feta, then covered in salt, pepper and paprika and baked. That's all there is to it! Well, sort of. You do have to butterfly the chicken in order to "stuff" it - and that can be a little tricky. But luckily, once it bakes, it really doesn't matter how good of a job you've done butterflying it. Really! I practically destroyed some of the breasts in the picture above, and you can hardly tell. So it's super forgiving. (Look closely and you can see the cheese oozing out the top of a few pieces - those were terribly butterflied but it didn't matter!) 

I like to pound out the chicken first to get them all to a uniform thickness, and then I usually cut them in half (what is it with gigantic chicken breasts?? I feel badly for those birds. ha!) and then butterfly them. If you've never done that before, you simply cut into the chicken breast the long way, "sawing" carefully, to create two thin sections. Then open it like a book, add the filling, and close it back up. Even if you have shreds for a top layer (which I did sometimes!) it will bake up just fine. 

This dish is lovely with a cucumber salad (not pictured here cause it runs all over the plate!) or with some roasted potatoes and sauteed green beans. I hope you love this as much as we do. And let me know how your butterflying goes! :)

Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken

3 large or 6 small chicken breasts

8 oz. fresh baby spinach

1 tsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 oz. feta crumbles

1/3 cup sliced black olives

1 cup mozzarella cheese

salt and pepper

paprika

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When it's hot, add the spinach and garlic, and cook, stirring constantly for about 2 minutes until the spinach is wilted.

Pound out the chicken breasts with a meat mallet to make them even thickness/ If you're using large chicken breasts, cut them in half. Carefully butterfly each piece to create a pocket. Place the chicken pieces on a large cookie sheet coated with nonstick spray.

Divide the spinach mixture between the chicken pieces. Then top with feta, olives and mozzarella. Carefully fold the "top" back over the chicken bottom, tucking in any loose filling as best you can. Season the tops of the chicken with salt, pepper and paprika.

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until the chicken juices run clear.  Serves 6.

 

Lemon Blueberry Scones

It's a beautiful, sunny day here today so it's time for some spring-themed baking! These lemon blueberry scones will have you singing like a birdie, they are so good! Here's a close up to entice you:

They would be perfect for Easter morning, or for any morning actually. They are just the right blend of tartness from the lemon and sweetness from the blueberry, and they aren't all dry and craggy like some scones. The cup of buttermilk ensures that these are just plain downright delicious.

Look at these beauties, straight from the oven:

An easy lemony glaze tops these scones, which takes them over the top. Once the scones are cool, I like to place the wire rack right over the cookie sheet so I can glaze away with abandon and not worry about the mess on my counter. 

You will definitely feel spring in the air when you make these scones. Even if it IS going to snow AGAIN later this week. Grrr. 

Lemon Blueberry Scones

2 1/4 cups flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon zest
1/2 cup cold butter, cubed
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup blueberries

Glaze:
2 Tbsp. lemon zest
1 -2 tsp. lemon juice
1 cup powdered sugar

For the scones:

In the bowl of your food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest.  Add in the cubed butter, and pulse until mixture is crumbly. You still want some small, pea-sized chunks of butter, so check it after you've pulsed a few times! Transfer to a large bowl. 

If you don't have a food processor, combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, and using a pastry blender or your fingers, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. 

Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork to make a soft, sticky dough. Lightly flour your hands and gather the dough, making a ball as best you can! Knead this about 10 times on a lightly floured service. 

Then fold in the blueberries. This will be tricky, but do your best. 

Press out the dough until it is 1" thick.

Using a 2-½ inch cutter, cut out rounds. 

Place on ungreased baking sheet. Gather up any scraps and cut out more rounds.

Bake at 425 for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

For the glaze:

Whisk 1 cup of powdered sugar with 2 Tbsp. of lemon juice and 1-½ tsp. lemon zest. Add more lemon juice until desired consistency.  Drizzle over the top of scones. 

Store in an airtight container.