You might know from reading my posts that 1) I teach Nia in the morning and yoga in the evening on Thursdays  2)  On Thursdays I like to have dinner at the point of readiness at which it will only take a 20 minutes tops for me to have dinner on the table  3)  I cook a lot of ground turkey and use the same flavors/spices.  So, I was so excited that on Sunday I thought ahead to what I would cook on Thursday.  I found a recipe in my “Recipes I really want to try” folder.  Artichoke hearts are not something I think of using because I didn’t always like them.  The recipe I decided to try had them in it.  I was very focused on the artichoke hearts.  My plan kind of consisted of the fact that by the time I went shopping on Thursday we would need A LOT of things.  The weekend before we had been out of town so I let the fridge get rather empty.  So this trip I was going to be grabbing some staples.  I had added a few things to my list as I thought of them.  I was focused on the artichoke hearts, that DIFFERENT flavor.  The recipe I chose was a chicken recipe and when I glanced at it when scribbling out my list I thought the chicken was shredded.  My idea was to check the recipe again before I shopped on Thursday to see if it was or not.  If it was I could have used chicken I had, if not, I needed to buy some.  I got busy and didn’t check the recipe again and I just decided I could buy the chicken and use it if I needed it or save it if I didn’t.  Something came up Thursday morning after my Nia class so I arrived home after shopping later than I planned.  After putting away the groceries and having some food, I looked at the recipe – the SPINACH and Artichoke Chicken recipe.  I hadn’t bought spinach.  I hadn’t even put it on the list.  (EYE ROLL!)

So click here for the recipe I was going to make.  The recipe I ended up making is below.  Just some slight adjustments. (Be sure to visit Dinner of Herbs for more yummy recipes!)

When I was putting away the groceries I noticed I had a container of “fresh” baby spinach that needed to be used.  There was about a handful of nice looking leaves.  I had also noticed we had our leftover Rainbow Chard.  I had cooked the Rainbow Chard as I usually do with onions and garlic and salt in some olive oil.  I had even added a bit of Worcestershire sauce to help over power the “green” taste.  So the chard was tasty.  I was just concerned that it would get too cooked after baking for 25 minutes.  But . . . I didn’t have the time nor the desire to go out to get spinach.  I needed to use up the chard anyway so . . . why not?

Also, the store I was at did not have the usual brand of chicken breast so I bought some that I have never seen.  They were quite large.

So below is what I ended up making.  I thought to take a few pictures while I was making it, but after I got home from class and was in get-it-on-the-table mode I forgot to take pictures of it cooked.  It was good.  I will be making it again . . . . next time with spinach and then who knows.  It seems any green you would cook would work.

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Chicken With Spinach, Rainbow Chard, and Artichoke Hearts

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied
garlic salt
handful of baby spinach, chopped
1.5 cups of cooked Rainbow Chard
2 6.5 oz jars of artichoke hearts, drained (save a little for the pan)*, and chopped
1/8 C sliced almonds**
2 oz Neufchâtel cheese
2-3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Garlic powder
Onion powder

Preheat oven to 375° F.  Sprinkle garlic salt on both sides of each chicken breast.  In a large bowl mix the spinach, chard, artichoke hearts, almonds, Parmesan cheese, and powders.  Use two utensils to cut the Neufchatel cheese into the mixture.  Put the chicken in a 9X13 glass casserole dish.  Spoon the filling onto one side of each of the butterflied chicken breasts, then fold over.  Spoon any remaining filling onto each folded chicken breast, if you have enough put it all around.  Bake for at least 20 minutes . . . until chicken is cooked to your liking.

*I poured a little bit of the artichoke marinade on the chicken.
**Next time I am going to add more AND sprinkle some on top!

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The chicken breast I used were so huge, I actually had to cook them for 40 minutes.  PLUS, I left them in the oven with it turned off for an additional 10 minutes while I prepared our plates with the rice I served.  I don’t think that the chicken I normally buy would require 40 minutes.

Neufchâtel is like cream cheese in that it has the same consistency, so it just didn’t stir into the other ingredients.  I had to “cut it in” with two utensils.  Basically you want to make sure there are no clumps of cheese.

The store I was at had only ONE brand of Neufchâtel cheese and I don’t know how authentic it is because it tastes just like cream cheese to me.  Perhaps on my next go at this recipe I will find a brand that I feel is more authentic.  I will do some research.

Sounds yummy, huh?  Don’t you think any green that you would cook would work?  If you make it with another green (kale, collard greens, etc) let me know.  Go wild!