No one is going to get wildly excited about spinach. Which is why I surrounded it with creamy ricotta cheese, salty feta, and a crispy breaded chicken breast. Spinach stuffed chicken never tasted so good.
When in doubt add cheese. When not in doubt add cheese. To be safe, let's make a pact to just always add cheese.
Take this recipe ... without the cheese it's just a chicken breast wrapped around wilty spinach. If I tried really hard I could make that sound appetizing, but it'd still just be chicken wrapped around spinach which would taste, unfortunately, exactly like chicken wrapped around spinach.
Add in some creamy ricotta cheese, garlic, onions, and salty feta? Now you have a dinner you can look forward to. If you're anything like me you start looking forward to dinner at the exact moment in the morning when you realize you're awake and not asleep. Especially nowadays.
Why you should make these:
Because they're retro fun.
Because cheese.
Because they're delicious.
Any time chicken is rolled around something pinwheel style it immediately gives off that whole "I'm just going to finish up dinner and then head to my Holly Hobby club meeting" but that doesn't mean it isn't delicious.
You say Old fashioned food. I say Delicious. You say This isn't 1970. I say Delicious. You say, c'mon Where's your sous vide machine? I say Where it's been for the last 2 years. In my Amazon "cart".
I'm not a foodie. I just like food. All Food. Modern, fancy food, rustic home cooking, a McDonalds Big Mac. I do not discriminate. Honey drizzled edible flowers? I'm on it. Pan fried marinated tofu? Love it. Pizza with Arugula, fig and Burrata? Load it up.
But that doesn't mean I can't love a 70's inspired piece of rolled up, breaded chicken. No, it's not new and fancy or trendy. Good food is good food and one doesn't need to avoid any foods simply because they were popular at a time when Three's Company ruled the airwaves and Quiche Lorraine ruled the dinner table.
Unless it's vegetables in Jello.
Spinach Stuffed Chicken with Feta
... and also some ricotta. And onions and garlic and maybe even some nuts if you want.
This recipe just has a few steps and ends up tasting like a meal that took way longer. Best of all, it's made with pretty basic ingredients that you're likely to have on hand.
- You're going to dice up some onion and garlic then sauté it.
2. Throw in a few handfuls of spinach. No spinach on hand? Use almost any edible leafy green: arugula, swiss chard, mustard greens, or collard greens.
3. Mix that with the cheeses and some pecans or walnuts if you like and plop it in the centre of a pounded chicken breast.
4. Roll 'er up, dip them in egg then dip them in breadcrumbs.
5. Cook them on a baking sheet that you've drizzled with oil. Drizzle some on the chicken just to be safe.
The Feta gives you a nice saltiness to the filling and the Ricotta makes it creamy and gooey.
Don't have ricotta? Don't worry. I have a recipe for making homemade ricotta in 30 minutes.
I don't have a lot of good things to say about the spinach other than you can hardly taste it due to all the cheese. Just kidding, the spinach adds an earthy, slightly bitter taste that offsets the richness of the cheese.
Spinach Stuffed Chicken with Feta
Ingredients
- ½ Onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- ¼ cup Ricotta
- ¼ cup Feta
- ½ cup spinach see notes for substitutions
- ¼ cup pecans optional, can also use walnuts
- 1 egg
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Throw them into a pan and sauté until the onions are translucent.
- Add 2 large handfuls of spinach per chicken breast to the pan. It's around a total of ½ packed cup. Sauté with the onions and garlic until just wilted.
- Mix ricotta cheese and feta. Add in spinach mixture and combine. Add pecans if you're using them.
- Slice each chicken breast in half lengthwise and pound until thin. Around ¼". Place a large spoonful of filling in the centre of each pounded breast.
- Roll the chicken around the filling.
- Dip in egg then breadcrumbs.
- Place chicken on a baking sheet drizzled with olive oil. Drizzle top of chicken with olive oil. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 375 turning halfway through the cooking time.
Notes
Nutrition
Two chicken breasts will make enough for 4 large rolls plus a couple of tiny rolls if you remove the filet and roll those individually.
I served them with a crispy potato galette and spinach salad.
I hope you enjoyed this retro recipe revival. Patchwork crocheted poncho tutorial coming soon.
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SusanR
Throwback Wednesday. This was always a favorite of mine to make. Sometimes I wouldn't bread it, and that was good, also. I'm joining in on the hue and cry for the potato recipe!
Alena
I actually like spinach and seeing bunches of fresh spinach on a shelf in a grocery store does make me excited. I buy them all the time, and I am upset when there are none to be had or those that are available are clearly past their prime.
I eat spinach on most mornings (in my omelette) - and I tend to use a lot of it.
I will try to make this except that ricotta cheese is not a frequent ingredient in my house (it's pricey and sometimes I eat it all before I have a chance to utilize it in a recipe).
Patti H
Walnuts make the inside of my mouth feel weird like the skin will peel off. I think I might try this with pine nuts.
Patty
Crispy potato galette recipe coming up next??
Ev Wilcox
Who cares what decade it came from? Good is good! The decade I came from is long gone, but we won't talk about that.... I have no experience with feta, but I sure like spinach, cooked and uncooked! Now to find that potato galette recipe. Thanks Karen!
Alice
Looks great. But I think you forgot to put egg in the ingredient list.
Karen
Crud, I did. It's update now, thanks! ~ karen
jaine kunst
Can't wait to make this! And how about that potato galette? Recipe, please!
linda in illinois
what is crispy potato galette ?? I must try this..
This makes me so hungry and it's only 8am.
great photos too..
Melissa
My mom used to make various iterations of this, and I always loved it. You have inspired me to try this version, and perhaps other versions, based on reader comments, which include bacon.
In fact, it could be really fun to dream up different cheesy, herb-alicious inspired fillings for this.
Aaand now I'm hungry at 9:15am...
p.s. that little potato side dish looks pretty yummy, too. Is that next on the recipe list?
diane
CRISPY POTATO GALETTE...recipe please and thank you.
ronda
i agree! where’s THAT recipe??
Inger
Galette recipe please. What Scandinavian doesn't like potatoes?
Karen
Hi Inger! I don't entirely use a recipe. I just slice potatoes thin, saute a bit of butter and shallots (maybe some herbs if I'm feeling fancy), mix with some chicken stock and layer everything. Next time I make one I'll try to do a post on it. ~ karen!
Marilyn
I’ve made a version of this but not with ricotta , I will try it next time. Looks
Great. And ponchos are the best
Karen
I used to make this with just feta and spinach too. Ken Kostick actually gave me the recipe years ago! And it wasn't rolled. I'd cut the single chicken breast almost completely in half and then stuff it. ~ karen!
Alena
I loved Ken's and Mary Ann's show!
Jill
Not a spinach fan. Can I substitute bacon?
Karen
LOL. Sure. ~ karen!
Tanya
In the vein of 'vintage' food, I recently introduced my kids to (homemade) shake-n-bake chicken. They were crazy about it and I kept asking myself why I ever stopped making it. Now that they love breadcrumbs (and cheese), this looks like a recipe they'd enjoy. Fun tip: add a bit of oil to the crumb mixture instead of drizzling after the fact. Sticks well and browns up perfectly.
leisa
Love this throwback...now if I could just find my Mod Podge!
Jenny W
Yes. Yes, to all of the cheese :)
I have made these several times, but subbed cream cheese for the ricotta, which I never seem to have on hand. Relish! And soon creamy :)
I've never heard of a Joule, and now, after watching the video, think I must own one, LoL!
It's sitting in my cart, probably until the price drops, in another 5 years ;)
Jenny W
* Delish, not Relish ha! That'd be gross :P
Karen
I wondered, but thought - meh ... who knows, maybe relish works. Although I kind of doubted it, lol. ~ karen!
J
Sounds delicious!
[add egg]
How are the chickens?
Karen
Chickens are very well thank you! ~ karen
Marna
Yum! Am going to make this! Thanks for sharing! :)
kddomingue
Damn! I have spinach, I have feta, I have garlic, I have butter, eggs and breadcrumbs.... but I have no ricotta or chicken breasts! And I want this recipe in my mouth now! Damn! Guess what I'm picking up at the store on Friday's grocery run? I have walnuts. Chopped walnuts would be a good addition.......(wanders off into kitchen muttering to self)
Karen
Yep. Walnuts would be fine and I've made this without the ricotta too with just spinach and feta. The ricotta just makes it better. :) As does, you know, chicken, lol. ~ karen!
ecoteri
you can make ricotta in about 20 minutes if you have milk. I know, I did two weeks ago. google it. made yummy lasagna
!
Karen
Thanks for remind me ... I should have linked to my ricotta recipe in the post! Will do now. ~ karen!
ecoteri
and making it without milk, in a pinch, as you reference in your post, is just fine, too!. Don't let the lackaricotta get you down!
Teresa
This recipe sounds scrumptious to me. I’m going to try it!
Robert
Wait! No comments yet?!!
This does sound delicious and now I am regretting not buying spinach when I went shopping a few hours ago to be able to have this for breakfast