Hasselback Chicken with Spinach and Pepper Jack

I love stuffed foods – chicken kiev, chicken cordon blue, stuffed burgers, Hot Pockets. Well, maybe not Hot Pockets! But, I do love cutting or biting into stuffed meats and having the cheeses and spices create an explosion of flavor in my mouth.

The only bad thing is having to do the stuffing. It can take the majority of your prep time to stuff and roll the ingredients into a burger patty or chicken breast. Then, you have to contend with the mess that oozes out that may or may not leave the meat dry and tasteless.

This is where “hasselback” comes in. This is a term that is generally associated with potatoes – named after the Hasselbacken restaurant in Sweden which was known for the fan-cut potato dish. I find, though, that this technique makes cutting and stuffing chicken so much easier!

 

To start, make width-wise cuts along the chicken breast and approximately 1/2 inches apart. (Be careful to not cut all the way through the chicken.) There should be about 6 incisions, depending on the size of your chicken breast.
You will want to go slowly on the first chicken breast; but once you get the feel of cutting the first, the rest of them will go very quickly.

Using approximately 2oz of spinach and 1 slice of pepper jack for each piece of chicken, stuff the spinach into the cuts, leaving a bit of room for the pepper jack cheese. Then, break up the cheese into smaller bits, placing on top and beside the spinach.
It’s ok if the spinach and cheese are not completely in the cuts. This gives it some character!

Place each chicken breast into a 9×13 dish. Salt and pepper to taste.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until chicken is done. (I cover with foil for the first 15 minutes, then cook uncovered for the last portion.)
We love this served up with broccoli, rice pilaf, and salad.

Hasselback Chicken with Spinach and Pepper Jack

4 chicken breasts
8oz frozen spinach (thawed and liquid wrung out)
4 pieces Pepper Jack cheese
salt/pepper to taste

1) Make incisions into chicken, 1/2 inches apart, being careful not to cut through the chicken
2) Stuff each incision with 2oz spinach and 1 piece of pepper jack, broken into pieces
3) Salt and pepper to taste
4) Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked

If you liked this recipe, check out these other Trim Healthy Mama friendly recipes:
Apple Pepper Jack Chicken
Bacon Jalapeno Poppers
Spicy Jicama Fries
Low-Carb Strawberry Shortcake
Egg Roll in a Bowl

This yummy recipe is linking up at Weekend Potluck. Check it out!

Apple Pepper Jack Chicken (a THM S-meal)

Back before I got married, I had a wonderful roommate.
However, we were as different as night and day.
I was/am an introvert. Quiet and pretty shy until you get to know me.
Amy? Well, I seriously doubt she’s ever met a stranger! And if I’m an introvert, then she is the poster child for extrovert.

Yet, strangely, we were a great combo.

We’d cook and grocery shop together, have game nights at the house, bonded over So You Think You Can Dance, and would often have cleaning/dance parties. Seriously, I couldn’t have asked for a better roomie.
Typically, we would make our delicious creations together; but one night, I was late getting home. When I walked in, she had this dish ready to eat while we watched the newest episode of Grey’s Anatomy, Chuck, or whatever was on our schedule for the night.
It’s an incredibly simple dish and while it sounds somewhat strange…just like me and Amy, the ingredients are a fantastic combo!

Apple Pepper Jack Chicken

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
6 slices Pepper Jack cheese
1 apple (I used Fuji), peeled and sliced thin
salt

Instructions:
1) Heat oven to 350.
2) Place chicken into a 9×13 dish. Season with salt. Bake covered for about 20 minutes (or until chicken is close to being done)
3) Take chicken out of the oven and drain the liquid from the bottom of the dish.
4) Lay the apple slice over the top of the chicken and cover the apples with the cheese.
5) Place back in the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

If you are following the Trim Healthy Mama lifestyle, this would qualify as an S meal since there is only 1/4 apple on each chicken breast. This is not enough to push it into crossover territory.