Spinach and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken & Sauce

I AM SO PROUD!  This is my own creation.  I pulled from probably 7 different recipes that I read, and used those ideas.  All of which I found on AllRecipes/Food.com etc.  This was DELICIOUS and Kyle and I have already planned a leftovers night this week so that we can enjoy this dish again!!!

*WW Friends - I call for 1 lb of chicken, and the dish yields 4 servings.

What you need:

1 lb thin cut chicken breasts (I used 4)
1/2 cup of canned cut spinach (or frozen chopped spinach)
4 oz goat cheese (I preferred the soft)
1/8 cup of parmesan cheese
1/4 cup of panko seasoned bread crumbs
4 cloves of garlic - chopped fine
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 tbsp Onion Powder (in place of onion)
1 tsp Basil
1 tsp Parsley
2 tbsp flour
2 cups reduced sodium Chicken Broth
2 tbsp lemon juice

Cooking twine or pins to hold chicken in place

How to:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine spinach, goat cheese, parmesan cheese, panko & two chopped garlic cloves together.

Cut any remaining skin or fat off of chicken breasts.  Pound chicken flat, it should not 'split', and very thin.  (Sorry I do not have an approximate measurement).  After the chicken is thin and flat, spread 1/4 of the goat cheese mixture across the chicken breast.

Then tightly roll starting at the slimmer end.  Secure tightly with cooking twine or pins.  Set aside and repeat for the rest of the chicken.

In a large skillet, heat over medium heat, and add 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Add the chicken to the skillet, and brown on each side (approx 5 minutes on each side).  Then place in an oven safe covered dish and bake in the oven at 400 degrees for approximately 15 minutes.

Next, using the same skillet, heat another tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat.  Add all seasonings: salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, onion powder, 2 cloves garlic, basic & parsley.  Sautee for approx 1 minute.  Add 1 tbsp of flour and whisk ingredients together.

Add two cups of chicken broth and whisk ingredients together.  Turn heat up to medium & simmer.  If it seems to spicy, add a bit more chicken broth.  If you prefer a thicker sauce, add a 2nd tbsp of flour (we did and it was great) and whisk.  Last, add approximately 2 tbsp of lemon juice. This to me seems like the 'secret ingredient'... the sauce went from yum to amazing in two seconds.  It lightens the flavors, and adds a great zest to it. Lemon juice a must!!  Take the chicken out of the oven, and place back in the sauce.  Cover and simmer for approximately 10 minutes.

I served this dish with brown rice and green beens.  It turned out great, and I was very pleased with myself.

it turned out gorgeous!

*WW Friends: Like I said, I used 4 chicken breasts & considered each a serving.  So 1 serving would be 1 chicken 'roll' and approx. 1 cup of sauce.  This will yield 7 points plus points!  I'm so proud of how low the points are!!!  Also, I had 1/2 a cup of brown rice with it (approx 3 points) and 1 cup of green beans - zero points.  Making this a 10 point dinner total. 

Like I said I am so excited about this recipe, it turned out even better than I hoped.  This is one of the first recipes i can call my own (as well as my version of Salsa Chicken which will be coming within the next few weeks!).

Enjoy!! - Jack