Creamy Spinach-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with a Balsamic Bell Pepper & Mozzarella Salad

I've started to use Sparkpeople.com as a source to calculate calories in my recipes, so hopefully this new addition will be appreciated!  I use the website more as a calculator than a place to display my recipes, so if you find yourself comparing my recipes on Sparkpeople to this blog, you may find those ones incomplete. 

I wanted to make a healthy but filling supper for those nights when I don't even get home to start cooking until  7 or 8 at night.  I had intended to grill, but the spinach mixture was a little bit messier than I had intended!  I ended up baking it instead, but next time, I'll make the filling ahead of time and refrigerate it so I can try it out on the grill.  The low-fat cream cheese is a bit runnier in consistency than regular, so I might even freeze it for a half hour before working with it.  Anyhow, baking time took about 45 minutes, so the whole process took about an hour last night, but I imagine with grilling it would be faster. If grilling, I might opt for the top rack and place some tin foil underneath to catch and filling that may melt out. 

CREAMY SPINACH-STUFFED CHICKEN - makes 4 servings, 293.3 cals each

*Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Ingredients:

3 c fresh spinach

4 oz low-fat cream cheese

1/4 c shredded cheddar

1 sweet onion

1 clove garlic

S&P

EVOO

4 chicken breasts, pounded thin (you can buy "trimmed and ready" by Tyson if you hate the process)

Instructions:

1. Chop your onion and garlic, and saute the garlic first in 1-2 tsp of EVOO on medium-high heat for 1 minute, then add your onions and saute until translucent.

2.  Add your spinach and slowly mix and turn until wilted. 

3. Remove from heat.  Add cream cheese and cheese and stir until well combined.  Season with salt and pepper.  As I mentioned earlier, I would recommend making this ahead of time so it can get a bit solidified and easier to work with.

4.  Put a generous dollop of the spinach mixture on each chicken breast and wrap breast ends over top. Secure with a toothpick.  Spoon remaming spinach mixture over the wrapped chicken breasts in a greased oven-safe dish.

5.  Bake for 45 minutes on 400 degrees or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.

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BALSAMIC BELL PEPPER & MOZZARELLA SALAD - makes 4 servings, 174.9 cals each

Ingredients:

3 bell peppers (I used red, green, and orange)

fresh mozzarella (about 4-6 oz)

S & P

2 tbsp EVOO

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp dijon or spicy mustard

1 tsp sugar

Directions:

Thinly slice the bell peppers, and roughly chop the mozzarella.  Season generously with sea salt and ground black pepper and refrigerate until ready to dress.

When ready to dress, whist together the bottom 4 ingredients and toss with the salad.  YUMMY!