Every month I work one weekend day and take off one day during the week. This really has it’s benefits for accomplishing errands or appointments and will be huge when we have kiddos that have field trips and other school functions that will need to be attended. For now, it usually means a fun lunch/coffee date with a friend that doesn’t have the strict time frame, playing with the kitten at home, surprising the husband with cookies at work, and lots of coffee & Harry Potter marathons while I check off the to do list for the casa.
It also means that I have time (well that’s the general idea anyhow) to make a different kind of meal and do all the cooking so the husband can relax as I always get home after he does usually. Well I wanted to try something new and relatively healthy so I scoured my Pinterest board for a tasty recipe that I was willing to attempt. I had pinned a collection of recipes from a Whole Living Website and adapted this recipe from there. Now, I have never really been a mushroom fan, but this recipe completely changed that! The husband loves mushrooms so I wanted to try a dish that had them as an integral part since I normally oppose their inclusion to any meal, and I was pleasantly surprised with the results.
Ingredients:
- 10 thin, crisp whole-grain crackers (I used Wheat Thins)
- 1 1/4 cups chopped walnuts
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4-6 garlic cloves (minced)
- 2 shallots (finely chopped)
- About 2 cups mushrooms (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme (I actually used powdered thyme b/c I couldn’t fins any fresh & it worked just fine!)
- 2 ounces spinach (trimmed) – this about 2 generous handfuls if you have small hands
- 1 tablespoon water
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (butterflied and pounded evenly)
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Pulse crackers and 3/4 cup walnuts in a food processor until finely ground.
- Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
- Cook garlic and shallots until soft (about 4 minutes)
- Add mushrooms and thyme, and cook until mushrooms are slightly golden (about 4 minutes)
- Transfer to a plate/bowl to rest.
- Add spinach and water to skillet.
- Cook until wilted (about 1 minute).
- Chop spinach, and add to mushroom mixture.
- Stir in remaining 1/2 cup walnuts to mixture.
- Season each chicken breast with salt and pepper.
- Lay 1 chicken breast on a plate.
- Spread 1/2 cup mushroom-walnut mixture onto chicken, leaving a 1/2-inch border all around.
- Roll, and tie with kitchen twine.
- Couldn’t find any twine, which would have worked better I think, but toothpicks work just fine!
- Cover with crumb mixture, pressing to coat.
- Repeat with remaining chicken, mushroom-walnut mixture, and crumbs.
- Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until golden, about 30 minutes.
- Untie (or un-skewer), slice and serve.
It takes a little time to prep and make, but the process itself is very simple and the finished product tastes great! Serve with a great vegetable like asparagus and you’ve got yourself a tasty and healthy meal!
What foods have you tended to avoid that have actually turned out to be good after all?
