SUN-DRIED TOMATO, SPINACH, AND BACON CHICKEN

PREP TIME: 20 MINS | COOK TIME: 40 MINS | TOTAL TIME: 1 HR | SERVINGS: 4

I love this easy chicken recipe. It’s one of the best chicken dishes I’ve made. Moist and juicy chicken with sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, bacon, and cheese. And this impressive chicken dish is incredibly easy to make and ready in a snap!

INGREDIENTS :

Baked Chicken Breasts:

• 1 tbsp butter
• 0.5-ounce Italian Dressing mix packet (half the packet)
• 1.5-pound chicken (4 small chicken breasts or 2 large chicken breasts, sliced horizontally in half)

Creamed spinach:

• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• ⅔ c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
• ⅔ c. half and half
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• ⅛ tsp salt
• 6 ounces baby spinach fresh

Other ingredients:

• 4 slices of bacon cooked
• 4 slices Pepper Jack cheese or Monterey cheese with jalapenos
• ¼ c. sun-dried tomatoes, drained of oil, chopped into smaller bites

DIRECTIONS :

Step 1: Prepare the oven. Preheat it to 375 degrees F.

Step 2: Grease the bottom of a baking dish. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with Italian salad dressing mix. Into the prepared baking dish, lay the chicken breasts, flat-side down. Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Creamed spinach:

Step 3: In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the spinach and cook for 1 to 2 minutes only until heated through ad begins to wilt. Take the skillet off the heat, then add the minced garlic and half-and-half. Bring everything to a boil. Once boiling, add the shredded mozzarella cheese while stirring constantly over high heat for about 30 seconds until the cheese begins to melt. Then, decrease the heat to a simmer while still stirring until you have a smooth creamed spinach. This takes another 30 seconds to a minute. At this point, the creamed spinach should be very thick. If it is still watery, let it boil for a couple of minutes more while stirring to cook off the extra liquid. To taste, season with salt. When done, remove the creamed spinach from the heat.

Smothered Chicken Breasts:

Step 4: After about 15 to 20 minutes, take the baking pan with the chicken breasts out of the oven and top each piece of chicken with creamed spinach, sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil and chopped into smaller bites), chopped cooked bacon, and broken slices of pepper jack cheese. Return the pan to the oven and resume baking for another 15 to 20 minutes more, uncovered, until the chicken is done, no longer pink in the middle, and the juices run clear.

Nutrition Facts:

Amount per Serving: Calories 766, Fat 58g 89%, Saturated Fat 25g 156%, Cholesterol 204mg 68%, Sodium 1068mg 46%, Potassium 939mg 27%, Carbohydrates 10g 3%, Fiber 1g 4%, Sugar 3g 3%, Protein 49g 98%, Vitamin A 4860IU 97%, Vitamin C 18.6mg 23%, Calcium 419mg 42%, Iron 3.7mg 21%