Philly: Chicken Stuffed with Swiss Cheese and Spinach

More often than not in the life of a college student, we may find our refrigerators and small pantries quite bare. I have always prided myself on my ability to use whatever I might find to make a meal that actually tastes good.


When on a budget, I have found that buying in bulk (if you can) and freezing can save you a lot of money. In that spirit, for dinner Aaron and I had Chicken stuffed with Swiss Cheese and Spinach with a side of couscous.


You may be saying to yourself, “Wait? That’s your meal on a budget.”


Do not freight, I will explain.


What can you make with one chicken breast, one slice of Swiss cheese, a small onion, and a couple of handfuls of fresh spinach? The answer, more than you think.


In order to make a meal for two, I cut one skinless chicken breast in half, then “butterfly” cut the breasts in order to make a flat, open cut of meat. I split one slice of Swiss cheese in two pieces for each breast and topped ½ of a small white onion and two handfuls of fresh spinach I had sautéed.

By stuffing the small pieces of chicken you have a full meal that you can accompany with a box of dry couscous which you can find at any grocery store for less than about $1.50 a box. With the one chicken breast ($2) and small amount of ingredients (about $1), you can make a great meal for less than $3 a person. Perfect.

For those of you who can afford to eat more than one chicken breast per two people, you can enjoy this recipe too. Stuffed chicken is pretty easy and looks impressive enough to serve for company. Just know that you should use toothpicks for the recipe, but since I’m a poor college student, I used dried spaghetti, (but just remember to take them out before serving!)

Chicken Stuffed with Swiss Cheese and Spinach: 2 servings

Ingredients:

1 Chicken breast (for larger portions use two chicken breasts, and double ingredients accordingly)

2 handfuls of Fresh Spinach

½ small White Onion, thinly sliced

1 Garlic clove, minced

1 piece of Swiss cheese

Garlic Salt

Pepper

1/3 cup Flour

1 egg

Dash of Worcestershire sauce (optional)

1 tsp. butter

2 tbsp. Olive Oil

Directions:                      

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat up a large skillet over medium heat and add butter and garlic.

Add fresh spinach and onions, sautéed. Add fresh pepper and garlic salt.

Once onions are sautéed and the spinach is wilted, remove from pan and put in a small bowl.

Cut the chicken breast into two horizontal pieces. Cut each piece open from the top and the sides and try to pound flat.

Top each flattened chicken breast with half a piece of Swiss cheese in the center.

Then top each piece with an even amount of the spinach and onion mixture in the middle leaving plenty of space on the sides. Make sure there is not too much filling.

Pinch and fold sides of the chicken up almost wrapping the chicken. Fasten sides with toothpicks (or long strands of dried spaghetti) so that the chicken is secure and won’t fall apart.

In one bowl beat the egg with dash of Worcestershire sauce. In a separate bowl add flour with garlic salt and pepper.

Evenly dip chicken pieces in the egg and then evenly coat with flour.

Heat up the same pan with the olive oil. Once heated, gently place both coated chicken pieces in the pan, frying until the coating is lightly brown on each side and the chicken is firm. About 3-4 minutes of each side. Make sure the chicken does not burn.

Place each chicken piece in a casserole dish or baking pan lined with foil. Bake in oven for 20 minutes. Check that chicken is no longer pink and the cheese is melted.

Serve with couscous and enjoy your cost effective meal that’s also pretty healthy!

Enjoy!

Love,

The College Cuisiner