TOH Saucy Garlic Chicken

 

 I'm so excited that it's almost April. 

What does that mean? Why? What's so special about April? 

Well....it's not really the month itself that matters (although it's one of my sisters birthday in April...so I'd have to say it's special for that reason. Actually...with my family, every month is special if you're going to take into account everyones birthdays)...but what I'm excited about is that I should be getting the next issue of Taste of Home soon. Yes....I love that magazine. 

Although I have a feeling it won't be doing much for my waistline. 

Oy

This is the second recipe I've tried from my first TOH issue...and it was delicious! Not to mention easy and with ingredients that are easily obtained if you don't already have them. What really caught my attention was the garlic. I love garlic! And this recipe contains a ton of garlic....which probably cinched it for me.

I only made on little adjustment.....they suggested parsley as a garnish. One of my girls doesn't like parsley so I substituted fresh basil. Lemme just say....even if my daughter decided to all of a sudden like parsley, I'd still use the basil for this dish.

Saucy Garlic Chicken

Printable Version

4 whole garlic bulbs

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
9 oz fresh baby spinach
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
4 - 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
6 tablespoons butter, cubed
6 tablespoons all purpose flour
3 cups milk
2 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Cooked pasta
Chopped tomatoes and basil to garnish (the garnish totally makes the meal...trust me)

Preheat oven to 425'

Leaving the garlic bulbs whole, remove the outer "paper", cut off the tops and drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over them. Wrap them up separately in tin foil. Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until soft. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes.

While the garlic is roasting, get out your 13 x 9 casserole dish and spray it with non-stick cooking spray or grease it. Pour the spinach leaves in, sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat up the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet. Brown the chicken on both sides and arrange over the spinach.

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over low heat. Stir in the flour. Cook and stir for about a minute (this will help get rid of the "flour" flavor). Gradually stir in the milk and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for about 1 - 2 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Stir in 2 cups of cheese, the nutmeg and the remaining salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Get out your blender and squeeze the roasted garlic into the blender. Pour in the sauce and process until smooth. Pour the sauce over the chicken and spinach.

Cover and bake for 30 - 35 minutes or maybe a bit longer. You want the chicken to be done...which means that a meat thermometer will read 160'. Uncover....sprinkle with remaining cheese (yaaaaaa baby!!!) and bake for another 5 minutes.

Serve over hot pasta and garnish with chopped tomatoes and basil

I love the color! I love the garlic (no brainer).....but let me just tell ya....the garnish added more than just making it look all pretty and all....it added a freshness and flavor that took this dish from something average to something wow!

Speaking of tomatoes.....I've been playing around in a little class. And well, our last assignment was to take a picture of a vegetable. Didn't matter if it was cooked or raw. After some serious thought and incredible input from some friends, I decided to go with tomatoes.

Ya, I know...they're not a vegetable but we use them like a vegetable, right? How many desserts include tomatoes? Get my point? Anyways....this is what I decided to do

 Life isn't always a bowl full of cherries.