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Chicken Stuffed with Spinach and Ricotta

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011

This is another recipe inspired by what was in my fridge the other night. We eat a lot of chicken in my house. We have it at least twice a week if not more. I am always looking for new things to stuff the bird with and have come up with quite a few. I also am experimenting with spinach. It was only this year that I really started to eat spinach. I always thought that it was too bitter a vegetable for my liking. I guess I just wasn’t trying good spinach. So now that I have added it to my repertoire of vegetables I figured hey not stiff the chicken with the spinach and so I did. This recipe isn’t one of my quickest but it is very flavorful. Enjoy!

Olive oil
1 bag of fresh spinach
1 garlic clove, minced and 2 garlic whole and peeeled
Salt
Pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (you should be able to use 6)
1 cup ricotta
1/4 cup grated cheese (I use Pecorino Romano)
Toothpicks
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add in garlic and spinach. Season with salt and pepper. Stir around the spinach until it is coated. Cover the pan and allow the spinach to cook turning it every so often. Once spinach has wilted remove from pan and set aside.

In a medium size bowl mix together the ricotta and grated cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Cut a slit in the chicken breasts to create a pocket. Don’t go all the way through the chicken. Stuff the ricotta mixture inside the slit. Then stuff it with the spinach. You can mix the spinach in with the ricotta too but I wanted a separate layer of spinach. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Place the egg mixture into a shallow dish. In a second shallow dish place the breadcrumbs. Dredge the chicken in the egg mixture and coat on all sides. Dip the chicken with the egg on it into the breadcrumbs and coat on all sides. Close the pocket up with some toothpicks by placing them in at an angle. Repeat for each piece of chicken.

In a large sautée or fry pan that is oven proof add in the garlic and about 1/4 cup of oil. Turn the heat to medium. When the oil is hot add in the chicken. Brown on both sides. If needed add more oil to the pan. Once browned place the pan in the oven and cook 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.

Serve over pasta and Enjoy!

Tags: breaded chicken, chicken, chicken cutlets, dinner, entree, main, main course, ricotta, spinach, stuffed chicken
Posted in Recipes | 10 Comments »

Mini Calzones

Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011

You are probably all wondering where I have been for the past week. Well, I was busy eating my way through New Orleans with an amazing group of friends. I can’t wait to share my experience there with all of you but first I have to make my through all the pictures I took.

Now that I am back I want to share some other recipes with you so here is a great snack or appetizer for a large group of people. A couple of weeks ago I was going on a cheese binge. I love cheese and by love I mean really love. My favorite cheese is ricotta cheese. I even, on occasion make my own ricotta cheese. I also love calzones but can’t always get a good one. I was having people over and since I was on a cheese binge I decided to make these great little fingers foods. They are versatile and you can really play around with the fillings. I made some plain, some with sausage and some with pepperoni but you can put in it whatever toppings you hear desires. Get creative and enjoy!

1 round of pizza dough, homemade or store bought

Flour for dusting

2 cups of ricotta cheese

1 cup of mozzarella cheese, shredded

¼ cup grated cheese, I use Pecorino Romano

Salt

Pepper

Your favorite toppings i.e. sausage and pepperoni

1 egg, for egg wash

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Dust the pizza round with the flour. Cut in half and roll out to about 1/8 of an inch. Cut out rounds of the dough using a large round cookie cutter. Repeat with second half.

In a large bowl mix together the ricotta, mozzarella and grated cheeses. Season with salt and pepper to taste and then mix to combine.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush a piece of the cut out pizza dough with the egg wash. In the center of the round place 1-2 tablespoons of the ricotta. Place your favorite topping on top of the ricotta. Pull over the top half of the round towards the bottom forming a crescent shape. Using a fork close the edges of the calzone. Brush with egg wash. Repeat for the rest of the rounds and place on baking sheet.

Bake for 17-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve with some tomato sauce and Enjoy!

Tags: appetizer, calzone, cheese, pepperoni, ricotta, sauce, sausage, snack
Posted in Recipes | 6 Comments »

Spinach and Ricotta Gnudi

Monday, October 25th, 2010

So, I was informed that today is National Pasta Day. I have been eyeing the following recipe from Food and Wine’s Weekend Dish email since I got it last weekend. I know it isn’t exactly pasta but it is close. Gnudi is very similar to gnocchi but made with ricotta instead of potato or all flour. They are very light which, really surprised me but they were also very filling. I made some changes to the recipe to add some more taste to it and make it work for my diet. It is 10 points a serving according to the Weight Watchers point system which, may seem like a lot but is what I usually allow myself to have for dinner. I hope you are enjoying some pasta on National Pasta Day like we did, enjoy!

Adapted from Food and Wine

2 cups of spinach, stems removed

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Olive Oil

2 pounds, part-skim milk ricotta

4 eggs

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (I use pecorino romano) plus more for toppings

Salt

Pepper

1 cup flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

Tomato sauce

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. In a saute pan heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in garlic and spinach. Saute until spinach is wilted. Remove from pan and chop spinach. Place spinach in a large bowl. Add in ricotta, eggs, cheese, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Add in flour 1/2 a cup at a time, until fully incorporated into the ricotta mixture.

Place mixture into a pastry bag or a Ziploc bag with the point cut off. (I cooked one gnudi first to make sure it was well seasoned.) Over boiling water, squeeze out the ricotta mixture, about a inch long, use a scissor cut the mixture away from the bag. The mixture will drop into the boiling water. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until floating and cooked through. Using a slotted spoon or a spider tool remove from water and place on baking sheet to slightly dry out.

Immediately serve with your favorite tomato sauce. Enjoy!

Tags: gnudi, italian, pasta, ricotta, tomato, tomato sauce, vegetarian
Posted in Recipes | 2 Comments »

Chicken Stuffed with Ricotta and Prosciutto

Friday, March 19th, 2010

I recently made ricotta from scratch with the sole intention of making this dish. The hardest part about making this is being careful not to cut all the way through the chicken. I served it over pasta and you can top it with sauce. A friend came over and had it the day after and said it was the best chicken she has ever eaten (thanks Nicole). I hope you enjoy it as much as she did.

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 tablespoon salt

1/2 tablespoon pepper

juice of a half of lemon

4 slices of prosciutto

1 cup of ricotta (store bought or homemade)

Kitchen twine or toothpicks

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 piece of garlic whole but with skin removed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sprinkle the chicken with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Slice each chicken breast halfway through the thickest side of the breast. It it best to use a small sharp knife for this, such as a paring knife. This will create a pocket. Repeat this for each breast. Place a slice of prosciutto into each pocket and top with ricotta. To seal the chicken wrap kitchen twine around each breast or seal with a toothpick. I show you both ways below but I prefer to use the kitchen twine. The toothpicks have to be repositioned when you flip the chicken over to ensure even browning. If you use the twine you do not have to fuss with it.

Heat olive oil in an oven proof saute pan (usually one without a plastic handle) over medium heat. Add garlic to oil. Place each breast into the pan. Cook on each side for 5 minutes or until brown. Once brown place the pan in the oven and cook for approx 10 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink on the inside (approx an internal temperature between 160-170 degrees F). Be careful when you take the pan out of the oven the handle will be very hot and stay hot. This is the recipe I burnt my hand really badly making because I forgot the pan had been in the oven and grabbed the handle, it was not pleasant. Wrap a towel around it so you won’t forget (this is what I do now). Enjoy!

Tags: chicken, dinner, italian, prosciutto, ricotta
Posted in Recipes | No Comments »

Homemade Ricotta 2 Ways

Friday, March 12th, 2010

I started making ricotta from scratch about a year a go. You’re reading this probably thinking that its to hard and time consuming, but it’s not. It’s quick and easy, trust me. You will make it time and time again. It tastes better than store bought ricotta and it is also cheaper. There are two ways of making it–with separate sets of ingredients but with the same cooking method. Both are good but I enjoy the first recipe better. It tastes creamier then the second recipe but both are good and easy. I hope you choose to try it out one day. Enjoy!

Ricotta Recipe One

1/2 gallon whole milk

1 quart buttermilk

Juice of a 1/2 lemon

(Makes about 4 cups)

Ricotta Recipe Two

1/2 gallon whole milk

Juice of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons of white vinegar

pinch of salt

(makes about 1 1/2 cups)

You will need a pot, thermometer, large bowl, sieve, slotted spoon, and cheesecloth or paper towels.

Place all ingredients in a pot that is large enough to hold all of the ingredients. Place the thermometer in the pot. Place the pot on the stove over medium heat. DO NOT WALK AWAY FROM IT! If you do there is a chance that it will burn. Occasionally stir the ingredients making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot. This releases curds off the bottom of the pot, as well as minimizes the chance that the mixture will burn.

As you allow this mixture to heat place a sieve over a large bowl. Place the cheesecloth into the sieve.

Bring the mixture up to about 175 degrees F. At about this temperature the ingredients will separate. This is the curds and whey separating. The curds are the white masses. The curds are what you want to keep. When you see this separation remove the pot from the heat.

With the slotted spoon, ladle the curds into the cheesecloth. You can let it stand as it or gather the edges and form the cheesecloth into a ball tying a knot a the top. Let the curds drain using either method, for at least 15 minutes. This allows for moisture to drain out of the curds. Once it drains to your desired texture (the longer you let it drain the drier it will be) use it immediately or store it in a air tight container in the fridge.

Note: I tried just pouring the whole mixture into the cheesecloth but it appeared to have all mixed right back together. There was no longer any separation of curds and whey. I do not suggest you do this. As much time as it takes to ladle out the curds it saves you the time from having to do this again.

Tags: italian, ricotta, side
Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment »

Great Eats with Petes

Posts Tagged ‘ricotta’

Chicken Stuffed with Spinach and Ricotta

Mini Calzones

Spinach and Ricotta Gnudi

Chicken Stuffed with Ricotta and Prosciutto

Homemade Ricotta 2 Ways

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