Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup quinoa
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup thawed, drained frozen spinach
- 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- Canola or vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Yield: 4 Servings
Directions:
- Bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and add to the boiling water. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes or until the quinoa has absorbed all the water and is fluffy. Remove from the heat and transfer the quinoa to a bowl, setting aside until it is cool enough to handle.
- Stir the quinoa, spinach, feta cheese, black pepper, and salt together.
- Gently slip your hand between the meat and the skin of the chicken breast to form a pocket, then generously each pocket with half the quinoa filling. There should be about an inch-high mound of filling in each breast.
- Preheat the oven to 375.
- Heat about 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a large oven-safe skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Carefully add the stuffed chicken breasts, filled side down, to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes to brown the skin.
- Flip the breasts over and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake for approximately 40 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast meat registers 170.
- Rest the breasts for 5 minutes to redistribute the chicken’s tasty juices before slicing and serving.
This recipe originally appeared on iVillage.