Chicken Roulade from "Food Loves Writing"

I just tried a new recipe that I found on "Food Loves Writing" - one  of my all time favorite food blogs! Shanna T'koy is  a friend of mine and she is a talented writer and chef! I always enjoy reading the blog posts and come away with some amazing and practical ideas!

This Chicken Roulade really wasn't too hard to make - it took a little bit of time, but it was WORTH it!  Tim, our friend Ashton, and I just LOVED it! Tim rated it a 9 out of 10 - which doesn't always happen! You should totally try it.

I did use spinach and actually just used grated Parmesan/Romano (you know from the can) that I had in the fridge. I also made a double batch of the spinach filling and tossed it with some tri-color spiral pasta along with some more parmesan for a side dish and it was really great.


Here is the recipe  from "Food Loves Writing" if you want to copy and paste it into a word document like I did!

Chicken Roulade
Adapted from Spinach Tiger
Serves about four.
Notes about this recipe: I really wish I had used Pecorino cheese like Angela did, but I was trying to work with what I had on hand, and that was mozzarella—I would def do the Pecorino next time. Also, although I used spinach, I think chard would give a sharper flavor contrast.
Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, flattened*
Olive oil for browning meat
Flour (I used white spelt)
1/2 large onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons nuts (Angela used pine nuts; I used slivered almonds)
2 teaspoons dried fruit (I used cranberries), soaked in water
1 bunch spinach (or chard), washed and chopped finely
2 teaspoons pecorino romano cheese, freshly grated
Sea salt, black pepper to taste
Directions:
*To flatten the chicken, put them in a big Ziplock bag and use a cast iron pan or something similar to flatten them as much as you can. Then, salt them and set aside so they come to room temperature.
Prepare the filling: Heat diced onion and oil in pan. Once onion is softened and almost golden, add the garlic and cook for about a minute, being careful not to burn. Add nuts to toast, stirring pan. Drain dried fruit, dice and add to pan. Add in stalks of greens and cook for a few minutes until softened. Add in leaves, continuing stirring pan, incorporating all ingredients. Turn heat off. Greens will continue to cook. Do not overcook. Allow to to come to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Assemble the chicken: Sprinkle cheese on flattened chicken breasts and then top with the prepared greens mixture. Roll up as tightly as you can (don’t stress about it like I did; it will all work out) and tie each with three strings of kitchen twice, one in middle and one at each end (or however you want to tie them to keep these babies closed).
Roll the tied chicken in flour. Pan fry until browned, turning to each side. Finish in hot 375-degree oven for 10 to 20 minutes.
Allow chicken to rest at least 10 minutes before slicing.