Chicken Florentine Style
If you've ever had one of those creamy meals that feels heavy yet comforting, add this one to the recipe mix so you don't wither away to nothing. I added the cream cheese because Jessica had a recipe (that she never sent me) requiring cream cheese (but I also never asked). Since I bought the cream cheese I decided to throw it in for good measure. One should never have over aggressive heart health after all.
I also sauteed fresh spinach in butter rather than the frozen crap they show in this recipe. I had enough of that mush growing up. This man only uses fresh spinach!
Finally, I included halved Brussel sprouts and steamed them to round out the epitomy of good health from green things. Seriously, low fat meat (chicken) and two greens in one meal!? How can your cholesterol laden veins say no?
Oh, and then cover it all with the rich, creamy goodness of the sauce you worked so hard on. Now that's a heart attack waiting to happen some day. But not today, so eat up!
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- All-purpose flour, for dredging
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons shallots, sliced
- 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
- 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
- 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen cut-leaf spinach, thawed, drained
Directions
- Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour to coat lightly. Shake off any excess flour. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and tent with foil to keep it warm.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are translucent, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, about 1 minute. Add the wine. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the liquid is reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the cream cheese and whisk until no longer chunky. Add the cream and boil until the sauce reduces by half, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Stir in the parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and any accumulated juices to the sauce, and turn the chicken to coat in the sauce.
- Meanwhile, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in another large skillet over medium heat. Add the spinach and saute until heated through. Season the spinach, to taste, with salt and pepper. Arrange the spinach over a platter. Place the chicken atop the spinach. Pour the sauce over and serve.