BOURSIN CHICKEN
4 boneless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper, or seasonings of your choice
5.2 ounce package Boursin garlic and herb cheese *
10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained very well
2 tablespoons butter
To prepare the chicken, trim off any fat. Butterfly the chicken by making a shallow vertical cut into the middle of the thickest part of the breast and then running the knife horizontally toward the outside stopping within a quarter to half inch of the edge. Fold out the flap you just cut. Repeat by making a flap going in the opposite direction from the same center cut. Cover the chicken with a piece of plastic wrap and pound until it's a thin even thickness all over. Season on both sides with salt and pepper. I used Paula Deen's House Seasoning on mine. It's just a combination of salt, pepper and garlic powder.
Stir together the Boursin cheese and spinach. Place 1/4 of the spinach mixture in a pile in the center of each chicken breast. Fold all the sides of each breast up and over the filling to completely cover it. Gently squeeze the seam to seal the opening. Carefully place seam side down in a greased baking dish. I lined my pan with nonstick foil. Tuck in any stray ends of the chicken. Sprinkle with seasoning salt or garlic powder. Divide the butter into 4 equal pats and place one on top of each piece of chicken. Bake at 375º 25-30 minutes or until chicken juices are no longer pink. Serve at once.
* Do not use my Homemade Boursin Cheese Spread. It works fine in cold dishes, but won't hold up to the heat of baking.
Makes 4 servings
Freezing not recommended
Per Serving: 346 Calories; 23g Fat; 32g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 2g Net Carbs
I ended up only making three servings. I thought I'd bought a package of four chicken breasts but there turned out to only be three big ones. It still worked just fine but I could only eat half of one. This is delicious and very garlicky. I thought for sure that the Boursin cheese would leak out but it didn't even though my chicken breasts were a little raggedy. I used my seasoning salt on the tops to give them a little color. Click the photo above for a close-up. Here's a picture of one before I cut it open:
The original recipe called for some bread crumbs to be sprinkled on the top. If that appeals to you, you could do what my friend Nancy did with hers. She took some Flax Sandwich Buns (made without the caraway seeds) and processed them into crumbs. Then, she spread a little mayonnaise on the top of each piece of chicken, sprinkled them with seasonings then gently pressed the crumbs into the mayonnaise. I can't give you the carb counts for this version because I'm not sure of the exact amounts of the crumbs and mayonnaise. Here's a photo of hers:
