Spinach & Bacon Smothered Chicken

The fall has been good to us this year. Beautiful, vibrant colors and the most delightful sunny days have been our normal. Such amazing weather can temporarily transport you back to the summer heat, but then you are reminded when the leaves continue to fall, that autumn is more than already upon us.

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We have spent a large amount of our time outside this year and I have loved the fresh breeze on our faces, and the pure happiness being outside brings.

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I hope you have been able to enjoy all that autumn’s beauty gives us and if not, it is not too late! Go outside and play in the leaves!

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If the weather is a little dreary in your neighborhood, then pour yourself a steamy hot cup of coffee or a nice smooth glass of wine, either works just fine. Then break out all the ingredients for this delicious dish and get cooking! While it is easy to make (always a winner in my book), it has so much flavor and feels like quite the fancy dinner! It’s definitely a hit with guests!

Spinach & Bacon Smothered Chicken

Makes 4 servings

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Ingredients

  • 1 lb chicken breast, cut into 4 pieces
  • Salt, pepper and garlic powder {to season chicken}
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 tsp minced garlic
  • 9 oz fresh spinach
  • 2/3 cup light cream
  • 2/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 cup of shredded cheese of choice {more mozzarella, pepper jack, cheddar, etc}
  • 1/2 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Season chicken breasts on both sides with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Spray a 9X13 baking dish with nonstick spray and place chicken in baking dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Heat tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat in medium/large skillet.

In the skillet, add your spinach and sauté allowing spinach to wilt down.  Add in minced garlic, sauté until fragrant. Then add in light cream. Bring to a light boil and remove from heat. Stir in your shredded mozzarella and grated parmesan cheese. Place back onto heat, turn down to simmer and keep stirring until you have a smooth creamy spinach. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon creamed spinach over chicken breasts evenly, then top with crumbled bacon and shredded cheese of choice.

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Place into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until chicken cooked through. Then, turn the oven to broil on high and allow cheese to become slightly browned and bubbly. Remove from oven and enjoy!

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This recipe is delicious and easy to make! The best creamed spinach I’ve tasted! So you can try that as a regular side dish!

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Pair it with any side that you fancy. Or just eat it alone, you could do that. You can do anything you want.

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Happy Eating!

Do you have a favorite creamed spinach recipe?

Cajun Chicken & Cheddar Zucchini Skillet

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There are so many resources out there to inspire delicious, homemade meals. Between the internet, social media, magazines and cookbooks, I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to make all the things I want to. But man, I am going to try 🙂

I can spend hours just looking at recipes and often get sucked in when I should be doing something that really needs my attention, like laundry. Life is short though, and laundry happens every day. So what if we don’t have socks, isn’t that why they made sandals? I believe so!

While cruising along Pinterest one night, I stumbled across this recipe for White Cheddar Chicken and Zucchini, and immediately I knew I had to make it. Like all other recipes I find, I needed to make it and in doing so, make it my own. Hands down, I give all recognition for the inspiration of this dish to the original blogger, but I made some changes to better suit our tastes and current eating habits.

Which means, I added some spice, garlic and the almighty food that makes every recipe better- BACON! I also omitted the panko bread crumbs due to our low carb lifestyle.

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This dish has so much flavor, and is easy to make! I hope you try it!

Cajun Chicken & Cheddar Zucchini Skillet

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Ingredients

  • 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into large chunks
  • 1-2 tbsp of Cajun seasoning {depending on taste}
  • 1 tsp salt, divided
  • 1  tsp black pepper, divided
  • 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder, divided
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 tsp minced garlic
  • 2 medium zucchini, sliced into rounds
  • 1 medium yellow squash, sliced into rounds
  • 4 oz of shredded cheddar cheese
  • 6 slices of cooked bacon, diced

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare zucchini and onions but cutting them first.

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In a bowl, season chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 1 teaspoon garlic powder. Add Cajun seasoning to your liking, between 1-2 tablespoons.

In a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat.

Saute chicken on each side for 4-5 minutes until browned. Remove from skillet and place in a separate dish.

To the same skillet, add diced onions and sauté for 2 minutes until starting to soften. Add minced garlic, and sauté until fragrant, 1-2 minutes.

Then add zucchini and yellow squash to skillet, season with remaining salt, pepper and garlic powder. Combine zucchini and onions well. Place chicken on top of the zucchini and squash and place into the oven.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through and zucchini is tender. Then top with shredded cheddar and bacon. Place back into the oven and broil on high until cheese is melted and bubbling.

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This is a meal full of amazing flavors and I highly recommend you try it!

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There is something spectacular to be said about dinners made entirely in one pan because who likes to wash dishes after dinner?! Nobody.

Happy Eating!!

Menu Plan Monday #2

Happy Monday!!

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend! My weekend was spent working, but it was a good one and it passed by in a flash! Despite some long days, we still were able to enjoy a little excitement at a family party, and it’s just another reminder as to how grateful I am for this season in life.

I don’t know if it is my age, or where I  currently am in life, but I just find such joy in little simple things. Friday morning I looked out the window and saw a sunbeam shining through my favorite willow tree. It made my heart so happy! I just had to take a picture!

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I’m also grateful that we are surrounded by such beautiful people who we love dearly, like these two! My momma and nephew ::swoon::

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I hope you feel the same, and if for some reason you don’t- always remember you can make changes, and find the ones who are meant to be in your lives!

With that said, I hope you also were able to enjoy some good eats last week! Our week was busy, so quick meals were on the menu.

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**Menu Plan Monday was inspired by my constant need to know what everyone is eating. Whether it be the blogs I love reading, or the people in my real life who I enjoy thoroughly.  I try to make two new recipes a week while rotating the other days with our favorite go to meals, one leftover day and one free for all day. Free for all days could mean leftovers, a quick easy meal, or just eating whatever we fancy (breakfast foods always win for me). Here’s a look at last week….

Monday

Who doesn’t enjoy an easy meal that comes together with loads of flavor? For some reason, I had been craving Beef Stroganoff in a bad way, so we made it happen! Served over  this low carb pasta that I have been enjoying from time to time, so I don’t detour from my own personal goals.

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Tuesday

Late work day, so leftovers of meal mentioned above were consumed

Wednesday

New recipe of the week, Bacon Ranch Chicken – we enjoyed this as a quick easy meal.

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Thursday

Creamy Salsa Chicken – I made mine into a very ugly “bowl” but hey, this is real life, right? We also never eat corn but had leftovers so it’s what got thrown in! No waste household over here 🙂

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Friday

Free for All- the mister had leftover Creamy Salsa Chicken and I had a Low Carb Cheese Quesadilla for a quick treat after work

Saturday

Family party

Sunday

Summer comfort right here. Hotdogs, and low carb onion rings made by my mister. He does love me, haha. I sent him this recipe, and he made it happen! They were tasty!

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Life is all about moderation and sometimes I do plan easy meals that we can just throw together in minutes, because it’s better than going out to eat when you are busy! Meal planning allows me to always figure out what is best for us, for a particular week.

I’m thinking this next week needs to include a better variety of vegetables, and I have it all planned out! Until next week..

Happy Eating!