Spinach and Artichoke Alfredo Chicken

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Take your weeknight meals to the next level with this easy and delicious Spinach and Artichoke Alfredo Chicken recipe. Perfect for busy schedules and picky eaters.

 

Yeah…it’s a mouthful I know. It still sounded better than Spinach Dip Chicken.  And well that doesn’t even let you know there’s artichokes in there. I saw this recipe from Emily Bites.  I immediately thought, “Add more cheese and pasta and voila!”  Cause you can’t have enough cheese and pasta in your life.  And I needed some way to use up the rest of the Romano blend I purchased. 

 

Which reminds me, I need to check my email to see what’s left to do that on the research study.  I did find out that the nearest shop that sells that cheese is 31 MILES AWAY!  In this area, that could be anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours.  You just never know in the DMV.

 

I didn’t plan my meals so great this week.  I didn’t have anything planned for Sunday, and wound up roasting a chicken.  Oh yeah, I need to post that one, too.  CRAP!  I didn’t put those pics up to use.  I wonder if they’re still on my phone.  This is how my brains works peeps.  It goes in leaps and bounds.  Sometimes I must explain to people how I made the leap.  They usually didn’t follow my train of logic.  It should be train wreck of logic.  *snort*

 

Oh yeah…chicken recipe.  That’s where I was!  So, I bought a roaster for Sunday, but planned THIS recipe for Monday.  Chicken back-to-back does not sit well with S.  He has chicken 75% of the time at work as it is.  He’s gonna grow feathers…I swear it.

 

So, Monday we had the Philly Sloppy Joes instead.  Those are good.  The sauce just never thickens up for me.  I wound up putting a little slurry in it so it would thicken so we could eat.  Those and some microwave fries.  *drool*

 

Chicken!  I’m getting there!  Sheesh!  So, yesterday I was fed up with the nasal congestion.  I mean 5 weeks is long enough, right?  And the pressure that kept me awake was the icing on the cake.  I called in and went to urgent care. 

My initial thought on this recipe was to put the chicken, chokes, and spinach in the slow cooker.  Then when I got home, I could make the alfredo sauce.  While that cooked, I could boil the pasta.  Then I could toss it all together and bake it in a casserole dish.  I might do that next time.  That would mean having to shred the chicken a bit I think.  If you do, you could save some calories and cut the chicken to 2 breasts.  I used three MEGA BREASTS about 7oz each.

 

 

So, I thawed the spinach and then wrung it out in an old tea towel.  I have one that’s kind of stained from spinach wringing that I use JUST for wringing spinach.  S said, “A tea towel?  Why?”  Me, “To wring out the spinach.  Draining it just doesn’t cut it.”  S, “Oh.”  *snort*

 

 

I SHOULD have chopped the artichokes a little more.  They were a bit chunky in the casserole.  I probably will do that next time.  Not that I don’t LOVE chokes, but maybe it’s just me; casserole ingredients should be about the same bite size.  I tossed the chokes and spinach in a large mixing bowl with 1/3 cup of the Romano cheese blend.

 

  

Instructions to make spinach and artichoke alfredo chicken

  

Then I chopped the chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces.  At this point, I started a pot of water to cook the penne pasta while the chicken cooked.  I sautéed the chicken over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes per side or until almost done.  I knew that they would sit a bit before I assembled and finished cooking the casserole and I didn’t want them to be too dry.  *shrugs*

 

Once the chicken and pasta were cooked, I could concentrate on the alfredo sauce for the casserole.  I combined 2 cups of skim milk and 2 T flour in a saucepan over medium heat; stirring with a whisk until thickened.  *giggles*  Here’s my “action” shot:

 

 

Once the milk mixture is thick, add the remaining 2/3 cup of the Roman cheese mixture along with a pinch of freshly ground nutmeg.

 

 

Whenever I make a bechamel or alfredo sauce, I always add a pinch of nutmeg.  I find that it truly does round out the flavor of the sauce if I do.  It’s not so much that most people will notice the flavor, but they will taste something in the background enhancing the sauce.

 

 

I combined all the elements in the large mixing bowl, then poured them into a casserole dish coated with cooking spray.  Then I topped it with 1 cup of shredded, part-skim, mozzarella cheese.

 

 

I baked the casserole in a 350 oven for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly on top.