Chicken Spinach in a Casserole -Short Cut recipe – easy when cooking with kids!

This is a short cut recipe – when you truly do not have the energy or time to cook but want something relatively healthy that makes the house and kitchen smell great -and the kids will love it too! I adapted this from a Martha Stewart Living Recipe which she made with a creamy white sauce made with half and half – way too many calories for my liking – and the chicken stock sufficed instead of the cream. Hope you like it!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups bread  torn into small pieces
• 2 tablespoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cups spinach, washed
• 1/4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (skinless and boneless) – if you do not have time to pick up a cooked chicken, then take two raw breasts and two raw thighs – skinless and boneless – season with garlic salt and put into the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes with 1 tablespoon of olive oil – then shred the chicken and continue with the recipe as described
• Kosher salt
• Ground pepper
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Combine bread with 1 tablespoon oil; season with salt. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil over medium-high. Add spinach; season with salt. Cook, stirring, until wilted, 2 minutes. Transfer to a colander, let cool, then squeeze out water . Coarsely chop.
4. Wipe pot clean and heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil over medium. Add onion, garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 8 minutes.
5. Add lemon juice and bring mixture to a boil over high.
6. Remove from heat and stir in chopped spinach and chicken; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a 2-quart baking dish and top with bread pieces. Bake until bread is golden brown and mixture is bubbling, 8 to 10 minutes.

This is a one dish meal – and yummy!