Mediterranean Baked Chicken

Grocery shopping...a chore most of us despise. I think I am part of a small percentage of people that look at it like a field trip and a game. How little can I spend on some good quality food to make most of what you see here? And how fast can I get in and out of the store without running into someone I see to distract me from be beating my record of 28 minutes?

I usually at least write a list of stuff I need, but it never makes it to the store with me and sits on my kitchen counter. I was in the mood for something Italian but didn't want to make the traditional sauce. I've been trying to eat a little "lighter" lately and have been making some killer salads. Yeah, serious salads. But I was channeling my inner Italian, or my mom's antipasto squares, and ended up with salami, pepperoni, provolone cheese, kalamata olives, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, spinach and feta cheese in my cart.  If this was served with a huge end piece of fresh Italian bread, I would be in heaven.

My intentions when I started cooking were to make a tomato florentine soup.  I blended the rest of my tomatoes from the garden and began cooking it down, mixed with some chicken stock. I thew in some of my fresh spinach and grated cheese and garlic. It smelled amazing, buuuuut, it just wasn't feeling like soup weather so I put in the fridge and ate a salad instead.

All day long I think about food. My meals are sometimes planned while I'm daydreaming at work or on the spot when I open my fridge. This one I'd been drooling over out for a bit...




Mediterranean Chicken
Serves 2

• 2 large chicken breasts
• 1 cup crushed tomatoes (I used fresh but you can use a can)
• 1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives
• 4 artichoke hearts
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese 
• 1/4 cup breads crumbs
• salt and pepper
• dried parsley
• basil (I had frozen but dried will work okay too)
• French bread

Preheat oven to 350.
In a shallow baking dish, drizzle a little bit of olive oil and out your chicken breasts in (trim the fat, please!).
Toss in your garlic cloves, WHOLE!

Drizzle a litle bit of olive oil on top of the chicken then sprinkle the bread crumbs.

Cover and bake about 20 minutes then remove the cover, add the olives and artichoke hearts and bake another 10 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165 degrees. You want the chicken to have a light golden brown top.

While the chicken is cooking, prep your other ingredients, which there aren't many. 
In a pan over medium low heat, heat up your crushed tomatoes. Add the spinach, basil and parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste (This is where my "soup" comes in).

Prep your crostini. Slice the bread diagonally, just because it looks fancier. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, or butter.  *I would add this in the oven during the last few minutes the chicken is baking. You can sprinkle some garlic powder or oregano on it if you'd like.

Now that everything's done, the plating is the most important part!

Spoon some tomato/spinach "sauce" on a plate.
Add a lovely little chicken breast. Be sure to scoop some olives, artichokes and entire cloves of garlic on top too.
Sprinkle with some feta cheese and parsley.
Serve with at least 2 pieces of crostini to sop up all the delicious flavors left behind.

This was really really really good! And gone in seconds...

Mangia!