I was inspired to make this dish by a similar dish my husband made earlier in the week for some of our friends. Although my husband used lower fat options in his dish, I wanted to try and further reduce the calories and add some additional nutrition to the dish.
A few of the substitutions that I made included using Skinny Cow Light Swiss wedges instead of cream cheese and using whole ground flaxseed meal instead of bread crumbs. This was my first time cooking with the flaxseed meal. The flaxseed only provided a mild flavor with a nutty taste, however I enjoyed the added crunch it offered the dish. I used Bob’s Red Mill flaxseed meal that I purchased at Trader Joe’s.
The flaxseed substitution added additional fiber, protein, and omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3 fatty acids have been associated with improvement in cancer and cardiovascular disease as well as acting as an anti-inflammatory.
Although the Skinny Cow cheese wedges offer a lower calorie cheese option, they still provided a bit more fat content than I was hoping for. To further lower the cheese and fat content I would cut the number of wedges used in the recipe by 25-50% and substitute with fat-free plain greek yogurt.
Let’s get cooking!
Ingredients:
4-3 oz chicken breasts
4 Laughing Cow light swiss cheese wedges
2 egg whites (scrambled)
1 cup raw spinach chopped
1 teaspoon minced basil
4 teaspoons parmesan cheese
8 tablespoons flaxseed meal (can also use bread crumbs)
12 toothpicks
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit.
2. Pound chicken breast to about 1/2 inch thickness.
3. Mix together cheese wedges, spinach, basil, and parmesan cheese.
4. Lightly sprinkle salt and pepper to one side of chicken.
5. Spread 1/4 of cheese mixture on one side of the chicken (side with salt and pepper) – repeat for remaining chicken breasts
6. Roll up each chicken breast and secure with 2-3 toothpicks.
7. Dip chicken into egg whites, roll in flaxseed meal. Place chicken breasts in a glass baking dish sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray.
8. Cook for approximately 30-35 minutes or until no longer pink.