Greek Lemon Artichoke Chicken - Summer Ale

Greek Lemon Artichoke Chicken

Weight watchers points - 5/serving

Servings - 4

2 chicken breasts

1 T Greek seasoning

1 can drained and chopped artichoke hearts

4T lemon juice

4 T reduced fat feta

Olive oil cooking spray

1.       Preheat oven to 450

2.       Cut Chicken breast in half

3.       Sprinkle each side of chicken & artichoke hearts with Greek seasoning

4.       Place chicken into baking dish

5.       Pour artichoke hearts over chicken

6.       Spray with olive oil cooking spray

7.       Pour lemon juice over chicken and artichokes

8.       Bake 20 minutes

9.       Add feta over top of dish

10.   Bake another 5-10 minutes until chicken juice run clear

I made this for dinner and served with orzo.  If you are going to serve this as an appetizer or bar food serve as kabobs or in pitas.  This was simple to make and very delicious.  I will definitely be adding this to my quick week night meal list.  I considered making my own Greek spice blend, but was simply to lazy.  I decided it was good to have it on hand because we do like Greek.  The premade blends – it usually contains salt, pepper, garlic, oregano (a key component), onion powder, parsley, paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme.  There are recipes online if you decide to make your own.

I am pairing this with Brooklyn Summer Ale.  I actually got the idea from another website talking about as a good pair for Greek food and they were right.  http://www.examiner.com/beer-pairing-in-new-york/beer-pairing-101-what-beer-goes-with-greek-food

Brooklyn brewery as you may have guessed is located in Brooklyn, NY.  To date Mike and I have had a lot beer from Midwest and Texas, being our home states as well as Colorado and the west coast due to vacations.  But the east has been minimal exposure.  Brooklyn Brewery is definitely one we have tried many times though.  Mike loves Brookyln Local 1, their strong pale ale which I am sure I will pair in the future.  We gave Brooklyn Local 2, their Belgian strong dark ale to a friend for his birthday and it was a big hit. 

For the Brooklyn Summer Ale, I am definitely still inspired to stink with summer beers.  It is 100+ everyday in Dallas these days and anything less isn’t refreshing enough or is simply too heavy.    This is an easy drinking beer.  It is malty with slight hops.  It definitely has a strong lemony and citrusy flavor.  This allows it to pair well with Greek food that often as that lemon flavor through it, this dish definitely does. 

Spinach artichoke flatbread – Witbier

Spinach artichoke flatbread – Witbier

weight watchers - 1 pt/piece

Servings - about 20 pieces

1/2 box frozen spinach (cooked and drained)

1/2 can quartered artichoke hearts (drained & chopped)

2 cloves garlic

3 T light sour cream

3 T light cream cheese

1T ranch seasoning

3 T parmesan cheese

3 T part skim mozzarella

Refrigerated pizza dough or fresh dough or Naan

1.       Pre cook pizza dough on cookie sheet for 10 mins at 400 degrees

2.       Put all ingredients (except cheeses) in bowl and microwave for 1 min

3.       Spread mixture over pizza dough. 

4.       Sprinkle cheese over top

5.       Cook 10 more minutes

6.       Cut into squares

I made this for a 4^th of July party and it was a hit and very easy to make.  I would pair a Witbier with this and serve this a summer appetizer.  I chose flying dog woody creek Belgian white.  It is a summer seasonal beer.  It is refreshing, light, citrusy and has a touch of coriander.  A very nice beer for a hot summer day.  Flying Dog is a Maryland base brewery that we love.

Chicken, Spinach Artichoke Pinwheels - Wheat Ale

This week has been a tough one for me not cooking and obviously not posting.  I have been sick yet again.  This was a really easy recipe I made with left over spinach artichoke dip from my previous post.

Chicken, Spinach Artichoke Pinwheels
Weight Watchers Points – 4 points
Servings - 4

2 chicken breasts
4T leftover spinach artichoke dip
salt & pepper

1.      Preheat oven to 400

2.      Butterfly and pound chicken breasts out to about ¼ of an inch

3.      Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper

4.      Place 2T of spinach artichoke dip ontop side of each breast

5.      Roll chicken breast up and secure with toothpicks or string

6.      Bake chicken for about 25-30 minutes

7.      Slice chicken into slices creating pinwheels, can be secured with toothpicks if using as an appetizer

When I made this for dinner for me and mike, I served with sweet potato fries and it was a full, easy and delicious dinner.

A new favorite summer time beer of mine is Rahr & Sons Summertime Wheat Ale.  This also has a sweet spice in the background of cloves, which I love!  This is also a local beer being brewed in Fort Worth which we love to support.  We plan to tour that brewery when its not so hot anymore so if you want to join us, let us know.  It does have a pretty strong wheat and grain flavor to it, but then again its called a Wheal Ale.  The spice and the sweet citrus background adds a great contrast.  It’s a little expensive in liquor stores, so look for it on sale.