I call my mom pretty much every day on my walk home from work. We talk about how our days went, what’s new with family, and of course, what we’re having for dinner. I love hearing what my mom is making – she’s usually just finished cooking when I’m walking home – and it often inspires me to cook up something similar.

Last week my mom mentioned she was cooking a dish I have always loved – chicken marinara with spinach and mozzarella. She makes a huge portion of it for her and my dad and they eat it as leftovers the next day. I happened to have a whole bag of spinach on hand and had planned to make a spring spinach salad, but when the weather turned cold again (brr!) I was yearning for something comforting. And this was perfect! Even B – the vegetable hater – ended up eating his with the spinach.

Chicken Marinara with Spinach and Mozzarella

Here’s what you need (serves 4):

• 1 bag of spinach (serves 3)
• 1/4 c flour + salt and pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breasts (or 8 chicken tenderloins)
• 3-5 tbs butter (hey i said it was comfort food!)
• 1 c tomato sauce (I just make my own)
• 4 slices mozzarella cheese

Here’s what you do:

• First, cook the spinach. Spray a pan with Pam and cook spinach. As the spinach starts to wilt, add 1 tbs of butter and salt/pepper to flavor and soften the spinach.  After wilted, remove from heat and set aside.
• While the spinach is cooking, pound chicken breasts until they are 1/2 – 1 inch thickness (if you’re using tenderloins, you can skip this step)
• Coat chicken in the flour / salt / pepper combo thoroughly.
• In a large pan that will hold all the chicken breasts, plus some extra space, melt the rest of the butter. Cook the chicken until they are brown on each side. You can add additional butter (or oil) to the pan if needed.
• After the chicken is browned, top with the spinach. Then, top each chicken/spinach with a slice of mozzarella.
• Pour the tomato sauce onto the pan, around each piece of chicken (not on TOP of the chicken). Cook on medium heat and then reduce to a simmer while the cheese melts.

Enjoy the cheesy/saucy goodness. If that isn’t comfort food for a chilly spring night, I don’t know what is!

I made mine with extra spinach and served with spinach and zucchini fries. B got pasta as well.