Yummy Monday October 9- Chicken Breast w/ honey mustard sauce

Baked Chicken Breast with Honey Mustard Sauce

Honey mustard sauces go well with many dishes. It is a delicious part of this chicken recipe with the additional nutrition and flavor of the walnuts, apricots and spinach. It is a great way to enjoy the healthy benefits of both chicken and spinach with a rich tasting, yet light sauce that is healthier than other high fat sauces. You can actually substitute any nut in this receipe or make it even lower fat and lower calories by leaving the nuts off (but what fun would that be?)

Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 TBS fresh lemon juice
2 ½ TBS honey
2 TBS Dijon mustard
¼ cup sliced dried apricots
2 TBS coarsely chopped walnuts
1 TBS chopped parsley
4 bunches fresh spinach, stems removed and rinsed thoroughly
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Place chicken breasts in baking dish. Season with salt and pepper and cover. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until done.
While chicken is baking, bring salted water to a boil to cook spinach.
While water is coming to a boil, begin sauce. Combine broth, lemon juice, honey, and mustard in a small saucepan. Whisk together and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it comes to a boil, simmer for about 20 minutes. This can be cooking while chicken is baking. You want it to be reduced to a little less than half the volume you start with. This will thicken and intensify the flavor.
Add apricots and cook on high for another 5 minutes. When sauce is done add chopped walnuts, parsley, salt and pepper.
Cook spinach for only 2 minutes at the most. Drain and press dry. Season with a little salt and pepper. Divide spinach between 4 plates. Slice chicken breast and place over bed of spinach. Spoon sauce over chicken and spinach.

Serves 4

My Darling Husband Bret's Cooking Tips (cause ya'll know I'm not exactly a domestic Goddess):

Make sure you cover the chicken when baking so it doesn't dry out. He uses a ceramic baking dish with glass cover. It is also important to not over cook the chicken. Bret claims this is why my chicken is always soooooo dry. He's right. Cut the breast in the thickest part as it nears total cook time. If the meat is white, it's time to pull it out while it's still moist. So, it is best to start checking it after about 18-20 minutes. The center of the breast should read 160 with an instant reading thermometer, and the juices run clear.