Kathy's Chicken Florentine

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - Visitors to the Food Network Web site can't seem to get enough of Paula Deen's Chicken Florentine.

It's one of the most popular recipes there, but even though that meal contains a generous amount of spinach, it's far from healthy.

Just one serving of Deen's casserole packs in 660 calories and 50 grams of fat. If you ate a Chicken Club sandwich from Wendy's instead, you'd save 120 calories and 25 fat grams.

So I lightened up this dish while keeping the taste that people love by using reduced-fat versions of cream-based soups, mayonnaise, sour cream and Cheddar cheese.

For the topping, I also make my own breadcrumbs from wheat bread and mix in light butter and a bit less Parmesan cheese.

My alterations to this recipe cut the calories by 49 percent and the fat by 71 percent. You can have a serving of my Chicken Florentine for 339 calories and 14.6 fat grams. Makes 8 servings.

___

KATHY'S CHICKEN FLORENTINE

Cooking spray

2 (10-ounce) packages of frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry

4 cups of cooked and chopped chicken breast

1 (10 ľ-ounce) can of reduced-fat, reduced- sodium cream of mushroom soup, such as Campbell's Healthy Choice, undiluted

1 (10 ľ-ounce) can of reduced-fat, reduced- sodium cream of chicken soup, undiluted

˝ cup light mayonnaise

˝ cup light sour cream

1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese made with 2 percent milk

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/3 cup dry white wine

Ľ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 slice light wheat bread, such as Sara Lee's Delightful

2 tablespoons light butter, melted

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the spinach and chicken in a large bowl.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the soups, mayonnaise, sour cream, Cheddar cheese, lemon juice, curry powder, wine and salt and pepper to taste. Once blended, pour the mixture over the spinach and chicken.

Put the mixture into an 11x7 casserole dish that has been lightly coated with cooking spray. Tear the bread into several pieces and use a mini chopper to process the bread into fine crumbs. In a small bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and light butter. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the casserole. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Makes 8 servings. Per serving: 339 calories, 14.6 fat grams, 28 protein grams, 16 carb grams, 857mg sodium, 2 fiber grams, 81mg cholesterol

___

© 2008, The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kan.).