Spinach & Broccoli potato bread stuffing

Spinach and Broccoli potato bread stuffing
(adapted from Emeril Lagasse's spinach artichoke stuffing recipe)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 1/2 pounds spinach, washed (3 cups cooked and roughly chopped)
• 2 cups chopped yellow onions
• 1 tablespoon roughly chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning blend
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 2 heads broccoli stemmed and chopped
  
• 2 large eggs
• 1 can cream of chicken
  
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 12 to 13 slices lightly toasted potato bread
• 1/2 cup milk
  
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the spinach and cook until just wilted, about 30 seconds. Drain and rinse with cold water. Once cool, squeeze as much water from spinach as possible, then roughly chop, and reserve.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until golden brown and tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, 2 teaspoons of Italian Seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cook, stirring, until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the Broccoli and cook, stirring, another 5-8 minutes. Remove from the heat and reserve.

Combine the eggs, cream of chicken, chicken stock, lemon juice, remaining 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and remaining 1 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the bread, spinach, broccoli mixture, milk, 1/4 cup Parmesan, and stir to combine. If bread does not absorb all of liquid immediately then let rest until this happens, about 20 minutes.

Pour the bread pudding mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Bake until firm in the center and golden brown, about 1 hour. Serve warm.

My Review
I made a lot of changes to the original to really make it my own. first of all: brie and heavy cream was substituted for Skim milk and cream of chicken. Artichoke was replaced with broccoli an french bread was replaced with potato bread. I managed to make this dish healthy by cutting out extra fat calories.

I <3 Stuffing! so to me, this recipe was really savory and tasty. I don't think stuffing should be reserved just for thanksgiving and holidays. It's a really creative dish that could be made anytime, in my opinion. I know the picture doesn't do it much justice, but it was so flavorful and yummy. Try it next time and let me know what you think.