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At 12 Tomatoes, we’ve made a lot of chicken casseroles. Oftentimes, they’re ones that are a little bit retro in style and feature a can of soup and a crushed cracker, chip, or breadcrumb topping. You know the type — they’re creamy, they’re crunchy, they’re comforting. Well, this Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole is not that type of casserole. It is creamy and comforting — that’s true — but it’s a little more elevated than your basic casserole. With a creamy spinach and sundried tomato kissed sauce, it’s perfect for company but easy enough for any given weeknight too.
First, you’re going to start by cutting two chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you end up with four thin chicken breasts. Season those with salt and pepper, place them in a baking dish, and top them with some minced garlic.
Then, you’ll make your sauce, but don’t worry, it’s not complicated. Beat together some cream cheese, heavy cream, paprika, garlic, and Italian seasoning, and then mix in some mozzarella and parm for good measure.
Pour that allll over and around the chicken and then drizzle it with a little oil from the sundried tomato jar.
(And scatter some tomatoes over it too.)
That goes into the oven, covered, until the chicken cooks through, and then you’ll stir some spinach into the sauce, top it with more mozzarella, and pop it back in the oven.
At that point it should be melty and bubbly and beautiful. Chicken is a great companion to so many flavors and here it’s absolutely divine paired with that creamy, cheesy sauce and the tang of sun-dried tomatoes. It’s a showstopping bake!
Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 large chicken breasts, sliced in half horizontally
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
- 8 oz jar sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (drain, but reserve oil)
- 3/4 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise to create 4 thin chicken breasts. Arrange in a baking dish, season with salt and pepper, and half of the garlic. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and heavy cream until smooth. Add the remaining garlic, onion powder, paprika, Italian seasoning, and season with salt and pepper. Beat to combine, then add the parmesan cheese and half of the mozzarella and beat once more.
- Spread/pour the cream cheese mixture on top and around the chicken. Drizzle with about a tablespoon of the reserved sun-dried tomato oil and scatter sun-dried tomatoes around the dish.
- Cover dish loosely with foil and bake until chicken is cooked through (reaches an internal temperature of 165°F), about 20 minutes.
- Uncover chicken and stir spinach into sauce. Top with remaining mozzarella and return to oven, uncovered, to cook until cheese is melted and spinach has wilted, about 10 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from The Recipe Rebel.