Chicken breasts are coated in an irresistible creamy sun dried tomato sauce filled with spinach, delicious smoked paprika, parmesan, and topped up with salty crispy bacon. This Creamy Tuscan Chicken is an excellent restaurant quality dish and is definitely a winner of a chicken dinner!
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INGREDIENTS
1poundboneless skinless chicken, breast or thighs
4cupfresh spinach, washed and dried
6slicesbacon, chopped
4-5tablespoonsundried tomatoes, drained from oil, sliced
1cupheavy cream, or plant based cream, coconut cream
¼cupparmesan cheese, freshly grated
1teaspoonsmoked paprika
2tablespoonolive oil
2tablespoonbutter
salt and black pepper, to taste
½cupchicken broth, or more if you want more runny sauce
½cupbrown onion, or shallot diced fine
1teaspoongarlic, freshly minced
INSTRUCTIONS
Chop bacon into small pieces and cook in a dry pan (no oil) until slightly crispy. Set aside.
Cut chicken breasts in half lengthwise. Season with salt and black pepper, smoked paprika (I used 3 large chicken breast halves and slices them in half). For even cooking, I recommend pounding meat with tenderizer first.
Heat up a large skillet (or use the same but clean it from the bacon bits for less fat in your food) with olive oil over medium high heat, add butter stirring until melted. Cook seasoned chicken for 3 minutes on high heat (both sides) until nicely charred and golden brown. Set aside.
In the same pan add onion and saute in the chicken juices over medium-low heat. Add more oil if needed. Follow with sundried tomatoes and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds until garlic becomes fragrant. Add
Add spinach. Saute for a minute or until spinach reduces in size, pour in the chicken broth. Take it to a boil and then add heavy cream. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. TIP: If you have chicken broth that is already seasoned with salt and pepper then you might skip the seasoning for now or adjust it later. Simmer
Simmer the sauce on lower heat until it thickens. Don’t boil the cream!
Return the chicken to the pan, coat it with the sauce and cook for about 2-3 minutes on low heat.
Finally, stir in parmesan cheese until melted and fully incorporated in the sauce. Allow some time for the sauce to thicken.
Sprinkle with salty crispy bacon and garnish with parsley. Serve warm with your favorite sides!
VIDEO
NOTES
You can use heavy cream or plant-based soy cream or a can of full fat coconut milk instead.
Chicken breast: smaller and thinner ones or large ones (halves) cut into half lengthwise. Or use chicken tenders, chicken cutlets, or boneless chicken thighs. If you have thicker chicken breasts, you can pound them with a meat mallet to flatten them out.
Optional Seasonings: to enhance this dish even more add 1 or ½ teaspoon of Italian seasoning to your sauce.
To store: For best flavor, consume right away or the next day. Store cooled leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
To freeze: You can store leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. I dont recommend freezing it as with any heavy cream based auce, it may separate once thawed and reheated.