Name: Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 6 to 8 Boneless Skinless Chicken Tenders; 1 cup Fresh Spinach, Shredded; 3 ounces Softened Cream Cheese; ⅓ cup half and half or Heavy Cream; 2 tsp Minced Garlic; ¼ tsp Salt; ½ tsp Onion Powder; ¼ tsp Chili Powder; ¼ tsp Black Pepper; 1 tsp Italian seasoning; ⅓ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese; ¼ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes, Chopped; 1 tbsp Olive Oil; ¾ cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese; 1 tbsp Dried Parsley

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Do you need another dinner recipe for using boneless skinless chicken that turns this often dull meat into something tasty? Our recipe for Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole combines the nutrition of boneless skinless chicken with a creamy sauce, savory herbs, and tangy tomatoes, combining it all with three different kinds of cheese.

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Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole

April Freeman

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 35 mins

Total Time 50 mins

Cuisine American, Italian

Servings Servings

Equipment

Oven
Small bowl
Electric Mixer
Aluminum foil
Pan
Meat thermometer

Ingredients

6 to 8 Boneless Skinless Chicken Tenders
1 cup Fresh Spinach, Shredded
3 ounces Softened Cream Cheese
⅓ cup half and half or Heavy Cream
2 tsp Minced Garlic
¼ tsp Salt
½ tsp Onion Powder
¼ tsp Chili Powder
¼ tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning
⅓ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
¼ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes, Chopped
1 tbsp Olive Oil
¾ cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1 tbsp Dried Parsley

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until it is smooth. Add the half and half or heavy cream along with the spinach.
Add one teaspoon of the minced garlic, reserving the remainder for later. Beat in the onion powder, salt, chili powder, pepper, and the Italian seasoning. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and half of the mozzarella cheese, reserving the remainder of the mozzarella for later.
Spray a nine inch square pan with cooking spray.
Place the chicken breasts in the prepared pan. Salt and pepper the chicken breasts and spread the remainder of the garlic on the chicken breasts.
Spread the cream cheese mixture over the top of the chicken pieces, dividing it equally atop the meat. Top the cream cheese with the sun dried tomatoes, scattering them evenly across the chicken. Drizzle all of this with a tablespoon of olive oil.
Top the whole casserole with the reserved mozzarella.
Cover the pan with aluminum foil. Put the pan in the oven for 20 minutes and then uncover the pan, removing the foil. Bake it for another 15 minutes until the chicken tests 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Notes

If you are new to cooking or you are teaching your teen or preteen how to cook, you may be looking for recipes that turn out well without being too hard. Basically, in this recipe you will season the meat, combine the cheeses, layer the ingredients in the pan, and top it all with more cheese. Then, you’ll bake it all together to make a dinner that everyone will love. The dish will be topped with bubbly, browned cheese and include beautiful red tomatoes and green spinach. It will look and smell so appealing that everyone will want to dive right in.

Your teen will definitely score a win with this recipe. The techniques are so simple that anyone can make a Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole with ease. One great thing about handing your child a sure-fire recipe is that they will become more confident in the kitchen and more willing to try again to make something that the whole family will eat.

You can add a side salad or a cooked green vegetable along with some sort of dinner roll to have a full meal that is easy, quick, and healthy. This recipe fulfills a variety of dietary limitations. If you eat a keto-based diet, a low carb diet, or gluten free diet, this is one recipe to add to your rotation because it fits into all of these categories. Even if you do not follow any particular diet, you will still enjoy eating Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole.

We used regular cream cheese in this recipe. However, if you are watching your grams of fat, you can substitute low fat cream cheese and use half and half instead of heavy cream. We also chose Parmesan cheese and mozzarella. We do think that other cheeses like Havarti or provolone would be wonderful options for this recipe.

One special feature of this recipe is that you can prepare it ahead of time, refrigerating it unbaked. Simply do all of the prep work right up until you should bake it. Instead of popping it into the oven, cover the baking pan with a lid or with aluminum foil. Then, you can refrigerate it for up to three days. When you are ready to bake the casserole, preheat the oven and bake the casserole as directed.

Making a casserole ahead of time is particularly useful when you have a busy week ahead of you. On a Saturday morning or a Sunday afternoon, you can prepare this casserole and have it ready to go when you walk in the door after a full day of work, soccer practice, and errands.

Keyword Baked Chicken Recipe, Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole, Baked Tuscan Chicken Casserole Recipe, Chicken Casserole Recipe