Cheesy, Creamy Spinach Stuffed Chicken

I’m gonna show you how to make stuffed chicken and wait until you see what’s inside. Hey everybody, it’s Natasha of natashaskitchen.com. Today we’re making a cheesy, creamy spinach stuffed chicken.

Why You’ll Love This

It’s easy to make, but tastes so fancy. I made this for my husband and he said I would order that in a restaurant. So two thumbs up. This is really easy to make, but seriously, it tastes fancy like something you’d order in a nice restaurant. It’s delicious. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Take a look at this. Take a look at that. Saucy, cheesy goodness. That’s what I’m talking about.

And then the filling, you know what it tastes like? It tastes like our creamy spinach and artichoke dip. It is so good. That’s what this filling tastes like. Creamy and cheesy. I love that it has two kinds of cheese in it. The Parmesan adds this nice layer of flavor. The mozzarella is the cheese pull that you see. That’s right. Don’t skip either of them. So good. Lots of spinach. Creamy, cheesy.

Ingredients

• 4 ounces of cold cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon of mayo
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt (for filling)
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups or about 1 1/2 ounces of fresh baby spinach leaves
• 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese
• 3 large chicken breasts (boneless and skinless, about 1 3/4 to 2 pounds in total)
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt (for seasoning)
• 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of paprika
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil

Chef’s Notes

This mixture already smells so good. Oh, yes. Winner, winner, chicken dinner. And I am so hungry for this. It smells amazing. Oh. I just got even hungrier. Are you hungry yet? Are you? I bet you are. My head is just swimming with enjoyment right now. Oh, that’s a big bite. And a saucy bite.

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a medium bowl, combine four ounces of cold cream cheese, one tablespoon of mayo, a quarter teaspoon of salt, two minced garlic cloves.
3. Mash those ingredients together with a fork.
4. Chop up your spinach.
5. Transfer that chopped spinach into your cream cheese mixture.
6. Add 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese.
7. Mash that into the cream cheese mixture just until everything is well combined.
8. Take three large chicken breasts.
9. Cut a slit about 3/4 of the way through the chicken breast.
10. Fill each chicken breast with about a third of the mixture.
11. Spread that mixture out slightly.
12. Seal that mixture inside of the chicken breast using two toothpicks per chicken breast, pushing them in horizontally to seal the two sides together.
13. Finish stuffing and sealing the other two chicken breasts.
14. Season to taste all over the outside of your chicken using three fourths teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of black pepper, half a teaspoon of garlic powder, and half a teaspoon of paprika.
15. Make sure to season both sides generously.
16. Place an oven safe skillet over medium heat.
17. Add one tablespoon of olive oil.
18. Once the oil is hot, add the stuffed chicken breasts and saute for four minutes per side over medium heat, or until each side is golden brown.
19. Carefully flip the chicken and cook another four minutes.
20. Using oven mitts for safety, transfer that hot skillet to the preheated oven and bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Cooking Tips

To easily peel a garlic clove, start by cutting off the ends and then smash them with the side of a knife. Once you’ve smashed it, the skin should peel off easily. For this recipe, feel free to use a garlic press. I use mine every excuse I get because it’s easier. You can use a garlic press if you want.

Also try to use even sized chicken breasts, that way they will cook more evenly. Make sure you don’t cut all the way through. You’re basically creating a deep large pocket to stuff the chicken breast.

Sealing the chicken breasts together like this ensures that most of your filling won’t leak out during the cooking process. If you’re using very large chicken breasts, you might use three toothpicks to seal it. The most important thing is to remember how many you put in there so you don’t forget to take out the toothpicks when serving. When sealing, it does help to place the chicken breast cut side up so that it’s facing you and this way it’s easier to see where the toothpick is going.

If the chicken is browning too quickly, you can reduce the heat, and if it’s not browning fast enough, turn the heat up. The chicken won’t be fully cooked through at this point, and that’s okay because we’re still gonna put these in the oven. The goal is just to get a beautiful sear and browning on the outside of the chicken breast.

To test for doneness, insert an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of your chicken, and it should register at 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

You do wanna let the chicken rest for about five minutes once it comes out of the oven. It’s always a good idea to rest your meat a little bit before slicing into it. That way it doesn’t juice out, and it has a chance to soak up all those yummy flavors. It’ll just taste better. You’ll see.

And the first thing you need to do when you make this chicken, okay, listen, this is super important. Take out the toothpicks because it would be very, very unfortunate if someone were to eat a toothpick. It’s not a nice surprise. So first things first, take out the toothpicks, and remember how many you put in each piece of chicken. They come out easy.

Baking it to the end is just so smart because the chicken gets perfectly cooked through without getting dry.

Serving Suggestions

Don’t miss that little bit of extra sauce that’s in the skillet because that is the good stuff, my friends. That is the good stuff.

I hope this becomes a new favorite way to make chicken. And we do have other stuffed chicken recipes because we just love stuffed chicken.