A hearty yet simple baked stuffed chicken breast filled with cream cheese, spinach, and tons of flavor. It's a WHOLE LOTTA YUM!
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Stuffed Chicken with Spinach
You'll love this spinach cream cheese stuffed chicken baked in the oven when you want to serve an impressive yet easy dinner! Even better, it's low carb, gluten-free, and keto friendly too.
You just mix up a simple filling, slice a chicken breast almost all the way through, add a large dollop of filling, give it a quick sear (which is optional!) and bake.
Our baked stuffed chicken recipe with spinach and cream cheese was inspired by our popular Instant Pot spinach artichoke dip filled with boneless skinless chicken breasts. Definitely a crowd-pleaser!
But instead of eating dip for dinner, we made it into a chicken breast recipe you'll want to make time and time again. Be sure to read our list of variations for even more ways to stuff chicken!
Why You'll Love This!
- Impressive!: Our stuffed chicken breast recipe with spinach and cream cheese is easy to put together but super elegant to serve.
- Healthy yet full of flavor: This dish combines lean protein from the chicken, leafy greens from the spinach, and a touch of indulgence from the cream cheese, mozzarella, and parmesan. You of course can cut the cheeses back even more if preferred.
- Low carb, gluten-free, and keto friendly!
- Easy to customize: The base for our baked stuffed chicken breast recipe can be easily modified to change up the flavors.
- Cooking baked stuffed chicken breasts makes this recipe even easier! We do love a quick pan sear on stove for browning, but you can skip that and just pop it straight into the oven.
Ingredient Notes
While we went with a cheesy spinach filling with lots of garlic and 3 kinds of cheese, you really can simplify things even more.
Why not experiment and make it your own by using different kinds of cheese, adding in bacon, skipping the spinach, or whatever else your tastebuds and creativity can think up.
- small boneless skinless chicken breasts - if you have large chicken breasts just bake them for longer until they reach 165 F. Boneless skinless chicken thighs work too but will hold less filling per chicken piece.
- fine sea salt
- ground black
- smoked paprika
- ground garlic powder
- cream cheese - ricotta cheese would be a great substitute
- mozzarella cheese
- parmesan cheese
- Fresh spinach leaves- We used fresh baby spinach, frozen spinach would also work, just make sure to squeeze out extra moisture
- mayonnaise
- garlic cloves
- extra virgin olive oil
- butter - we love the taste of mixing olive oil and butter for searing the chicken, but you of course can just use extra olive oil!
- green onions - an optional garnish, fresh herbs would be a nice touch also.
** Please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the exact quantities **
Supplies You'll Need
- Large cast iron skillet - or large baking dish
- Small bowl - for combining the spinach cheese mixture
- Sharp knife - for butterflying the chicken breast. It must be sharp to easily slice through.
How to Make Stuffed Chicken Breast
Don't be intimated by making our spinach stuffed chicken breast! It's really easier than it might at first seem. Mix the filling, slice the chicken in half, stuff it with filling, and bake. Easy yet so impressive!
Make the Filling
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Step 2: In a small mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, mozzarella shredded cheese, parmesan cheese, chopped fresh spinach, mayo, and garlic cloves.
Prep the Chicken
Step 3: Lay chicken on a cutting board and butterfly the chicken by cutting a slit ¾ of the way through. Sprinkle the outside of the chicken with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder.
Step 4: Stuff the chicken breasts with spinach cream cheese filling. Secure the edges of each chicken breast with 3-4 toothpicks to keep the filling inside.
How long to cook stuffed chicken breast?
Step 5: Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil. Saute the chicken for 3-4 minutes on each side to brown the chicken.
Step 6: Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake the chicken breasts for 10-15 more minutes until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 F.
Garnish with sliced green onions or fresh herbs, if desired, before serving. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- We like our chicken breasts very full, but if you have leftover filling just thin it out with a bit more sour cream and make spinach dip!
- You can make this a Mediterranean style chicken dish by adding in sun dried tomatoes in oil (drained), chopped artichoke hearts, and swapping the mozzarella cheese for feta cheese.
- Another way to hold the chicken filling in place is to wrap the stuffed chicken breasts with raw bacon slices instead of toothpicks.
- If you don't have a cast iron or oven proof skillet, sear the chicken on the stovetop and then transfer them to a casserole dish or baking pan.
- Instead of sautéing the chicken, you can just bake the entire dish for 30-40 minutes.
Recipe Variations
To make the stuffed chicken ideas extra creamy you'll want to add a soft cheese like cream cheese, ricotta cheese, goat cheese, feta, or cottage cheese to our ideas listed below!
- Mozzarella and Sun-dried Tomato: Combine fresh mozzarella cheese, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and a hint of garlic.
- Feta and Spinach: Mix crumbled feta cheese, sautéed spinach, and a dash of nutmeg.
- Brie and Apple: Combine creamy brie cheese with tart green apples and add a sprinkle of thyme.
- Mushroom and Swiss: Sauté a mix of your favorite mushrooms with onions and garlic, then combine with Swiss cheese.
- Goat Cheese and Roasted Red Pepper: Blend creamy goat cheese with roasted red peppers and fresh basil.
- Bacon and Cheddar: Use cooked crumbled bacon, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, and a touch of barbecue sauce.
- Parmesan and Artichoke: Combine grated parmesan cheese, chopped artichoke hearts, and a bit of lemon zest.
- Prosciutto and Gorgonzola: Layer thin slices of prosciutto with crumbled gorgonzola and arugula.
- Ricotta and Fresh Herbs: Mix creamy ricotta with a blend of fresh herbs such as parsley, dill, and chives.
- Pesto and Pine Nut: Use a spoonful of homemade pesto sauce, and add in toasted pine nuts for extra crunch.
What Goes with Stuffed Chicken Breast?
- Vegetables: Steamed or roasted veggies like broccoli, brussels sprouts, or carrots. Or grilled vegetables like asparagus.
- Salad: An easy green salad, grocery store salad, or a tangy coleslaw.
- Grains: Quinoa, brown rice, white rice, or a wild rice blend.
- Potatoes: Mashed, roasted, or baked potatoes always go well with baked stuffed chicken breast. For a lighter option, make cauliflower mash.
- Pasta
- Bread
Storing & Reheating Stuffed Chicken
- Storing: Let the chicken cool completely. Store the leftover stuffed chicken breasts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
- Freeze: To freeze them for later use, individually wrap each breast in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Frozen chicken breasts can last up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Bake the leftover chicken breasts in a heated oven at 350°F for 15-20 minutes, or until heated through to 165°F .
FAQ's for Stuffed Chicken Breasts
The best way to prevent cheese from leaking out of the baked stuffed chicken recipe is to secure the edges with toothpicks. You can also wrap the chicken breasts with bacon, which does a great job of holding in the filling. If you still have issues with leaky cheese, we recommend cutting back on the filling.
Using a very sharp knife is essential and will easily slice through the chicken meat. You don't want to cut all the way through the chicken and instead you want to "butterfly" the chicken by cutting about ¾ of the way through so the meat can fold over your filling.
More Chicken Dinner Recipes
If you loved our baked stuffed chicken breasts then you'll love these creamy low carb chicken dinner ideas too!
If you loved our recipe, please leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review and leave us a comment too! Connect with us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube!
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Spinach Cream Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast
A hearty yet simple baked stuffed chicken breast filled with cream cheese, spinach, and tons of flavor. You'll love this spinach cream cheese stuffed chicken recipe when you want to serve an impressive yet easy dinner!
Ingredients
- 4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ ground garlic powder
- 6 oz cream cheese, softened
- ⅓ cup mozzarella cheese
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 ½ cups baby spinach leaves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon sliced green onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, chopped spinach, mayo, and garlic cloves.
- Lay chicken on a cutting board and butterfly the chicken by cutting a slit ¾ of the way through. Sprinkle the outside of the chicken with the salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder.
- Stuff the chicken breasts with spinach cream cheese filling. Secure the edges of each chicken breast with 3-4 toothpicks to keep the filling inside.
- Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil. Saute the chicken for 3-4 minutes on each side to brown the chicken.
- Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake the chicken breasts for 10-15 more minutes until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 F.
- Garnish with sliced green onions before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- We like our chicken breasts very full, but if you have leftover filling just thin it out with a bit more sour cream and make spinach dip!
- You can make this a Mediterranean style chicken dish by adding in sun dried tomatoes in oil (drained), chopped artichoke hearts, and swapping the mozzarella cheese for feta cheese.
- Another way to hold the chicken filling in place is to wrap the stuffed chicken breasts with raw bacon slices instead of toothpicks.
- If you don't have a cast iron or oven proof skillet, sear the chicken on the stovetop and then transfer them to a casserole dish or baking pan.
- Instead of sauteeing the chicken, you can just bake the entire dish for 30-40 minutes.
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