Weeknight Cooking

Creamy Tuscan Chicken

January 27, 2020
4
8 Ratings
Photo by Ty Mecham. Food Stylist: Anna Billingskog. Prop Stylist: Brooke Deonarine.
  • Prep time 10 minutes
  • Cook time 30 minutes
  • Serves 4
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Creamy Tuscan Chicken
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced (about 1/2-inch thick)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 3/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, or 2 teaspoons dried
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
  • 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
  • 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
  • 1 pound pasta, cooked, for serving (optional)
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Directions
  1. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl.
  2. Heat the olive oil in a very large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge the chicken cutlets in the flour mixture and once the oil is hot, cook the cutlets in the pan for about 2 minutes on each side until they are golden brown, and almost but not quite cooked through (they'll continue to cook in the sauce later). Transfer the cutlets to a large plate.
  3. Turn the heat down to medium and add the garlic. Stir for just 1 minute until you can smell the garlic. Add the chicken broth and stir so that any browned bit stuck to the bottom of the pan are released into the liquid. Stir in the cream, basil, oregano and Parmesan. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens, about 4 minutes.
  4. Stir in the spinach and tomatoes, and simmer for another 2 minutes or so, until the spinach is wilted and everything is well combined. Tuck the chicken back in the pan, with any juices that may have collected, making sure it is at least mostly covered by the sauce. Cook for 2 more minutes until the chicken is hot and cooked through.
  5. Either serve the chicken over the hot pasta, or transfer it to a serving dish. Sprinkle with the parsley, and serve hot with extra Parmesan passed on the side.

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Author of The Mom 100 Cookbook and themom100.com blog. A New Yorker, cook, and mom, I don't sit still very much.

6 Reviews

NXL January 3, 2021
I was disappointed with this recipe. The cream curdled and a lot of the parm stuck to the spoon.
Hanna February 27, 2020
5 stars - you need to make this! Super delicious, quick and easy - made this for my girlfriends on a Friday night and it came together in no time. Added a bit more spinach to have more veg and the sauce was enough for the added spinach. I didn't have fresh basil, but it was delicious with dried oregano only. I served it with spinach tagliatelle but any pasta would work. - Perfect for a weeknight but also great for company!
Jennifer D. February 2, 2020
I made this tonight and it is delicious. The freshness of the basil, tomatoes, and spinach is a nice balance with the cream. I served it with the pappardelle and it was perfect.
Mary B. January 29, 2020
I’m a little confused...in step 2 the recipe states that the chicken will continue cooking later in the oven but the recipe never mentioned the oven again. Also at the end it’s saying you can serve over “the pasta” as if that was part of the recipe. The pasta in the photo looks great and I can figure it out but there seem to be a few loose ends in the recipe as written.
Katie W. January 29, 2020
oh, shoot - some edits were made to the original recipe that caused the confusion. They are being changed now. The chicken will continue to cook in the sauce (not the oven), and the pasta in the ingredient lists was supposed to se3pficy that it was cooked and hot. No wonder you were confused.
Mary B. January 29, 2020
Thank you!