This Baked Tuscan Chicken Breast recipe is an easy meal ready in 30 minutes or less! With a creamy sauce that’s perfect over pasta, it’s one of our favorite chicken breast recipes.
See the step-by-step recipe video on the recipe card.
We’ve always loved the creamy Italian-inspired flavors of these Creamy Tuscan Chicken Recipe, this Crockpot Chicken and Potatoes, this Crockpot Tuscan Chicken and this Tuscan Chicken Pasta Bake!
This Baked Tuscan Chicken is an Italian-inspired dish that’s as effortless as it is impressive!
Juicy baked chicken breasts are bathed in a rich, velvety cream sauce infused with the bold flavors of sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan, and fresh baby spinach.
Ready in just 30 minutes, it’s the perfect solution for a delicious dinner that feels fancy enough for guests but requires minimal effort.
Why you’ll love this creamy Baked Tuscan Chicken:
- Quick and easy: Ready in just 30 minutes, perfect for busy weeknights or last-minute dinners!
- Effortless: Almost all of the sauce ingredients are added right to the pan, and everything cooks at once. There’s no simmering on the stove or extra hassle!
- Comfort food: Juicy chicken and a creamy, flavorful sauce make this dish cozy and satisfying.
Creamy Baked Chicken Breasts ingredients:
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts: these are pounded thin for even cooking.
- Spices: I use a simple blend of Italian seasoning, paprika, black pepper, and salt.
- Heavy cream: the base for the creamy sauce! I don’t recommend going with low-fat dairy for this recipe.
- Minced garlic: adds a depth of flavor. You can use pre-minced garlic or mince it yourself.
- Corn starch: this acts as a thickening agent to make our sauce nice and thick.
- Sundried tomatoes: these are more concentrated than regular tomatoes, adding a tart and tangy flavor to the sauce! Use the kind that comes packed with oil and spices for the best flavor.
- Parmesan cheese: shredded parmesan cheese melts right into the sauce, giving it a tangy flavor! You can buy shredded Parmesan or shred it yourself from a block.
- Fresh spinach: adding chopped spinach is an easy way to get your veggies in!
Love these flavors? Try them in my Tuscan Chicken Noodle Soup!
How to make Baked Tuscan Chicken:
This recipe couldn’t be simpler to whip up! Just follow the easy steps below—check out the recipe card for all the details.
- Flatten chicken breasts to an even thickness.
- Whisk cream, garlic, cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Stir in sundried tomatoes and Parmesan cheese. Pour around the chicken.
- Bake until the chicken is cooked through.
- Stir fresh spinach into the sauce and let the chicken rest, covered with aluminum foil. Stir the sauce again if needed, then serve.
Tips for the best baked chicken breast
- Flatten your chicken breasts so they are roughly the same size: this will ensure they cook evenly and that one side doesn’t end up completely dried out! Simply cover in plastic wrap and use a rolling pin or a small frying pan to flatten the thick end slightly.
- Dry with paper towels: we want our chicken to roast and be golden and flavorful, so we don’t want any of the excess water that might be on it. Drying it before seasoning will give the best results!
- Cover and let rest: at least 10 minutes! You can even let it rest for 20, and I promise it will be so juicy and hot. This keeps the juices inside the meat and gives the spinach a chance to wilt down in the sauce without becoming overcooked and slimy.
- Internal temperature: use a meat thermometer to make sure the internal temperature of the chicken reaches at least 165ºF before eating.
How to store leftovers:
This Tuscan Chicken Breast is a great option for prepping ahead because it stores easily and is delicious reheated!
You can store leftover chicken an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, provided all of your ingredients are fresh.
If you stuck to the recipe and used heavy cream (low-fat dairy cannot be frozen), you can also store it in an airtight freezer container or a freezer bag for up to 3 months!
What to serve with this chicken breast recipe:
We love this chicken breast recipe with plain, simple pasta, but you can also serve over these Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes for a touch of indulgence or these Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes for a make-ahead option.
This Instant Pot Brown Rice is also a great complement for a healthier, gluten-free option.
You can also keep it low-carb with cauliflower rice!
Also, these Breadsticks do a great job of soaking up all that creamy sauce 😉
Like it extra saucy?
The chicken is as saucy as it is in these photos — it is enough sauce for us to serve with pasta, but the pasta is not drowning in sauce. If you want a lot of sauce, I would multiply the sauce recipe by 1.5 (so instead of 1 cup cream, use 1.5 cups, etc.)
Baked Tuscan Chicken Breast
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts , (breast halves)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Cream Sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅓ cup sundried tomatoes, (chopped)
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup chopped fresh spinach
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place chicken breasts on a cutting board and cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Use a rolling pin, smooth meat mallet or small frying pan to flatten the thick side of the chicken so that it is roughly an even thickness.
- Place chicken breasts in a 9×13" baking dish (or a larger one if you are using very large chicken breasts — you don't want them smushed together or they will take longer to cook).
- Combine ½ teaspoon salt, Italian seasoning, paprika and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Drizzle chicken with oil and rub with seasoning (I just do the top, since the bottom will be sitting in sauce).
- Whisk together cream, garlic, corn starch, salt and pepper until combined. Stir in sundried tomatoes and Parmesan cheese and pour around the chicken in the baking dish (it shouldn't cover the chicken completely, but it won't hurt anything if it does).
- Bake at 425 degrees F for 16-20 minutes, until an internal temperature of 165 degrees F is reached in the thickets part of the chicken (the exact cook time will depend on the size of your chicken breasts).
- Remove pan from oven and stir spinach into sauce. The sauce may separate as it cooks (it is NOT curdled!) — just give it a stir and it will come together. Cover pan and allow chicken to rest for 10 minutes while the spinach wilts.
- Uncover and serve.
Video
Notes
Variations and substitutions:
- Boneless chicken thighs: You can absolutely swap for boneless chicken thighs without changing the rest of the recipe! You will likely want to use twice as many thighs as the breasts called for.
- Cheese: If you don’t want to use parmesan cheese, you could swap it with asiago, Romano, or pecorino cheese!
- Cream: I know it’s tempting to swap the heavy cream for a lighter variety, but be careful because lower-fat dairy cannot be cooked at a high temperature without curdling.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: I know these can be hard to come by at times, but I just love the subtle flavor they add! A couple other options would be fresh cherry tomatoes or jarred roasted red peppers — they’ll both add a nice pop of flavor!
- Seasoning: You can absolutely play with the seasoning as long as you choose herbs and spices that pair well with the sauce.
- Spinach: You can leave it out if you want. I love that it adds a pop of color and a boost in the nutritional value. You can swap for other vegetables if you prefer: green beans or mushrooms could be added at the beginning of the cook time for a new twist!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Tried this recipe?
Tag @thereciperebel or hashtag #thereciperebel — I love to see what you’re making!
Tag @thereciperebelMore baked chicken breast recipes:
- The Easiest Lemon Chicken Recipe — with a creamy lemon parmesan sauce.
- Baked Monterey Chicken — with barbecue sauce, bacon and fresh tomatoes.
- Baked Chicken Breast — simply seasoned and perfect for meal prepping.
- Baked Honey Garlic Chicken — sweet and tangy.
Tam says
Absolutely delicious! Super easy and quick, thank you!
Rhonda says
Loved this recipe easy and delicious!!!!i 4times the sauce light on the tomatoes everyone LOVED it I am going to make this sauce for Christmas dinner with clams and linguine with our traditional steak and lobster dinner can’t wait.thank you
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Rhonda! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this review!
Sharon says
We loved this recipe!!! I could not get the plain sundried tomatoes so I swapped smoked sundried tomatoes and It was fantastic! This will be one recipe that definitely goes into the rotation.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Sharon! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this review!
Lauri J. says
Looks sooo yummy! Not a fan of spinach but I was thinking fresh basil would be really good in this.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Lauri! You could probably leave the spinach out. Basil sounds tasty!
Mary Mayshark says
This is so great with chicken! We make it at least once a week!
Do you think you could do the same with salmon?
Lisa Davidson says
Hello!!
What would be a great side dish to go with this recipe?
Angie says
We had brown rice and brussels sprouts. I made a double batch of sauce so we could pour it over our rice. It was delish!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Lisa! We love to put this over pasta! Rice is always a good choice too, and don’t forget about the breadsticks! https://www.thereciperebel.com/homemade-breadsticks/
Angie says
This was absolutely wonderful! My husband and son loved the sauce.
I cut the chicken into strips and doubled the sauce. Next time I will reduce the cook time by about 5 minutes. My husband said it’s a keeper.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Angie! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for your review!
Diane. says
Can you use Chicken tenderloins?
Mspolonia89 says
This was so easy, quick and delicious. I doubled on the sauce to use with my rice. I will make this again.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m glad you liked it!
Natalie says
This was super tasty!!! The sauce is sooo delish!!! I didn’t have spinach or sun dried tomatoes so I used canned whole tomatoes which I chopped up and topped it with thyme and sage. Still came out very good!! I think I used a lot more garlic because I’m obsessed. Thanks for the great recipe.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Natalie! I’m glad you liked it!
Jillian says
Anyone tried this with half and half? I have that on hand and want for dinner tonight.
Ashley Fehr says
Half and half will work but won’t thicken quite the same way and lower fat cream does have the potential to curdle at high temperatures. It will still taste fine 🙂
Andrea Rielly says
Can I use grated parmesan? And if so would I use less?
Ashley Fehr says
Yes, you would use the same amount
Lorraine says
I made this with table cream and it still curdled a bit but must say it tasted delicious. I did use convection setting on the oven wonderbif this is why?
Ashley Fehr says
The convection setting does usually bump up the temperature slightly, so that could be it? Table cream is also quite a bit lower in fat than heavy cream.
Miranda says
How would you make this a freezer meal? Would you cook then freeze? Or cook half way then freeze. My morther in law is having foot surgery and like to have an easy meal to throw in the oven.
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Miranda! That’s a great idea. I think I would put everything in the pan (up to the point of baking) then cover really well and freeze. I would recommend thawing before baking for most even cooking results.
Jenn says
I had company coming for dinner but they cancelled at the last minute. Everything was fully cooked but I had waaaay too much. I let everything cool and put into freezer bags. A couple of weeks later, simply but the chicken back into the oven, warmed, added just a bit more cream to the sauce, and it tasted exactly the same. You couldn’t tell it had ever been in the freezer!
Teresa says
This was so yummy! I will definitely double the sauce next time because it was so yummy I want more lol! Thanks for the recipe! My house smells amazing still!
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad you liked it!
Shae says
Can I make this sauce in a saucepan so we can have extra? Just wondering if it would turn out ok?
Ashley Fehr says
Absolutely! You can also double the sauce ingredients and cook right in the pan
Elizabeth says
I made this exactly to recipe and omg it is so good!! I did have a cook my chicken a little longer, to 30 minutes, but it was still juicy and delicious.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad you liked it!
Wendy says
Wow-Yum. I followed to a T although I chose to roast the garlic in a tad of butter before mixing with cream. Amazing flavor & done exactly on time. Served over Orzo! & had French bread too 😋 Next time I’m going to try this with Tenderloins, which is my chicken of choice. As another reviewer stated, ‘this is lick the plate clean’. Thank you!!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Wendy!
CindyB says
Hi i cooked it for 16 mins but then added it to 20 because it was still reading as 130 degrees. I let it come for 7 mins more. I checked the temp and it was 150 so i took it out and let it sit for 10 mins. Do you think itll be okay? I hope it doesnt dry out😭
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Cindy! Yes, chicken is actually fine cooked to 150 degrees as long as it sits there for at least 3 minutes 🙂
Tanisha M Malone says
Hi, do you cover the chicken with foil while it cooks in the oven?
Ashley Fehr says
Nope 🙂
Kortesha says
This recipe was very delicious and nutritious I will definitely keep this one in rotation. I made mashed potatoes with this.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m glad you liked it!