This Chicken Florentine recipe, made with perfectly seared, juicy chicken breasts and a creamy spinach sauce, is so easy to make and can be ready in under 40 minutes—perfect for a weekday and also special enough for guests.
I like to serve Chicken Florentine with pasta, but rice and other grains like farro and quinoa would also be good.
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Essential Ingredients
Spinach: I like to use baby spinach for this dish, as it has a bit of a sweeter flavor than regular, but either will work here. You can also substitute baby kale or Swiss chard.
Chicken breasts: But the best quality chicne breast halves for this dish as you can, their flavor will make a difference. And here's a Guide to Buying Chicken at the Grocery Store, and deciphering all the different labeling.
Chicken broth: Use low-sodium chicken broth for this dish. Because the sauce is reduced, flavors get concentrated, which means using chicken broth with high sodium content may cause the sauce to become too salty.
How to make the recipe
1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Transfer spinach to colander set over bowl and press with spoon to release excess liquid. Discard liquid.
3. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Wipe out pan and heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat . Cook chicken until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Add shallot and garlic to skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth, 1 ¼ cups water, and the cream and bring to boil.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and tent with foil. Continue to simmer the sauce until reduced to 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat, and stir in 4 tablespoons of the parmesan, the lemon zest, and lemon juice.
5. Cut the chicken crosswise into ½-inch-thick slices and arrange in a broiler-safe shallow casserole. Spoon the spinach over chicken, then pour the sauce over spinach. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and broil until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve hot.
Recipe Tips
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days . Reheat in a skillet, covered, over low heat.
Spinach is the traditional green used in this dish, but you could also use baby kale or Swiss chard.
Recipe FAQs
Baby spinach is harvested sooner that regular spinach, which makes it more tender with a slightly sweeter, less mineral-ly flavor.
Yes, you can freeze cooked Chicken Florentine. Store it an airtight container and freeze for up to to 3 minutes. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
I like to serve Chicken Florentine with pasta, but rice and quinoa are also good options. And a tossed green salad and garlic bread will round the meal out nicely.
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Chicken Florentine
Ingredients
- 3 Tbs. vegetable oil
- 2 6 oz. bags baby spinach
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 ½ pounds)
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium shallot, minced
- 1¼ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 6 Tbs. grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp. grated lemon zest
- 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Position an oven rack to upper-middle position and heat broiler.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer spinach to colander set over bowl and press with spoon to release excess liquid. Discard liquid.
- Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Wipe out pan and heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat . Cook chicken until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Add shallot and garlic to skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth, 1 ¼ cups water, and the cream and bring to boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and tent with foil.
- Continue to simmer the sauce until reduced to 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat, and stir in 4 tablespoons of the parmesan, the lemon zest, and lemon juice.
- Cut the chicken crosswise into ½-inch-thick slices and arrange in a broiler-safe shallow casserole. Spoon the spinach over chicken, then pour the sauce over spinach. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and broil until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
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ryan says
Easy and so good. I'm going to use baby kale next time. I also upped the amount of lemon.
Kathy Kingsley says
Thanks and happy you enjoyed it!