Simple Baked Spinach Ricotta Chicken (Printable)

Juicy chicken breasts stuffed with creamy ricotta and fresh spinach, topped with melted mozzarella and Parmesan. A simple yet elegant 50-minute meal.

# What You'll Need:

01 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

02 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

03 - 1 teaspoon salt

04 - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

05 - 1 cup ricotta cheese

06 - 1 cup fresh spinach, finely chopped (or thawed and squeezed-dry frozen spinach)

07 - 2 cloves garlic, minced

08 - 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

09 - 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (or oregano/basil)

10 - 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)

11 - 1 egg yolk

12 - Salt and pepper, to taste

13 - 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

14 - 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

01 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a baking dish with a little olive oil.

02 - Pat chicken breasts dry. With a sharp knife, cut a horizontal pocket into each breast, being careful not to cut all the way through.

03 - In a bowl, combine ricotta, spinach, garlic, Parmesan, Italian herbs, nutmeg (if using), egg yolk, salt, and pepper. Mix until smooth.

04 - Stuff each chicken breast with the ricotta-spinach mixture, securing with toothpicks if needed.

05 - Rub chicken breasts with olive oil, then season both sides with salt and pepper.

06 - Place stuffed chicken in prepared baking dish. Top each breast with mozzarella and extra Parmesan.

07 - Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through (internal temperature 165°F) and cheese is golden.

08 - Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Remove toothpicks, slice, and serve hot.

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02 -

Overfilling the pockets will cause the filling to burst out during baking, leaving you with less stuffing inside
Letting the chicken rest before slicing keeps all those juices inside instead of running onto your cutting board

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Brining the chicken for 30 minutes in lightly salted water makes it noticeably juicier
Squeeze frozen spinach until no more water comes out, or your filling will be watery