Recipe at a glance: Boneless chicken thighs baked under cream cheese, wilted spinach, and mozzarella, done in 30 minutes for 4. A one-dish weeknight dinner you can refrigerate or freeze for later.
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This creamy spinach chicken bake is a one-dish dinner that takes about 30 minutes. I put boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a bag with avocado oil, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, paprika, salt, pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes, and let them marinate in the refrigerator while the oven heats to 450°F and the spinach wilts on the stove. Then the thighs go into a 9×13-inch baking dish, each one topped with softened cream cheese, the wilted spinach, and shredded mozzarella. They bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F. The garlic and paprika season the chicken from the marinade, and the cream cheese and spinach bake into a creamy layer under the melted mozzarella. The recipe serves 4, and leftovers keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
You will love this recipe if you like other 30-minute chicken dinners like this Chicken with Creamy Mushroom Sauce and this Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Chicken.
This chicken bake yields tender and juicy chicken thighs topped with cream cheese and spinach.
It’s an easy dinner to make on a busy weeknight.
It’s an especially great option for beginner cooks who are newer to making family dinners.
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To make creamy spinach chicken bake, you marinate boneless chicken thighs with avocado oil, garlic, and spices, spread them with softened cream cheese, top them with wilted spinach and shredded mozzarella, and bake at 450°F for 20 to 22 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F and the cheese is melted. It’s a one-dish dinner that’s ready in about 30 minutes and serves 4.
💛 Why you’ll love this recipe
- Straightforward ingredients.
- Can be made in 30 minutes.
- High in protein, with about 33 grams per serving.
➡️ Ingredients
⏲ How to make this creamy spinach chicken bake
This is an overview of the recipe’s instructions. The full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Marinate Chicken: To a freezer bag, add chicken, 1 Tablespoon avocado oil, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Seal the bag and, using your hands, shake and massage the mixture into the chicken until the marinade ingredients are well-combined. Transfer the bag to the refrigerator to marinate while you preheat the oven and wilt the spinach.
- Preheat Oven: Place oven rack in the middle of the oven, preheat oven to 450 degrees F, and coat a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Wilt Spinach: While oven preheats, in a pan on the stovetop over medium heat, heat the remaining 1 Tablespoon of avocado oil. Add spinach and allow it to wilt and for the excess liquid to cook off, then remove the pan from the heat and set the pan aside.
- Prepare Chicken Bake: Unseal the bag of marinated chicken and, using tongs, transfer the chicken to the prepared baking pan. Using a knife, spread softened cream cheese atop chicken pieces and then, using tongs, lay spinach atop cream cheese. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella on top.
- Bake: Transfer the pan to the oven to bake until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (check with an instant-read thermometer), which should take about 20-22 minutes.
Cooking Tip: If you want the cheese to brown a little more and your baking dish is broiler-safe (many glass baking dishes are not), move the dish to the top oven rack, turn on the oven broiler, and broil for 1-2 minutes. Watch carefully to ensure the cheese doesn’t burn.
- Garnish and Serve: Remove pan from oven, garnish with pepper and paprika, then serve.
👉 Ingredient substitution suggestions
- Chicken Thighs: Replace with boneless skinless chicken breasts.
- Avocado Oil: Use olive oil or melted butter instead.
- Minced Garlic: Garlic powder can be used in place of minced garlic. I would suggest using 1 teaspoon of garlic powder to substitute for the 2 Tablespoons of minced garlic that the original recipe calls for.
- Cream Cheese: Sour cream can be subbed in at a 1:1 ratio.
- Fresh Spinach: Frozen spinach can be used. Thaw the frozen spinach on the stovetop or in warm water, then drain before using. Gently squeeze out any excess water before adding it on top of the chicken.
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese: Provolone slices, cheddar cheese slices, or shredded cheddar cheese can be used.
✨ Variations
- Mix up the chicken marinade by adding other herbs and spices, like oregano, cumin, ground thyme, rosemary, or chili powder.
- Add some Mediterranean flavors to the dish by incorporating ingredients like sun-dried tomatoes, Kalamata olives, and crumbled feta cheese. Sprinkle these ingredients over the spinach and mozzarella layer before baking.
- Replace the cream cheese with basil pesto. Spread a layer of pesto on the chicken thighs before adding the spinach and mozzarella.
- Cook some bacon and crumble it over the cream cheese layer. Drizzle ranch dressing on top for a tangy kick.
- Boost the vegetable content by adding other veggies like chopped mushrooms and bell peppers on top of the spinach layer.
〰️ How to serve
- Rice – Serve with jasmine rice or cauliflower rice.
- Pasta – Serve alongside or over the top of egg noodles, penne pasta, or farfalle (bowtie) pasta.
- Salad – Serve alongside cucumber onion salad or a basic side salad.
💬 FAQs
How do you make creamy spinach chicken bake?
Marinate chicken thighs with avocado oil, garlic, and spices, spread softened cream cheese over the top, add wilted spinach and shredded mozzarella, and bake at 450°F for 20 to 22 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F and the cheese is melted.
What temperature do you bake creamy spinach chicken?
Bake it at 450°F for about 20 to 22 minutes, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F and the cheese on top is golden.
How should the creamy spinach chicken bake be stored?
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or up to 3 months in the freezer.
How should the stored chicken casserole recipe be reheated?
If frozen, allow the chicken bake to thaw overnight in the fridge. Then, to reheat, bake in the oven at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or in the microwave until heated throughout, about 1-2 minutes, depending on the wattage of your microwave.
📚 More 30-minute chicken recipes
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It bakes in one dish. Here’s what I use:
- → A 9×13 baking dish
- → Avocado oil
- → Italian seasoning
- → An instant-read thermometerto hit 165°F on the chicken
See everything I use & love in my Amazon shop →
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Creamy Spinach Chicken Bake
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs, thin, boneless and skinless
- 2 Tablespoons avocado oil, 30 milliliters, divided
- 2 Tablespoons minced garlic, 30 grams
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 7 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 5 cups fresh spinach, about 140 grams
- 4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
- nonstick cooking spray, for the baking dish
Optional Garnishes:
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- Pinch of paprika
Instructions
- Marinate Chicken: To a freezer bag, add chicken, 1 Tablespoon avocado oil, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Seal bag and, using hands, shake and massage mixture into chicken until marinade ingredients are well-combined. Transfer bag to refrigerator to marinate while you preheat the oven and wilt the spinach.
- Preheat Oven: Place oven rack in middle of oven, preheat oven to 450 degrees F, and coat 9×13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Wilt Spinach: While oven preheats, in a pan on the stovetop over medium heat, heat remaining 1 Tablespoon avocado oil. Add spinach and allow to wilt and for excess liquid to cook off, then remove pan from the heat and set pan aside.
- Prepare Chicken Bake: Unseal bag of marinated chicken and, using tongs, transfer chicken to prepared baking pan. Using a knife, spread softened cream cheese atop chicken pieces and then, using tongs, lay spinach atop cream cheese. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella on top.
- Bake: Transfer pan to oven to bake until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 20-22 minutes.
- Garnish and Serve: Remove pan from oven, garnish with pepper and paprika, then serve.
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