Creamy Mushroom Chicken Florentine with spinach is an outstanding and easy to make dinner recipe.
Creamy Mushroom Chicken Florentine is one of my family's favorite meals. Not only does it serve up beautifully, but the flavor is intensely amazing.
Seems like everyone is always looking for easy and delicious chicken dinner recipe ideas. Even if your kids don't like mushrooms and spinach, I bet they'll love this meal.
What is Florentine style food?
Florentine style food refers to recipes inspired by the region of Florence, Italy. It also refers to recipes that include wilted spinach.
Say, for example, I wanted to make my Classic Eggs Benedict but add in some wilted spinach. I could then call it Eggs Benedict Florentine and most people will know what that means.
How long does it take to cook chicken Florentine?
If you have all of your ingredients prepared ahead of time, the total cook time for my Creamy Mushroom Chicken Florentine is only about 20 minutes.
The trick is to pound your chicken breasts thin and flat. This not only makes them fork tender, but it also allows you to really shorten the cook time. When you use a meat tenderizer or rolling pin to thin the chicken to a flat, uniform thickness, you also increase the amount of surface area that gets a really nice sear.
The chicken only takes about 10 minutes to cook and then the sauce takes about another 10 minutes. Quick and easy!
How to make the sauce:
- My Florentine sauce is a combination of sauteed vegetables, cream, wine, and parmesan cheese. Are you salivating yet?
- First, you'll melt some butter in the same skillet you cooked the chicken in. Don't want to lose any of that flavor! Then you will add the mushrooms, shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are translucent, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet.
- Next step is to add the spinach, stir, and cook until wilted.
- Then comes my favorite part. Add the wine. You'll cook this down by about half.
- Next you'll add the cream and simmer while the cream bubbles and reduces. Getting hungry yet?
- Finally you'll stir in the parmesan cheese, sun dried tomatoes and parsley. Be sure to season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper. This is when you'll add the chicken and any accumulated juices back to the sauce. So much flavor in that juice!
This is especially delicious when served on top of homemade mashed potatoes or pasta and paired with a fresh green salad. If you're looking for a chicken dinner recipe that your family will love, look no further.
Creamy Mushroom Chicken Florentine
Ingredients
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (1.5 to 2 pounds)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- All-purpose flour (for dredging)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 8 ounces mushrooms (sliced)
- 2 tablespoons shallots (minced)
- 1 tablespoon garlic (minced)
- 2 cups fresh spinach (packed)
- 1 ½ cups dry white wine
- 1 cup whipping cream
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons sundried tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
Instructions
- Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour to coat lightly. Shake off any excess flour.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. You want the chicken to be just about cooked all the way through as it will continue cooking as it rests. Transfer the chicken to a plate and tent with foil to keep it warm.
- Melt remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are translucent, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, about 1 minute.
- Add the spinach, stir, and cook until wilted.
- Add the wine. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the liquid is reduced by half, about 3 minutes.
- Add the cream and simmer while the cream bubbles and reduces, stirring often, about 3 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low and stir in the parmesan cheese, sun dried tomatoes and parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken and any accumulated juices to the sauce, and turn the chicken to coat in the sauce.
- Serve over pasta or mashed potatoes.
Sara Welch
This is everything a gourmet meal should be, and then some! Looking forward to enjoying this for dinner tonight; looks too good to pass up!
Kristyn
I love this chicken! It's so creamy! We served it over pasta & it was a hit with my family!