Chicken Florentine

This Chicken Florentine recipe has perfectly seared chicken in a thick and creamy spinach sauce. Serve it with pasta, rice, or with a simple green salad. Add a splash of lemon and some fresh parsley for added flavor and color!

Love easy chicken recipes? Try my Creamy Chicken Stroganoff recipe next!

Chicken Florentine

This is one of those recipes that looks and sounds fancy, but is actually really easy. I love adding a splash of lemon juice at the end and serving it with my One Pot Creamy Lemon Pasta.

I love the crispy outer crust of this juicy chicken. The flour dredging has a perfect combination of simple seasonings and Parmesan cheese with gives it perfect flavor and texture.

Definitely check out my section of PRO tips below, you are sure to learn something important there!

Ingredients

The bottom of this post also contains recipe card with ingredients and full instructions.

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Chicken Dredge:

• ½ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Florentine Sauce:

• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 ½ cups white wine, can sub chicken broth
• 1 cup half and half
• 1/3 cup softened cream cheese
• 3 cups fresh spinach

How to Make It

Use a meat tenderizer to pound the chicken to about 1 inch thick throughout.  They will plump up more when cooked so be sure to go thin.

Dredge them in the flour mixture and tap off excess. Sear in olive oil and butter over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes per side. Set aside.

Add garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute. Add white wine (or chicken broth), let it boil gently until reduced by half. Slowly stir in the half and half. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and let it reduce by half again. Stir in the cream cheese.

Add the spinach and stir to combine.

Add lemon juice if desired. Add chicken and any drippings back to the pot. Cover until heated through. Garnish with parsley and serve!

Pro Tips

• Pound the chicken flat for even cooking, chicken breasts plump up when they cook because their proteins gel, so it will still come out thicker than you think. Thin cutlets cook more quickly and are much more appetizing.
• Let the chicken sit out while you prepare the other ingredients, placing cold chicken in the skillet cools down the olive oil/butter and can cause uneven cooking.
• Keep the chicken undisturbed while it cooks to maintain the golden crust that forms. The chicken will release from the pan when it’s done searing, using force will cause it to tear.
• A combination of butter and olive oil is best. The butter gives the chicken a golden color, the olive oil mitigates burning due to it’s higher smoke count. (If the pan gets too hot while the chicken is searing, decrease the heat to medium.)
• Mushrooms, capers, cherry tomatoes, and sun-dried tomatoes make nice additions to this meal.
• The cream cheese can be omitted, I’ve made it without it before. It does thicken it a bit and adds additional flavor and creaminess.

Chicken Florentine Meaning

To serve something “Florentine Style” simply means that a particular protein (chicken, fish, etc.) is served over a bed of spinach.

Culinarylore has the entire historical explanation nailed down, but to summarize, a woman named Catherine de Médicis was born in Florence, eventually became the Queen of France, and recruited her cooks from Florence to cook for her. She brought spinach seeds to France with her, and often had her meals prepared over a bed of spinach as a result.

(That’s the deepest dive that I’ve taken into history in quite a while.)

What to Serve with Chicken Florentine

• Creamy Lemon Pasta (One Pot!)
• Garlic Parmesan Pasta (One Pot!)
• Roasted Carrots, Brussels Sprouts, or Broccoli
• Copycat Texas Roadhouse Rolls

Storage

Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for 3 days or freeze for 3 months. This meal does freeze well!

Tools For This Recipe

• Meat Tenderizer
• Meat Thermometer
• Silicone Spatula
• Nonstick Stone Frying Pan with Lid

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Chicken Florentine

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

4.91 from 22 ratings

Servings: 4 people

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This Chicken Florentine recipe has perfectly seared chicken in a thick and creamy spinach sauce. Serve it with pasta, rice, or with a simple green salad. Add a splash of lemon and a sprinkle of parsley for added flavor and color!

Ingredients

• ▢ 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons Butter

Chicken Dredge:

• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
• ▢ ½ cup flour
• ▢ ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, finely shredded
• ▢ 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Florentine Sauce:

• ▢ 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 1 ½ cups white wine, or chicken broth
• ▢ 1 cup half and half
• ▢ 1/3 cup softened cream cheese
• ▢ 3 cups fresh spinach
• ▢ 1/2 fresh lemon or 1.5 tablespoons lemon juice, optional
• ▢ Fresh parsley, to garnish

Instructions

• Place saran wrap over each chicken breast and use a meat tenderizer to pound it until it’s about an inch thick and of equal thickness throughout. Pat dry.
• Combine chicken dredge ingredients. Coat the chicken in the flour mixture, tap off any excess.
• Melt the butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add the chicken and cover the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side, until golden. If needed, sear in 2 separate batches. Set aside on a plate once cooked, it's done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
• Decrease heat to medium and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
• Add the white wine and deglaze the pan by running a silicone spatula on the bottom to scrape up the brown bits from the pan. This gives the sauce plenty of flavor. Increase heat slightly and allow it to gently bubble until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
• Temper the half and half by heating in the microwave for 40 seconds. Add it to the skillet in splashes, stirring as you do so. Bring it to a gentle bubble, then reduce heat to low.
• Stir in the softened cream cheese until smooth and combined.
• Add spinach until it’s soft and wilted. Add lemon juice if desired.
• Return the chicken & any drippings back to the pan. Cover to heat through. Sprinkle with parsley and serve!

Notes

10 oz. frozen spinach may be used instead of fresh. Thaw it out and squeeze out excess liquid prior to using.

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Pro Tips:

• Pound the chicken flat for even cooking, chicken breasts plump up when they cook because their proteins gel, so it will still come out thicker than you think. Thin cutlets cook more quickly and are much more appetizing.
• Let the chicken sit out while you prepare the other ingredients, placing cold chicken in the skillet cools down the olive oil/butter and can cause uneven cooking.
• Keep the chicken undisturbed while it cooks to maintain the golden crust that forms. The chicken will release from the pan when it's done searing, using force will cause it to tear.
• A combination of butter and olive oil is best. The butter gives the chicken a golden color, the olive oil mitigates burning due to it's higher smoke count. (If the pan gets too hot while the chicken is searing, decrease the heat to medium.)
• Mushrooms, capers, cherry tomatoes, and sun-dried tomatoes make nice additions to this meal.
• The cream cheese can be omitted, I've made it without it before. It does thicken it a bit and adds additional flavor and creaminess.

Nutrition

Calories: 456kcal, Carbohydrates: 14g, Protein: 30g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Cholesterol: 117mg, Sodium: 862mg, Potassium: 746mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 2648IU, Vitamin C: 9mg, Calcium: 169mg, Iron: 2mg

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Stephanie