Spinach Artichoke Chicken Cottage Cheese (Printable)

Protein-packed chicken in creamy spinach, artichoke, and cottage cheese sauce ready in 45 minutes.

# What You'll Need:

→ Chicken

01 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5 lbs)
02 - 1 teaspoon kosher salt
03 - ½ teaspoon black pepper
04 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

→ Spinach & Artichoke Mixture

05 - 2 cups fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
06 - 1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
07 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
08 - ½ cup finely chopped onion

→ Sauce

09 - 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
10 - ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
11 - ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 - ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
13 - ½ teaspoon dried Italian herbs
14 - ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

# Directions:

01 - Preheat your oven to 400°F.
02 - Pat the chicken breasts dry and season both sides with salt and pepper.
03 - Heat olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts and sear for 3-4 minutes per side until golden. Remove to a plate.
04 - In the same skillet, add onion and cook for 2 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
05 - Add spinach and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in chopped artichoke hearts and cook for 1 minute more.
06 - In a blender or food processor, combine cottage cheese, chicken broth, Parmesan, half the mozzarella, Italian herbs, and red pepper flakes. Blend until smooth.
07 - Pour the sauce into the skillet with the spinach-artichoke mixture. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle simmer.
08 - Nestle the seared chicken breasts into the sauce. Spoon some sauce over each piece. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
09 - Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 15-18 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (internal temperature 165°F) and the sauce is bubbling.
10 - Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Spoon sauce over chicken and garnish with extra Parmesan or fresh herbs, if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • You get that rich restaurant style comfort food without the heavy cream guilt
  • Everything cooks in one skillet which means zero cleanup drama
  • The protein count is insane for something that tastes this indulgent
02 -
  • Patting the chicken completely dry is non negotiable if you want that golden sear instead of steamed gray meat
  • Blending the cottage cheese sauce until absolutely smooth is what makes people think there's heavy cream involved
  • Letting the finished dish rest for 5 minutes feels like torture but the sauce needs that time to thicken up
03 -
  • If your chicken breasts are thick, pound them to even thickness so they finish cooking at the same time
  • Use an immersion blender if you have one—less cleanup and you can blend the sauce directly in the measuring cup

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