We have always been very honest about a certain fact of life with the oldest of our six children: she is the experiment.
Don’t be shocked or upset by that statement. It’s the truth. As our first child, she gets the blunt end of our learning curve as parents. It’s just a fact of life and sometimes it is a good thing, but often, it really does stink.
The more children you have and the more practice time you get as a parent, the more effective you become. You learn what battles are important. You learn which rules are essential. You learn how to keep your mouth closed.
To compensate for this lack of good parenting skills, I also believe that God blesses that first born child with extra natural abilities and character. So, in the end, it’s all good! Right?!?
When she comes home from college for a visit, I will have to heal a few of those wounds the best way a mother knows how. With some good home-cooking! I have seen many different variations of this recipe kicking around blogs and websites, but I decided to come up with my own version because none of them quite hit the mark of what I wanted. As you know, I have become well-known for my chicken bakes like parmesan chicken and chorizo chicken, so this had to be in a “bake” form as well.
This recipe was so quick to throw together, so make this on a night when you have no time to cook! It is packed with all those great Italian flavors and forms a delicious pan sauce that you can serve over pasta if you would like.
Basil Artichoke Chicken Bake
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 5–6 breasts)
- salt and pepper
- 2 – 14 ounce cans of diced Italian tomatoes with basil and garlic, drained
- 1 – 14 ounce can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
- 4 cloves garlic, minced well (I use a microplane)
- 3 T fresh parmesan cheese, grated
- 2 Tb flour or 1 Tb cornstarch (optional, if you would like a thicker pan juice)
- 4 ounces of shredded mozzarella cheese
- fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a 9×13 glass pan with nonstick spray. Generously salt and pepper both sides of the chicken breasts, then place them in a single layer in the pan.
2. In a medium bowl, gently mix together the drained tomatoes and drained artichoke hearts with the garlic, parmesan cheese and flour/cornstarch if using. Spread this mixture over the top of the chicken and bake, uncovered for 45 minutes. Sprinkle on the mozzarella cheese and place under the broiler until browned, about 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the fresh basil over the top. You can serve this alone or with some pasta because it does make some pan juices.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 chicken breast
- Calories: 422
- Sugar: 7g
- Sodium: 640mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 14g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 16g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 64g
- Cholesterol: 12mg
Mikki says
this sounds delicious! I buy split chicken breast a lot, it serves me well, and I find it to be a bit juicier than boneless skinless. I boil them to make my own chicken broth too. To make a long story short, I made creamed chicken over biscuits last night and have left over shredded chicken. I will be trying this bake with the shredded chicken (less time in the oven since already cooked) and serving over bow tie pasta!
Rebecca says
If you find that your skinless chicken breasts are dry, you may be baking them to long.
Carole says
Sounds delish! I love split beasts as well. Use them all the time!
Emilie J. says
I am going to make this recipe this weekend. It looks amazing. I just found your blog a couple of days ago. I made your Parmesan chicken bake last night and my kids couldn’t get enough!! I have printed out many of your recipes and can’t wait to try them all. Thank you!!
Minnesota Prairie Roots says
Just discovered your blog via the feature in the Marshall Independent. I am a Vesta native living in and blogging from Faribault.
Look forward to trying some of your recipes, having just printed off this chicken recipe for starters.
Carole says
Minnesota Prairie – so wonderful for another local blogger to reach out. I was hoping to discover a few of us out there once the article ran in the paper. I am on my way now to check your blog out! Thanks for stopping by to say hi!
Marcia Clark says
Great recipe! I had pinned it in my Pinterest boards and was going for my regular chicken pot pie recipe and got sidetracked by the image of your Basil Artichoke Chicken Bake! It was delicious! The only thing I would do is maybe rinse the artichokes before adding them. It was just a touch salty for our taste. Also, since I had told my husband we were having pot pie, I knew he’d like a pie top on it. So, I used a Pillsbury pie crust and rolled it rectangular, 20 min before it was done baking, I pulled the casserole out and added the mozzarella and the basil, then added the pie crust. I put a few slashes in the crust, brushed on an egg-wash, and sprinkled more Parmesan cheese on it. YUM!
Jackie says
Yum…saw this on pinterest last night & had to try it. It came out delish & my husband loved it! Looking forward to trying some of your other recipes…thanks!
Anonymous says
Trying this tonite… Sounds yummy!!
Stefanie says
I am also the oldest of six kids and what you say is true. My youngest brother is 12 years younger than me and once said life wasn’t fair and wanted to be treated like the older siblings. I had no sympathy for him because at his age I was still being carted around everywhere my mom went while listening to Raffi and he had his own computer. Younger siblings seem to get things faster. And I’m really looking forward to trying this recipe. 🙂
Brittany says
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe! It was delicious! I just shared it on my blog: https://brittsapron.blogspot.com/2014/09/basil-artichoke-chicken-bake.html
Sammie says
Mine came out pretty watery and I added flour. Is it supposed to be watery?
Carole says
Hi Sammie! I wouldn’t call it watery because there is no water in it but it does make some juices in the pan as it bakes. The juices are really yummy so you can spoon it over the chicken or some rice or pasta!
Joyce says
Just made this tonight for dinner. I added red bell pepper to use them up and left out the flour. I did everything else exactly as written. It was delicious and so easy.
Carole says
Thanks so much Joyce for sharing your version of the recipe!
Madeline Hall says
I just found your blog, when I was looking for new chicken recipes. I’m on a low-sodium diet, so I know how to adjust recipes to my liking. I use Himalayan Pink Salt more often and find I enjoy the taste and have no swelling of legs and ankles.
I like the suggested notes you add, like mixing mayo and Greek yogurt.
Carole says
Thanks Madeline!