Bacon Wrapped Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken {VIDEO}

Thinly sliced chicken breasts stuffed with a creamy, cheesy spinach and artichoke filling wrapped in bacon and baked to tender, juicy perfection! This is one of my boys favorites! Keto friendly and low in carbs, if that’s your goal!

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So yea, this recipe has got it all!! Think, ooey gooey melty spinach and artichoke dip stuffed into lean chicken breasts and wrapped with savory slices of bacon to keep everything extra juicy and well.. delicious as bacon so aptly does!

It’s basically the chicken breast of your dreams (assuming you dream of chicken breasts?) so let’s get down to business and get you cooking!

Ingredients for Bacon Wrapped Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken

Chicken: I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts. But you could also use boneless skinless thighs. If you did use thighs the rolling would be a little different than describe in this recipe, I would probably just butterfly the thighs and stuff the filling and then fold over. Then wrap with bacon and secure with toothpicks

Cream Cheese- You really want to make sure that it’s softened. It’s going to be difficult to mix with spinach otherwise. Either let sit out at room temperature for an hour or two before using or microwave using “soften” setting.

Chopped Frozen Spinach– I used about half of a 16oz bag of frozen spinach. The 2 cups is measured after the spinach is defrosted. But don’t worry about the exact measurement of that so much. A little more or a little less, not going to be detrimental to the recipe either way! What IS very important is that you squeeze all the excess water from the spinach, you will be surprised how much moisture it retains. If you skip this step, you will have a very watery filling and you won’t like the results!

Artichoke hearts: Make sure you are using a can where the hearts are packed in water and not oil. Drain the hearts in strainer and then roughly chop.

Mozzarella Cheese: Freshly shredded is always best. I wouldn’t use fresh mozzarella, just in case you were thinking of it. Again, too much moisture to the filling.

Parmesan cheese: While the mozzarella is melty, the parmesan will add a little stronger salty bite. Grated Pecorino Romano would also be fantastic. Or a combination of the two!

Garlic: Because it makes everything better! Make sure you finely mince it.

Salt and Pepper: The filling won’t need any salt and pepper. But it’s always best to season meat directly. I used about 2 tsp of kosher salt and 1 tsp pepper, to give you a little guide.

Bacon: I used one slice per rolled chicken breast. When you are wrapping it, try to do it in one layer, to ensure crispiness.

Step by Step Instructions to Make Bacon Wrapped Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken

First preheat oven to 375°F. If you have a convection bake setting, I would use it because it circulates the hot air.

Next make spinach, artichoke and cheese filling. Take the thawed frozen spinach and give it a good squeeze to wring out water. You will need a cheesecloth or a kitchen towel to do this. Discard water and place spinach in mixing bowl. Add the softened cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, artichoke hearts and garlic. Use or fork or rubber spatula to mix to throughly.

Set aside and get to work on the chicken. Slice chicken breasts in half, lengthwise. It will be easier to do this if you start at larger end. Lay your stabilizing hand flat on top to hold the chicken breast in place while avoiding injury.

Now that all the chicken breasts have been halved, use a ziplock bag and use meat tenderizer to pound thinner. This technique is important for two reasons: (1) it will breaks down the meat to result in a softer, juicier texture (2) it will allow a larger and more evenly proportioned surface area for the filling. The trick is to pound in an in outward motion, like you are pounding from the middle and guiding meat toward edges. Be careful not to break, go easy til you get the hang of it.

When all the meat has been prepped, season each breast with salt and pepper, and then begin adding the spinach artichoke filling. The amount of spinach artichoke filling may slightly vary depending on size of breast. But you will likely use about ¼ cup to ⅓ cup each time.

Spread the spinach artichoke filling in even layer over chicken breast. Start at smaller end and roll up. Tuck filling from edges back in. There will be a little filling spilling out the edges, that’s ok!

Take one slice of bacon and starting at bottom seam of rolled chicken breast, wrap around in one layer. Try to end back at the seam. Use one or two toothpicks to secure the breast and bacon together at seam.

Place stuffed and wrapped chicken breast seam side down on baking sheet with wire rack and foil lined base for easier clean up. It’s important to have chicken breast elevated with pan under to catch drippings. Bacon will be soggy if it’s sitting in its own grease.

Bake on upper rack in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Set oven to broil for 5 minutes to crisp the bacon. Remove from oven and remove toothpicks before serving.

Products You May Need to Make Bacon Wrapped Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken

Meat Tenderizer: Raw meat by itself has a tough, chewy texture that is difficult to cook and can be very difficult to eat as well. Meat tenderizers can be used to give your meat a softer texture that results in a juicier finished dish. Tenderizers also help you adjust the meat to a uniform thickness, which helps it cook more evenly.

CheeseCloth: From straining my stocks, to squeezing out water – a roll of cheesecloth is never a bad thing to have on hand! They are very inexpensive, and quite useful so I definitely recommend having cheesecloth around.

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