- I'm gonna show you how
to make stuffed chicken and wait until you see what's inside. (upbeat music) Hey everybody. It's Natasha of www.natashaskitchen.com. Today we're making a cheesy,
creamy spinach-stuffed chicken. It's easy to make, but tastes so fancy. I made this for my husband and he said, I would order
that in a restaurant. So two thumbs up. Let's get started. Preheat your oven to
425 degrees Fahrenheit. And we're gonna make the filling. In a medium bowl, combine four
ounces of cold cream cheese, one tablespoon of mayo, a
quarter teaspoon of salt, two minced garlic cloves. And, to easily peel a garlic clove, start by cutting off the ends and then smash them with
the side of a knife. Once you've smashed it, the
skin should peel off easily. And for this recipe, feel
free to use a garlic press. I use mine every excuse I
get because it's easier. And I will link to our
favorite garlic press, which is this one, in the notes. Now just mash those ingredients
together with a fork. Next you'll need one and a half cups or about one and a half ounces
of fresh baby spinach leaves. If you see any thick stems,
you can get rid of those. Otherwise just chop up your spinach. (upbeat music) Now transfer that chopped spinach into your cream cheese mixture, and also add one fourth cup
of shredded mozzarella cheese and one fourth cup of
shredded Parmesan cheese. Mash that into the cream cheese mixture just until everything is well combined. This mixture already smells so good. Now we're gonna prep the chicken. You'll need three large chicken breasts that are boneless and skinless. It's about one and three
fourths to two pounds in total. Also try to use even size chicken breasts. That way they will cook more evenly. Lay the chicken breasts on a
flat surface and cut a slit about three fourths of the way
through the chicken breast. Make sure you don't cut
all the way through. You're basically creating
a deep, large pocket to stuff the chicken breast. (upbeat music) All right, we're done creating slits in all of the chicken breasts
and it's time to stuff them. Fill each chicken breast
with about a third of the mixture. Spread that mixture out slightly. And now we're gonna
seal that mixture inside of the chicken breast. I'm using two toothpicks
per chicken breast, and I'm pushing them in horizontally to seal the two sides together. Sealing the chicken breast
together like this ensures that most of your filling won't leak out during the cooking process. If you're using very
large chicken breasts, you might use three toothpicks to seal it. The most important thing is to remember how many you put in there so you don't forget to
take out the toothpicks when serving them. Finish stuffing and sealing
the other two chicken breasts. When sealing, it does help to place the chicken breast cut side up so that it's facing you. And this way it's easier to see where the toothpick is going. (upbeat music) Once all of your chicken
breasts are stuffed and sealed, it's time to season them. (upbeat music) Season to taste all over
the outside of your chicken. We're using three
fourths teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of black pepper, half a teaspoon of garlic powder, and half a teaspoon of paprika. Make sure to season both sides generously. Now it's time to turn on the stove. Because we're gonna put
these into the oven later, you'll need an oven safe skillet. We're using a cast iron pan, but any heavy-bottom skillet will work. Place that over medium heat and add one tablespoon of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add
the stuffed chicken breasts and saute for four minutes
per side over medium heat or until each side is golden brown. (upbeat music) If the chicken is browning too quickly, you can reduce the heat. And if it's not browning fast enough, turn the heat up. Carefully flip the chicken
and cook another four minutes. (upbeat music) The chicken won't be fully
cooked through at this point. And that's okay, because
we're still gonna put these in the oven. The goal is just to get a
beautiful sear and browning on the outside of the chicken breast. Now, using oven mitts for safety, transfer that hot skillet
to the preheated oven and bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness
of your chicken breast. To test for doneness, insert
an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of your chicken and it should register at
165 degrees Fahrenheit. (upbeat music) Oh yes! Winner, winner, chicken dinner. And I am so hungry for this. It smells amazing. You do wanna let the chicken
rest for about five minutes once it comes outta the oven. It's always a good idea to
rest your meat a little bit before slicing into it. That way it doesn't juice out and it has a chance to soak
up all whose yummy flavors. It'll just taste better. You'll see. All right. While that's resting, we're
just gonna plate a piece, 'cause I can not wait. All right. Get in close. You gotta see this. I love that there's that little bit of cheese
pull from the center. Oh! I just got even hungrier. All right, here we go. And the first thing
you need to do when you make this chicken. Okay, listen, this is super important. Take out the toothpicks, because it would be very unfortunate. If someone were to eat a toothpick. It's not a nice surprise. So first things first,
take out the toothpicks and remember how many you put in each piece of chicken. They come out easy. Okay. All right, now I'm gonna cut into this 'cause I want you guys
to see what's inside. Your mouth is gonna start
watering right away. You're gonna get super hungry. You'll see. Okay, here we go. Oh, so juicy inside. And baking it to the end is just so smart because the chicken gets
perfectly cooked through without getting dry. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Take a look at this. Take a look at that. Saucy, cheesy goodness. That's what I'm talking about. All right. Are you hungry yet? Are you? I bet you are. Okay. We're gonna get
right into this taste test. It's had enough time to cool, okay? It's had its moment. And now get in my belly right now. That's a big bite. And a saucy bite. And don't miss that
little bit of extra sauce that's in the skillet because that is the
good stuff, my friends. That is the good stuff. So much flavor. Okay, here we go. (upbeat music) My head is just swimming
with enjoyment right now. This was really easy to make,
but seriously tastes fancy. Like something you'd order
in a nice restaurant. It's delicious. And then the filling, you
know what it tastes like? It tastes like our creamy
spinach and artichoke dip. And if you haven't tried that recipe, you are missing out on life. It is so good. That's what this filling tastes like. Creamy and cheesy. I love that it has two
kinds of cheese in it. The Parmesan add this
nice layer of flavor. And then the mozzarella is
the cheese pull that you see. That's right. Don't skip either of them. So good. Lots of spinach. Creamy cheesy. I hope this becomes a new
favorite way to make chicken. And we do have other
stuffed chicken recipes, because we just love stuffed chicken. So make sure you try those and we'll see you in our next video. (upbeat music)
