Seriously! This is one of the easiest and quickest ways to make super delicious and flavorful chicken breasts. By making slits in the chicken breasts (Hasselback) and stuffing them with tasty things like spinach and goat cheese, you’ll get a hit of savory cheesy goodness in every bite!
Spinach + Creamy Goat Cheese Hasselback Chicken- I ♥ you! You are my new favorite way to cook chicken.
Recently a video popped up on social media showing how to make hasselback chicken and I thought..wowza! that looks amazing and so easy I HAVE to try it out! and guess what? wowza! it was so EASY and I loved that you get a bit of all the “good stuff” (spinach + goat cheese) in every bite.
If you havent heard of “Hasselback” before it’s a technique originally developed at a restaurant in Sweden (called Restaurant Hasselbacken ( or so the story goes) where they made small slits in a potato (kind of like an accordion) and stuffed them with bacon and cheese. The results, crispy potato outside, soft potato inside and goodness (bacon and cheese) in every bite. These days you’ll see lots of things that have been cut “Hasselback” like apples, sweet potatoes and now chicken.
So here’s how easy Spinach + Creamy Goat Cheese Hasselback chicken really is:
You start off by cooking the fresh spinach until it becomes slightly wilted (about 3-5 min) adding the goat cheese and a pinch of red pepper flakes if you want a bit of heat (totally optional) and cooking until the goat cheese melts (about 1 min)
Cut slits (about 1/2 inch apart) across the chicken breast, about 3/4 of the way through the breast(careful not to cut all the way through).
Stuff each slit with the spinach and goat cheese mixture...
Season with salt, pepper and paprika….
add a little mozzarella cheese (or cheddar) and pop them in the oven for about 25 minutes. That’s it!
I switched my oven from bake to broil for the last 10 min. of cooking so the cheese would get extra bubbly and browned.
See…a bit of spinach and goat cheese in EVERY bite. My mind is going crazy with all the different things I can stuff into the next batch of Hasselback chicken! how about:
Roasted red pepper and Feta- UPDATE I made this version and smothered it with Spinach and Mushrooms! Get the recipe here
Apple, ham and cheddar
Bacon & Blue cheese
Wild rice and mushrooms
So many options! What will you stuff your Hasselback chicken with? (because I know once you try this you’re going to be hooked too!)
Looking for more easy chicken recipes? here’s a few to try:
- Skinny Orange Sesame Chicken
- Sheet-pan Chicken Fajitas
- 5 ingredient Skillet Pesto Chicken
- 15 min. Honey Paprika Chicken
- Healthy Chicken Ramen Bowl
- 3 cups fresh spinach
- ½ cup crumbled goat cheese (or feta)
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless (aprrox. 1.5 lbs.)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tsp paprika
- ⅓ cup shredded Mozzarella cheese (or cheddar)
- Preheat oven to350 F. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with foil, set aside.
- In a large skillet add a splash of olive oil,cook spinach over medium until slightly wilted (approx. 3-5 min). Add crumbled goat cheese and continue to cook until cheese is melted (about 1 min).Stir in red pepper flakes (if using) Set aside.
- Place chicken breasts on prepared baking sheet. Using a sharp knife cut slits across the chicken breast about ¾ of the way through chicken breast (careful not to cut all the way through) about ½-3/4 inch apart (approx. 6-8 slits per chicken breast). Stuff each slit with spinach/goat cheese mixture.
- Generously salt and pepper top of chicken breast and season with paprika. Sprinkle ¼ of the mozzarella cheese among each chicken breast.
- Place chicken breasts in the oven and bake for 20-25 min. If desired switch oven from bake to broil for the last 10 min. of cooking (for more bubbly and browned cheese)
This looks delicious and I’d love to make it but I can’t find the actual recipe? Is it missing on the post or am I missing something? Help!
Hi Sarah..wow..Thanks for the heads-up! I have no idea what happened.. recipe gremlins? it was there when I edited the post…just added it again! Thanks for letting me know
You mention prepared baking tray – do you prefer foil or baking/parchment paper?
Does the chicken not dry out?
Hi Tarni…I prefer foil for this dish but that’s just a personal preference. Either would work just fine. The chicken is covered with a layer of cheese and has the spinach/goat cheese mixture stuffed into the slits which helps the chicken stay nice and juicy . No dry chicken! Hope you give it a try. Hasselback has turned into my favorite way to make easy, flavorful chicken.
Oh, yummo! I’m definitely putting this on the menu for my clients. They’re gonna love it!
This looks so yummy, it’s definitely on my menu for tonight.
I enjoyed this recipe it was quick and delicious. I used cayenne pepper rather than paprika and I liked the heat. The cheese balance the heat. Thanks yummly
Hi Rebecca…sounds like a great option! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. I’m glad you enjoyed!
Trying this today any suggestions on what to serve it with
Hi Brittany…the beauty of this chicken dish is it’s super versatile! You can serve it with many things. A few to try:
1. Roasted potatoes/sweet potatoes with dash of paprika (or cayenne)
2. Steamed asparagus (or broccoli) and brown rice.
3. Big green salad and crusty artisan bread
4. Sliced heirloom tomatoes with a drizzle of olive oil and salt/pepper (for the low cal side dish)
5. Roasted in season veggies ( I like to cut up whatever is in season and roast with olive oil and sea salt). Right now zucchini/yellow squash and red bell peppers would be nice.
Hope you enjoy!!
Looks so good! Do you think I could make it with feta instead of goat?
Thanks Raychel…yes absolutely! feta would work instead of goat cheese. Hope you enjoy!
I will be making this for my family on Fri. night I am happy I saw where I could use Feta as a is what I have.
we will be having Baked Potatoes, oven baked Asparagus and Broccoli Salad I am sure everyone will love it
Thank You
@Jean..oh your menu sounds delicious! hope dinner was a success!
Great recipe, one change I did was I seasoned the sliced chicken with Italian species first for a few hours. Thanks
Ok thanks
To add to my latest comment , as a side dish I severed Watermelon and Spinich with Feta cheese drizzled with Balsamic Glaze. Really went down great.
@Sean…great ideas! Italian spices would be great on the chicken and yum! watermelon/spinach/feta salad!
Would you recommend wrapping in bacon or proscuitto before baking?
LAN…hmmm…I’m not sure I would wrap it in bacon or proscuitto, but you could absolutely stuff either in the slits with the goat cheese/spinach mixture. If using bacon I would cook it first and cut into small pieces and add to the goat cheese/spinach mixture prior to stuffing. Since the proscuitto is already cured you wouldn’t need to cook first, just add to the cheese/spinach mixture. If you’re looking for recipes that do wrap chicken breasts in proscuitto here’s one to try Lemon Chicken Saltimbocca
This was very easy and delicious! My 5oz tub of baby spinach was only enough to stuff 3 breasts (I used feta with my spinach). My remaining 3 breasts I stuffed with crumbled bacon and Parmesan cheese. Both were wonderful! Next time I want to try Swiss with ham chunks – yum!! Thanks for an easy, quick and delicious meal!!
Great ideas Denise!
Hello, I’m not really a fan of goat cheese,is there any other cheese or ingredient I can mix the spinach with or would the spinach alone work? Thank you!!!
Hi Vanessa..absolutely! You can pretty much sub any kind of cheese you like for the goat cheese. Shredded, crumbled or even a small slice of your favorite cheese would work. Mozzarella, Parmasean, Feta, Cheddar etc. Hope you enjoy!
Can I use frozen spinach if that’s what I have at home currently?
Sarita..yes! you can use frozen spinach. Just make sure to thaw and drain any excess water prior to mixing with the goat cheese (or feta) .
Do you think this could be frozen before baking. Since there is only two of us, I could prepare two meals while I had all the ingredients.
It sounds really good and can’t wait to try it.
Hi Gail…no problem freezing! hope you enjoy!
Found it on Pinterest and made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious and easy to put together. My husband loved it as well. I served it with a pasta salad from Pinterest Multicolored Mediterranean Pasta Salad. Thanks for sharing. This will be in the regular rotation for sure.
Thanks! So happy to hear!
Just made this tonight! It was so delicious. Definitely going on the rotation
Oh yeah! Thanks Caroline! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
The serving says 1/4. Does that mean 1/4 chicken breast or 1 full chicken.
Hi Matt- The serving size 1/4 of the recipe which = 1 chicken breast ( including the spinach/goat cheese ). I updated the recipe to make that more clear. Thanks! Hope you enjoy! I just did a new Hasselback Chicken recipe this last weekend with roasted red peppers and feta smothered with spinach and mushrooms…posting soon
Can I cook this on a stone tray without the foil? And can I make this up in the morning and bake it later for supper. Look delicious! I am making this for a dinner get together with friends.!
I made this dish last night almost according to the directions. I did add about a tablespoon of minced garlic to the spinach as it was cooking. I also added a little Parmesan on top of the mozzarella and did the broiler a few minutes at the end, like suggested. It was OVER THE TOP DELICIOUS! We will have this again and again, plan to serve it to some guests arriving in a few weeks. Thanks for posting this wonderful recipe.