Tuscan-Style Chicken with Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Garlic Cream Sauce is gluten-free, low-carb, high-protein, and keto-friendly. Perfect when served with asparagus!
I love combining chicken breasts and sun-dried tomatoes, such as in this Mediterranean Chicken with Capers, Artichokes, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes or this Chicken Florentine Bake.
This recipe is no exception. Chicken breasts and bacon combine beautifully with the creamy cheesy sauce made with garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, shredded Mozzarella cheese, and cream. So good! The chicken is moist and tender!
This is KETO friendly recipe. Chicken breast is low-carb and high in protein. Bacon is low carb and has a high-fat content. Sun-dried tomato cream sauce is low-carb and high in fat. There are hardly any carbs in this recipe, and it tastes so good - like something you would order from a good restaurant! Enjoy!
Side dishes
What to serve with this Tuscan-style chicken? What would go great with the sun-dried tomato cream sauce? I suggest serving steamed or roasted veggies, such as asparagus and broccoli. Also, cooked spinach or cooked green beans would be great. Below are some KETO-friendly side dish ideas:
- Oven-Roasted Asparagus with Bacon, Garlic, and Asiago cheese
- Spinach Cooked with Garlic and Olive Oil
- Garlic and Bacon Green Beans
- Asiago Roasted Broccoli
- Asiago Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Tuscan-Style Chicken Breasts with Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Garlic Cream Sauce
Ingredients
Chicken Breasts
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 6 oz sun-dried tomatoes in oil in a jar
- salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil either from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes, or just use olive oil
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 2 lb chicken breasts large, halved horizontally (4 chicken breasts)
Cream Sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese shredded (not fresh Mozzarella!)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes at least, add more to taste
- 8 strips bacon cooked and chopped
Instructions
How to cook chicken breasts in a skillet on stove top:
- Note: if using sun-dried tomatoes in oil (in a jar), make sure to drain sun-dried tomatoes from oil, before using them. Reserve 2 tablespoons of this drained oil for sautéing as described below:
- In a large pan, on medium heat, saute garlic and sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil) in 2 tablespoons of oil (olive oil or oil reserved from the sun-dried tomatoes jar - see note above) for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant.
- Remove sun-dried tomatoes and garlic from the pan, leaving the oil, and add chicken breasts, halved horizontally, salted and lightly covered in paprika (for color) and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side.
- Cover the pan with the lid, remove from heat, and let the chicken sit, cooking in its own juices, off heat in a skillet, until completely cooked through and no longer pink in the center.
- Remove the chicken from the skillet.
How to make cream sauce:
- Add 1 cup of heavy cream to the same, now empty, skillet. Add back the cooked sun-dried tomatoes and the garlic. Add basil and crushed red pepper - mix to combine.
- Bring to boil, add 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, immediately reduce to simmer, constantly stirring to melt the cheese, until the cheese melts.
- Add 1 cup of milk gradually, whisking until nice and smooth, while on simmer. You might not use all the milk - add just enough to thin out the sauce to your liking.
- Add cooked chicken breasts. Top with crumbled cooked bacon. Reheat until warm.
Video
Notes
- Use pre-shredded Mozzarella cheese labeled as part-skim, low-moisture. It is usually sold pre-shredded or as a block of cheese.
- Do not use fresh Mozzarella, usually sold as large soft balls or a log.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
I would have preferred to cook in oven, but not sure how to it. The recipe sounds delicious and would love to try it, but didn't want to waste ingredients.
Jean, I am sure this can be done in the oven, even though I haven't tried it myself. You will have to precook the chicken completely before adding it to the oven and cook pasta as well. I would use half the amount of cream. I should really do an oven version as it sounds very interesting. I might!
chicken pasta with sun-dried tomatoes and basil looks excellent. I will try it this week
Cate, enjoy that recipe - I hope you love it! 🙂
It’s was very yummy would be good with pasta if you were not doing a low carb diet. Defy will make again pretty easy
Ruth, I am so glad this recipe turned out well! Thank you so much for taking the time to share this positive review and the 5-stars! 🙂
I thought this recipe was amazingly delicious! The sauce is so flavorful! I’ve made it twice now, once over spaghetti noodles and the other over white rice. Both were incredibly good!
Shaleen, your comment made my day! 🙂 I am so flattered! What a great idea to serve this over rice!
Making this tonight!
Best recipe... totally awesome!!!!
Made this tonight & it was delicious. I loved the sundried tomatoes. My husband really liked it too. Great recipe. Thank you.
This is absolutely delicious. My husband loved it and said it has so many flavors!!
25 carbs and 19 sugars is not keto friendly?!?
Don’t forget 945 calories!! Woahhhh
I don’t understand where all the carbs came from .. I am on keto & use these ingredients so I just can’t figure out why it says carbs are 25 net carbs
Sundried tomatoes have a lot of net carbs, basically all the water is removed and you are left with sugary fruit, not the worst just need to limit them. And then milk (not heavy cream) also is pretty high on carbs.
Aron, that's very helpful feedback - thank you!
5 carbs and 19 sugars is considered Keto friendly?!?!
You are right but I don’t see where the net carbs of 25 come from nor the high sugars
Please let me know which ingredients would add so many carbs and sugars because I have used all these ingredients in various recipes but have been in ketosis for 6 months
The majority of carbs come from sun-dried tomatoes. Milk also contains some carbs.
Please also keep in mind that the nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Don't change a thing!! The best and easiest recipe ever!!! Love it!!
Where are all the sugars coming from?
This is EXTREMELY high carb meal. 30 total carbs-25 net carbs. Must eliminate the sun dried tomatoes (30g per 8oz) or substitute diced tomatoes (11g per 8oz)!
How long did it take for the chicken to cook after being taken off heat.
Can you use almond milk ? As a sub for the milk? Carbs are high in regular milk.
This looks really good. How come the carbs are so high? There’s not much in there that seems heavy in carbs. Thanks!
Maybe the milk?? Would be interested to know as well.
It's the sun dried tomatoes. An 8 5 oz jar has 24 servings and 3g of carbs per serving.