Tuscan-Style Chicken Breasts with Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Garlic Cream Sauce

chicken breasts and bacon with sun-dried tomato sauce

Tuscan-Style Chicken Breasts with Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Garlic Cream Sauce

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!Perfect if served with asparagus, spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts, or green beans!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword chicken and bacon, chicken with sun-dried tomatoes, sun-dried tomato cream sauce

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings servings

Calories 946kcal

Author Julia

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

US Customary - Metric

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 (or longer) until completely cooked. You might have to cook the chicken covered at some times. Use a meat thermometer and make sure the thickest part of the breast registers 165 °F (74 °C) before removing it from the heat.
Remove the chicken from the skillet and keep it warm.

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