This baked Santa Fe Chicken is crispy on the outside and stuffed with a creamy mixture on the inside and carries with it a slight kick!

It’s rel=”nofollow” Recipe Redux time! This month’s theme is a fun one!

It’s the end of the year and we’re taking a moment to reflect – The Recipe ReDux has been around for 54 months! To celebrate, we’re playing a little party game this month: Grab your nearest cookbook and ReDux the recipe on page 54 or 154. We can’t wait to see the books you’re cooking from these days.

After reading this month’s theme, I went straight to my book shelf to see which cookbook I was going to choose from. I scanned through the many books I have and decided on one of my favorites: Lion House Classics, 25th Anniversary Addition.

One summer during college, I worked at the Lion House in Salt Lake City, both in the Pantry (the restaurant portion) and the catering kitchens. The Lion House was built in 1856 and was the family home of Brigham Young, the second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the first governor of the state of Utah. The home gets its name from the lion statue positioned over the front entryway. The home now serves as a restaurant on the lower floor, and the upper floors are used for catering different functions and events. The food is AMAZING! I loved learning to cook the tasty home-style food they serve. Now that I no longer work there, I have several of their cookbooks which allow me to cook and taste their delicious food at home. Still, I love to go to the restaurant when I am in the area. 🙂

Turning to page 54 in the cookbook, I found a recipe for Santa Fe Chicken. It originally calls for regular cream cheese, green chilies, chicken breasts and cornflakes. Easy recipe – I love it already! As for what I changed: first off, I cut the recipe in half (the original recipe serves 8-12 people). I don’t know about you, but that is a lot of food for my little family.

If you want that many servings just double my recipe. My recipe serves 6 people. (The photo below shows only 5 chicken breasts because I couldn’t fit 6 on the tray, but trust me there was one still sitting in the baking dish waiting for me to eat it!)

As far as the actual ingredients go, I used Neufchâtel cheese (or 1/3 less fat cream cheese) in place of the regular cream cheese. I added in some garlic to up the flavor and spinach to increase veggie content. Instead of a cornflake crust, I used a traditional egg white and bread crumb breading.

Take your weeknight dinners up a notch with this Santa Fe Chicken Recipe! Share on X

This recipe is pretty simple to make and turns out great! The green chilies give the creamy stuffing just enough of a kick without being super spicy. You can serve this with a side of rice and veggies to complete your meal!

Santa Fe Chicken

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Author: Brittany Poulson
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x
Category: Entree
Method: Bake
Cuisine: American

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Description

This baked Santa Fe Chicken is crispy on the outside and stuffed with a creamy mixture on the inside and carries with it a slight kick! | recipe via www.yourchoicenutrition.com

Ingredients

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8 ounces Neufchâtel cheese (or 1/3 less fat cream cheese), softened
1 can (4 oz) diced green chilies
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup chopped baby spinach
1 egg white
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup plain bread crumbs

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Instructions

Mix Neufchâtel cheese, green chilies, minced garlic, and spinach until well blended; set aside.
Whisk egg white in a small bowl. Pound chicken breasts, then butterfly it (creating a pocket) For more detailed instructions on how to butterfly a chicken breast, see my post for Tapenade Stuffed Mediterranean Chicken). Brush the outsides of each breast with egg white, then dredge in bread crumbs.
Scoop cheese mixture into the pockets of each chicken breast. Close the chicken around the mixture, using a toothpick inserted to keep closed if needed. Place the stuffed chicken breasts in a greased baking dish.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-35 minutes, or until chicken has cooked thoroughly (165 degrees internal temperature).
Serve hot and enjoy!

For more healthy recipe make-overs, check out the list below!

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Brittany

I'm a registered dietitian nutritionist and mom of four with a passion of helping families build confidence in the kitchen. I share family friendly recipes and helpful tips to help you navigate mealtime one bite at a time.

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