Chicken Florentine Meatballs

Okay, so I don’t know if Chicken Florentine is necessarily a classic authentic Italian dish or not (probably more like Italian-American, if I’m being honest). All I do know is that it just so happens to be one of my favorite chicken dishes. It’s simple, it’s easy, it doesn’t break the bank and it’s absolutely delicious. With that being said, I wanted to give it the ol’ meatball treatment, because I couldn’t help myself, but also because you have to admit it sounds pretty tasty, right? May I present to you these Chicken Florentine Meatballs in all of their delectable glory. I love all of my meatball recipes equally, and I know I say this with each new version, but this one here is my new favorite. I have a feeling I won’t be able to stop making it. If you still are looking for some meatball inspiration, might I direct you to the vast and continuously growing meatball archive? You’ll be sure to find a hidden gem you didn’t know existed. You can thank me later for it.

In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, bread crumbs, granulated garlic, granulated onion, dried oregano, dried basil, red pepper flakes and a large pinch of salt and pepper. Shape into 1-inch meatballs.

**Tip: You can also do this with ground turkey if you prefer or if that’s all you have on hand. It would be just as delicious!**

In a shallow dish, combine the flour and a large pinch of salt and pepper. Coat the meatballs in the seasoned flour and shake off the excess.

Set a large skillet over moderate heat. Once hot, add the olive oil and butter. Once the butter has melted, add the meatballs in a single layer, making sure not to overcrowd the skillet.

**Tip: If you need to, cook the meatballs in batches. Cook until browned on both sides and almost cooked all the way through. They’ll continue cooking later on. Transfer the meatballs to a plate and set aside.**

Add the shallot and garlic to the pan and cook until softened. Deglaze the pan with the wine and cook until almost evaporated. Stir in the chicken stock, heavy cream and Italian seasoning. Cook over low heat until the sauce comes to a simmer.

**Note: I know that some people can’t cook with wine or prefer not to and if that’s the case you can just use all chicken stock instead. So you’d do a cup and a half of chicken stock to make up for the lack of wine.**

Return the meatballs to the pan and cook until the sauce has reduced slightly and has thickened. Add the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese and cook until the spinach has just wilted through.

The key to this recipe is to add the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese right at the very end of the cooking process. You don’t want the spinach to wilt too much or the sun-dried tomatoes to get too chewy right at the beginning. So I prefer to add all of that in the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Serve it over spaghetti, orzo or even rice. It would also be great with mashed potatoes. But if you want a healthier option, it would be delicious with a salad on the side as well. Just don’t forget the crusty bread to sop up all of that delicious sauce.

This recipe can easily be doubled to feed a larger crowd or if you want to just double it for yourself to make sure you have plenty of leftover. It’s the kind of dish that just gets better and better the next day.

Looking for a quick, easy and delicious weeknight meal? Or just looking for a show-stopping dish that’ll impress company, without breaking the bank or having you be in the kitchen all night long? Or are you just plain bored of the same old recipes you make week after week? If you answered yes to any of those questions then is this recipe for you! Give this meatball dish a try and I guarantee you that it’ll be a hit! Let me know what you think below and as always, thank you so much for reading and following along!