I think this is officially my favorite meal right now. Like if I could choose one thing to eat for a birthday dinner, it would be this. That’s how obsessed I am with this recipe. You guys don’t even know, and pregnancy with its lovely cravings probably doesn’t help, but I’ve wanted this EVERY DAY. I ate it for dinner last week and then made it again for lunch the very next day. That’s how much love I’ve got for this delicious-ness!
No matter who you make this for, NO ONE, and I mean no one, will ever guess it’s dairy free. It’s crazy creamy, perfectly rich, and tastes like it’s made with whole milk and heavy cream. I LOVE.
My one year old has a dairy allergy, so I have extra appreciation when I make a recipe like this that he can eat reaction free + the rest of us can eat and feel like we’re totally indulging in a dairy-laden meal. Because let’s be honest, dairy is delicious. So I LOVE to fake it.
Here’s the other amazing thing, instead of dumping two cups of half and half into your pan, this entire dish is made with whole foods. It’s a whole 30 approved dinner – there’s only the good stuff in here! SO – you’re eating a dinner that feels like you’re totally indulging, but it’s healthy!! I’M TELLING YOU GUYS – I’M PASSIONATE OVER HERE.
So how do we make this black magic happen? Cashews. Cashews are literally the answer to dairy free cooking. I make homemade cashew cream at least once or twice a week, and it’s the easiest thing in the world. Boil raw cashews for ten minutes (I never think far enough ahead to soak overnight), and then blend them up in a high powered blender until super smooth. And it acts like heavy cream in any dish!
We use a combo of cashew cream plus a tiny bit of almond milk to thin the sauce out. That + shallot, garlic, spices, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and a little bit of lemon juice, and you’ve got the most luscious, flavorful sauce in the world. PERFECTION.
30 Minute Creamy Tuscan Chicken (Dairy Free)
This Whole 30, paleo, keto approved dinner is dairy free and unbelievably delicious! It comes together quickly for the perfect weeknight dinner!
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, sliced through the middle to make two thin breast halves
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano, divided
- 2 teaspoons dried basil, divided
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 1 shallot, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup packed spinach leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup packed sun dried tomatoes, roughly chopped (dry or packed in oil both work – if packed in oil, drain, rinse, and dry first)
- 1/4 cup almond milk (plus more if needed to thin out sauce)
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
Instructions
- Add your cashews to a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes, drain, and add to a high powered blender* with 1 1/2 cups of water. Blend until completely smooth – I usually let mine go for a full 30 seconds – 1 minute or so. Leave the cashew cream in the blender and set aside
- While the cashews are coming to a boil/boiling, cover your chicken with plastic wrap and pound with a meat tenderizer until the chicken halves are even thicknesses (this step is optional)
- In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon of your oregano and 1 teaspoon of your basil. Season both sides of each chicken half with salt, pepper, and your oregano/basil combo
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat with olive oil
- When hot, add your chicken breast halves and cook on both sides until golden brown and just cooked through. Set aside to a plate
- Reduce the heat to medium and add a little olive oil to the same pan. Add your shallot and garlic + a little salt and pepper and cook until the shallot has softened, just a few minutes
- To this, add your cashew cream, almond milk, remaining oregano and basil, sun dried tomatoes, and spinach. Season with salt and pepper and stir to combine
- Let this mixture simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes, until the spinach has fully wilted and the flavors have had a chance to cook together (thin out with more almond milk if needed).
- Add your lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper
- You can serve this 3 different ways: add the chicken back to the pan with the sauce and serve family style, plate your chicken and spoon lots of sauce over each (don’t be shy!!), or toss the sauce with pasta (or zoodles/spaghetti squash if whole 30/paleo/keto) and serve your chicken over top. My favorite is serving this with pasta, but all three are WONDERFUL!
Notes
*A high powered blender like a Vitamix works best for things like this, but I know they’re expensive and a lot of people don’t have them. A regular blender works too, it just won’t get it quite as silky smooth! If you’re on the fence about investing in a high powered blender, I waited years before finally getting one and I LOVE mine!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 chicken breast half, 1/4 of the sauce
- Calories: 390
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 104 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 58 g
- Cholesterol: 145 mg
If you make this or any of my other recipes, be sure to Instagram it and tag @thegarlicdiaries so I can see!
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OMG! its looking delicious, thanks for sharing :)
i just loved the creamy tuscan chicken
i am drooling literally
I really love these, Thanks for the recipe.
Can’t wait to try it.