The Best Italian Chicken Bake

With the holidays upon us, finding time to cook a delicious and nutritious meal can be a daunting task. But now you can make a Sunday dinner meal, anytime of the week with just a few easy ingredients. This awesome Italian chicken bake will have your family asking (maybe even begging) for more. It’s seriously THAT good.

The deliciousness comes from the fresh ingredients used to make this dish. The ingredients are simple: chicken breasts, fresh basil and garlic, olive oil, an Italian five cheese blend, and jarred pasta sauce. 

Now my Italian family would scold me if they ever found out (shhh!) I used jarred sauce. But I splurged a little and got the premium stuff, and it really makes this dish taste like it just came out of my Nana’s oven. So please, go for the more expensive and natural jarred sauce for a truly artesian taste. 

Italian Chicken Bake

Sexy Moxie Mama

A delicious and quick chicken meal.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic crushed and finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
• 6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• 2 cups prepared chunky pasta sauce
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 8 ounce package shredded Italian Five Cheese, divided
• 2 cups Italian Style Panko Bread Crumbs

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Coat the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole dish with olive oil, and sprinkle with garlic and hot red pepper flakes.
• Arrange the chicken breasts in bottom of the dish, and pour pasta sauce over chicken. Sprinkle basil over pasta sauce, and top with half the Italian Five Cheese, followed by the breadcrumbs. Top with the remaining cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese and breadcrumbs are golden brown and the chicken is no longer pink inside, about 45 minutes to an hour, or until the thickest part of a chicken breast reads at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C) on a meat thermometer.