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A 10-minute crowd-pleaser, this dump-and-bake chicken Florentine pasta casserole is an easy, cheesy, comfort food dinner for your busiest weeknights — and you don’t even have to boil the noodles! With a jar of Alfredo sauce, frozen spinach, canned tomatoes, and a rotisserie chicken, it’s one of the quickest meals you’ll ever prep.
Table of Contents
Y’all love my dump-and-bake recipes for your busiest evenings! Whether you stir together a meatball casserole, chicken parm casserole, or chicken and mushroom casserole, these meals always seem to win rave reviews. The fact is, we all need quick, easy, un-fancy dinners that we can turn to when we don’t feel like cooking — or when our schedule is packed. Today’s chicken florentine pasta is just the latest in our weeknight lineup!
What’s Chicken Florentine?
In the culinary world, “Florentine” refers to a recipe that is prepared in the style of the Italian region of Florence. There are obviously many, many different ways to create a “Florentine” dish, but the common thread is often the inclusion of spinach. If you see a recipe with “Florentine” in the title, you can go ahead and assume that there’s plenty of spinach in there!
Origin
According to legend, the name originates with a French queen named Catherine de Médicis, who was born in Florence and, in 1533, married Henri, the second son of King Francois I. Catherine ultimately became the Queen of France, imported her own cooks from Florence, and even brought along spinach seeds to grow. Catherine’s cooks served so many dishes with spinach, that this style became known as spinach à la Florentine, to denote the origin of the vegetable, and then eventually simply Florentine.
The modern version of Chicken Florentine includes golden pan-fried chicken breasts that are served with a creamy spinach sauce. It’s both elegant and rich, so I think the Queen would approve! Here, we’ve added pasta right to the pan, and simplified the process with our favorite oven-baked method.
Florentine Sauce
Florentine sauce is typically a creamy sauce made with ingredients such as heavy cream, white wine, butter, garlic, Parmesan, and fresh spinach. It’s very similar to an Alfredo sauce, with the leafy greens added in. Since today’s recipe utilizes the shortcut “dump-and-bake” method, we’re taking some help from a jar of store-bought Alfredo sauce and a package of frozen, chopped spinach. It doesn’t get much easier than that!
Ingredients
This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for our favorite spinach florentine pasta. As always, specific measurements and step-by-step cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Pasta: I use rotini pasta, but you can substitute with another short pasta shape (such as penne, ziti, elbows, or medium shells).
- Alfredo sauce: I keep it simple with a jar of store-bought sauce, but you can certainly use your own homemade Alfredo if you prefer. You’ll need a total of about 2 ½ cups, which is approximately one very large 22-ounce jar, or 1 ½ 15-ounce jars.
- Chicken broth: adds flavor to the pasta and sauce as the ingredients cook together in the pan. Chicken stock or a low-sodium broth is a perfectly fine substitute if you don’t have regular broth on hand. If you’re starting with unsalted or low-sodium broth, you will likely need to add some salt to the mixture before baking.
- Canned petite-diced tomatoes: or substitute with a can of regular diced tomatoes.
- Frozen chopped spinach: thaw the spinach and use a dish towel to squeeze all of the extra liquid out of the leaves.
- Garlic: for savory flavor. Use about ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder if you don’t have fresh garlic cloves on hand.
- Chicken: I use the meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken for convenience, but you can also use leftovers from a previous meal, or even add raw chicken straight to the dish. The raw, diced meat will cook through by the time the pasta is done. You will need about 1 lb. of raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs) to equal about 2 cups of cooked, shredded meat.
- Shredded cheese: use shredded mozzarella or (my preference) an Italian blend cheese.
- Fresh basil: a bright, flavorful finishing touch!
The Best Casserole Dish to Use
We rounded up the best casserole dishes you can buy, including 2 that I personally own and love! While I use different-sized casserole dishes for different dump-and-bake meals, the Staub Ceramic Rectangular Baking Dish earned the top spot. You can buy it on Amazon for $78.95 or at Target for $79.95. That said, I also love the beautiful, Scandinavian style of the Dansk Kobenstyle Baker, available for $135 and shown here.
How to Make Chicken Florentine Pasta
This is a perfect way to get some extra veggies into your family’s bodies with an easy dinner that doesn’t require any prep work. The detailed directions are included in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick overview:
- Stir together all of the ingredients except for the cooked chicken and the shredded cheese.
- Cover and bake until the pasta is tender.
- Stir in the chicken and sprinkle the cheese on top.
- Return the pan to the oven for 5-10 more minutes, just until the cheese melts.
- Garnish with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese.
Serving Suggestions
This creamy chicken Florentine pasta bake includes protein, carbs and veggies, so it’s truly a one dish meal! That said, if you’d like to offer additional options on the side, here are some easy choices:
- Garlic Bread, Breadsticks, or No-Knead Focaccia Bread
- Green Side Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, Wedge Salad with Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing, Caesar Salad, or our favorite House Salad with Candied Pecans
- Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower
- Roasted Broccoli or Broccoli and Cheese
- Roasted Asparagus or Sauteed Asparagus
- Amish Green Beans with Brown Butter, Arkansas Green Beans with Bacon, or Southern-Style Green Beans
- Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
- Sauteed Zucchini or Roasted Yellow Squash
- Fennel Salad with Apples and Creamy Cider Dressing
- Balsamic Roasted Root Vegetables
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Make Ahead: You can assemble the casserole a few hours in advance, or even leave it covered in the refrigerator overnight before baking. The pasta will start to soften and absorb some of the liquid as it sits, so you may need to decrease the baking time slightly. You don’t want to overcook the casserole or you’ll end up with gummy, mushy pasta.
- Storage: This casserole is best enjoyed immediately from the oven. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The pasta will dry out a bit as it sits.
- Reheat individual portions in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.
- I do not recommend freezing this casserole because pasta has a tendency to become gummy and mushy when thawed.
Recipe Variations
- Don’t have rotini pasta? You can substitute with other similar short pasta shapes such as penne, rigatoni, or elbows. Just pick a pasta that has a similar cooking time as the penne (about 7-8 minutes recommended on the package) — otherwise you’ll need to adjust the casserole’s baking time in the oven.
- Stir in some extra veggies. If your kids like peas, zucchini, sliced mushrooms, or frozen broccoli, stir those into the dish as well! If you’re using a larger vegetable with a longer cooking time (like broccoli), you may want to steam the vegetables first before adding to the dish. For something small like frozen peas, you can just add them (still frozen) straight to the baking dish towards the end of the cooking time.
- Add more flavor to the dish by replacing some of the broth with white wine.
- Use homemade Alfredo sauce instead of a jar of store-bought sauce.
- Jazz up the casserole with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Add extra herbs such as fresh or dried parsley, thyme, oregano, and rosemary.
- Make this chicken florentine pasta with sun dried tomatoes by draining a jar of oil-packed sun dried tomatoes, chopping them (if necessary), and stirring them into the casserole before baking.
- For lemon chicken florentine, add a few squeezes of fresh lemon juice and some fresh lemon zest to the dish.
- Cooking for a smaller family? Cut the ingredients in half and prepare the casserole in an 8-inch baking dish. The rest of the cooking instructions remain the same.
Tips for the Best Chicken Florentine Pasta Recipe
- Purchase an extra-large jar of Alfredo sauce (22 ounces). If you can’t find the 22-ounce jar, then use 1 ½ 15-ounce jars.
- Make sure that you squeeze as much liquid as possible out of the spinach before adding it to your pasta. I find that it’s easiest to place the thawed spinach in a dish towel and wring out all of the water over the sink.
- If you prefer to start with raw chicken, you will need 1 lb. of raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs. Dice the chicken into bite-size pieces and add it to the dish at the beginning (with the uncooked pasta). The meat will be done by the time the pasta is tender.
- Total cooking time will vary depending on the type of pan that you use and your individual oven. Glass or ceramic baking dishes will take longer than metal pans, for instance. To know when your casserole is done, taste a bite of the pasta. The noodles should be tender and most of the liquid should be absorbed.
- Be careful not to overbake the casserole or the pasta will become mushy.
- Garnish the casserole with fresh herbs like basil or parsley for a bright, fresh touch. A sprinkling of grated Parmesan cheese is also delicious!
More Dump-and-Bake Chicken Noodle Casseroles
Dump-and-Bake Chicken Parm Casserole
50 minutes mins
Dump and Bake Chicken Alfredo Pasta Casserole
48 minutes mins
Dump-and-Bake Chicken Mushroom Casserole
50 minutes mins
And if you’re looking for even more dump-and-bake recipes, you’ll find them all HERE!
Dump-and-Bake Chicken Florentine Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 (16 ounce) package uncooked rotini pasta
- 1 (22 ounce) extra large jar Alfredo sauce (approximately 2 ½ cups total)
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite-diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, with all of the liquid squeezed out
- 2 teaspoons minced, pressed, or grated garlic (about 2 large cloves)
- 2 cups diced rotisserie chicken, or other cooked, diced chicken (see my notes below if you prefer to start with 1 lb. of raw, boneless, skinless chicken breast or chicken thighs)
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
- ¼ cup chopped or torn fresh basil leaves
- Optional: Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).
- In a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, stir together uncooked pasta, Alfredo sauce, chicken broth, tomatoes, spinach, and garlic. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- Uncover; give the pasta a good stir. At this point you should check the pasta to make sure that it is al dente (firm but with a tender bite). I have had good luck with the 30-minute cook time; however, the cooking time will vary based on your oven and on the type of dish that you use. If it’s still too hard after 30 minutes, just cover the dish and return to the oven for 10-15 more minutes, or until the pasta is al dente. Then move on to the next step.
- Stir in the chicken, and sprinkle the cheese over top. Bake uncovered for 5-10 more minutes (or until cheese is melted and pasta is tender).
- Garnish with chopped fresh basil and grated Parmesan right before serving.
Notes
- Purchase an extra-large jar of Alfredo sauce (22 ounces). If you can’t find the 22-ounce jar, then use 1 ½ 15-ounce jars.
- Make sure that you squeeze as much liquid as possible out of the spinach before adding it to your pasta. I find that it’s easiest to place the thawed spinach in a dish towel and wring out all of the water over the sink.
- If you prefer to start with raw chicken, you will need 1 lb. of raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs. Dice the chicken into bite-size pieces and add it to the dish at the beginning (with the uncooked pasta). The meat will be done by the time the pasta is tender.
- Total cooking time will vary depending on the type of pan that you use and your individual oven. Glass or ceramic baking dishes will take longer than metal pans, for instance. To know when your casserole is done, taste a bite of the pasta. The noodles should be tender and most of the liquid should be absorbed.
- Be careful not to overbake the casserole or the pasta will become mushy.
- Garnish the casserole with fresh herbs like basil or parsley for a bright, fresh touch. A sprinkling of grated Parmesan cheese is also delicious!
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in December, 2017. It was updated in August, 2023.
Sounds so good. I would like to split recipe between (2) 8 inch square pans. I plan on freezing one. Would I cook it before I freeze it? If so what Temp and how long when I reheat it. Thank you
Hi, Karen! I don’t normally freeze these recipes because I worry that the uncooked pasta will absorb too much of the liquid before baking and then might have a mushy texture in the end. I don’t know if this will be the case, though, because I haven’t actually done it. 🙂
If you’re going to freeze one of the pans, I would definitely freeze it before baking. If you freeze and then reheat a baked casserole, I would be concerned that the texture of the pasta would be weird. 🙂
Maybe if you don’t add the broth/Alfredo mixture before freezing it would help? You could always put the needed mixture into a separate container or in a baggie placed on top of the casserole before you put the top on and freeze it? You can always thaw it with warm water so you can pour it over the ingredients before baking. I’m not sure if that will work or is a good idea or not, just a suggestion!
I wondered the same thing because we freeze the lasagna, of course this has more liquid than that recipe….I think I’ll try it anyway! Grazie!
Thanks, Karina! Let me know how it works!
what Alfredo sauce do you use for this? I’ve had a hard time finding one I like. Any suggestions would be great! : )
Hi, Laura! I often just buy whichever brand is on sale, but I do really like the Classico Alfredo sauce.
Do you think fresh spinach would work the same?
Hey, Lauren!
Yes, you can definitely use fresh spinach. You’ll need a lot more fresh spinach to equal the amount of frozen spinach that I used here, but it doesn’t need to be exact. Just stir in as much fresh spinach as you like towards the end of cooking. The spinach will wilt almost instantly as it combines with the hot pasta. Enjoy! 🙂