Caprese Chicken and Spaghetti Squash

Combining fresh, simple ingredients is the secret behind the classic Italian Caprese salad. It’s also the secret behind our delicious Caprese Chicken and Spaghetti Squash. This family favorite combines fresh mozzarella, sweet grape tomatoes, and fresh basil with lean chicken breast. Then it swaps carbohydrate-laden pasta for low-carb, vitamin-rich spaghetti squash.

I have made this recipe using eight ounces of bocconcini in place of the fresh mozzarella ball, and it works very well. Unless the bocconcini are very small, cut them in half so that the cheese can melt a little and spread throughout the sauce. You’re looking for pieces of cheese that are about ½ cube.

I haven’t tried making this with canned tomatoes, so I can’t say how well that will work. I expect, if you drain off most of the liquid, it will still taste pretty good. But if you use canned tomatoes, you might want to dial back the amount of salt you use, as they can be quite salty. And you won’t need to cook them as long.

I used grape tomatoes this time. I like the sweetness grape tomatoes bring to the dish, and they are generally available year-round. I’ve also made this many times using cherry tomatoes. In the summer, I especially enjoy using fresh cherry tomatoes from my garden.

You may have notices that I seeded my tomatoes. I remove the seeds because someone I cook for can’t eat seeds due to a medical condition. You don’t need to seed the tomatoes. It works perfectly well if you just cut them in half and use them.

I use boneless, skinless chicken breast. You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs as well. They take a minute or two longer to cook, but if that’s what you prefer (or what you have on hand), by all means, use thigh meat.

I also use two kinds of garlic in this recipe. I like to season the chicken before I cook it. So, I use finely ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper, and a light coating of garlic powder or granulated (dry) garlic. This was a habit I developed while trying to find ways to infuse flavor into food without adding a lot of extra salt. Garlic powder brings a lot of flavor to most proteins like chicken or meat.

Once the chicken is browned, this sauce comes together fairly quickly. When you add the wine, be sure the scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen any brown bits left there from cooking the chicken. This process is called deglazing the pan, and scraping those bits of brown into the sauce adds a ton of flavor. If you don’t like cooking with wine, use additional chicken stock to deglaze the pan.

This batch of Caprese chicken was made using an 8-ounce ball of fresh mozzarella cut into ½ inch cubes. Once you stir the mozzarella in, you should remove the pan from heat and cover it, so the cheese will melt some, but not completely. The faster you get the Caprese chicken out of the pan and on top of the cooked spaghetti squash, the more chunks of cheese will remain.

Don’t fret if the fresh mozzarella has mostly melted by the time you get the food on the plates. As long as you don’t stir it in, you will still have soft, little puddles of yum.

You can serve this Caprese chicken over the top of pasta if you’d prefer. It’s also delicious over zoodles (spiralized zucchini). I like it with spaghetti squash because I think the squash’s delicately sweet flavor goes so well with the tomatoes and basil.

Caprese Chicken and Spaghetti Squash

Course: Dinner, Vegetables, WeeknightCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

12

minutes

Cooking time

35

minutes

Finishing

3

Total time

50

minutes

Caprese Chicken and Spaghetti Squash combine fresh mozzarella, sweet grape tomatoes, fresh basil with lean chicken breast, and healthy spaghetti squash. This vegetable-forward dish is a comfort food classic made lighter.

Ingredients

• 1 2–3 lb. spaghetti squash, cooked (see directions below)

• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast (or thighs)

• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or granules

• Salt and Pepper (to taste)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• ¼ cup onion, minced

• 1–2 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 ½ teaspoons)

• ¼ tsp crushed red pepper

• ¼ cup white wine

• 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half

• 3 teaspoons fresh basil, chopped or chiffonade (divided)

• ¼ cup chicken stock or bone broth

• ¾ cup grated parmesan cheese (divided)

• 8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (cut into ½ inch cubes)

Directions

• Prepare Spaghetti Squash
• Pierce the squash several times with a sharp knife. Place in microwave and cook on high for 3–5 minutes (to soften the skin slightly).
• Using a sharp knife, cut the squash in half. Most cooks will cut the squash longways, and that’s fine. I cut it short-ways so the strands of squash are longer and more spaghetti-like.
• Scoop out the seeds and center pulp and discard.
• Place cleaned squash cut side down in a microwavable baking dish. Add about 1 inch of water.
• Microwave on high for 8 minutes (1200-watt microwave), rotate the pan halfway through if your microwave doesn’t have a revolving turntable. Squash is done when the skin can be pierced with a fork fairly easily. Don’t overcook the squash or it will be mush.
• Remove hot squash halves from pan and set aside to cool a bit so you can handle them.
• Prepare Caprese Chicken
• Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Season with garlic powder, salt and pepper and set aside.
• Warm olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add onion and a pinch of salt. Cook and stir until onion is translucent.
• Add chicken to the pan. Sauté over medium-high heat until it begins to brown. Turn chicken over to cook both sides.
• Add garlic and crushed red pepper to the pan. Cook and stir until garlic is fragrant and chicken is no longer pink.
• Add white wine. Cook, scraping the bottom of the pan for 2–3 minutes.
• Reduce heat to medium and add tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of the fresh basil, chopped. Cook and stir until tomatoes just begin to soften, about 2 minutes.
• Add chicken stock and ½ cup of parmesan cheese. Cook and stir until sauce reduces and thickens slightly, about 3-4 minutes. Check the seasoning. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
• Stir in the cubed fresh mozzarella cheese and remove from heat. Cover and set aside. Mozzarella will continue to melt into the sauce.
• Putting it all together
• Remove cooked spaghetti squash from shells with a fork. Divide among 4 plates and lightly season with salt and pepper (if desired).
• Spoon chicken and cheese mixture over the spaghetti squash. Top with remaining parmesan cheese and basil. Enjoy!

Notes

• An 8 oz. ball of fresh mozzarella or 8 oz. of bocconcini work equally well in this dish.
• The Caprese chicken can also be served over your favorite cooked pasta or zoodles. You can lightly sauté the zoodles first, or simply top them with the hot chicken and sauce.