I’ve got a brand new meatball recipe for you that’s basically a cross between chicken florentine and the internet-famous “marry me chicken.”
These creamy, saucy chicken florentine meatballs are easy to make and absolutely bursting with flavor from savory parmesan cheese, a touch of white wine, beautiful sun-dried tomatoes, and simple seasonings. You’ll get a lovely boost of vegetables from shredded zucchini (hiding right in the meatballs themselves) and tender spinach in the sauce. Plus, each serving has over 30g of protein.
I included yummy ways to serve the meatballs, too! This one’s truly love-at-first-bite, and makes the perfect date night meal or weeknight dinner that feels a little fancy.
Wait, what are chicken florentine and “marry me chicken?”
- Chicken florentine: “Florentine” comes from Florence, Italy, and often means a dish that involves a protein cooked in a cream sauce that has spinach. Traditional chicken florentine has breaded, seared chicken breast cooked in a “Mornay” sauce made with cream, cheese, and spinach.
- “Marry me chicken”: this dish, on the other hand, is basically Tuscan chicken that has a similar creamy sauce, but with the addition of sun-dried tomatoes and basil for a punch of sweet, tangy, herby flavor.
My take involves juicy, veggie-packed chicken meatballs instead of chicken breast!
Ingredients in these chicken florentine meatballs
Although this dish sounds fancy, it actually requires very simple ingredients that come together for a deliciously flavorful, restaurant-quality dinner. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken: we’re using lean ground chicken (or ground turkey) as the base of the meatballs.
- Zucchini: I love adding a shredded zucchini to the meatballs for moisture and an extra boost of veggies.
- Parmesan cheese: get extra savory flavor by adding parmesan into the meatball mixture.
- Seasonings: we’re using Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Binders: you’ll also need panko bread crumbs and an egg to hold them together.
- For the sauce: that creamy sauce has butter, a shallot, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, dry white wine, low-sodium chicken broth, heavy cream, parmesan, and spinach.
Can I make them gluten-free?
Sure! Simply use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs in the meatballs.
Can I leave out the wine?
Yes, if you’re serving kiddos (or just want to omit the wine) simply use more chicken broth in its place.
Make the meatballs ahead of time
If you want to save time during dinner, feel free to either:
- Shape the meatballs the day before and store them in an airtight container in the fridge, then bake them and make the sauce for dinner the next day.
- Or bake the meatballs 1-2 days ahead of time and simply make the sauce and continue with the recipe when you’re ready to enjoy this dish.
What to serve with chicken florentine meatballs
I like to top the skillet with lemon zest and freshly torn basil, and then serve with:
- Cooked pasta (I love a long noodle like spaghetti)
- Rice or pearl couscous
- Crusty sourdough bread or my famous garlic bread
- Mashed potatoes
- A fresh Asiago Arugula Pear Salad or Herby Olive Italian Orzo Salad
- Extra veggies like these Spicy Roasted Brussels Sprouts or these Caramelized Garlic Carrots
Storing tips
Store any leftover chicken florentine meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. To reheat, simply place your meatballs and sauce in the microwave for 30-60 seconds.
Two ways to freeze these meatballs
- Cook first, then freeze: simply place your meatballs and sauce in a freezer safe, airtight container or bag and freeze them together for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy, let your container of meatballs and sauce thaw in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight, and then empty the contents into a pan on the stovetop. Heat them in your pan until they’re nice and warm, and then serve!
- Freeze before cooking: form your meatballs as instructed, place them on a baking sheet, and put them in the freezer for 1-2 hours. Then, transfer your frozen meatballs to an airtight, freezer-friendly bag or container and place them in the freezer for up to 3 months. To thaw them, simply place them in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight and then cook them as directed in the recipe.
Tools you’ll need
Check out all of my kitchen essentials here!
More meatball recipes you’ll love
- One Pan Baked Pesto Orzo with Chicken Meatballs
- Juicy Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Basil Sauce with Burrata
- Greek Turkey Meatballs with Lemon Orzo & Creamy Feta Yogurt Sauce
- Oh So Good Chicken Meatballs in Pumpkin Coconut Curry Sauce
- Jalapeño Coconut Curry Chicken Meatball Bowls
Get all of my meatball recipes here, and dinner recipes here!
I hope you love these chicken florentine meatballs! If you make them, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Chicken Florentine Meatballs
Ingredients
- Meatballs
- 1 small zucchini
- 1 pound lean ground chicken (or sub turkey)
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- 1.5 ounces grated parmesan cheese (⅓ cup)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Sauce
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 shallot, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¾ cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and roughly chopped
- ½ cup dry white wine
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth, plus more as needed
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 1 to 2 ounces grated parmesan cheese (½ cup)
- 1 to 2 cups spinach, roughly chopped
- Topping and serving
- Lemon zest
- Torn fresh basil
- Cooked pasta of choice, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Shred the zucchini: In a large bowl, shred the zucchini, then use a paper towel or clean dish towel/cheese cloth to squeeze ALL of the moisture out of the zucchini. Discard the liquid, then place the zucchini back in the large bowl. It should equal about ½ cup.
- Prepare the meatballs: To the same large bowl, add the ground chicken, panko, egg, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Use clean hands to mix until well combined; avoiding overmixing, otherwise meatballs will become tough. Form into 20 golf-ball sized meatballs, placing on the prepared baking sheet, at least 1-inch apart.
- Bake the meatballs: Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the meatball reads 165 degrees F.
- While the meatballs cook, make the sauce: Place a large 10-inch skillet over medium heat and add in the butter. Once butter melts, add in the shallot, garlic and sundried tomatoes and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Next add in the wine and let it cook down until it is reduced by half, 2 minutes. Slowly add in the chicken broth and heavy cream, stirring to combine. Allow the sauce to gently simmer for about 2 minutes, then stir in the parmesan cheese and spinach, and cook until spinach wilts, 2 minutes. Finally, add the cooked meatballs back to the pan and spoon sauce over the meatballs, cook until the sauce slightly thickens and the meatballs are warm, 3 to 5 minutes. If sauce gets too thick, add a splash more broth. Sprinkle extra parmesan cheese over the top, then garnish with lemon zest and fresh basil. Serve over pasta or enjoy with some crusty torn bread.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
These are so FLIPPIN GOOD. I used ground turkey (93/7) and I did add a little cornstarch slurry at the very end just to thicken it up a bit. I served it over a bed of couscous. My friends 2 yo ate every bite on her plate. We were all happily satisfied! Amazing.
Amazing! So happy to hear these were a hit!
So so yummy! The sauce is awesome and the meatballs are versatile with other sauces- jarred, homemade, AK recipes. So good! Easy staple!
Such a great dinner! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
This was insanely good my husband and baby devoured it. Also pretty simple and easy and not too fussy to make. Will be a go to for us!
Love that! Such a great meal!
Such a hit! All your recipes have been a hit in our household
So happy to hear that!
This is delicious! The flavor is outstanding. Having the zucchini in the meatballs plus the added spinach is perfect for getting in those veggies. My picky teenager said I can make this all the time. SCORE!
Absolutely! So glad they were a hit!
This recipe was delicious as is! But if we’re trying to lighten it up, is there something we can use to substitute the heavy cream?
half and half is a great substitute. I would say coconut milk, but I personally find that it does change the flavor ever so slightly.
This was VERY good. The meatballs were incredibly moist and the sauce was so flavorful; this is definitely a make-again meal!
So glad you enjoyed!
OMG, so delicious! Will definitely be making this again. The flavors are divine!
So glad you enjoyed!
Wonderful recipe, so full of flavor! The entire family really enjoyed this!
This is super, super tasty! Like others, will definitely 1.5 the sauce next time, maybe split the butter with some olive oil. As is the sauce is drinkably delicious! Used red onion vice shallot, and served over pasta. So yum! Love the other poster’s idea of putting on spaghetti squash.. Next time!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
This turned out amazing! The sauce especially is so flavorful! I made it just as written, no modifications, with rotini.
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
Absolutely delicious!
Glad you enjoyed!
Damn this was good! I knew the moment I saw this that my fiance would love it, so I finally made it tonight and we gobbled it up! We absolutely loved how the sun-dried tomatoes came through and the sauce reminds me of my grandma’s shrimp scampi in the best way possible. I will definitely have to make more sauce next time! I’ve always been a fan of your meatball recipes and have yet to try one that I didn’t like, and this one joins the elite list of AK meatball recipes. Don’t sleep on this recipe y’all!
Amazing! So glad you both enjoyed!
Is this in your cookbook? I cannot find it. sorry but. help.
It’s not! My cookbook only has a few recipes from my site – the cookbook recipes are otherwise exclusive to the book for people 🙂
I just made this for dinner and WOW! Monique is a meatball queen- I think I’ve tried every meatball recipe of hers, so I knew this one would not disappoint. It was super easy to throw together (I made the meatballs ahead of time so I could just toss them in the oven at dinner time and cook the sauce). MAKE IT!
So glad you’re loving the meatball recipes! They’re some of my all-time favs 🙂
Absolutely love this dish! Recipe is clear and easy to follow. I’m not the best chef so definitely took me longer to prep than stated in the recipe but totally worth it! Made it over pasta and am making it a second time already in a week!
So glad you loved it!
just made these and came right back to this pages to let you know THESE ARE AMAZING!!!!! The sauce is incredible yum yum yum
So glad you loved them!!
This is delicious and super easy to put together. Definitely a favorite from this website and one I will continue to make again and again!
So happy to hear that!
This is an amazing recipe! Made it tonight and we all loved it!
So happy to hear that!
Monique never misses! This meal was absolutely chef’s kiss!! Hubs had his with orzo and mine was spaghetti squash. I didn’t have as much of the sauce as pictured, next time I’ll likely add more broth and HC. But this will be a wonderful addition to our meal rotations. My hubby loved it! Thank you.
So good!!! A luxurious sauce, delicious meatballs. I served with brown rice/quinoa, Fantastic!
Love that! Glad you enjoyed!
This was delicious! I made this for my family for the first time tonight and my husband could not get enough, AND my extremely picky 3 year old who eats nothing ate an entire meatball which is a huge win!!
Love it!! Perfect dinner 🙂
Another flavor-packed recipe from Ambitious Kitchen! I forgot to pick up a shallot from the store, so I worked around it, and the dish still came out great. I added a squirt of tomato paste with the garlic and sundried tomatoes, to add extra tomato flavor. I’m impressed with how light it tasted despite some of the rich ingredients. Thank you!
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
Monique never misses!!! Another amazing recipe. We served these with egg noodles and some baguette for a cozy Sunday night dinner. Wish we quadrupled the sauce because it was so delicious
That sounds amazing! Perfect Sunday dinner 🙂
Wow, this is so delicious! This will definitely go into my rotation! Homerun!
So glad you loved it!
These are very tasty and easy. I like how the meatballs are baked since it makes it easier than pan frying! I just wish the sauce made more because I can already tell if wont have as much as I need for when I heat up my leftovers.
Easy and delicious! Feel free to 1.5 or double the sauce next time if you like more 🙂
Can you use something other than heavy cream to cut back on the fat? Would Greek yogurt or low fat cream cheese work?
Just use half and half or milk
Half and half or whole milk should work, too!
I actually use blended soft tofu instead, works really well and adds some protein
This was super tasty. I used half n half instead of heavy cream because that is what I had on hand, and it was delicious. My 1 year old son also loved the meatballs and ate 3! I love that there was hidden zucchini in there as well. Definitely a keeper.
Perfect! I’m glad they were a hit!
Made this recipe tonight for dinner and served it over fettuccine. It was delicious! My husband and 9 year old both really enjoyed it! Will definitely be making again!
Perfect dinner! Glad they were a hit 🙂
This was absolutely incredible!
So glad you enjoyed!
This was SO good!! My only “complaint” is that I could have drank the sauce for my entire meal, so next time I probably should double the sauce :). The meatballs were so moist and delicious, likely due to the zucchini. My kids did not sense the zucchini at all, which was also a win. I prepped the meatballs earlier in the day when I had time, which made everything come together that much faster come dinner. 100 out of 10. Great dinner!
So happy to hear that! Yes, feel free to double the sauce next time 🙂
This was SO good!! Plus extra veggies? Amazing. The whole family devoured this and I already can’t wait to make it again!
YES the perfect weeknight meal! Glad everyone loved them!
can you eliminate bread crumbs ? I cant find a healthy brand.
You could try adding 2-3 tablespoons of coconut flour instead – let me know if you try it!
This is a delicious and comforting dish. I’m lactose intolerant so I swapped the heavy cream for vegan heavy cream and Parmesan cheese for vegan Parmesan. It turned out perfectly. I didn’t have pasta so I put this over brown rice with a side of steamed broccoli. A truly satisfying meal!
Sounds delicious! So glad you enjoyed 🙂
Looks delish. Can I substitute the heavy cream for whole milk or coconut milk?
Yes, I think either of those would work okay! Let me know which one you try 🙂
She does it again! I can always trust AK’s recipes to be delicious. I doubled this to feed 4 adults and 2 kiddos, as well as have leftovers for lunch. Our guests loved it so much they asked for the recipe! This was delicious and the meatballs weren’t dry at all (which I always worry about when baking them). Added to my favorite recipes!
So happy to hear that! One of my new favs, too 🙂
Made this last night and it was delicious! Makes for great leftovers as well!
So happy to hear that!