Creamy Dairy Free Spinach Artichoke Chicken

A creamy, rich chicken dish reminiscent of your favorite spinach artichoke dip, but completely dairy free! Soaked, raw cashews are the secret to making a delicious and comforting cream sauce without the cream! Serve this over some plain rice for a filling weeknight meal that the whole family will enjoy, dairy free or not! Trust me they won’t event know!

Serves 4-5 People

Ingredients-

• Roughly 1.5 Lbs of Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts (You want to yield 3 Cups of Shredded Chicken) Tip: You can even use store bought rotisserie chicken and shred it up!

• 3/4 Cup of Chopped Shallots

• 3 Large Cloves of Garlic, Minced Finely

• 2 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more for drizzling

• Salt & Pepper

• Dash of Red Pepper Flakes

• 1/2 Teaspoon Lemon Zest (about the zest of half a lemon)

• 1 Cup of Soaked Raw Cashews (unsalted, un-toasted) (To soak them, place them in a bowl and pour enough water over the cashews so that they are covered. Place them in the fridge for a minimum of 6 hours, preferably overnight. You need them to be nice and soft and tender.

• Dash of Nutmeg

• 5 oz of Baby Spinach, roughly chopped

• 2 Cups of Artichoke Hearts, roughly chopped (you can use frozen or canned in water)

• 3/4 Cup Chicken Stock or Broth (Vegetable broth will also work)

• 1/2 Cup of Dairy Free Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Steps-

1. Make sure your cashews are soaked for at least 6 hours before your begin!

2. Preheat your oven to 375F. Place your chicken breasts on a sheet pan and drizzle them with Olive Oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Bake the chicken breasts in the preheated oven for 15-25 minutes or until fully cooked (165F). Allow the chicken to cool slightly and then shred it up with your fingers. Set aside. (options to use precooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, no skin).

3. After the chicken is cooked, preheat the oven to 350F.

4. In a nonstick skillet or small pot, heat up 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium low heat. Add the chopped shallot, garlic and sprinkle of salt and pepper and sweat for about 5-7 minutes or until soft and fragrant.

5. Drain the water off of your cashews and add them to the pan with the shallots. Pour the chicken stock over the top and cook over medium heat stirring occasionally for about 3 minutes.

6. Pour the cashew mixture into a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. It should look like a béchamel sauce or Alfredo sauce. Add the dash of nutmeg and another dash of salt. Blend quickly until combined.

7. In a big bowl mix together the 3 cups of shredded chicken, chopped spinach, artichoke hearts, lemon zest and the cashew cream sauce. Taste the mixture for seasoning, add salt and pepper if needed.

8. Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray (pyrex or ceramic is best). Pour the chicken mixture into the dish and spread it out evenly. Ideally you want the mixture to be about 1.5-2 inches thick. Drizzle the top with Olive Oil and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake in the oven for about 25-30 minutes or until hot and starting to bubble on the sides.

9. Remove the foil and sprinkle the dairy free cheese over the top. Bake again for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the edges of the chicken mixture are slightly golden brown and crusty.

10. Serve and enjoy! I like to enjoy mine over brown, white or basmati rice!