Not a week goes by that my family doesn’t have some kind of pizza.
We love homemade pizza, we love pizza roll-ups, basically anything that involves pizza is a win in our family.
Of course, we all know that pizza can be loaded with carbs and calories, so this dish helps take care of that problem. Using chicken as the base and then loading it with toppings, you get the flavor of pizza that you love with all the healthiness of chicken!
Sometimes baking chicken in the oven can leave it dried out and flavorless. The thing that I like about this recipe is that the chicken is first marinated, which has it infused with flavor and will leave it so moist even after cooking. My secret to marinating meats: gallon-sized resealable bags. I dump in the marinade ingredients and mix it together by squishing it on the outside of the bag with my hands (no stirring or mess required!). I then add the meat and seal it closed.
My second secret to marinating meat in a bag is to place the bag inside of a bread loaf pan. I know that sounds weird, but I have found that by placing it in a loaf pan, it ensures that all the meat is covered by the marinade and gives you the best results.
Put your marinating meat inside the fridge for at least an hour, but I recommend even up to 12 hours – the longer you let the meat marinade, the more flavorful it will be.
Once the chicken is done marinating, remove chicken from marinade (be sure to throw the marinade away – you never want to re-use a marinade) and place the chicken pieces in a 9×13″ pan that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Top the chicken with marinara sauce and bake for about 15 minutes, then add cheese and the toppings!
When it comes to toppings, the possibilities are endless. I let my kids decide what toppings they wanted and we settled on pepperoni, green peppers, and black olives. However, you can top it with whatever you desire! Ham, sausage, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, bacon, spinach, even pineapple if you like that sort of thing (we do!) – anything goes.
Finish cooking your chicken for 20 more minutes and enjoy! This meal comes together so quickly and is perfect for a busy weeknight. Throw a quick green salad together to serve with it and dinner is done!
Let us know if you try it and the toppings you love in the comments below!
Easy Pizza Chicken Bake Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup Italian dressing
- 1¼ cup marinara sauce, (divided)
- 1½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 16 turkey pepperonis, optional topping
- 1 green bell pepper, (diced) - optional topping
- 1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced olives, (drained) - optional topping
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in a resealable gallon-sized bag and pour the Italian dressing on top. Seal the bag, removing as much of the air as possible. (If desired, place bag in a bread loaf pan to ensure chicken is fully submerged in marinade.)
- Place pan in fridge and marinate for at least 1 hour (or up to 12 hours).
- When finished marinating, spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Spread 1/2 cup of marinara sauce in the bottom of the pan.
- Remove chicken from marinade (discard marinade) and place in pan.
- Top chicken with remaining marinara sauce and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.
- Remove chicken from oven and top with cheese and toppings of choice.
- Place chicken back in oven and bake for about 10-15 more minutes or until chicken is no longer pink on the inside and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
Nutrition
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