Marry Me Chicken Casserole (Printable View)

A creamy casserole featuring juicy chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and a rich cheese sauce with a crunchy topping.

# What You Need:

→ Chicken

01 - 3 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded or cubed (rotisserie or poached)

→ Vegetables

02 - 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
03 - 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
04 - 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
05 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

→ Dairy

06 - 1 cup heavy cream
07 - 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
08 - 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
09 - ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
10 - 4 ounces cream cheese, softened

→ Pantry

11 - 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
12 - ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
13 - ½ teaspoon kosher salt
14 - ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
15 - 2 tablespoons olive oil

→ Topping

16 - 1½ cups Ritz cracker crumbs (about 1 sleeve, crushed)
17 - 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
18 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional, for garnish)

# How To Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté diced onion for 3 minutes until softened. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 additional minute.
03 - Stir in chopped sun-dried tomatoes and baby spinach; cook until spinach wilts, approximately 2 minutes.
04 - Reduce heat and add softened cream cheese, stirring until melted and smooth.
05 - Pour in heavy cream and chicken broth. Season with dried Italian herbs, crushed red pepper flakes if using, salt, and black pepper. Simmer gently for 2 minutes.
06 - Stir in shredded mozzarella and grated Parmesan until fully melted and the sauce achieves a creamy consistency.
07 - Add the cooked chicken to the sauce mixture, stirring to coat evenly. Remove skillet from heat.
08 - Transfer mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish.
09 - In a separate bowl, mix Ritz cracker crumbs with melted unsalted butter. Sprinkle this crumb mixture evenly over the casserole.
10 - Bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes until the casserole is hot and bubbly and the topping is golden brown.
11 - Allow the dish to rest for 5 minutes before serving. Optionally, garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in under an hour, making it perfect for those nights when you need something that looks like you tried harder than you actually did.
  • The make-ahead magic means you can assemble it the morning before and just pop it in the oven when dinner time hits.
  • Rotisserie chicken does most of the work, so you're really just building flavors rather than cooking from scratch.
02 -
  • Don't skip softening the cream cheese before adding it—trying to melt cold chunks of cream cheese into a hot skillet creates lumps that won't fully incorporate no matter how much you stir.
  • The casserole will bubble up as it bakes, which is exactly what you want; that's how you know it's hot all the way through and the flavors have really melded.
  • This dish actually tastes better the next day after the flavors have had time to settle, so making it ahead is genuinely an advantage.
03 -
  • Make this the morning of and keep it covered in the refrigerator until you're ready to bake; cold casseroles might take a few extra minutes to bake, but the flavors actually benefit from sitting.
  • If you're out of sun-dried tomatoes, fresh tomatoes work too—just reduce them down in the skillet first so they don't make the sauce watery.
  • The Ritz crumbs really are the secret weapon here; they stay crispy on top and almost become like a stuffing-style topping rather than just breadcrumbs, which is why people always ask about them.
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