The Best Parmesan Chicken Bake

Ingredients:

Ingredient Checklist
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed and finely chopped
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
6 breast half, bone and skin removed (blank)s skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 cups prepared marinara sauce
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
1 (8 ounce) package shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 (5 ounce) package garlic croutons

Instructions:

Instructions Checklist
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Step 2
Coat the bottom of a 9×13 inch casserole dish with olive oil, and sprinkle with garlic and hot red pepper flakes.

Step 3
Arrange the chicken breasts in bottom of the dish, and pour marinara sauce over chicken. Sprinkle basil over marinara sauce, and top with half the mozzarella cheese, followed by half the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle on the croutons, then top with the remaining mozzarella cheese and remaining Parmesan cheese.

Step 4
Bake in preheated oven until cheese and croutons are golden brown and the chicken is no longer pink inside, about 35 minutes to an hour, depending on the shape and thickness of your chicken breasts. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a chicken breast should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

Chef’s Notes:
Use more marinara sauce if you like. And fake Parmesan will not taste the same…go buy some real Parmigiano-Reggiano!