The inspiration originally for this recipe was something I read in a book of “365 MORE chicken recipes” (A gift from my lovely hubby). The title begs the question, why not purchase THE book of 365 chicken recipes? At 366, what is left?

Surprisingly there were some good ideas in this book, and what started as a standard recipe has evolved into a dish that is at the top of my kids list of favorites (all 3 of them love it which is a very rare meeting of the minds).  Some nights I pair this with the Creamy Shrimp over Linguini and let my husband and kids pick which they want over their pasta, and most of them take a bit of both.  Any recipe started and finished on the stove top is great in summer, because you are not using the oven which heats up the house.  This is relatively quick – allowing for more time to play outside.  I have given friends and family my recipe book over the years (when the babies were tiny, I took the time to type up a preliminary list of my favorite recipes and just gave it to loved ones) and this is the recipe most people make and let me know they loved.  It has only a few ingredients and moves quickly!

Ingredient List:

3-4 tablespoons of butter

2 tablespoons Canola Oil

4 large Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

2-4 shallots diced

Dozen mushrooms (baby bellas or button mushrooms) cleaned and sliced

1/2 to 1 cup of Marsala wine (I just pour it in, I don’t really measure)

1 lemon (juice only)

Small box of low sodium chicken stock (use homemade if you have or Kitchen Basics is my favorite boxed stock)

¾ cup or so of ‘Wondra’ flour (regular flour can be used if it is all you have)

Freshly ground salt and pepper

¼ cup heavy cream

I start by prepping the shallots and mushrooms.

Tip:  Don’t put the mushrooms in water, just wipe them off with a damp, clean rag or use a mushroom brush.

Peel and clean the shallots and cut them into smallish pieces. Then cut the mushrooms into thin slices. Put 1 tablespoon of butter and a couple of swirls of oil in a large pan (not non-stick, it is better to generate some lovely brown bits on the pan to de-glaze later with the wine).

Put the flour into a gallon zip lock bag.  Clean and cut up the chicken breast into big bite sized pieces, removing the fat and then drying the chicken.  Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat the pan with the butter and oil on medium high just for a few minutes. Shake the dried off chicken pieces in the flour, then remove them, shake off the excess flour and put them into the hot pan. Don’t touch them for a few minutes until they brown on the first side.

Tip:  The chicken will stop sticking to the pan when they are ready to be flipped, usually leaving them for 2-3 minutes to brown before touching them is the best way to get them caramelized.

Flip the chicken, cook them until golden on the other side and remove to a dinner plate to rest. They aren’t yet cooked all the way through but should be seared on both sides.

Add another 2 tablespoons of butter and a splash of oil to the pan if the surface is dried out – careful not to burn the butter. Toss in the mushrooms and brown them for 3-4 minutes.  Add the shallots and salt them right away.  Sometimes I add a bit of garlic at this point as well, totally up to you.  A clove of minced garlic will just bump up the flavor.  Cook shallots (and garlic if using) just for 2 minutes, by now the mushrooms are tender.

Pour in the Marsala wine and the lemon juice (no lemon seeds please!)  Scrape the brown bits off of the bottom of the pan with a spatula as the wine reduces by a third (another 4-5 minutes).

Once the wine is reduced, add the stock and return the chicken to the pan and cook on medium to low heat until ready to serve. Because the chicken was coated in flour the sauce should thicken, and later the addition of cream will also help to thicken the sauce.  Check the thickest piece of chicken to make sure it is white all the way through. Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper if needed.

For veal follow same recipe, but try not to overcook the veal or it will be tough.  Veal cooks very quickly, literally brown it only for a minute or two on each side and then finish in the sauce, especially the thinly cut veal!

When the chicken is cooked through, you can add the linguine (or spaghetti or angel hair or fettuccine for that matter) right into the pan and finish cooking in the sauce. Or you can pour right over rice pilaf or even an instant white or brown rice.

UPDATE:   I made this last week with beef stock instead of chicken stock and the sauce was even tastier!  I also didn’t have heavy cream so used whole milk and it worked just find so feel free to substitute either.

Best served accompanied by baby sweet peas or peas and carrots, or beans