Chicken Marsala

YIELD:

Makes 4 servings

ACTIVE TIME:

50 min

TOTAL TIME:

50 min

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth (14 fl oz) (Note: I use two chicken bouillon cubes in ¾ cups of water. This is mostly so I don’t have to worry about cooking it down.)

• 1 finely chopped shallot

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 10 oz mushrooms, sliced (10 oz is the minimum. These mushrooms are delicious and my family always wants more, so I usually use three packages, or 42 oz. They cook down a lot so don’t let the massive pile of mushroom slices concern you.)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves (2 lb total)

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons dry Marsala wine

• 2/3 cup heavy cream

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 200°F.

Bring broth to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan over high heat, then boil, uncovered, until reduced to about 3/4 cup, about 20 minutes. (Or, as mentioned above, just drop two chicken bouillon cubes in ¾ cups of water and microwave for about three minutes. Stir until completely dissolved.)

Add 3 tablespoons of butter to a skillet over medium heat. Add chopped shallot and sauté for about one minute. Add sliced mushrooms and stir to mix with the shallot (If you added tons of mushrooms like I do, this will be tricky because the mountain of mushrooms will threaten to spill out of the skillet.) Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook until mushrooms are the consistency you like (usually about 6-8 minutes). Drain any leftover liquid and put mushrooms in a bowl to the side (off of heat).

Put chicken breasts between two sheets of wax paper or inside a slightly open Ziploc bag. Gently pound with a meat hammer or rolling pin until it is roughly ¼ inch thick (or mostly flat). (Note: I like to cut the chicken into strips about an inch wide. This increases the surface area the sauce will eventually cover and makes cutting it up to eat easier.)

Add flour to a wide, shallow bowl or plate. Season chicken with salt and pepper and then dredge chicken in flour. Set on a plate and put near the stove for convenience.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in the same skillet as the mushrooms/shallot were cooked in over medium-high heat. When foam subsides, add chicken. Turn chicken over until both sides are starting to brown and chicken is cooked through (about 4 minutes total). Transfer cooked chicken to a large oven-safe platter in a single layer and put it in the over to keep warm.

Add 1/2 cup wine to skillet and boil over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, about 30 seconds. Add reduced broth, cream, and mushrooms, then simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is slightly thickened, 6 to 8 minutes. If sauce doesn’t thicken (and many times it won’t) scoop a bit of sauce into a small cup and add a little cornstarch (about one tablespoon of each). Stir together until there are no lumps and SLOWLY add to sauce until desired thickness is reached.

Remove chicken from oven and pour sauce over before serving.