Drunken Chicken Marsala with Tomatoes

You guys.

This dish. It’s my favorite of the favorites. Pan-fried chicken breasts (hi ♡) and buttery wine-soaked mushrooms and blistered, bursting cherry tomatoes get all covered in a luscious – there is no other word for it – marsala wine sauce (!!) and then sprinkled with a handful of fresh parsley. I dunno, we needed something green in there.

The story with the recipe? Let me just say: Shauna would be so proud of me. And from now on, we’re just going to talk like I know her kthanks.

After reading the book Bread and Wine, I felt so inspired to really take my love of food and run with it. Like, to use my always-thinking-about-food-brain for something good, like having friends and neighbors over. Or connecting with people, like talking about the fact that dark chocolate with sea salt is simply just better than anything else, and how Chipotle now serves tofu, and why I should never make a whole roasted chicken ever again under any circumstances EV-ER.

Or maybe just feeding people as a way to say, Hey. I love and appreciate you. With sauteed garlic butter wine-soaked mushrooms. Mwah.

Taking inspiration from the book, a few weeks back I decided that I was going to start having a group of friends over – six friends who don’t all know each other or aren’t in the same groups necessarily, but friends that I know individually. Step one: know your own friends individually. Yahssss. I’m winning.

No, but seriously, these girls (ladies? dare I say we might be considered LADIES? yeesh) are all so different and wonderful each in their own way – some of them young moms and a few of them thriving business owners and a few… okay ONE of them a sassy chic professional (luv you, Little One), and for surely ALL OF THEM foodies.

So naturally things went well, starting with the bacon wrapped dates stuffed with goat cheese (dead on the floor.) and ending with the world’s thickest, fudgiest peppermint brownies.

Oh my goodness gracious, these are my food people.

For the main dish, I had this great idea to make a brand new-to-me recipe — Chicken Marsala, to be exact — when all my friends came over because I like to test my own stress limits or something like that.

In a moment of not-myself-ness, I actually did some research in advance and made a halfway version of this recipe “to practice” before my friends came that involved a Marsala mushroom sauce sans-chicken, but heaped on baked potatoes: YUM. I got super confident, and in a moment of my regular-self-ness, I decided to wing it the night of the party. And guess what? Success of all successes. It turned out beautifully even though I was making it primarily by look, feel, smell, and taste.

I mean, making Chicken Marsala by feel for a crowd of seven people without a real recipe and not burning the house down or breaking anything in the process? I think I just became a real adult.

This is just a winning savory little number right here. It’s simple. It’s quick. It tastes like heaven. It’s adaptable, except for the part with the butter and garlic. Don’t touch it.

And this is 99% weird of me, but, um, it’s Christmas colors. You saw it, too? Ugh. I KNEW you were like that.

Now. Here’s some for you, and some for you, and some for you…

• 16 ounces fresh crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tablespoons butter, divided
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup dry Marsala wine
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon cold water
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• ½ teaspoon salt (more to taste)
• 1½ – 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ⅓ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon all purpose seasoning a pinch of salt and pepper
• 1-2 cups cherry tomatoes
• fresh parsley

1. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a medium or large saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown.
2. Add the garlic and wine – let the mixture simmer gently to reduce the wine, stirring occasionally. After 15-20 minutes, add the cornstarch, cream, and salt to the marsala mixture – it should start to thicken slightly.
3. Pound the chicken breasts until they are about 1 inch thick to help with even cooking. Cut them into smaller, single-serving pieces if necessary.
4. Combine the flour, seasoning, and salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Toss the chicken in the flour mixture until coated. Shake off excess.
5. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Pan-fry the coated chicken for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through.
6. Add sauce and mushrooms to the skillet with the chicken. Top with tomatoes and simmer until the tomatoes have softened. Serve with fresh parsley.

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