Classic Recipe ~ Chicken Marsala with Mushroom Sauce

For father's day I made my hubby this delicious chicken Marsala dish for dinner. This recipe is actually out of a cookbook I purchased 25 years ago titled Wine in Everyday Cooking by Patricia Ballard. It is a book about "cooking with wine for family and friends". Of course I did take liberties with the original recipe and changed a few things down through the years, but it is basically the recipe published by Ballard. I didn't know it then but wine was to eventually become one of my absolute favorite ingredients to cook with. 

Chicken:

1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken breast, skinned and pounded thin

2 large eggs, whisked

 seasoned bread crumbs

olive oil 

and butter for sauteing

Sauce:

2 1/2 cups Riesling

1 cup sweet Marsala

2 cups low sodium chicken broth

 3 T. lemon juice

2 T arrowroot or cornstarch

1 lb mushrooms cleaned and thickly sliced

2 T. gravy seasoning and browning

Heat oil and butter in a pan. The easiest thing to use is to use an oven proof pan or cast iron skillet. Dip the chicken into the eggs and then roll it in the breadcrumbs until well coated, place in hot pan. Brown the chicken on medium heat about 4 minutes on each side. Remove each piece from the pan and place on a plate, or if you are not using and ovenproof skillet, place chicken in an oven proof baking dish.

Wipe clean the pan of any remaining breadcrumbs which may have burned. Add the Riesling and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat and add the Marsala, broth and lemon juice and bring back to a low boil. Remove a ladle full of the hot liquid and mix it with the arrowroot or cornstarch. Stir until the dry ingredient is blended and then return the blended mixture to the boiling liquid in the pan, stirring as you are pouring it into the pan. The pan liquid will begin to thicken. Add the sliced mushroom and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Stir in the gravy seasoning and remove pan from the burner. Add the chicken back to the pan, or pour the sauce over chicken in a baking dish, and place in an oven heated to 350 degrees. Bake the chicken uncovered for 20 minutes.

Every time I make this dish I am amazed at how easy it it to create such a delicious meal. This is a true tried and true recipe...I hope you enjoy it as much as we do here at 

TheBigGiantFoodBasket.

XO

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StoneGable

Daily Dish Magazine

A Special Treat For Dad ~ Bacon Peanut Brittle

Here is a peanut brittle just for dad! The salty flavor of the bacon mixed with the sweetness of the brittle is absolutely yummy together. I found this recipe in this week's issue of Women's World magazine. It was actually a recipe submitted by another blogger and is billed as "...a must try recipe for peanut butter fans." I made two attempts in making this brittle. The first time around I am not quite sure what I did wrong but the brittle wasn't really brittle at all, it was much more soft and bendy, and the color was not attractive. To be honest it was the flavor combination that made me want to give this treat another try. 

After giving it a little thought,  I decided to go back and use my own reliable peanut brittle recipe. What I did to adjust the original recipe was to reduce the brown sugar and made sure the bacon was very well drained. I also left the peanuts whole instead of chopping them so you got the full flavor of the peanuts along with that of the bacon!

1 lb. bacon

brown sugar to spread over the bacon

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup light corn syrup

pinch of salt

1 cup roasted peanuts

1 T unsalted butter

1 tsp. brown sugar

2 T. peanut butter

2 T. heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

Line jelly roll pan with aluminum foil and place a rack on top. (I used the rack from my roasting pan.) Place bacon on top and spread the top of the bacon with the brown sugar, about 1/2 tsp on each strip.) Heat oven to 375 and back bacon for about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and flip bacon. spread another 1/2 tsp. of brown sugar on the strips and return to the oven for another 10 minutes. Remove strips from rack and let them drain thoroughly on paper towels. Pat with towels as well. Cut bacon into small pieces and set aside.

Next place the sugar, light corn syrup and the pinch of salt in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 3 minutes. Remove and stir in the peanuts and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from microwave, add butter and brown sugar and cook for another 45 seconds.  Stir in the bacon and then quickly spread the mixture out onto another jelly roll pan generously sprayed with cooking spray. Let cool in frig for about 15-20 minutes. Once hard break the brittle into pieces. 

In the meantime in a small saucepan, mix the peanut butter and cream on medium heat until blended and then add the confectioner's sugar. If the mixture seems a little dry add more cream and blend until smooth. Let cool slightly and then put the mixture into a sandwich bag and snip one corner.  Pipe the peanut butter mixture over the bacon peanut brittle. Yields about 15 - 18 pieces.

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!!!

XO