An Okie Girl’s Take on Chicken Marsala

I am torn between 2 names for this recipe, the one listed above and “Busy Momma’s Chicken Marsala”. This recipe really is a blend of both. You see, this Okie girl has received no formal cooking training. Most of my recipes are a mix of what I have on hand and what I think food should taste like. So when I have “an Okie girl’s take” in the title you can be sure I know the food professionals would probably spank me for daring to attempt such refined, classic, international dishes.

Oh well.

The busy momma title temptation is because that is pretty much my life. And being a busy momma often makes me do desperate things in the kitchen. Let me give you a for instance. For instance, there is no Marsala wine in this recipe. Why?? Because there is no Marsala wine in my pantry. AND by the time I managed to have fresh chicken, potatoes and fresh mushrooms all in the same place at the same time (none of which were past their prime), this busy momma didn’t have it in her to run to the liquor store.

PS only a busy momma would confidently walk into a liquor store hand-in-hand with her 5 year old. The last time I went to the liquor store, I was mid-priding myself on NOT leaving my kiddos in the car when the store clerk ((all wide-eyed and feisty like)) waved at me. I thought she was greeting me. She was not. Well, out to the car they went. oops.

Okay so back to my story. I actually didn’t have potatoes. In an effort to bribe my kids to like our dinner plan, I promised them I would ALSO make masked potatoes. Since the grocery store was right in our path of errands, I decided to run in for ONE thing (potatoes). $99 and a cart full of junk later, I was regretting that bribe – so.very.much.

So ya see? I am a Busy Okie Momma. whew.

Now let’s talk food.

The key to this recipe is to have thawed or fresh chicken breast on hand. Ain’t nobody got time for thawing. So while the chicken breasts are browning (in a buttered pan), boil your $99 bag of potatoes. Multi-tasking is the name of the game.

Once one side is nicely browned, flip the breasts over and continue browning. While side #2 is doing it’s thing, slice 3-4 cups of fresh mushrooms and ¼ cup of fresh parsley.

Next, mix 1 heaping tablespoon of cornstarch into ¾ cup chicken broth. When the chicken is browned nicely and almost cooked through, remove it from the skillet and cover it with foil.

Sauté mushrooms with 2 T butter and add cornstarch slurry along with 1½ c white wine and 1¼ c chicken broth. Speaking of wine, Marsala is a sweet, white-ish wine blend (usually blended with brandy). Since I didn’t have Marsala, I craftily blended Moscato (a sweet white wine) with Chardonnay. If I had another bottle of Moscato, I would have used it exclusively. (The sweetness pares well with the other savory ingredients – at least I think so!)

As the sauce thickens, drain your potatoes, add ½ stick of butter, 1½ c milk and a teaspoon of kosher salt & ½ teaspoon of black pepper. Taste the sauce and add additional s & p if necessary. Return chicken and cooking juices to the skillet and continue simmering until the chicken is cooked through.