Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Chicken Not Marsala

For Garden Tuesday yesterday, I was all set to post a picture of my grapes. Except that I sent the boys out, and they found that the first crop of grapes had passed, and we're a week or more away from having more. Depressed, I couldn't find anything about which to write. So, Thor and I sat glumly in a corner, administering the remainder of the boys' first Calvert School tests, and contemplating dinner. I'm sure Thor contemplates dinner constantly, unless he's dreaming of romping in the yard with the boys.

Buffalo Dick recently asked what meal you would like to eat for the rest of your life; I responded Veal Marsala. Last night, I decided that since I don't cook veal (way too pricy for me), I'd make chicken marsala. Except that I don't pound the chicken pieces
out thin, or cook in a skillet. Hey, you try pounding 3 pounds of chicken, and sauteeing those suckers one by each in a skillet, and trying to keep them warm while you finish the rest of the cooking. You'll be on my side in this matter. I also had the small matter of having no marsala in the house. No big deal; I cook lots of stuff without the right ingredients, right? So, here you go:

CHICKEN NOT MARSALA

3 pounds chicken (small family recipe)

milk
flour/salt/pepper/garlic powder
1/2 stick butter
1 minced onion
8 ounces sliced mushrooms, fresh or canned
2 cups wine (I used white zinfandel; use whatever you have)
2 tbsp cornstarch

Preheat the broiler. Dredge the chicken in milk, then in the flour
mix. (Note for Paula: use your gluten free flour for this, or dredge in cornstarch mixed with the spices, so your baby can eat it.) Melt the butter in the bottom of the broiler pan, cook the onion in the butter until softened, then put the chicken in the melted butter, flip it over, broil one side, then the other, until browned, about 5 minutes per side. Remove from the oven and turn the heat down to 350F. Move the chicken to a serving platter. Put most of the wine in the pan and whisk it with the drippings. Whisk the cornstarch into 1/2 cup of the wine, and whisk that into the pan. Add the mushrooms, return the chicken to the pan, and return to the oven until the chicken is done (probably 15 to 30 minutes, depending upon the size of the pieces of chicken. I use thighs).

Meanwhile, make....

PASTA WITH GARLIC AND PARSLEY

1 pound angel hair
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup olive oil

garlic powder to taste
fresh ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped parsley

Cook the angel hair; drain and cover to keep warm for a minute. In the pasta pan, melt the butter; stir in the garlic powder and pepper. Return the angel hair to the pot and turn off the heat. Add the parsley and olive oil, and toss to combine all of the ingredients. Serve at once.

This is the plate of my dearly beloved. Since you all know I don't eat fungus, and my food can't touch each other, my plate certainly didn't look this pretty. Plus, this would make me about 3 dinners; I'd weigh 300 pounds if I ate this much, and at 5'3", that would be overload.

Well, two recipes for the price of one. Was it almost worth not having anything yesterday?

14 comments:

buffalodick said...

I love Marsala sauce, but some places make it too thin! Chicken actually has more flavor than veal(which is almost tasteless without sauce!)

SissySees said...

Oh yum. I might have to make that very soon...

Yum. Time to call the Knight and inquire about my lunch.

Jennifer Bowen said...

I'm a big fan of pasta. So this makes my mouth water no matter what you call it. My favorite is Veal Scaloppine. You're right, veal is quite expensive. We only have it during special occasions. I always request it for my birthday or Christmas. =)

Paula said...

What a perfect marriage of flavors! I bet there wasn't a single bite left over. I call this type of meal a silent dinner. Everyone is so in love with the meal that no one wants to talk ... just eat! I think I'd have to have seconds of this, too. By the way, how is it that these men of ours can eat a zillion calories a day, and not gain a pound! You are always so sweet to think of my girl, too. :-)

Christo Gonzales said...

your main man is hooked up! that meal looks great and you need to start integrating your plates!

The Blonde Duck said...

I've never had veal or chicken marsala. I must be missing out.

And the herbs for Samara was a lie...you'll see!

tavolini said...

That looks pretty darn tasty! (I never have the correct wine, either)

Pam said...

I love this recipe. The more mushrooms the better.

pam said...

So, did you eat yours without the fungus??? Cause that's the best part!

Lyndas recipe box said...

This looks delicious; I'd rather have chicken instead of veal anyway.

Mickle in NZ said...

Another wonderful looking chicken recipe I'll be storing for future use. This evening I roasted a chicken and had some of it with your Rock Potatoes. And do they Rock!

Crispy garlicky, herby, spicy and caramelised oniony potatoes, WOW, what a hit. I must make them for my Folks over Christmas.

Zebby got bored while it was all cooking and went to bed (under that wreck of a quilty thing). Luckily there is now heaps of cooked chicken in the fridge to keep up his and my strength!

veedogknitter said...

Yum!! i could probably eat that every day!

~~louise~~ said...

You had me on Chicken NOT Marsala. Like you and fungi, me and Marsala just don't agree. However, I crave the idea of the addition of zinfandel!

Great "homestyle" meal, Marjie.

Thanks for sharing...

Anonymous said...

Looks good!!