Chicken Marsala and a Daiquiri

Cooking for one has its own problems. Granted, I've been doing it for so long that I don't really think about it. Usually, I'll just make a full recipe and eat on it for several days, saving me time cooking when I'm too tired. However, there are lots of things I'd like to try, but can't seem to justify doing for myself. So what's a girl to do? Have company.

My mom visited for the night, which was a perfect excuse to make something a little more fancy than normal. I've been daydreaming of a chicken dish I had at a restaurant several months ago that featured wine-soaked mushrooms atop a chicken breast. It wasn't quite the same, but when it's this good who cares? Paired with herb-cheese mashed potatoes and icy mixed drinks, it was a hit. Watching my mom's face as I paid nearly $6 for "exotic" mushrooms was just a bonus. This also marks my first attempt at cooking mushrooms at home and adds to the handful of times I've tried them at all.



The original recipe can be found here, but I made some modifications and would make just a few more next time I make this. I feel almost white-trashy adding this, but it's also good with melted cheese on top. And you know what? I'm not going to show you what it looks like! Hah! Really, I actually had decent pictures of it, but somehow deleted them. Srsly. Edit: I found them! It's amazing what happens when you, you know, take the time to really look.



Chicken Marsala

4 Servings

1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup sliced mushrooms (I used oyster, but I think crimini and shitake would also go well)
1 cup Marsala wine
1/4 - 1/3 cup cream

1. As far as I can tell, button mushrooms have little to no flavor (unless they're fried). Use dried mushrooms and soak them in the wine for 15-30 minutes before you start cooking. Whatever you have time for.

2. Pound out chicken breasts to a quarter of an inch thick.

3. Stir flour, salt, pepper, and oregano together. Use it to coat the chicken.

4. Melt butter and oil in pan, cook chicken on both sides for about 3-5 minutes until brown. Put them in a dish in a warm oven.

5. If you have bits stuck to your pan, quickly deglaze it with the wine. Dump wine and mushrooms into pan and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to med-low and cook until mushrooms are soft. Near the end, add the cream. Spoon sauce over chicken and dig in. Enjoy with the cocktail below.



Peach and Mango Daiquiri
From the Bon Appetit cookbook

4 servings

3/4 cup frozen mango-peach juice concentrate, thawed
3/4 cup light rum
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup sugar
1 16 oz package frozen unsweetened sliced peaches
Fresh mint springs, optional

1. Puree juice concentrate, rum, orange juice, and sugar in blender. Add half the frozen peaches and puree again. Keep adding peaches a few at a time until smooth. Serve with mint as garnish.

My mom played bartender during this meal. Unfortunately, my grocery store didn't carry juice concentrate, so we used a tropical mixed juice for all of it. Still good, but it'll be better next time. My mom also spent the time to help me take a bunch of well orchestrated pictures. That I deleted. Thanks mom.