Confession: Chicken Marsala Edition

I’ll be honest. Work this week has kind of sucked.  I have been extremely busy as I attempted to simultaneously prepare for a project that will have me traveling to 7 states in the next 6 weeks and to get my regular work done as well.  And I had a 2+ hour conference call one day this week that didn’t start until 6:30pm (gotta love working with people on the west coast!) I’m exhausted. And I am more happy than I can say that tomorrow is Friday.

One of the side effects of this has been my not pulling my weight when it comes to cooking dinner. Here’s what has been on this week’s menu:
-Sunday: Mushroom soup and yeast rolls
-Monday: Penne with broccoli and green salad
-Tuesday (night of my late call): Leftover soup and crackers
-Wednesday: Lindsay ate out; Jason ate the remaining soup and whatever else he could find in the house
-Thursday: Lindsay ate out; Jason ate chicken marsala

I know what you are thinking. Chicken marsala? Does Jason know how to cook chicken marsala?

The answer is no.  (Although he could probably do a fine job if he tried.)

I made the chicken marsala. After work today.  For him to eat while I was having dinner with friends.  (And yes, that is my confession this week).

Before you rush to judgment, let me start by saying that I did not do it because I felt it was my job as the wife to make sure my husband was fed.  Ok, so I did feel slightly guilty about providing a whole host of lack luster meals this week (Monday’s pasta was only ok and as someone who does not particularly enjoy leftovers, I felt bad about making someone else eat the same thing three times in four days). But it was also because I originally planned to make chicken marsala on Wednesday and bought all the ingredients and then ended up accepting an invitation to have dinner with a friend. Since I/we have dinner plans with family and friends for the next three days, I worried that if it didn’t get made today, the food might go to waste. And I hate wasting food (ironic given than I don’t like leftovers, I know).

Plus, I have been tired, cranky, and irritable this week (another side effect of my more-hectic-than-usual work week) and decided that Jason deserved a little extra something for not only putting up with that but also for being supportive when I had a mini-meltdown last night. And in the spirit of appreciating what your partner does (even if it is part of being married/in a relationship) I thought this time, instead of a simple “thank you,” I’d make him dinner when I didn't have to.

But don’t worry….I left all the dishes for Jason to do!

 

  

  

Jason's dinner on the left and my lunch tomorrow on the right!

Chicken Marsala
Adapted from Everyday Food (not sure which one because I cut out the recipe from the magazine)

This serves 2; you’ll need to double the liquid ingredients (and amount of chicken-duh!) for dinner for four or if you want to have leftovers (if you are into that sort of thing).

Ingredients:
2 TBL flour
2 boneless/skinless chicken breast halves
1-2 TBL olive oil (depending on pan size…for a large pan like mine you need 2 TBL in order have a nice layer covering the bottom)
1 package cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 shallot, minced
1 tsp dried sage
¼ cup Marsala wine
2-3 TBL cream (I used half-and-half leftover from the mushroom soup)

1.Place flour in a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. Dredge each piece of chicken in flour mixture.
2.Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and cook 8-10 minutes per side, until golden on the outside and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
3.Add mushrooms, shallot, sage, and ¼ cup of water to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushroom as tender (about 5 minutes). Add wine and cream. Simmer over medium-high heat until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and check seasoning.