Chicken & Pasta with Marsala Cream Sauce

Even though we are a family that writes a food blog, we still struggle at times to come up with a recipe, as funny as that may seem

For instance, I started off with 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts and no idea what I was going to do with them.  Maybe stuff them with some cream cheese and herbs, but alas, I remembered I used the cream cheese up already

I’ve got it!  Pineapple glazed grilled chicken breasts

Well, I thought we had some pineapple in the house but I guess I was wrong

And like a painful episode of Chopped, the dinner bell was getting closer and closer to ringing (oh, the pressure of always figuring out a meal!)

Then, an epiphany

I found some pasta, Marsala wine and heavy cream.  Hmmm, I think I have an idea forming

I’m trimming 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts of any excess fat

I then cut the chicken into uniform chunks and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon each of kosher salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder

Toss to combine

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large pan over medium heat

Add in the chicken

Cook 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned, remove from the pan and set aside

Next up, we will need 1 onion, 5 garlic cloves, 4 fresh sage leaves, 2 sprigs of rosemary and 1/2 teaspoon each of kosher salt, ground black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes

Peel and chop your onions and garlic.  Remove the rosemary leaves and discard the stems, then give them a chop along with your sage leaves

Add the onions to the pan along with the 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, ground black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes, scraping up any bits left from the chicken

Cook 5-6 minutes

Next add in the garlic, rosemary and sage and cook another 2-3 minutes

Next up we will need 1 cup of Marsala wine, 1/2 cup of chicken stock and 3/4 cups of heavy cream

We used Homemade Chicken Stock

Note:  Using a bottle of quality Marsala from an actual wine store, rather then the store bought cooking Marsala, is night and day.  Real Marsala is not usually all that expensive but believe me, you will taste a big difference

Add your Marsala to the pan and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer 6-8 minutes to cook off the alcohol

Add in your chicken stock, bring to a simmer and cook 2-3 minutes more

Add in your heavy cream and chicken

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook 6-8 minutes

Next chop up 6 ounces of fresh spinach and add that to the pan

Stir to incorporate

Cook another 3-4 minutes

We tossed the chicken with 1 pound of pasta shells cooked according to the packages directions for “al dente” (you can use your favorite pasta)

Enjoy!!!

Tools used to make this recipe

Lodge Cast Iron Pan

Flat Spatula

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