The August cover of any national food magazine will usually feature some sort grilled meat with a title about throwing the perfect summer party for a crowd.
That’s not exactly the way our editorial calendar works here in Tennessee.
In our neck of the woods, August is not the start of grilling season, it’s the start of school. We are winding down the summer parties and cookouts, and look—not without some sadness—to the end of vacation eating and the return of our school and work day routine and the meals that fit into it. A typical tuesday this month will not include me standing at a grill outside basting a brisket, but probably throwing something together in between practices and homework.
This simple recipe has been a long-time favorite in our family and is perfect for weeknight dinners but tastes good enough to grace a magazine cover any month of the year.
Weeknight Chicken in Cream Sauce
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or fillets, cut into 1” pieces
3-4 Tablespoons of flour for dredging
Salt and pepper
2-4 Tablespoons of butter
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
*1 cup white button mushrooms, sliced, if desired
*1 jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce, if desired
*Only if you want to ingredient
1.) Dredge chicken pieces in flour seasoned with salt pepper—shake off excess.
2.) Melt butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add chicken and lightly brown to a light crust about 6-8 minutes.
3.) Remove chicken from pan and deglaze with the white wine, scraping up any brown bits that have collected, about 1-2 minutes. Add heavy cream, stir, and bring to a soft boil.
4.) Add the mushrooms if desired and cook for a few minutes until soft and sauce begins to thicken.
5.) Add the chicken back to the pan. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through and no longer pink and cream sauce has thickened, about another 8-10 minutes.
Note: At this point, you can also choose to add a portion of the browned chicken back into the cream sauce and/or to a saucepan of heated marinara sauce if you have younger kids that might not like the white sauce.
Serve over cooked spaghetti with a crispy green salad and crusty bread.
(Serves 4 but you can easily adjust, just keep the wine/cream ration even and brown the chicken in batches.)
©2014 Tracey Henry
Dishing From Others