MMM… Marsala!

Nothing beats a dinner you can make quickly, with few ingredients and packed with flavor. Tonight I decided to make Chicken Marsala .

Marsala wine is frequently used in cooking, and is especially prevalent in Italian restaurants. A typical Marsala sauce, involves reducing marsala wine almost to a syrup with onions or shallots, then adding mushrooms & herbs. The most popular Marsala recipe is Chicken Marsala, in which flour-coated pounded chicken breast halves are braised in a mixture of Marsala, butter, olive oil, mushrooms, and spices. Marsala is also used in some risotto recipes, and is used to produce rich Italian desserts such as zabagloine and tirsmisu.
For the chicken marsala I made, there were a few alterations to a traditional recipe to save time and use what I had on hand. You can certainly use pounded chicken breasts in place for the drummettes I used. Here is my recipe for chicken marsala:

1-2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 onion, chopped
cooking oil
1.5 lbs chicken drummettes
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground, black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1.5 cups sliced baby portabella mushrooms
1/2 cup marsala wine
1/2 cup chicken stock (or 1/4 cup cooking sherry)
juice of 1/2 lemon

In a pan, saute garlic & onions in a little oil.
Season chicken with salt, pepper & oregano.
Add chicken and brown, cooking thoroughly.. and remove from pan.
Add mushrooms to pan and cook until it starts to caramelize.
Add marsala wine, chicken stock, lemon juice and deglaze pan.
Add chicken back to pan & simmer in sauce 15-20 minutes.
Season to taste.

** I served this over mashed buttery yukon gold potatoes & garnished with chopped parsley.