Chicken with Mustard Mascarpone Marsala Sauce

I am so excited to announce my second guest blogger, Sarah, to yelleBELLYboo!  Sarah is another former roommate who explored many a new recipe with me.  This recipe was the first really complicated meal I ever made without my Mom, and Sarah was right by my side. It is still one of my absolute favorite meals, and I know you'll enjoy it too!  Welcome, Sarah!

Dani and I discovered this recipe during college from all the Food Network we watched in our tiny shared bedroom sophomore year. We made this recipe a handful of times and it gave us a little taste of a home cooked meal that was so rare during our college years.

I ended up cutting up the chicken into smaller pieces than shown above because they took less time to cook and when I combined it with the pasta it was easier to eat.

The Marsala wine really makes this sauce. Definitely don't substitute with any kind of wine you have around the house because the Marsala really gives it the sweet taste that makes this dish so so good.

Once you add the mascarpone cheese and dijon mustard, the sauce really starts to come together and you can smell the delicious sweet aroma of the onions and garlic combining with the cheese and mustard. This dish is very rich because mascarpone cheese is a dessert cheese generally used to make tiramisu. But when you combine it with the other bold flavors in this dish, it really doesn't taste like it is made with a dessert cheese.

The recipe calls for fettuccine but I used regular thin spaghetti pasta because that is what I had in my pantry. I also forgot to garnish with parsley which really would have made the presentation better (and taste better, too)! I paired it with a fresh goat cheese salad (because the dish is so rich) and a glass of sweet Moscato wine. It was a delicious dinner and I highly recommend this recipe!

Chicken with Mustard Mascarpone Marsala Sauce

From Giada DeLaurentiis at Food Network

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, each breast cut crosswise into 3 pieces

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

5 tablespoons butter, divided

3/4 cup chopped onion

1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 cup dry Marsala wine

1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone cheese

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves, plus whole sprigs, for garnish

12 ounces dried fettuccine

Instructions

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cool slightly.

While the chicken cools, melt 2 tablespoons of butter to the same skillet over medium-high heat, then add the onion and saute until tender, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute until the mushrooms are tender and the juices evaporate, about 12 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Stir in the mascarpone and mustard. Cut the chicken breasts crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through and the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chopped parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettuccine and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain. Toss the fettuccine with 3 tablespoons of butter and season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Swirl the fettuccine onto serving plates. Spoon the chicken mixture over top. Garnish with parsley sprigs and serve.