Creamy Mushroom Chicken Marsala

I just looked at the ingredients I had off hand last night, and ran across this one.  I sure am glad I did...it was one of the best things I have ever made.  The two things everyone needs to have in their house at all times is Marsala wine, and cooking sherry.  This dish doesn't call for sherry, but I have found it (along with Marsala) to give unique flavoring for my favorite basic dinners.

Creamy Mushroom Chicken Marsala  

2 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
salt and pepper to taste
6 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 cup Marsala wine, divided
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
3/4 cup reduced fat milk (or half and half)
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1/4 teaspoon  thyme
1 (12 ounce) package uncooked linguine pasta
dash cayenne pepper (optional)




Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.

Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to skillet. Cook until halfway done and golden brown on both sides, about 4 to 7 minutes each side. . Set chicken aside.

In skillet, scrape drippings, and add olive oil.  Saute mushrooms over medium high heat.  Add garlic and onion, and cook about 3-4 minutes until flavors blend.

Add 1/4 cup of the wine and stir; let reduce over low heat for 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Add cream of chicken soup and cream of mushroom soup to skillet along with mushroom mixture. Mix soups well with drippings, making sure no lumps remain. Slowly add milk, stirring constantly, then add remaining 1/2 cup wine; season with rosemary and thyme. Adjust amount of wine as needed to make a nice, thick gravy consistency. Add cayenne pepper if desired.

Let mixture simmer over medium heat until bubbly. Pour soup/mushroom mixture over chicken in baking dish, cover and bake in preheated oven for 30 to 45 minutes.

About 15 minutes before serving chicken, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguine and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Serve chicken breasts and sauce over the hot cooked pasta.

I about died when I tasted this dish.  Since I used milk, as well as the soups for the sauce...it wasn't as unhealthy as it could be.  I almost didn't use butter for the chicken, but I think you have to to compliment the other flavors.  Also the linguine pasta held the sauce really, really well.  I will definitely make this again, and my anti-chicken husband actually said it looked and smelled really good.  If I didn't make him an entire pot of spaghetti the hour before, I truly believe he would have tasted it.