Day 11 - Creamy Mushroom Pasta with Chicken

There must be something good about the Budget Bytes site.  I'm finding lots of good recipes there.

Creamy Mushroom Pasta with Chicken

2 TBSP Olive Oil

½ med onion

3 cloves garlic

1 lbs fresh mushrooms

2 TBSP all purpose flour

1tsp chicken base

1 cup water

½ cup chicken broth

½ cup half & half

½ tsp dried thyme

Salt

Pepper

¼ bunch fresh parsley

2 oz parmesan

8 oz pasta

2 large chicken breasts

STEP 1: Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper (or any other seasoning you like). Cook them in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes per side or until cooked through. Keep the chicken on a plate covered with foil until ready to eat.

STEP 2: While the chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce. Cut the onion into a small dice and mince the garlic. Cook them in a large skillet over medium heat with olive oil. Cook about two minutes or until the onion is transparent. Add the sliced mushrooms and a dash of salt and cook until the mushrooms have completely softened and released all of their moisture (about 7 minutes).

STEP 3: Add the 2 Tbsp of flour to the skillet. Stir and cook for about 2 minutes. It will coat the mushrooms and will begin to turn golden in color. Just make sure to keep stirring so that the flour does not burn.

STEP 4: Combine the chicken base and water to make a chicken broth. Add it to the skillet along with the white wine and thyme. Whisk until no flour lumps remain. Let simmer until thickened (about 3-5 minutes). 

STEP 5: While the sauce is simmering, get a large pot of water boiling for the pasta. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box (boil for 5-7 minutes or until al dente then drain).

STEP 6: Once the sauce has thickened, turn off the heat and stir in the cream. Continue to let simmer until reduced in volume and thickened. Give the sauce a taste and season with salt and pepper.

STEP 7: Roughly chop the parsley and stir it in with the drained pasta. Grate about 2 ounces of parmesan over top (or top each serving individually). Slice the chicken and serve each bowl of pasta with a few slices of chicken.

Verdict:

Anything with pasta goes over well in our house.  Since it had mushrooms it in made it better with the kids.  This was delicious but a lot of work.