Olive Garden Stuffed Chicken Marsala

One of Barb's favorites, copied from Flora's Recipe Hideout....

Servings: 4

Ingredients:
---CHEESE STUFFING---
1/2 cup smoked provolone or gouda cheese
8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato flakes, if in oil, drain first
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper

---CHICKEN---
2 pounds Skinless boneless chicken breasts
4 ounces cooking oil
2 cups flour
salt and pepper, to taste

---SAUCE---
1 small onion, chopped
6 cups button mushrooms, thinly sliced
24 ounces marsala wine
8 ounces heavy cream

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. STUFFING: Combine all cheese stuffing ingredients in a bowl.

3. CHICKEN: Butterfly thickest section to create two lobes - pound until 1/4"-1/2" thick. Place pounded chicken breasts on a plate and place desired amount of stuffing on one half of chicken breast. Gently press stuffing down and fold over other side of chicken breast.

4. Preheat a large saute pan on stove top. add 4 oz oil, heat oil until shimmering. Place approximately 2 cups flour in a pan and season it to taste with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess flour. Place stuffed chicken breasts in saute pan with the preheated oil. Cook each side until golden. When chicken is seared on both sides remove them from saute pan and place them in a baking pan and into the oven for 10-20 minutes. Bake until juices run clear and stuffing and center reach a temperature of at least 165 degrees.

5. SAUCE: Add the onions to the saute pan. stir with spatula. After 2 minutes add the mushrooms, saute mixture until onions are translucent. Deglaze saute pan with the marsala wine - make sure to incorporate particles from bottom of pan. Bring wine to a simmer and add heavy cream. Simmer sauce on low heat until reduced by half.

6. Place cooked chicken breast on a plate and top with onions, mushrooms and sauce. Serve with your favorite garlic mashed potato recipe.

Cream of Crab Soup

Got this recipe from Richie Stevens, brother-in-law of our former neighbor Amanda Adams. Good stuff!

Ingredients:
1lb backfin crab meat
1/2 stick butter
1 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup flour
4 cups milk
1 cup half and half

Directions:
Melt butter in pan. Blend in flour and stir. Stir in broth and simmer 2 minutes. Add milk and half and half, stirring constantly until thickened (DO NOT BOIL). Add crab meat and salt and pepper to taste. We also add old bay seasoning to taste as well. It takes a while to get it thickened but once it gets hot enough without boiling it will thicken.

Blue Ribbon Googled-Last-Night Red Bean Chili

This October our church celebrated it's 25th anniversary with a huge fall picnic. The Men's Ministry held a chili cook-off challenge. Over 20 men across the church were talking it up. Some pulled their family's secret recipe out of retirement. One commented on how he had been soaking (Barb calls it marinating) his beef for two days to get the right zing. I had decided to cook a pot to help feed the masses (a male's version of a pot luck dinner). I enjoy chili, but my couple attempts at cooking it was average at best. So I did the next logical thing - I googled for a new recipe. At 6pm the night before the cook-off.

I shopped at Giant that night, threw everything the recipe called for into a crock pot. And slept. The next day was showdown at the OK Corral. There was some jockeying, some jabbing, some posturing (all in fun) by most. I stayed out of it lest I be found for the poser that I was. There was some good chili that day, and mine didn't hold water against some of them. But what mattered was the judge's results, and in the end this Google recipe (which I can't even trace now) was the near unanimous choice for Best of Show. Three of four judges voted this #1 out of 22, the fourth judge tallied it #2. I've made it four times since, and it continues to receive rave reviews. Head and shoulders above the rest, I now gladly share with you the Blue Ribbon Googled-Last-Night Red Bean Chili recipe.

Ingredients:
3 lbs. ground beef
1 (really) lg. yellow onion
1 (really) lg. green pepper
2 (28 oz.) cans Furmano’s chunky crushed tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano
2 (10 oz.) cans Rotel tomatoes (Original flavor)
2 (16 oz.) cans Goya red kidney beans
2 (15 oz.) cans Hormel Chili Hot with Beans (yes, Hormel)
Diced jalapeño peppers to taste (I use about 1 Tbsp)
Chili powder to taste (I use about 1.5 Tbsp.)
Adobo seasoning to taste (I use about 1 Tbsp.)
Black pepper to taste (I use about 1.5 Tbsp.)
Raw sugar to taste (I use about 1 Tbsp.)


Directions:
Brown beef. Chop then saute onion and green pepper. Throw everything into large crock pot. Cook 8-10 hrs on Low. Best if refrigerated and warmed the next day. Makes 6 quarts.