Chicken Marsala

Garlic-rosemary mashed potatoes

These can be made in any variation you want: plain, or broccoli-cheddar-bacon, since all you do is swap the flavor ingredients at the start. Measurements are approximate.

• 6–8 yellow potatoes
• ~1/2 stick butter (let it come to room temperature)
• ~1/4 cup heavy cream (also at room temperature, so it doesn’t separate from the butter while cooking)
• A pinch each of salt and pepper
• A generous handful (~1/4 cup chopped) of fresh parsley, flat-leaf or curly. Use some for cooking and save some for garnish.
• A small handful (~1/8 cup chopped) of rosemary (fresh; dried is too “pine-needley”)
• ~3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 scallion, chopped (optional, for extra punch and/or garnish)

1. Boil the potatoes in a big pot until they’re about 95% cooked through (skin on or off, up to you), then drain and set aside.
2. In the same empty pot, add the butter, cream, parsley, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir over medium heat while adding the flavor ingredients (rosemary, garlic, scallion).
3. Once it comes to a light bubble and you can smell the rosemary and garlic, add the potatoes back to the pot.
4. Mash everything to the texture you like, turning the heat down or off as the potatoes break down.
5. Taste, then add more butter, salt, pepper, or parsley as needed.

Wine: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, or Merlot.

Chicken marsala tips

For the marsala itself, follow Tyler Florence’s recipe (linked above), with these changes:

• Baby bella or white mushrooms work best. Cremini, porcini, and shiitake get a weird texture and absorb the sauce differently.
• Use about 1.5 parts chicken broth to 1 part marsala, not 1:1.
• Skip the prosciutto: it overpowers the sauce and adds extra oil. If you do use it, add a sautéed shallot and a dash of heavy cream to balance it (the shallot adds a nice sweetness either way).
• After cooking the chicken, when you add the mushrooms to the leftover oil, stir in a couple tablespoons of flour to make a paste to build the sauce on. Otherwise it gets runny once the liquids go in. Don’t add flour after the liquids, or you’ll get little flour chunks, and nobody wants those floating around the sauce at a dinner party.

Wine: Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Noir, or Sangiovese.