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Monday, September 10, 2012

eighty-nine

The weekend has come and gone--again.  Why does that always happen!? 

Every now and then I come across a recipe that's okay, but not really brag-worthy.  When that happens, I'll usually just toss the recipe, but every now and then one of those "meh" recipes just calls out to me and I can't get it out of my head.  Inevitably, I find myself in the kitchen digging through the cabinets and the fridge, wondering what I can do to coax the meal to taste at least a little better than just "okay".

Real Simple's rosemary-garlic chicken is, unfortunately, a meh-cipe.  It has good (figurative) bones and it's easy and inexpensive, so I've found myself making it for several years now, despite the nagging feeling of mild dissatisfaction.  Sure, I've made a few adjustments to the amount of garlic, liquid, and butter, but nothing I did seemed to make this a crave worthy meal.

Long story short, Chicken Francese was on the menu at our wedding--despite the fact that neither Mr. N nor I had ever tried it.  With my first bite, my mouth was hit with the realization that the answer to my chicken problem had been in my cupboard all along and was just plain ol' white flour.  The first time I cooked rosemary-garlic chicken as a married woman, it was a surprising success and I knew that I had to share it with someone.  At the time, I wasn't even sure if my blog was going to last more than a month, so I put off noting the measurements and taking pictures until, uh, yesterday.  Just for you, Internetz, I made it a point to remember, so now I can finally share the changes I've made to the original recipe.  I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

P.S.  Big public congratulations to Mr. N for his recently published article!  You rock!  (Since we're married, I think that means I get 50% of the accolades; I'll be nice and let him have them all... this time. <3)



Rosemary-Garlic Chicken Francese

Adapted from Real Simple's rosemary-garlic chicken recipe.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat and pounded thin
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp butter, divided
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced (less if you don't love garlic like us!)
1/3-1/2 cup good balsamic vinegar (we used lemon-balsamic)
1 cup chicken stock (can use bouillon, but it's not as good)
1 tbsp dried rosemary, crumbled
salt and pepper, to taste

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil and 1 tbsp of the butter until melted.  Add the garlic and cook until softened and browned, about 3 minutes, stirring often.
Dredge the chicken breasts in flour, shaking off the excess before placing into the pan on top of the garlic.  Cook until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes per side.  Add the vinegar, chicken broth, rosemary, salt, and pepper.  Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and simmer about 10 minutes, or until cooked through.

Remove the chicken from the pan to a platter and tent with tin foil.

Increase the pan's heat to medium-high and allow the sauce to simmer until thickened, about 3 minutes.  Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to make a gravy.  Add more chicken stock or water if the gravy is thicker than you'd like.

Serve the chicken topped with the gravy.  We love this alongside mashed potatoes and green beans (which can made epic by topping them with the little bits of  garlic leftover in the pan.  Just sayin').

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