Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Chicken Marsala Stuffed Shells

I was struck with inspiration while staring at a half empty box of pasta shells last night. I had all the ingredients for Chicken Marsala and figured why not try it as a stuffed shells dish. It turned out great and I liked the leftovers the next day even better. Plus, as a bonus, my seriously picky toddler even ate some (although I had to dump a can of corn kernels into her bowl to disguise the rest of the dish haha).
I will warn you, I rarely have the patience to write down a recipe and then to add instructions...ugh...so please excuse any mistakes.



Chicken Marsala Stuffed Shells

Ingredients
1/2 a box of large pasta shells cooked to al dente
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in bite-sized pieces (if you already have leftover chicken from the night before, even better)
3 T EVOO
2 8oz containers of cremini mushrooms (or any mushrooms you like) stems removed and chopped
1/2 a large diced onion
2-4 minced garlic cloves, depending on how garlicky you like things. I like super stinky garlicky.
1/2 C Marsala wine.
1 8oz container of marscapone cheese (you can substitute cream cheese)
Salt & Pepper
1 C bread crumbs (I used panko)
1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 C softened butter

Directions
Cook the pasta shells and set aside to cool.
In a large saute pan heat EVOO over medium high heat, saute onions and mushrooms until soft. Add the chicken to the pan and saute until almost cooked through. Add the garlic saute for about 30 seconds and then add the wine. Cook the wine for a couple minutes, you want a fairly soupy sauce, then reduce the heat to low and add the marscapone cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
Prepare the bread crumb topping by mixing the bread crumbs, butter and cheese together. I found it easiest to use my hands.
Grease a casserole dish and ladle a couple spoons fulls of the sauce into the dish. Fill each pasta shells with a scoop of the Marsala mixture and place in the casserole dish. Spoon any remaining sauce over the top. Top each shell with the bread crumb mixture. I like to sprinkle extra Parmesan cheese on top. Baked at 375 until cheese it melted and bread crumbs are golden. Enjoy!
If you reheat the next day for leftovers, cover the casserole dish with foil before putting in the oven. It will keep the shells from drying out.