Chicken, mushrooms and basil cream sauce- (What Cathy found in the fridge and kitchen for the $5 Friday meal)

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food and Cathy is blogging today.

Hi.  I know I haven’t talked about many meals out lately, but things have been busy and I will have a lot of posts in a row for you soon.  For now, it is another meal for two that will cost less than $5, based on using some items on sale this week in local grocery stores.

Boneless skinless chicken breasts are on sale for $1.97 a pound this week at Vons.  They are small, from young chickens the package says.  Thighs were on sale last week for 99¢ a pound.  You can make this recipe from raw chicken breasts or from already cooked thighs.  You cook the chicken first anyhow and then toss it in the sauce at the end.

I ended up using one whole chicken breast, about half the package of mushrooms, 1/4 of the pack of pasta, 1/2 pint  of whipping cream, as much basil as I cared to and some salt, olive oil and butter.

First bring *salted* water to a boil.  This is the only salt you will use in this recipe.

If you don’t salt the water first, the pasta will never be able to get any flavor.

Cook and drain-don’t rinse.

  While that is going on, slice the mushrooms, not too thin and place in a pan with melted butter.

Saute until mushrooms are cooked, place aside.

Put olive oil into the pan, and place cubed chicken breast into oil and saute until chicken is cooked.  Place aside. Leave the excess oil in the pan. 

Put some butter on the olive oil in the pan, pour in the whipping cream, put julienned basil into the cream mixture, I put the mushrooms and their residual butter into the cream also.  Simmer so the flavors meld.

Add chicken last, just to re-warm.

Place pasta in bowl, ladle chicken/mushroom/cream mix on top.

Dinner.

It does not need salt or pepper.  Really. There is salt in the pasta and butter.  The cream sauce with the infused basil is wonderful.

Cathy’s Chicken and mushrooms in cream sauce

One chicken breast or three thighs, cooked. Remember a servicing is about the size of your palm. 🙂 You can cook by boiling and cooling, taking off skin and bones.  You can cook by sauteing in olive oil.  You will end up putting it back into the sauce  and re-warming.

Large handful of mushrooms Saute in butter and put aside.  You will add back into the sauce, excess butter and all.

One pint heavy cream or whipping cream or half and half or whole milk. One handful julienned basil. Simmer with some olive oil and butter so the basil flavor infuses.  You can put the mushrooms and their butter so those flavors infuse.

Add the chicken and simmer until warm

Serve on top of cooked pasta.  Cook the pasta in salted water.  Always.