Creamy Tuscan Chicken

Ingredients

• 2 large chicken breasts sliced lengthwise
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• Flour for dredging
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves black garlic pureed with 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 14-ounce jar water packed quartered artichoke hearts, well drained (optional)
• 1/4 cup chicken broth or dry white wine
• 1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
• 2 cups (loosely packed) fresh baby spinach
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes (see note)
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil chopped

Directions

1. Cut the chicken in half lengthwise. Sprinkle with salt & pepper and garlic powder on both sides. Coat in flour.
2. Melt the oil and butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes/side or until golden. Take the chicken out of the pan and set aside.
3. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth and Dijon mustard. Scrape up any brown bits and let it simmer with chopped garlic and black garlic puree, for 1-2 minutes. 
4. Stir in the cream, spinach, artichoke hearts (if desired) and sun-dried tomatoes. Add the chicken back to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through and the sauce reduces a bit.
5. Stir in the basil and season with extra salt & pepper if needed. Serve immediately. 

Notes

We used The Black Garlic Market’s Black Garlic for superior quality and flavor.

If the sun-dried tomatoes are not packed in oil, you may want to add a bit more – the oil-packed ones taste more concentrated. I drain the oil prior to adding them to the pan.

If you have particularly small chicken breasts, I recommend leaving them whole and cooking them for a few minutes longer.

Ingredients

For the Cream

• 4 large egg yolks
• ½ cups granulated sugar, divided
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• 1 cup mascarpone, 8-ounce container

For the Assembly

• 1 ¾ cups espresso or very strong coffee
• 2 tablespoons rum or cognac
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
•  About 24 ladyfingers, one 7-ouncepackage
• 1 to 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, for shaving, optional

Directions

1. Using an electric mixer in a medium bowl, whip together egg yolks and 1/4 cup sugar until very pale yellow and about tripled in volume. A slight ribbon should fall from the beaters, or whisk attachment when lifted from the bowl. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whip cream and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until it creates soft-medium peaks. Add mascarpone and continue to whip until it creates a soft, spreadable mixture with medium peaks. Gently fold the mascarpone mixture into the sweetened egg yolks until combined.
3. Combine espresso and rum in a shallow bowl and set aside.
4. Using a sifter, dust the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish or an 8×8-inch dish, or a 9-inch round cake pan, with 1 tablespoon cocoa powder.
5. Working one at a time, quickly dip each ladyfinger into the espresso mixture — work quickly, if you leave them too long, they will fall apart, and place them rounded side up at the bottom of the baking dish. Repeat, using half the ladyfingers, until you’ve got an even layer, breaking the ladyfingers in half as needed to fill in any obvious gaps, a bit of space is okay. Spread half the mascarpone mixture onto the ladyfingers in one even layer. Repeat with remaining espresso-dipped ladyfingers and mascarpone mixture.
6. Dust top layer with remaining tablespoon of cocoa powder. Top with shaved or finely grated chocolate, if desired.
7. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours (if you can wait 24 hours, all the better) before slicing or scooping to serve.