Chicken Tetrazzini

My husband picked out this recipe from my chicken board on pinterest.  Why?  Well when he first went off to college, he took his mom's Betty Crocker cookbook and this was the first meal he meal he made out of it.  He thought it was wonderful then and wanted to try it now.  The original pin went to a Martha Stewart recipe.  And while I have had a few of hers I liked, there have been some stinkers too.  You can imagine my concern when I saw some reviews that likened her recipe to hospital food!  One reviewer said Giada's was better.  A quick look at her recipe showed me that I had all I needed and it did indeed look like a superior recipe.  Now the Martha recipe called for rotisserie chicken, which I bought, so I shredded that instead of cooking the chicken like recommended in this recipe. I also halved the recipe and cooked it in an 8"x8" pan.  It was way more than the four of us could eat and we ate heartily.  Everyone liked it, even the 3 yr old.  The one thing I liked about the Martha Stewart recipe, was it said to make and put it in two pans and freeze one.  I like the convenience of having two meals prepared at once.  While this recipe doesn't state that it is possible, I think that if I made the entire recipe and put it in to two pans, one would freeze nicely.  Haven't tried it so I could be mistaken.




Chicken Tetrazzini
 
9 Tbl butter
2 Tbl olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 1/4 Tsp salt
1 1/4 Tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 Lb white mushrooms sliced
1 large onion finely chopped
 Clove garlic minced
1 Tbl chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 Cup dry white wine
1/3 Cup all-purpose flour
4 Cup whole milk room temperature
1 Cup heavy whipping cream room temperature
1 Cup chicken broth
1/8 Tsp ground nutmeg
12 ounces linguine
3/4 Cup frozen peas
1/4 Cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 Cup grated Parmesan
1/4 Cup dried Italian-style breadcrumbs

Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2)  Spread 1 tablespoon of butter over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish.
Melt 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil in a deep large nonstick frying
pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon each
of salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the hot pan and cook until pale
golden and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the
chicken to a plate to cool slightly. Coarsely shred the chicken into
bite-size pieces and into a large bowl.
 3) Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil to the same pan.
Add the mushrooms and saute over medium-high heat until the liquid from
the mushrooms evaporates and the mushrooms become pale golden, about 1-2
minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and thyme, and saute until the onion is
translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it
evaporates, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mushroom mixture to the bowl
with the chicken.
 4) Melt 3 more tablespoons butter in the same pan over medium-low heat.
Add the flour and whisk for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, cream, broth,
nutmeg, remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon
pepper. Increase the heat to high. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer,
uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10
minutes.
5) Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and
cook until it is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring
occasionally, about 9 minutes. Drain. Add the linguine, sauce, peas, and
parsley to the chicken mixture. Toss until the sauce coats the pasta and
the mixture is well blended.
 6) Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish. Stir the
cheese and breadcrumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the cheese
mixture over the pasta. Dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter.
Bake, uncovered, until golden brown on top and the sauce bubbles, about
25 minutes