Karen Wright: Marry Me chicken for a loving Valentine’s Day tasty proposal

All these things are lovely of course, but there is a saying “the way to a person’s heart is through their stomach” so how about treating your loved one to a delicious home cooked meal? There is a dish doing the rounds on social media now and it is called ‘Marry Me Chicken’. This caught my eye as I thought what a perfect recipe for Valentine’s day! So, what exactly is this ‘marry me chicken’? Simply put, it claims to be so delicious that it has prompted men and women to propose marriage after the first mouthful! I am already married but I was determined to make the recipe and see what all the hype was about. My research tells me that it is actually a dish that originates in Tuscany, we know that Italy is a very romantic country so no surprises there. Here is what I did. I sliced chicken breasts in half on the horizontal to make thinner slices and then browned them in a large frying pan using some olive oil and a knob of butter. I removed them from the pan to a plate and then I sliced a few mushrooms and cooked them in the pan with a few cloves of crushed garlic. I added a tablespoon of tomato puree, some smoked paprika, oregano and chilli flakes before pouring in 200ml chicken stock. I returned the chicken to the pan and bubbled it until the volume of liquid had reduced by half. Finally I added half a jar of sliced sundried tomatoes to the mix and a good splash of double cream and a handful of grated parmesan cheese. I stirred everything through, seasoned to taste and served with mashed potatoes and green beans although it goes equally well over pasta. The verdict? Well, my husband John devoured it, as did I. The colour of the sauce is beautiful, the chicken, so tender, definitely a winner, winner chicken dinner! This meal of course is not exclusively for love birds. Many of us take joy and love from the world around us, our homes, our pets, our wider family and friends, our gardens, hobbies and so on and are not necessarily in or want to be in a relationship. Perfect too; most important thing is to treat yourself well, enjoy a good meal, do the things that make you happy and just remember this, the lighter evenings are coming, by Valentines day its still light at five o clock, just intime for tea!