No, really...I'm melting.

Note: The following recipe (Garlic and Mushroom Chicken) likely works better when cooked in a reasonably tempered kitchen. Not for any particular reason—it's not any more heat inducing than any other stove-top meal, but our house is ridiculous right now, and any amount of heat I add just isn't helping.

Blah, blah, blah, it's hot, I know. There are also earthquakes and hurricanes and basically, Mother Nature is pissed off about something (My guess? Their last names rhyme with Hawkmann and Berry) and we all have to suffer for it somehow.

But seriously, have I mentioned our Master Cool only works when it's under 101 out? Any hotter than that and it just kind of says, "fuck it, y'all are on your own." Not that I blame it…I wouldn't want to work that hard in this heat either.

So Hubby wins the Brilliant Award tonight for digging in the even hotter garage to find a free-standing a/c unit that I didn't know/forgot we had. It currently says my kitchen is 81 degrees, which is 10 degrees cooler than it was an hour and a half ago. Even the cats are happily sprawled out in there.

Garlic and Mushroom Chicken
1 tbsp olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 shallots, peeled and sliced
About 20 peeled garlic cloves
chicken broth (1/2 cup)
vermouth (1/2 cup)
thyme (1/2 tsp or so)
tarragon (1/4 tsp or so)
Package sliced brown mushrooms

Brown chicken in olive oil over high heat about 2 minutes a side. Remove from pan. Add garlic cloves and let sauté a couple of minutes, moving the pan around frequently so they don't burn. Add shallots, cook about a minute, then add about 1/4 cup vermouth, tarragon and thyme. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer about 5 minutes, moving pan around occasionally. Add about 1/4 cup of broth as wine cooks down.

Add chicken back on top of garlic mixture. Dump mushrooms on top, and pour another 1/4 cup of vermouth over them. As they cook down, stir them in and around the chicken. Cook about 15 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove the chicken and keep it warm, then add another good splash of chicken broth, raise heat to high, cover, and let the rest of it keep on cooking down for 5-10 minutes or until the liquid is almost gone and the garlic is soft. Add the chicken back in to reheat just a bit at the very end.

I added about a tablespoon of fat-free half and half before serving, but that was totally just cause I had some. Not necessary, but good.