RECIPE DOCTOR • CHEESECAKE FACTORY MAIN DISH
Skip the fat, savor the taste in Chicken Madeira

By Elaine Magee
Knight Ridder News Service

For another in my series on lightening up recipes from the popular Cheesecake Factory restaurants, here's the most popular chicken dish on the menu. It's one of those dishes that may not photograph well, but boy does it taste terrific. The chicken, which is positively smothered in mozzarella cheese, is served over mashed potatoes at the restaurant.

For this light rendition, we reduced fat used for sauteing and pan-frying and used fat-free half-and-half instead of cream in the sauce. If you are a little hesitant to take out almost all of the fat from the sauce, you can add ? cup of half and half and ? cup of fat-free half and half instead.

For a healthier base, use brown rice instead of mashed potatoes.

Chicken Madeira

Mushroom mixture:

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 pound of sliced mushrooms (around 3 cups)
• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 2 teaspoons minced or chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Chicken:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded with meat mallet until about 1/4-inch thick
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Madeira sauce:

• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 2 teaspoons minced or chopped garlic
• 1/2 cup Madeira wine
• 1 1/2 cups canned, low-sodium beef broth
• 1/2 cup fat-free half and half (1/2 cup whole milk or 1/4 cup fat-free half and half plus 1/4 cup real half and half can be substituted)
• Salt and pepper to taste

For serving:

• 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 2 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
• 3 cups low-fat mashed potatoes or brown rice
• About 12 spears asparagus, lightly cooked or steamed (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Add a tablespoon of canola oil to a nonstick skillet and begin to heat over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until tender (about 6 minutes). Add 1/4 cup shallots and 2 teaspoons of garlic and continue to saute until shallots are soft (about 3 minutes). Stir in thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste if desired. Transfer mushroom mixture to a medium bowl; set aside.

Season the chicken breasts with the white pepper, garlic powder and salt as desired. Add olive oil to a very large nonstick skillet or frying pan and heat over medium-high heat. Place chicken breasts in the pan and cook until nicely brown and cooked throughout (about 4-5 minutes per side). Transfer the chicken to a plate.

Add 1/4 cup shallots and garlic to the same skillet and saute 2 minutes (add a tablespoon or two of water if needed to keep them moist). Add Madeira and boil until reduced by half (about 3 minutes). Add the broth and boil until mixture is reduced to about á cup (about 6 minutes). Add the fat-free half and half and boil mixture until sauce thickens slightly (about 2 minutes). Stir in the mushroom mixture into the sauce.

Set the chicken breasts in a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and sprinkle grated cheese evenly over the chicken. Bake until cheese melts nicely (about 8 minutes). Serve each chicken breast over a small scoop of mashed potatoes or brown rice. Top the chicken with lightly cooked or steamed asparagus spears before drizzling with the Madeira sauce (if desired). Sprinkle parsley over the top of each serving.

Makes four servings.

Per serving: 158 calories, 12 g protein, 12 g carbohydrate, 7.5 g fat (4.3 g saturated fat, 2.2 g monounsaturated fat, .6 g polyunsaturated fat), 22 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 300 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 42 percent. Omega-3 fatty acids .3 g. Omega-6 fatty acids .3 g. Weight Watchers points: 3.

Elaine Magee is author of "The Recipe Doctor Cookbook" and "The Flax Cookbook." Readers may write to her through www.recipedoctor.com. Personal responses cannot be provided.