I like plenty of "classy" foods-- dishes with mile-long lists of ingredients (or mile-high costs for just a few special ones). But when it comes down to what I crave most often, the list consists of a few, simple foods: bacon, chicken, and cheese. You know, the oh-so-very refined palate that one would expect of a food blogger.
So what do I do when I'm torn between making an impressive dinner recipe and satisfying all of my not-so-sophisticated cravings? I channel my inner cheap knock-off version of Julia Child* and stir some wine into the mix. I'm telling you, wine ups the fancy factor by like 10 levels every time. Take this Smothered Bacon Asiago Wine Chicken, for example.
* Disclaimer: Please note the "cheap knock-off version" portion of that statement. You see Child and I both share a strong fondness for wine, cream, cheese... and more wine. She once joked, "I enjoy cooking with wine, sometimes I even put it in the food." For this reason, and this reason alone, I feel we have a deep and oft misunderstood spiritual connection. I am fully aware of all of the levels of magnitude less cool that I am than Julia Child.
This recipe is exactly what you'd think it was upon reading the name-- juicy chicken breasts that are blanketed in a creamy, wine-spiked sauce, flavored with asiago cheese and studded with crumbled bacon. The chicken is phenomenal, but the sauce is what really steals your heart. I like to dip crusty bread in it on the side, or serve it over pasta. '
Or both.
Usually both.
One thing I really love about this recipe is that the bacon flavor is not confined to just the (many) crumbles of bacon that are mixed in. Instead, the chicken is cooked in some of the rendered bacon fat, which allows it to take on a lot of that savory, salty, meaty flavor. Then, when the sauce is made, the wine deglazes the pan, picking up the little browned bits of bacony goodness that were left behind.
I always have to make a few extra pieces of bacon because if James smells bacon cooking, he will bug me nonstop until I let him eat a strip. Then I feel like I'm giving myself the short end of the stick if I don't also get to eat one myself-- like, why should I miss out on something so magical in the name of self-restraint? So, the golden rule is to make at least 2 extra strips to save myself from any potential grief. You can never have too much bacon, right?
This Smothered Bacon Asiago Wine Chicken is really is a special treat of a recipe, but it takes less than an hour to whip together. I think of it as a date night dish on easy mode--I know I'd be wooed if someone made it for me! I have hearts in my eyes just looking at the pictures. Like I said before, who doesn't love some fancified bacon, chicken, and cheese?
Give it a go and report back with your mouthwatering results! While you're at it, don't forget to take a picture of your Smothered Bacon Asiago Wine Chicken and tag it with #hostthetoast on Instagram or Twitter. I can't wait to see it.
Smothered Bacon Asiago Wine Chicken
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 6 strips bacon
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup asiago cheese, shredded
- Parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside on a paper towel lined plate to absorb the excess grease. Pour all but about 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease off of the pan.
- Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper and then place in the skillet over medium heat. Cook for 6 minutes on each side, or until golden on each side. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Add onion and garlic to skillet and cook until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping up the browned bits at the bottom with a wooden spoon as you stir.
- Mix in the chicken broth and heavy cream. Add the chicken back in,and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce to a simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. Crumble the bacon and mix it into the sauce, along with the asiago cheese. Allow the cheese to melt into the sauce entirely. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Garnish with parsley and serve warm.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
anna* says
Whoa. Looks delicious. Can't go wrong with bacon, cream and cheese!
May says
This may be a bit of an odd question since part of the title includes "white wine" but this sounds delicious and I generally cook for someone who has a substantial fear of alcohol, so do you know of any substitutions that might work?
Morgan says
You could omit the white wine and use chicken stock in its place, then finish the sauce with some fresh lemon juice squeezed in at the very end =)
Kelly says
I made this the other day and it was so good! And my fiancee loved it too! Definitely took your advice and made extra bacon...glad I did 🙂
Angela says
I'll need to buy some turkey bacon but your photos have got me hooked! Insanely gorgeous dish.
Keith @ How's it Lookin? says
I gotta try this. Wine chicken sounds very interesting, thanks a lot
Antje says
Made this today and it was super delicious! But then again I love every recipe with wine 😉
I just couldn't find asiago cheese where I live, so I replaced it with parmesan.
Alicia Merlino says
I am making this tonight, and am wondering if you meant 4 split chicken breasts? 4 whole breasts did not even come close to cooking in the 12 minutes, for 6 minutes on each side. They took a detour to the oven to finish cooking, but thought I would check.
Nicole says
What did you serve it with? In the picture it looks like some sort of noodles? It all looks amazing together, can't wait to try it! My husband LOVES bacon!
Morgan says
Hi Nicole! Yes I served it with gemelli pasta. I hope you both enjoy it =)
Tracey Jones says
We eat low carb and loves this!
Debi Hopkins says
Love your recipes!!!!
Larry Covey says
Morgan, the flavor here is delish. I hate reading reviews that aren't on the original recipe. That being said, I had some bone in thighs I wanted to use up and an 8oz bucket of baby bellas so I said why not. I increased the bacon, wine, cream, and broth cause I love sauces and yours sounded really good. Of course I had to cook things longer but it turned out amazing, I served it with jasmine rice and roasted butternut squash. So glad I found your post, thank you.