This is a completely original recipe that I developed independently in my home kitchen through years of careful experimentation and culinary study. It bears absolutely no resemblance to any dish that may or may not appear on the menu of a certain Italian-American chain restaurant whose name rhymes with "Shmabba's." Any similarities to trademarked menu items are purely coincidental, and the fact that I happened to be a web developer who may or may not have built websites for restaurant companies in the past is entirely irrelevant to this discussion.
What I can tell you is this: it's chicken topped with melty goat cheese, swimming in a lemon butter wine sauce with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil. It tastes like something you'd pay $26 for at a place with breadsticks and a wine list. You can make it at home for about $12 and not have to put on real pants or make small talk with a server named Tyler.
The sauce is similar to a piccata—butter and wine base—but adds white pepper instead of black, sun-dried tomatoes for sweetness, and basil for freshness. The goat cheese on top melts just enough to get creamy and tangy. Serve it over mashed potatoes and try not to think about how much money you've wasted eating this at restaurants.
The Sauce (This Is the Part You're Paying $26 For)
For Serving
Instructions
The Chicken
Prep the chicken. If your chicken breasts are thick and uneven (they always are), pound them to an even thickness—about ¾ inch. This ensures they cook evenly instead of being burnt on the thin end and raw in the middle. Place them between plastic wrap and hit them with a meat mallet, a rolling pin, or a wine bottle. Work out your frustrations. Season both sides generously with salt.
Cook the chicken. Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken breasts. Don't crowd the pan—work in batches if needed. Cook until golden brown on the bottom, about 5-6 minutes, then flip and cook another 5-6 minutes until the internal temp hits 165°F. Remove to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.
The Sauce
Build the sauce in the same pan. Don't wash it—those browned bits on the bottom are flavor. Reduce heat to medium. Add the butter and let it melt. Add the minced onion and cook for a couple minutes until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds more, just until fragrant. Don't burn the garlic or the whole sauce is ruined and you'll have to start over while questioning your life choices.
Add the wine. Pour in the white wine and use a wooden spoon to scrape up all those browned bits from the bottom of the pan. This is deglazing, and it's why restaurant food tastes better than yours usually does. Let the wine reduce by about half—a couple minutes.
Add the good stuff. Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, white pepper, and lemon juice. Let it simmer for another minute or two until the tomatoes are warmed through and the sauce comes together. Taste it. Adjust the salt and lemon if needed. Remove from heat and stir in the fresh basil at the very end so it stays bright green and doesn't wilt into sad mush.
Assembly
Add the goat cheese. Place the cooked chicken breasts back in the pan or on a serving platter. Top each breast with about an ounce of goat cheese—crumbled or in a slice, your call. The residual heat from the chicken will soften the cheese into creamy, tangy deliciousness. Don't fully melt it; you want it softened but still holding its shape.
Serve immediately. Put a generous pile of mashed potatoes on each plate. Place a chicken breast on top or beside the potatoes. Spoon that beautiful butter sauce with the tomatoes and basil over everything. Watch it pool around the mashed potatoes. This is the moment you realize you've been overpaying for this at restaurants your entire adult life.
Notes
On the white pepper: This isn't a typo. White pepper has a different flavor than black—more earthy, less sharp, and it doesn't leave visible black specks in your creamy sauce. It's a restaurant trick that makes things look more refined. If you only have black pepper, it'll still taste fine, but the white pepper is the move if you want to be authentic to... my completely original recipe.
On the goat cheese: Get the plain, creamy kind—not the herbed or pre-crumbled stuff. You want it soft enough to spread slightly when it warms. The tanginess cuts through the rich butter sauce perfectly.
On the sun-dried tomatoes: Use the kind packed in oil, not the dry ones. The oil-packed ones are softer and more flavorful. Drain off the excess oil before slicing.
Make the mashed potatoes first: They can sit and stay warm while you cook the chicken and make the sauce. Cold mashed potatoes under hot chicken is a crime against dinner.
On the cream question: Some versions of this dish add ½ cup of heavy cream to the sauce for extra richness. I've been making it without cream for years and prefer the cleaner, brighter flavor—the lemon and wine aren't muted by dairy, and the butter provides plenty of richness on its own. But if you want a heavier, more indulgent sauce, stir in the cream after the wine reduces and before adding the tomatoes. Try it both ways and see which one your family likes.
On the cost: Let's do the math. Chicken: $8. Goat cheese: $5. Sun-dried tomatoes: $4. Wine, butter, basil, garlic, lemon: stuff you probably have. Total: roughly $17-20 to serve 4 people. That's $4-5 per plate for a dish that costs $26 at a restaurant. You're welcome.
Stuff You'll Need
A large skillet. A meat mallet or wine bottle for pounding chicken (dual purpose—pound the chicken, then drink the wine). A wooden spoon for scraping up the fond. A thermometer if you don't trust yourself with chicken. The quiet satisfaction of knowing you've cracked the code on a $26 entrée.