Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce

This is an elegant and incredible recipe, the name "Chicken Monterey" does not do it justice. You have to make it right, if you don't follow the recipe don't complain. This is a classic french mushroom sauce and the flavors combine to make you nearly weep. I made this for a party I threw and didn't even try it till after the party because I had been cooking all day. When I popped a bite into my mouth I made noises that were, well, inappropriate. When you brown the chicken, do it in hot, almost browned butter to acheive the browning without overcooking the chicken. I think that may be where some people are complaining, they destroy the chicken before they ever put it in the oven. The sauce needs to be made exactly according to the directions. I will cherish this recipe in my files forever. -Oh yeah, I am going to try adding some diced green chiles next time, but only because I have followed the directions once already.  -  25 Apr 2005  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)

Fortunately, my husband and I raised our children to at least "try" everything that's on their plates. To our delight they've developed very mature palates and I knew that this recipe,with all of the wonderful mushrooms would be an instant hit. Although I only made four chicken cutlets I kept the sauce amount the same and used about 4 ozs. of cheese. I didn't have any white wine on hand, however, I used a good hardy beer instead. If you're not a salt person, leave out the celery salt; it won't make a difference. This dish was delicious!  -  24 Sep 2001  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)

Thank you all for your great reviews....I agree w/ all of you that there needs to be more sauce, and I also double it when using breast halves and adapt as needed...more wine...less celery salt, etc - forgot to mention that in orig recipe, but as any good cook knows....you have to be able to adapt as needed to any recipe!!!! I love all the helpful hints that I get from the reviews of various recipes - I can tell who loves to cook and I am NEVER insulted when my recipes are critiqued! ALSO, try using chicken cutlets, as they are thinner and take less time to pan fry than regular breast halves - and I add Garlic Pepper to the flour to bread the chicken in b/c we love garlic, and I add about 3 cloves of garlic, and pre cut mushrooms will cut down on your prep time. Sauce is probably enough if you use the cutlets, as opposed to the breast halves, and you can cut down on the baking time if using the cutlets. So glad that everyone has enjoyed this recipe, my best friend shared this recipe w/ me several years ago, and it has been a favorite around our dinner table!!!! Doreen  -  17 Jan 2002  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)