Chicken Cutlets with Facon

I made this last evening, easy to prepare and a delight to the palate!

Chicken Cutlets and Facon

(based on a recipe from Food & Wine‘s Quick from Scratch Chicken Cookbook)

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lb Swiss chard, long stems removed, leaves chopped and washed well
• 1 tbsp water
• 1/4  lb sliced Jack’s Gourmet Facon, cut into 1/4″ strips
• onion, chopped
• 4 chicken cutlets
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp, fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup parve substitute for sour cream *

Directions

1. Put the Swiss chard and the water in a medium pot. In a large nonstick frying pan, cook the facon until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Pour off and reserve all but 1 tbsp of the facon fat, which should stay in the pan.
2. Put the pan with the remaining facon fat on a moderately low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, another 30 seconds. Add the mixture to the chard. Bring the water  to a simmer, cover and cook over low heat until the chard is wilted and tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Meranwhile, heat 2 tbsp of the reserved facon fat in the frying pan over moderately low heat. Season the turkey cutlets with 1/4 tsp of the salt and the pepper. Cook until just done, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Remove the cutlets from the pan so as not overcook them.
4. Remove the chard from the heat. Stir in the parve sour cream and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Remove the chard from the pot with a slotted spoon, leaving the sauce. Divide the chard among four plates. Top each pile of chard with a turkey cutlet. Spoon some of the sauce over the top and sprinkle with the facon.
5. Serve with french fries

* Parve Sour Cream

Yield: 2 cups

• 1 package soft tofu
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• Salt, to taste

Blend together well and refrigerate for about 4 hours

I washed it down with a Blue Moon White Belgian Style Beer.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy; I certainly did!

CS

Grilled Chicken Breasts with Grapefruit Glaze

From Food & Wine‘s: Quick from Scratch Chicken Cookbook:

Simply prepared yet special, those chicken breasts are grilled and basted with
a bitter, tart, and sweet glaze.

Prep Time 5 minutes          Cook Time 20 minutes          Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon grapefruit zest (from about 1/2 grapefruit)
• 1/2 cup grapefruit juice (from 1 grapefruit)
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
• 4 bone-in chicken breasts (about 2 1/4 pounds in all)

Directions

1. Light the grill. In a small bowl, combine the garlic. grapefruit zest, grapefruit juice, oil, honey, salt, and pepper.
2. Grill the chicken breasts over moderately high heat, brushing frequently with the glaze, for 8 minutes. Turn and cook, brushing with more glaze, until the chicken is just done, 10 to 12 minutes longer. Remove.
3. In a small stainless steel saucepan, bring the remaining glaze to a boil. Boil for about 1 minute, remove from the heat, and pour over the grilled chicken.

–OoOX0XOoO–

MENU SUGGESTIONS

Since the chicken breasts don’t have a l;ot of sauce, serve a juicy vegetable such as grilled or sauteed summer squash or zucchini alongside.

VARIATION

Grilled Chicken Breasts with Citrus Glaze

Use a combination of citrus juices, such as orange, lemon, or lime instead of all or part of the grapefruit juice.

–OoOX0XOoO––OoOX0XOoO––OoOX0XOoO–

WINE RECOMMENDATION

The crisp acidity, effervescence and moderate alcohol level of a brut Champagne from France or a sparkling wine from California will be perfect with the smoky taste of the chicken and with the high acidity of the grapefruit juice.

–OoOX0XOoO–

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!!!

CS

Chicken With Wine & Tarragon

Those of you who’ve read this pages before know I am very partial to cooking with wine. When I came across this recipe in the 2009 edition Food & Wine: Quick From Scratch Chicken Cookbook, I knew I found an easy to prepare, delicious, dish which I slightly adapted to make it kosher:

Photo by: Melanie Acevedo, on page 86

Yields: 4

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons dry wine
• 2 teaspoons dry tarragon
• 3 – 3 1/2 pound chicken quartered
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt
• black pepper
• 1 tablespoon margarine, cut into 4 pieces
• 1/4 cup water

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 375 F. In a small glass or stainless steel bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the wine and 1/e teaspoon of the tarragon. Set aside
2. Coat the chicken with the olive oil and arrange the pieces, skin-side up, in a large roasting pan. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with the remaining 1 tablespoon wine and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Top each piece of chicken with a piece of margarine.
3. Cook the chicken for 15 minutes and then sprinkle the remaining 1 1/4 teaspoons tarragon. Baste the chicken and cook until the breasts are just done, about 20 minutes longer. Remove the breasts and cook the legs until done, about 5 minutes longer. Remove the roasting pan from the oven, return the breasts to the pan.
4. Heat the broiler. Baste the chicken and then broil until the skin is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
5. Pour off the fat from the roasting pan. Set the pan over moderate heat and add the reserved wine and tarragon mixture and the water. Bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to dislodge any brown bits. Boil until reduced to approximately 3 tablespoons, about 3 minutes. Add any accumulated juices from the chicken and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce over the chicken.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy! I plan to make it this evening and I know I will enjoy it.

CS