Recipes for the weekend

So I’ve been asked to share some recipes with some friends over at Sublime Femme’s site. The weekend is always a good time to shower your beloved with all kinds of attention, even the culinary kind. Personally  I like to go with things that are inexpensive, in season and light. I’ll do a “sunday night” recipe next week; for when you have all day to cook something up and put it on a slow simmer.

Still figuring out how to work these extra pages…but here’s my recipe for Coq Au Vin…

Coq Au Vin

Chicken & Wine

 

1 Whole chicken (2 breast pieces s/o & two thighs)

2 C. Red wine

2 C. Chicken stock (or stock made from the back of the chicken)

2 T. Thyme, fresh

1 Med. onion, medium dice

¼# Crimini mushrooms, quartered

¼# Bacon, preferably lardons

3 T. Tomato paste

½ C. Flour, A.P.

S & P to taste

 

Salt and pepper the chicken and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, marinate in the wine (try a gallon Ziploc with the air squeezed out, that usually works well. Marinate overnight if possible. Drain chicken and reserve wine. Start bacon in a cold pan and heat over medium high heat until all fat is rendered and bacon is crispy, remove bacon from pan and reserve. Dredge the chicken in flour (Season the flour with salt and pepper) tap off excess flour and sauté in bacon fat until chicken is golden brown on all sides, remove from pan. If the pan doesn’t have any burnt bits on the bottom, add some extra oil and bring heat back up to medium or medium high. Add mushrooms and thyme, cook until golden brown. Add onions to the pan (pearl onions work well, but are a PAIN) and cook with the mushrooms until they are tender and cooked through, reduce heat. This is where you add the tomato paste, cook until the color of the tomato paste turns a golden orange color, deglaze with reserved wine marinade, cook until wine is reduced by half. Add the chicken thighs back to the pan and add the chicken stock and cover, reduce heat so that liquid is at a simmer. (yes we haven’t added the breasts or bacon back yet) Simmer for 2 hours OR put in a 350 degree oven until meat starts to fall off the bone. Add breasts back to the pan and cook for an additional 20-25 minutes until breasts are cooked through. Omitting this step will lead to dry unhappy breasts….