Smothered Chicken with Ham and Almonds
This was so good! The sauce ended up really salty, probably because of our substitutions, but I quite liked it regardless.
Ingredients:
-1 ounce salt pork [we substituted bacon, and that might have been too salty, though we did double the amount, and that might have been too much :) ]
-1 pound smoked ham
-1 large red onion, quartered
-2 T. and 3 T. olive oil (1/3 cup total)
-8 to 10 large chicken thighs, each cut in half across the bone by the butcher [we just used chicken breasts]
-1/2 cup and 2 T. flour (2/3 cup total)
-1/4 tsp. white pepper
-2 cups homemade Chicken Stock or canned chicken broth
-1/4 pound whole almonds
-1 tsp. fennel seeds, crushed
-Salt if needed
Directions:
1. Coarsely chop the salt pork, ham, and onion by hand or in a food processor. (If using the processor, process in two batches using half the onion and half the meat in each batch.)
2. Saute the salt pork, ham, and onion in 2 T. olive oil in a large, heavy frying pan or a large metal casserole over medium heat until the onion is soft and lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Remove the mixture to a bowl. Coat the chicken pieces in 1/2 cup flour and the white pepper. Shake to remove excess. Add 3 T. olive oil to the frying pan and the chicken and saute over medium heat until the chicken is deeply browned on both sides, about 8 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, bring the chicken stock and almonds to a boil in a medium saucepan, then turn down to low.
4. When the chicken is browned, spoon off any excess fat, sprinkle 2 T. flour into the drippings or on the chicken, and stir in the crushed fennel seeds. Cook several minutes, until the flour is well browned. Add the ham and onion mixture back to the skillet. Cook a minute, then add the hot stock and almonds. Stir well. Stir occasionally and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, until the chicken is very tender and the sauce is a deep brown. If the sauce is still thin, remove the chicken to a bowl. Boil the sauce gently, stirring, until it reaches the desired thickness, then add the chicken. Taste and add salt if necessary. Serve hot. Can be prepared ahead (leave the sauce thin) and reheated over medium-low heat.
Carrots with Raspberry-Chambord Sauce
I made this one because we had tons of carrots from the garden and it sounded interesting. And it definitely turned out pretty. Lookie here:
But if I made it again, I would either significantly decrease, or leave out altogether, the raspberry garnish. The ingredients in the savory carrots were so interesting and delicious when I smelled them all together, but they were too overpowered by the sweet sauce.
Ingredients:
-2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices
-1 T. and 1/4 cup packed brown sugar (5 T. total)
-1 T. and 1 tsp. salt (4 tsp. total)
-2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen raspberries, thawed [doesn't that seem like a lot?]
-2 T. cornstarch
-2 T. Chambord, Grand Marnier, or other raspberry or orange liqueur [I left this out]
4 T. (1/2 stick) lightly salted butter
1/4 tsp. white pepper
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Directions:
1. Boil the carrots in water to cover with 1 T. brown sugar and 1 T. salt in a large pot until fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Drain well.
2. To prepare the sauce, drain the juice from the thawed raspberries into a medium saucepan. Stir in cornstarch and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the juice thickens. Stir in the Chambord and gently fold in the raspberries.
3. When ready to serve, reheat the carrots by sauteing in butter in a large skillet over medium high heat for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp. salt, white pepper, and lemon zest [That's what smelled so awesome: sugar, salt, pepper, and lemon--combined!]. Mound the carrots attractively on a platter, leaving a border around the edge. Spoon the bright red raspberry sauce into the border around the carrot mound and serve hot.
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