Chicken Normandy

Normandy is beautiful country and I wish I had spent more time there than I did. The people are proud but friendly and the food is divine. 

I have to preface this recipe by noting that it is not an everyday dish. You may find, as did I, that you have all of the ingredients on hand. However it is exceedingly rich and the ingredient list is a trifle long.

This time around we used Quorn fillets in the place of chicken.

Ingredients:

1 Shallot minced fine

1 Clove of garlic (only one? Yes in this case only one)

1 Tablespoon of butter

1 Tablespoon of olive oil (or two tablespoons of olive oil instead of butter)

4 Chicken breasts (boneless skinless) or 4 Quorn cutlets

1 Onion chopped

1 Apple peeled and chopped (gala, granny smith, pink lady, not a dark red apple)
10 Mushrooms, medium sliced (about ½ a pound)

1 Cup of dry white wine

2 Tablespoons of Calvados (optional, but marvelous)

1 Cup of chicken or vegetable stock/broth

2 Whole cloves

1 Large or two small bay leaves

1 Teaspoon of thyme

¼ Cup of heavy cream or vegan sour cream

2 Teaspoons of cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon of water Salt and pepper to taste (all depends on the stock or broth used)

2 Tablespoons minced parsley divided

Method:

Cook the shallots and the garlic in the butter in a large skillet over medium low heat until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the olive oil and the chicken breasts or Quorn, cook the breasts 3 minutes on each side (1 minute for Quorn fillets) then add the onion, apple and mushrooms. Cook until the apple and the onion have softened but not browned and the mushrooms have released their liquid, stirring occasionally to ensure even cooking.

Carefully pour in the Calvados and stir well. Then add the white wine, stock or broth, cloves, bay leaves, thyme and half the parsley. Increase the temperature, bring to a boil, then reduce the temperature to low, cover and cook for 30 minutes.

Remove the chicken or fillets from the pan, slice crosswise and keep warm. Remove the bay leaf (and cloves if you can find them) and discard.

Add the cream or vegan sour cream to the pan. Do not boil. Immediately add the cornstarch mixture and stir well. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes until thickened.

Add the sliced chicken or fillets back to the skillet, stir to coat with the sauce and remove from the heat. Transfer to a warmed serving dish and sprinkle with the remaining parsley.

To serve I recommend green peas and bashed or mashed potatoes. I served bashed (sort of broken up but not completely smooth) russet potatoes with sautéed leeks and parsley. It was lovely.

A dry white wine would complement, something that had a crisp apple flavor, cider is very nice. The evening the picture was taken we had a Cava, a crisp brut sparkling Spanish wine.  It went excellently well with both the main dish and the potatoes and leeks. The peas were peas; they served their purpose well and could be scooped up with forkfuls of potato. Peas are awesome.