Private Party May 29, 2024
Chicken Francaise
Homemade Pasta with Lemon Cream Sauce
Stuffed Tomatoes
Bananas Foster
Chicken Francaise
yield: 2 servings
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and dredged in flour (beurre marinier)
½ tablespoon vegetable oil
2 6-8 oz chicken breast filets, lightly pounded
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup chicken stock
1 large fresh lemon, cut in half and only 1 half sliced in ¼ inch thick rounds
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 large egg, Wisked
Sea salt and ground white pepper
1 tablespoon flat or curly parsley, chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Preheat medium skillet on medium heat
Place flour and egg in separate small bowls. Season flour with ¼ teaspoon salt and a pinch of white pepper. Dredge chicken in flour being sure to cover it entirely and gently shake off excess flour. Dredge in scrambled egg, again being sure to coat completely.
Add vegetable oil to skillet and wait for oil to shimmer. If oil smokes, turn down heat and wait for smoke to subside. Gently place egg battered filets in skillet 2 at a time so not to overload pan. Sear for 2 minutes or until very lightly browned. Using fish turner or tongs, gently flip chicken breasts, careful not to splash hot oil. When filets are evenly browned on both sides, transfer to baking sheet and set aside.
While pan is still hot, add minced garlic. Sauté for 30-60 seconds, just until garlic begins to brown lightly around the edges and becomes aromatic. Add white wine and deglaze pan, being sure to scrape any bits of caramelized fish and garlic into wine. Add butter and lemon slices and lemon juice and reduce liquid by half. Taste and adjust with salt, pepper and more lemon juice if needed. Decrease heat to low and add beurre marnier, stirring to melt it in. Sauce will thicken slightly. Taste again and adjust seasonings if needed. Add chopped parsley and cold butter, stirring to incorporate.
Check chicken for doneness by pressing gently with your finger; It should be firm and springy. If needed, transfer breasts to 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until cooked completely. Lowest internal temperature should be 165 degrees. Transfer hot filets to warmed dinner plate and spoon desired amount of sauce over top. Garnish with lemon slices and parsley sprig if desired.
Fresh Pasta Dough
yield: 2 servings
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon sea salt
Making fresh pasta dough is fun and very easy. Traditionally, the dough is mixed directly on a board or counter but it is acceptable to begin the dough in a bowl to limit the cleanup. Laminate counter tops are fine for kneading dough but natural or engineered stone is best as it is non-porous and maintains constant temperature, especially important when working with yeast doughs.
In a bowl or on a countertop, combine the salt and flour. Using your fingers, create a well in the center of the mound, being sure that the well’s walls are equally thick and high. In a separate container, combine eggs and olive oil. Scramble eggs with a fork to incorporate oil.
Add 1/3 of egg/oil mixture to center of well. Using a swirling motion, pull flour from inner walls of well into eggs and mix until it forms a thick paste. If working on a countertop, be careful not to break through the walls of the well as egg will run out over the work surface. When center is no longer runny, add half of remaining egg mixture and stir to paste. Add remaining liquid and repeat. Continue to mix until fork is no longer effective and then turn dough out onto work surface.
Knead dough by flattening, folding it in half and pressing hard with the palm of your hand. Rotate 90’ and repeat over and over until dough is a consistent color (no patches of flour or egg mixture) and begins to feel springy. Pasta dough should be visibly bumpy but soft and smooth to the touch. To test, press a finger into dough. The depression made by your finger should spring back almost entirely. Flatten dough into a disk 1 ½ inches thick, wrap with saran and place in cooler to rest for 20-30 minutes or until finger divot does not bounce back. This means that the gluten that was excited in the kneading process has relaxed and the dough is ready to be rolled and cut.
Lemon cream sauce
yield: 2
1 cup heavy cream
1 lemon zested and juiced
¼ cup white wine
½ cup grated parmesan
In a large skillet over medium heat combine all ingredients and cook until thickened.
Season with salt and pepper then serve over pasta
Mozzarella and Basil Stuffed Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 2medium tomatoes with firm, fleshy walls, 2 1/2 inches wide
- 1/2cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2ozcup grated parmesan cheese, divided
- 4fresh basil leaves chopped, chopped, plus more for garnish
- 2 oz breadcrumbs
- 1/2tablespoon salted butter, melted
- 1/2teaspoon minced garlic
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oilfor drizzling
Preheat oven to 400
Prepare the tomatoes:
Slice the tomatoes in half horizontally around the equator and use a spoon to scoop out the flesh. Be careful not to puncture the walls of the tomato, but if you do, the filling will plug the hole. Place empty tomato halves in a casserole dish or oven-safe skillet, and season with salt and pepper.
Using your hands or a spoon, separate the seeds from the scooped out tomato flesh and transfer the flesh to a cutting board. Discard the seeds and the tomato water. Chop the flesh and set aside for the stuffing.
Make the stuffing:
In a medium bowl, add the chopped tomato flesh, mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese, basil, breadcrumbs, butter, garlic, salt, and pepper and stir to thoroughly combine.
Bake:
Using two spoons, fill the tomato halves with the stuffing. Sprinkle filled tomatoes with the remaining parmesan cheese and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes, or until tomatoes are tender, then broil on high for 1 minute until the filling begins to bubble and brown.
Banana Foster
yield: 2
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon and 2 ¼ teaspoon rum or brandy
¾ teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
1 ½ medium banana, peeled and sliced in half lengthwise and crosswise
2 tablespoons and 2 ¾ teaspoon coarsely chopped walnuts
vanilla ice cream for serving
in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter and sugar. Once melted and bubbly, stand back and add rum. Once the rum has burned off add vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Once mixture begins to bubble again add banana’s and walnuts to pan. Cook until bananas are hot, 2-3 minutes. Serve over ice cream.
