chicken

I’m still sick. But Mike made chicken stock yesterday. And then he made me soup. And it was so, so good.

Since we got Pollan-ated, buying humanely raised, free roaming chickens has been a priority for us. When we still lived in NYC it was easy – we could rely on “the bearded guy” (in our case, Mike of Tamarack Hollow Farm) or a few other trusted Greenmarket purveyors for the good stuff, and while we pay far more than for a supermarket bird, we have found it to be well worth it in terms of quality and flavor. That we were spending more also meant it was imperative to use every bit – one whole roasted or grilled chicken would yield a great dinner the first night, then remaining meat would be shredded and incorporated into soup or pot pie or taco/enchilada filling or chicken salad, and the bones and trimmings would be frozen and used for stock.

When we moved, we hoped we would be able to find chicken of the same quality that we had grown accustomed to. We had heard great things about Antonelli’s on Federal Hill, but the birds we brought home, while unarguably fresh, were lacking in the flavor department. We were incredibly disappointed, and though we knew hat in a pinch we could (and did) fall back on the air-chilled, organic free range birds sold at Whole Foods and the like, we missed the whole connection of being able to talk to the person who actually raised those chickens. It may sound hokey, but it’s true, and it’s important to us.

The Hope High farmers’ market kicked off in full force last Saturday, and as we have done for the last several preview weeks, Mike and I made the short walk down to get there bright and early. Though we had always brought home good things to eat from the pre-season market, the offerings were a bit sparse, so we were thrilled to see so many new stands when we arrived. Among them was Pat’s Pastured, selling grass-fed ground beef from Watson Farm, and pastured pork and chickens from their own Casey Farm. We waited our turn and made our selections, then we waited for our beautiful bird to thaw in the fridge (apparently local laws prohibit them from selling fresh meat, so everything must be frozen).

Yesterday, our chicken was finally ready to cook, and while I was on the train home, Mike got the grill going, spatchcocked the bird and rubbed it down with a compound butter spiked with his chile powder and smoked paprika. We enjoyed a cocktail on the patio while it cooked, and from the smell of it we knew we were in for something good.

When the chicken was nearly done, I prepared the sides – black-eyed peas, doctored up with shallot and smoked paprika, and collards from the farmers’ market, stemmed and chopped, quickly sautéed in olive oil then covered and left to steam through, and finally hit with a splash of sherry vinegar before serving. Mike warmed up a little of the barbecue sauce he made over the weekend to serve on the side, and once he carved the chicken into serving pieces, we sat down to give it a taste.

It was exactly what we’ve been missing – ultra-crispy skin, juicy and richly flavored meat, absolutely delicious. We all but forgot about the sauce since the chicken was so good on its own, and we hadn’t even finished our meal before we were talking about what to do with our next bird, and about stockpiling some in the freezer when the market season nears its end in November. I can’t wait to walk up to the guy at Pat’s Pastured on Saturday, introduce myself and thank him for the first of what I’m sure will be many great chicken dinners.

Where did our June weather go? After a stretch of mostly sunny, beautiful and warm days, we woke to grey, gloomy and COLD. How am I supposed to play with light, bright springtime flavors when all I want to do is curl up under blankets with a mug of tea to get the chill out of my bones? I really must protest.

My crankiness about the weather aside, soup is often the first thing I think of making on damp, rainy days, and I suppose I could have gone with an elegant, light puree of peas or asparagus, but I wanted something a little heartier. Not winter-strength hearty, but a soup with a little more heft.

I rummaged through the fridge and pantry and came up with a pound of chicken and red pepper sausage, roasted red pepper strips with garlic and herbs in olive oil, some of my homemade chicken stock, canned tomatoes and a box of Puy lentils. I removed the sausage from its casings and crumbled it into my soup pot with a little bit of olive oil to brown while I chopped up an onion and a couple of cloves of garlic. Those went into the pot next, along with the roasted peppers and a generous dollop of harissa paste for some heat. Once everything was nicely toasty, I added the tomatoes (half of a large can, plus juices), stock, and a cup of the lentils, lidded up the pan and let it cook away until the lentils were tender. I adjusted the seasoning and tossed in a couple of handfuls of another kitchen staple – some frozen chopped spinach.

While the soup cooked I sliced a couple of thick pieces of the sourdough loaf Mike baked yesterday and re-warmed them in the oven. (I’ll let him go into more depth about the bread if he wants to – but trust me when I say it’s pretty awesome to come home from work and walk directly into a kitchen filled with the smell of bread baking, and sharing the first slice still warm from the oven is pretty freaking amazing. I think we’ve eaten half of the loaf already. It’s delicious and I am, as ever, a lucky girl.)

This soup was a winner with its light and savory broth, the lentils and spinach providing a little earthiness, and the sausage lending a satisfying meatiness. The heat of the harissa was definitely present, but it was more of an overall warmth in each spoonful rather than a knock-you-over-the-head pepperiness. This was not the most seasonal dinner, but I can see us coming back to this in September and October, when autumn’s chill is in the air and we’ve got an abundance of late-season, home-roasted peppers.

Lots of food and drink related activity this first weekend in our new home, as we embarked on our first Providence food safari to supplement the goodies we moved up from Brooklyn. We had beautiful weather, which made for more enjoyable wandering, and which also meant we were eager to unpack the grill and put it to use.

We kicked off Friday night with a round of cocktails and a delicious grilled chicken rubbed with lemon and herbs and loads of fresh garlic. While Mike took charge of the bird, I cleaned and steamed some artichokes and whipped up a garlicky lemon vinaigrette to serve on top. It was a simple meal, but it was light and tasty, and was made even better by the wine recommended to us by the guys at Eno downtown: Marc Kreydenweiss Partager Avec Toi Gewurtztraminer from Alsace.

A big priority on Saturday was to check out the wintertime farmers’ market at AS220, and were we ever glad we did. Though the space was small and the number of stalls was limited, we brought home something from just about everyone there, and have been happily eating our way through that bounty of local goodness.

The oysters we enjoyed pre-dinner from Matunuck Oyster Farm were fantastic, the greens for our salad and the fresh asparagus were delicious, but the star of Saturday dinner was this beautiful grass-fed ribeye from Simmons Farm. Bathed in a quick marinade and grilled to perfection, it was one of the most flavorful steaks we’ve had in a long time.

We want to get back into the habit of having seafood dinners on Sundays, so we took a trip to our nearby Whole Foods to see what they had to offer. Though I had never cooked with it before Sunday, the beautiful Arctic Char fillets that were on special caught my eye, so I picked one up. Arctic Char is a good choice as far as sustainability goes, and with salmon stocks in such peril, this seemed like a good opportunity to try an alternative.

I went fairly simple with the preparation, seasoning the fillets with sea salt and olive oil and searing them in a hot pan until they were just cooked through. I made a pesto of sorts with a big bunch of spring onions from the farmers’ market and a healthy amount of Meyer lemon juice, and served the fish on a bed of creme fraiche-enriched mashed new potatoes, finishing with a dollop of the spring onion pesto. The flesh of the char is very mild and buttery tasting, and the brightness of the pesto was a nice contrast.

I was cooped up in the office all day yesterday, but from the windows on the 52nd floor of my building it sure looked like a great spring day outside. Since we didn’t have anything planned for dinner, Mike and I tossed a few ideas back and forth over email, and when I suggested chicken with a Mediterranean spin, he offered to break out the grill for the first time this season. Unfortunately, at some point during my commute home, the sky clouded over and a cold mist began to fall, and there went our plans for grilling.

I decided to roast the bird instead, after marinating the pieces in a mixture of fresh lemon juice, olive oil, lots of garlic, kosher salt and ground cumin. We snacked on hummus, marinated goat cheese and warm wedges of pita while the chicken cooked, and when it was ready I squeezed a bit more lemon juice on top and served it with a sauce of Greek yogurt, lemon and fresh dill, with marinated artichokes and garlicky olives on the side. The evening may have turned damp and grey, but our dinner was warm and bright, a reminder that sunnier days are just ahead.

Last week I received an email from the lovely Sarah of The Brooklyn Nester inviting me to participate in her celebration of National Pie Day. I’m not such a big fan of the sweet stuff, so once I confirmed that a savory submission was okay, I readily agreed.

Generally I rely on good quality all-butter puff pastry or prepared piecrust when I make savory pies, but since the addition of Robo McGee to our family, Mike and I have both been anxious to give homemade pastry dough a spin. Since he’s a little more patient with things like measuring things precisely, we decided that Mike would be in charge of making the dough, while I’d handle the filling.

As it turns out, I had spent some time on Monday making a batch of chicken stock, so I used a pint of that along with a couple of cups of pulled roasted chicken (left over from our last roast bird, which I had frozen and then thawed). A quick inspection of our countertop baskets and refrigerator produce bins turned up a few small potatoes, a leek and a carrot which I needed to use up, so I chopped them and sautéed them in a few tablespoons of butter until soft. I sprinkled a couple of tablespoons of flour over the veggies, stirred it through and let it cook for a few moments to get rid of any raw flour taste, then I added the chicken, stock, a couple of hits of Tabasco and some freshly ground black pepper. When the sauce was thick and the chicken very shreddy, I tasted it to adjust the seasoning, then tossed in a good handful of chopped fresh dill, some chopped chives, and a cup of green peas I had shelled and frozen last summer. With the filling done, I stepped aside and let Mike get to the pastry-making.

I had bookmarked Deb’s “pie crust 101” post in November, and after comparing it with a few others we found online and elsewhere, he decided to give it a try. He substituted an equal amount of butter for the shortening the recipe called for, and omitted the sugar since we wanted a savory crust, but other than that he followed the recipe to the letter. The result: silky dough that was incredibly easy to work with, and which baked up brown and incredibly flaky. It had a rich buttery flavor, but wasn’t at all greasy as some crusts I’ve tried have been.

In a nutshell, this recipe is a winner – easy to prepare, and absolutely delicious. We spent the rest of the evening brainstorming other things we could put into pies or tarts or bake “en croute.” I guess you could say we’re smitten.

The cookbook Sunday Suppers at Lucques is one that seems to come up often in my travels around the food blogosphere. While I don’t know much about the chef or the restaurant which spawned it, I have heard good enough buzz that I filed it away as something to check out for myself sometime.

So with a bookstore gift card in my pocket and seeking inspiration on a blustery day, I headed out at lunchtime and picked up a copy of the book, flipping through it as I ate soup and a sandwich at my desk. I was immediately taken by the gorgeous photos, and the recipes read like just the sorts of things we like to cook and eat – I knew I had a winner here.

This time of year, any chicken we cook at home is generally roasted, and though we didn’t have all of the ingredients called for in the original dish at home, this recipe for crispy chicken paillards jumped out at me. Chef Suzanne Goin indicates in her recipe notes that chicken breasts aren’t normally one of her favorites, but that this preparation is a real crowd-pleaser, and as Mike and I dug into this dish last night, we could immediately see why - it’s a wonderful combination of flavors and textures, homey but elegant, and definitely something we’ll keep in rotation.

Chicken Paillards with Escarole and Caper Brown Butter
Adapted from a recipe by Suzanne Goin in Sunday Suppers at Lucques

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets or butterflied breasts
1/4 cup unbleached flour
2 extra-large eggs, beaten
4 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
4-6 tablespoons olive oil
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 sprig winter savory
Pinch red chile flakes
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 head escarole, cored, rinsed and leaves separated
Juice and zest of one lemon
2 tablespoons capers
Kosher salt to taste

Flatten the chicken breasts to about 1/3 inch thickness. Dip them in the flour, then the egg, allowing excess to drip off. Combine the breadcrumbs, cheese and half the parsley in a shallow plate or bowl and dip the chicken in, pressing to coat evenly. Repeat until all chicken is coated.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a sauté pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, and then add two of the chicken breasts. Allow them to cook without moving them for 3 minutes. Turn heat to medium, and add a tablespoon of butter, swirling it around. Cook for another minute, and then gently flip each chicken breast. Allow the chicken to finish cooking on the second side until crumbs are browned and meat is just cooked through, then remove the first two breasts to a tray, lightly cover with foil, and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Once all of the chicken has been cooked, return the pan to medium heat and add another tablespoon of olive oil. Add the savory and a pinch of chile flakes and let them cook for a minute. Add the garlic and escarole, season with salt and cook until the escarole is just wilted. Transfer the escarole and garlic to a platter, squeeze a bit of lemon juice over it and top with the chicken.

Pour out any excess liquid from the pan and wipe it clean. Melt the remaining butter in the pan until brown and nutty-smelling. Remove from heat, let it sit for a moment, then add the remaining lemon juice, zest capers and remaining parsley, swirling around to combine. Taste and adjust salt if necessary, then spoon over the chicken and escarole.

I had every intention of coming home last night and making enchiladas with some chicken we had left over from the weekend, but as you can see, that’s not exactly what I ended up doing. There was the ice storm. And the train delays. And by the time I finally got home it was VERY late and the last thing I was up for was frying individual tortillas and dipping them in sauce. So I punted, yet again, and ended up with something that had the flavor of enchiladas but was so ridiculously simple to put together I felt like I was cheating in a major way.

But it was so good we had two helpings each.

It’s amazing how any not-completely-from-scratch guilt just melts away when you’ve got a belly full of something good at the end of a long day.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

4 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
8 oz. grated Monterey Jack cheese
Kosher salt
Hot pepper sauce
12 corn tortillas
1 12.5-ounce jar best quality tomatillo salsa, or equivalent amount of homemade
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons dried oregano

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Using 2 tablespoons of butter, generously grease the bottom and sides of a baking dish or cast iron skillet. In another skillet, melt the remaining two tablespoons of butter. Whisk in the flour and allow it to cook for a few minutes, then add the milk and whisk until smooth and thickened. Add a small handful of the grated cheese and stir through. Season with salt and hot pepper sauce.

Spoon about 1/4 cup of the cheese sauce into the bottom of the pan or baking dish, spreading it around. Add the shredded chicken to the remaining cheese sauce and stir through. Layer 4 tortillas on the bottom of the baking dish or cast iron skillet over the sauce. Spoon 1/3 of the salsa over the tortillas, then add half of the chicken/sauce mixture, half of the beans, a tablespoon of the oregano and 1/3 of the remaining cheese, distributing them fairly evenly. Cover with four more tortillas and repeat the layering. Top the next layer with the remaining tortillas, salsa and cheese. Bake for 35-40 minutes and allow to rest briefly before slicing. Serve with sour cream or crema and chopped fresh cilantro.

Wine Pairing: We dipped into the mixed case we recently bought, selecting this 2006 Cuilleron Syrah. Mike and I both liked how it worked with our meal - lots of dark fruit and a bit of pepperiness which worked well with the richness and mild spiciness of the dish.

My earliest memories of chicken cacciatore are of the Italian chain restaurant variety, of sauces loaded with chunky bell pepper and an inexplicable blanket or filling of cheese on or inside the chicken. The dish was more heavy than hearty, and as such it was never a favorite of mine. As I got older and my love of Italian food led me to convert to the church of Marcella, Lidia and Mario, I learned there was a better way. A simpler way, in fact, because really, this “hunters-style” braise needs little more than mushrooms, onions, tomato and herbs to make it a cacciatore.

This is a loose adaptation of Mario’s Molto Italiano recipe which keeps his addition of pancetta as well as the delicious garlic and rosemary rub for the chicken, but I’ve chosen to go with whole, small cipollini onions in place of diced, as well as the richer, earthier taste of dried porcini mushrooms in the sauce. Don’t let the browning and peeling/chopping steps put you off, because once everything is in the pot all you have to do is sit back and enjoy the delicious aromas filling your home – the end result is well worth the effort, and a satisfying meal on a blustery winter night.

Hunter’s-Style Chicken

1 chicken (about 3 lbs.), cut into quarters, or an equivalent amount of skin-on parts of your choice
3 large garlic peeled garlic cloves
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary
Olive oil
1 cup dried porcini
1 cup hot tap water
12 small cipollini onions, peeled and trimmed
2 thick slices pancetta
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup white wine
1 28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried oregano or marjoram
Several sprigs fresh thyme
Red chile flakes to taste

Arrange the chicken pieces on a platter and pat them dry. In a food processor or mini chopper, pulse the garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary, then add enough olive oil to form a thick paste. Rub the paste all over the chicken pieces and let them sit in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.

Place porcini in a bowl, cover with hot tap water and let them sit until the mushrooms are soft. Remove the mushrooms from the liquid and set aside. Strain the liquid to remove any grit and reserve.

Warm the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat and add the chicken pieces in batches, allowing them to brown on all sides. When the last chicken pieces have been browned, remove them to a platter, discard the oil and any burnt garlic from the pot and return it to the heat. Add the pancetta and let it render and brown for a few minutes. Add the onions and porcini and a pinch of salt. Make a hot spot on the side of the pan and add the tomato paste, allowing it to cook for a minute or two before stirring it through.

Add the wine and let it come to a boil, then reduce the heat and add the reserved porcini liquid, the tomatoes with their juice, the oregano or marjoram, the thyme sprigs and the chile flakes. Stir well, crushing the tomatoes with the back of a spoon, then return the chicken pieces to the pan along with any juices that have accumulated on the platter. Cover the pan and cook over low heat for 30 minutes or more, until the chicken is cooked through and very tender and the sauce is slightly thickened.

Serve chicken and sauce over soft polenta, garnishing with additional fresh rosemary or thyme if desired.