What's fun and exciting about this set of books is that there are many recipes with interesting ingredients. For example, before GTLF I never used wines or liquors or fruits in any of my dishes. GTLF uses these ingredients often. Today I used red wine and pears in this dish and I feel very sophisticated. Also, my sauces are coming out better and better. They're smoother, have the correct consistency and appearance. It's very exciting to feel so successful.
Unfortunately, recipes that call for these kind of dishes are sometimes skipped over because I am intimidated by them. Don't let yourself do the same. The truth is that they're not so difficult. I'm just grateful GTLF has many dishes which don't appear so fancy and I've been able to practice and have many successes before attempting this dish. Also, I truly feel that my palate is changing. Last year I wouldn't have been ready to taste this dish... but in recent months I feel more adventurous.
Chicken with Pears in Red Wine Sauce
GTLF: Chicken Breasts p 30
Serves 4, 35 min. working time, 50 min. total time.
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
4 bone in chicken breast halves (about 1 1/2 pounds total), skinned
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 shallots or scallions, finely chopped
3 firm ripe Bartlett pears, peeled, cored, and quartered
1 C dry red wine
1/3 C reduced sodium chicken broth, de fatted
1 bay leaf
1 tsp firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoon minced scallion
1. On a sheet of waxed paper, combine the flour, 1/4 tsp of the salt, and 1/4 tsp of the pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, shaking off the excess.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tsp of the oil until hot but not smoking over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown, about 2 min. per side. With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate.
3. Add the remaining 1 tsp oil to the skillet. Add the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are softened, about 4 min. Add the pears, stirring to coat. Add the wine, increase the heat to high, and cook for 2 min. Stir in the broth, bay leaf, brown sugar, ginger, remaining 1/2 tsp salt, and remaining 1/2 tsp pepper. Return the chicken to the pan and return to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the chicken is cooked through and the pears are tender, about 17 min.
4. Transfer the chicken and pears to 4 serving plates. Bring the liquid in the skillet to a boil. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 1 min. Discard the bay leaf. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and pears, sprinkle with the minced scallion, and serve.
Nutritional Information: 5 g fat, 301 calories, 0.8 g sat. fat, 27 g carbohydrate, 27 g protein, 65 mg cholesterol, 543 mg sodium.
Tips:
1. In GTLF you'll see the recipes will always ask for skinless, but sometimes you'll be asked for bone in or boneless chicken. I just buy boneless chicken all the time. So for these kinds of recipes I use 1 pound of boneless which is what I figure the chicken might be once all the skin and bones are removed from 1.5 pounds of bone in chicken. I've heard it matters if it's bone in or boneless... I've heard bone in is tastier, but with 1270 recipes to do, I just don't have time to do the taste tests. Boneless, bone in... it's all the same to me.
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