Inaugural Luncheon

We, the gin(and whiskey and wine)-soaked raisins, needed an extracurricular activity to sustain us through the long, cold, dark, great white northern winter.  Hence the blog, which hopefully we'll be coherent enough to maintain as a throwback to treasured recipes from the mid-20th century.  And maybe tidbits of crafts and ephemera.  Thank you for your time.


Main Course...
CHAMPAGNE CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS 

2 chicken breasts

1 cup champagne

¾ cup heavy cream

1 lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

Garlic and shallots to taste

2 tbsp butter

Pasta or Rice

(add veggies if you like, fatty)

METHOD

It starts with the booze. There are a wide variety of bubbly sparkling wines available on the market. The obvious choice for us was the lovely Andre’s Blush. You can procure this fine wine from a number of upstanding liquor stores, but be warned it will cost you at least six dollars.

chicken-poking

The champagne chicken gets the majority of its acidity from the lemon juice.  Marinate the poultry for 2 hours after pounding into uniform thickness---use the flat side of a meat tenderizer (or a clenched fist can help with your rage issues). Place the chicken pieces in the juices of a whole freshly squeezed lemon, set a few tablespoons aside for later. Dust generously with freshly ground pepper. Slap it in the fridge, dummy.

The minced shallots join the skillet party with the melted butter, followed by the finely chopped garlic. Pour in the pink champagne, heavy cream, and the additional lemon juice simmering until slightly thick. The chicken tenders didn’t need long to cook in the hot liquid, and we decided it would be a great idea to add some cherry tomatoes and spinach in to soak up the liquid. 

radish roses

The recipe calls for rice or pasta as a base.  Being stuck-up bitches: we opted for fancy angel hair noodles. Be sure to time the cooking right as the angel hair only needs about 3 minutes to cook and can almost be thrown in the boil as you’re plating dinner.

Toss the pasta in with the chicken and sauce and grate some fresh parmagiano reggiano over the top with a sprig of parsley and possibly a classy lemon twist. We liked the radish rose…

Be sure to drink the left over champagne with dinner.   

Prepare to feel really classy; that is if you ain't scared.

TASTING NOTES

the finished product, pink "champagne" chicken,
basking in its own strange glory

At least one of us isn't particularly thrilled with chicken in general, unless it's roasted whole or deep fried.  That being said, this savory mouth-invader was a robust and perfumey treat.  That blush sparkling wine sort of blew our collective mind, its essence doing a fancy jig with the creamy-sauced angel hair, not to mention shallots and garlic.  Mmmm MMM!
And since at least one of us is kind of the aforementioned fatty, we preferred the addition of cherry tomato halves and fresh spinach, to kind of church it up in the nutrient department and provide more textures to wrestle around with. 


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Dessert...
PRUNE MOUSSE

INGREDIENTS

8 oz (1/2 lb) Dried Prunes
2 cups Black Tea of your choice
Sugar to taste (we used approx. 1/3 cup)
Zest from 1 Lemon
Juice from 1 Lemon
1 cup Prune or Apple Juice (we used unfiltered, not-from-concentrate apple)
1/2 oz Gelatin (2 envelopes)
3 to 4 tbsp Heavy Cream, plus more for garnish

1 Egg White

METHOD

Brew the tea (we used 2 bags for this volume of water), letting it steep for about 10 minutes to get good and strong.  Strong enough for a lady.

While the tea is still hot throw those prunes in, and let them soak for at least 2 hours, or as long as overnight.  Next, pour both the prunes and tea into a saucepan with the sugar & lemon zest and simmer over medium heat until quite tender, verging on mushy; about 30-45 minutes.

Puree the above ingredients in a blender or food processor.  Set aside.

white goop meets brown goop

Pour the prune/apple and lemon juices and gelatin into a small saucepan and dissolve over gentle heat.  Once entirely dissolved, whiz this into your prune goop.  Transfer the whole mess to a medium bowl and let it cool to room temp.

Whip the cream, using whatever tool you prefer, until you have firm peaks.  Firm peaks will make you popular with your guests.  Then do likewise with the egg white.  Fold the whipped cream and egg white into your prune goop you have waiting in the wings.  Pour into a serving dish of your liking and allow to chill and set (In the icebox, this’ll take about 45 minutes).
Serve with a fancy blob of whipped cream or whatever else you may desire in order to make it look less like petrified puppy shit.  A radish rose might even do the trick.


TASTING NOTES

see?  petrified puppy shit

Tangy, fluffy, almost effervescent prune jell-o.  The tea and lemon really shine through.  The most delightfully refreshing Arnold Palmer we've ever had the pleasure of gumming.

Based on the Prune Mousse recipe in:

The Constance Spry Cookery Book
by Constance Spry & Rosemary Hulme (1956).