Chicken in Caper Sauce
1 onion, quartered
1 carrot, quartered
1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind
1 orange, peeled, sliced
4 bay leaves
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
4 skinned, boned chicken breasts halves
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup half-and-half
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons capers, drained
salt and pepper.
Put onion, carrot, orange rind, orange and bay leaves
into a skillet. Add wine and stock. Bring to a boil.
Add chicken, reduce heat to a simmer, then cover
and poach 20 minutes or until cooked through.
Remove chicken, drain well on paper towels
and keep warm. Strain and reserve poaching liquid.
In a pan, melt butter. Stir in flour;
cook, stirring, 1 minute, remove from heat
and slowly stir in poaching liquid,
stirring well between each addition.
Return to heat and bring to a boil, stirring
constantly, until thickened.
Stir in half-and-half, parsley and capers;
season with salt and pepper.
Spoon sauce over chicken. Serve with wild rice.
Makes 4 servings.
Note: Garnish with orange rind and parsley, if desired.
Chicken Cordon Bleu
4 skinned, boned chicken breasts halves
4 oz Swiss cheese
4 slices smoked ham
2 eggs, beaten
3 cups fresh white bread crumbs
vegetable oil, for deep-frying
Lay chicken breasts between 2 sheets of
waxed paper; pound to about 1/4 inch thick,
taking care not to tear flesh. Trim ham slices
so they are smaller than chicken breasts.
Lay a slice on top of each breast half.
Cut cheese into very thin slices. Place on top of ham.
Fold chicken breast in half to enclose filling.
Carefully dip each chicken breast first in beaten egg,
then into bread crumbs. Repeat until chicken
is well coated and filling is completely enclosed.
Pour about 3 inches of oil into a deep pan.
Heat to 375F (190C) or until a 1-inch bread cube
browns in 40 seconds. Add chicken;
fry 7 minutes, then decrease the heat and
fry 5 minutes longer to ensure coating does not burn
before chicken is cooked.
Remove from oil with a slotted spoon.
Drain well on paper towels. Serve hot.
Makes 4 servings.
Beef Stroganoff
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 lb beef tenderloin steak or boneless sirloin steak,
cut crosswise into 1/2-inch strips
1 onion, thinly sliced
1/2 lb mushrooms, thinly sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup beef stock or veal stock
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (optional)
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped dill
1 pinch cayenne pepper
rice, to serve
Heat a wok until very hot. Add oil and swirl to coat wok.
Add half of the beef strips.
Stir-fry 1 minute or until just browned and still pink in center.
With a slotted spoon, remove beef to a bowl. Reheat wok
and add remaining beef strips. Stir-fry 1 minute and
turn beef and any juices into bowl. Add butter to wok,
then add onion.
Reduce heat to medium and stir-fry onion 3 or 4 minutes or
until softened and beginning to color. Add mushrooms and i
increase heat; stir-fry 2 minutes or until mushrooms and
onions are softened and golden. Add salt and pepper and stir
in flour until well-blended.
Add beef broth and bring to a boil, then simmer
1 minute or until sauce thickens. Stir in mustard, if using,
and gradually add the sour cream. (Do not allow sour cream to boil.) Return beef strips and any juices to sauce, stir in chopped dill
and simmer 1 minute or until beef is heated through.
Sprinkle a little cayenne. Serve with rice.
Makes 6 servings.
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Rice with Asparagus & Nuts
4 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 1/4 cups long-grain rice
2 cups vegetable stock
8 oz asparagus spears, trimmed
3 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
salt and pepper
In a saucepan melt 1 tablespoon of the butter.
Add onion and garlic; cook 5 minutes.
Add rice and stir-fry 1 minute or
until transparent and glossy. Pour in stock.
Bring to a boil, stir once, cover and simmer
12 minutes. Steam asparagus 3 minutes.
Refresh under cold water, then drain and dry well.
Coarsely chop. In a large pan, melt remaining butter.
Add pine nuts; stir-fry over medium heat
3 to 4 minutes or until golden. Add sage
and asparagus. Stir in cooked rice.
Season with salt and pepper and heat through,
stirring, 2 minutes. Serve at once.
Makes 6 servings.
Note: For those who need to,
replace butter with 4 tablespoons olive oil.
Asian-Style Fried Rice
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 piece ginger (1/2-inch), peeled, minced
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
6 scallions, thinly sliced
1 lb cooked peeled small shrimp
1 can (8 oz) unsweetened pineapple chunks
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
In a large saucepan of boiling water, cook rice
about 15 minutes or until just tender.
Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water.
Set aside.
Heat a wok until hot. Add oil and swirl to coat wok.
Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry 1 minute.
Add soy sauce, sugar, fish sauce, turmeric
and scallions, stirring to dissolve sugar.
Stir in reserved rice, the shrimp and pineapple,
tossing to mix. Stir-fry about 4 minutes or
until rice is heated through.
Stir in some reserved pineapple juice if rice
begins to stick. Stir in cilantro and serve hot.
Makes 4 servings.
Chicken with Cheese Sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
12 oz chicken breast halves, sliced
6 oz brown mushrooms
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2/3 cup dry white wine
2/3 cup chicken stock or water
5 oz boursin cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
1 lb spinach noodles
In a large skillet, heat oil. Add onion and cook
until transparent, stirring frequently. Add chicken
and cook about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms.
Cook 2 minutes or until chicken is cooked.
Sprinkle flour over chicken and stir until all fat is absorbed. Remove from heat and slowly stir in white wine
and stock or water. Return skillet to heat. Bring to a boil, stirring, until sauce thickens, then reduce heat.
Cut cheese into cubes. Add to sauce, stirring until melted.
Add chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper.
Cook pasta according to package directions until tender
yet firm to the bite. Drain pasta well. Serve with chicken.
Makes 4 servings.
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