Finally getting started

We have a small collection of cookbooks. We use some. We hope to use some. We love them all.

Today we started a journey that we've attempted more than once. Cooking...together. Trickier than one might imagine, in our tiny kitchen.

Usually, one sous while the other does the creation of the dish. This time we both created, we both did prep, we both did clean up.

The recipe? Julia Child's classic coq au vin. You surely didn't expect something else?

Finding the small onions proved to be the biggest challenge. We visited two specialty food markets; Whole Foods and Fresh Market, with no success. We ended up in our local Publix where we found all the ingredients we needed from the small pearl onions to the organic chicken to the wine.

We used a three pound whole organic chicken which Herself managed to cut in serving pieces without mishap. I however, could not watch this process. The woman wields a knife in ways that give me nightmares.

The small pearl onions were cooked at the boil for two minutes then with the root end cut, easily slipped from their skins. We'll use more of them next time, and perhaps use small onions not the tiny pearl onions.

Julia has the onions cooked with a separate recipe which we did. They were so sweet and delicious we have decided that they would be a nice side by themselves. Which of course is her main intent. We used some of the same wine for the coq au vin for the onions, although we could have used a dark beef stock.

We chose crimini mushrooms as they were nicer than the buttons available today. Again, Julia has them cooked separately, and quite simply sauteed in butter and a touch of oil.

We could not find slab bacon, so had to use thick cut, which seemed to be ok, if a bit thin for the lardon dimensions. We did boil it for ten minutes to reduce the salt and smoke. We may try substituting pancetta another time, as it can be purchased cut into a slab and is not heavily smoked like American bacon.

As the chicken browned in the bacon fat (which had been sauteed in butter!!!!) the kitchen began to have that wonderful aroma that happens only when good food is being prepared. We've eaten so many mixed green salads with simple grilled meats that we were nearly full from just the aroma of real food!

I was a little nervous with the addition of the cognac and wine as it seemed like quite a bit of liquid, but we had agreed to follow the recipe exactly this first time, so I bravely forged ahead. I did not ignite the cognac though. We do not have a long electric match, nor high ceilings of a professional kitchen, so thought it best to keep the house intact and fore go the drama of flaming cognac.

As the chicken simmered slowly in the garlic, herbed wine broth, we began to think this might actually work. We'd found a rhythm and managed two fairly decent work stations, and things were moving along well.

The flour and butter paste was easy enough to accomplish, and although it looked like it was going to lump miserably when first added to the hot chicken cooking liquid, it did finally incorporate nicely and the sauce thickened.

After the sauce was smooth and bubbly, the chicken, onions, and mushrooms were all returned to the pot and warmed through. We like our Le Creuset red oval pot so we brought it directly to the table. You could, of course choose to serve the chicken on a deep platter, with the sauce poured over.

Time for the first taste. Rich, brown, wine based sauce, glistening with a sheen that only butter can provide, with caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms, made the tender chicken delicious.

We did not have bread, or potato, or noodle, or rice and yes we missed having at least a nice bread, but were well pleased with our efforts.
We decided it would make a nice dish to prepare when having company. We both agreed that our Seth would love the sauce.

Overall it took the two of us approximately 2 hours from start to service (cleaning as we went).

We served it with the ever present mixed organic greens, small tomatoes, avocado, red onion salad dressed with a chianti wine vinaigrette. We also had red globe grapes rolled in chevre and sprinkled with ground pistachios. Red wine, too of course.

So, here we are. Filled, satiated and inordinately pleased with ourselves at having cooked a lovely dinner from one of our most favorite chefs and done so without having killed one another.

We are already planning our next joint venture.

Homard a la thermidor anyone?