Quick (Modern) Coq au Vin

Since I Tivo all the America's Test Kitchen programs, I store them up and watch several at one time. They did one a week or so ago called French Classics. It included this Coq au Vin (coke-aw-vahn, chicken in wine) and a chocolate Pots de Creme. I printed out both recipes, and today you get to hear the results of the chicken.

When I was in my 20's, and living in Denver, I think it was, I attended one of my first cooking classes, and the teacher prepared the traditional coq au vin. It required many steps, including rendering some salt pork. Salt pork's not something I see every day, although I suppose it is available at the grocery stores if I sought it out. I have made coq au vin a few times, but never found the chicken all that tender (dry and overcooked) and the gravy was very thin.

The chefs at America's Test Kitchen came to the rescue. They explained that originally French kitchens used a very elderly boiling chicken, the kind you have to cook and cook to tenderize. These days we have young, tender fryers which don't require much cooking. They demonstrated a rather rapid coq au vin, and I was intrigued. It used bacon instead of salt pork. I love the richness and suppleness of red wine, cooked down to a thick gravy with the onions and mushrooms. This recipe took about 50 minutes of total cooking time (browning and simmering), with about another 25 of prep. So, I had dinner on the table in a little over an hour. Their recipe said it took 90 minutes.

The secrets of this recipe include reducing the entire bottle of wine and chicken broth to about 3 cups, browning the chicken first, then making the vegie part (mushrooms and onions) and then simmering the dark meat pieces first (for 20 minutes), THEN adding in the chicken breasts later, so they cook only 20 minutes. What a difference that made. The breast meat was tender and juicy. Once the chicken is done you remove it to keep warm and turn the heat up to high and continue reducing the gravy until it's thick. A tablespoon of butter is added at the very last, along with a tablespoon of the red wine you saved at the beginning, that didn't get reduced.

Definitely I'd make this again. It was certainly a lot easier than my previous recipe. I might not make it for guests just because it's, to me anyway, a kind of home comfort food dinner. But, it looked very pretty in my wide soup bowls with the gnocchi pasta in the bottom and the fresh Italian parsley sprinkled on top. We both slurped it up in quick order.

Cook's Notes: use a light, fruity red wine (they recommend Pinot Noir or a Rhone grenache). Use good, thick bacon (more flavor). If possible use kosher chicken, since it will retain the juice better. Next time I'd use more mushrooms, just because I like them. And if I had my druthers, I'd have more sauce, so that would mean using about a bottle and a half of wine to start with, and would mean measuring a bit more carefully so you reduce each part correctly.

Modern Coq au Vin
Recipe By : America's Test Kitchen
Serving Size : 6
1 bottle red wine -- fruity (pinot noir or Rhone grenache)
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
10 sprigs fresh parsley
2 tablespoons fresh parsley -- minced
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
4 ounces bacon -- thick-cut, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces
2 1/2 pounds chicken pieces -- parts or thighs only Table salt and ground black pepper
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup frozen pearl onions -- thawed, drained, and patted dry
8 ounces mushrooms -- crimini, wiped clean, stems trimmed, halved if small and quartered if large
2 medium cloves garlic -- minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1. Bring all but 1 tablespoon wine (reserve for later use), broth, parsley sprigs, thyme, and bay to simmer in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until reduced to 3 cups, about 25 minutes. Discard herbs.
2. Meanwhile, cook bacon in large Dutch oven over medium heat until browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper-towel-lined plate. Reserve 2 tablespoons fat in small bowl; discard remaining fat.
3. Lightly season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon reserved bacon fat in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add half of chicken in single layer and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to plate and repeat with remaining chicken and 1 tablespoon bacon fat.
4. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in now-empty Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add pearl onions and mushrooms; cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 5 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomato paste and flour; cook, stirring frequently, until well combined, about 1 minute.
5. Add reduced wine mixture, scraping bottom of pot with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits; add 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Return chicken, any accumulated juices, and reserved bacon to pot; increase heat to high and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover pot, and simmer until chicken is tender, about 25 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time.
6. Using slotted spoon, transfer chicken to large bowl; tent with foil to keep warm. Increase heat to medium-high and simmer sauce until thick and glossy and measures 3 cups, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and reserved 1 tablespoon wine. Season to taste with salt. Return chicken to pot and top with minced parsley. Serve immediately.
Per Serving: 553 Calories; 40g Fat (63.5% calories from fat); 38g Protein; 14g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 159mg Cholesterol; 493mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 4 1/2 Lean Meat; 2 Vegetable; 5 Fat.

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Pink Sangria

It isn't very often than I have the occasion to make an alcohol-based punch. We've been having quite warm weather here in Southern California; warmer than usual for the season, anyway, so it sounded like a good plan to serve a refreshing drink before the brunch yesterday. I should have checked the weather forecast last week when I was planning - we've been having fog and quite cool temperatures the last 2 days. But oh well, I didn't think anyone would really mind.

Going to my recipe trove, I had sorted through about 10 different punches that I thought appropriate, and this one just sounded right. But, I call it Pink Sangria, instead of the real title, White Zinfandel Sangria. It's unfortunate that white zin has acquired this reputation for only appealing to little ladies at the book club, or sipping on the porch in the southern summer afternoon. I used to really enjoy white zin - Beringer usually - but my tastes changed about 25 years or so ago, and normally I find white zin too sweet. So, to counter that tendency (to me, anyway), I used Peach Pucker Schnapps in this punch, instead of the usual (sweeter) Peach Schnapps. It definitely has a pucker, but added a really nice depth to the drink. You might taste it before you decide whether you want added sugar, if you use the Peach Pucker Schnapps.

Maybe peaches are in season somewhere in the world, but they're darned hard to find here. I did spy some at my local grocery store, but they looked terrible, so I decided to use just the lemons and oranges. You marinate the punch for awhile, so it imparts the cinnamon and citrus flavors. Have everything all chilled, then add the club soda at the last, along with ice and you have a really special-occasion drink. The photo above shows it in its marinating stage. I added the club soda just before serving. When I make this again, I'm not going to add as much club soda - it made the punch too thin to me. But use your own discretion on that.

White Zinfandel (or Pink) Sangria
Recipe By : Bon Appetit, July 2001
Serving Size : 6
750 milliliters wine -- white zinfandel, chilled
1/2 cup peach schnapps -- or Peach Pucker Schnapps
2 tablespoons Cointreau -- or other orange liqueur
2 tablespoons sugar
2 whole cinnamon sticks -- broken in half
1 whole lemon -- sliced
1 whole orange -- sliced
1 whole peach -- sliced into wedges
1 bottle club soda -- chilled, 10 ounce bottle
Ice cubes
1. Mix first 8 ingredients in tall pitcher. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to blend. Mix in club soda. Fill 6 wineglasses with ice cubes. Pour sangria over ice and serve.
NOTES : I call this Pink Sangria, just because lots of people profess to dislike white zinfandel. But with all the other ingredients, it just becomes a nice, light, summer drink. I use Peach Pucker Schnapps (because that's what I had on hand the first time I made it), which makes the drink a bit more tart than some might like).
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 152 Calories; trace Fat (2.6% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 84mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Fruit; 0 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates. (My recipe program doesn't recognize peach schnapps, so that's not included in the nutrition summary.)
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Baked Onions with Thyme and Red Wine

Credit must go to my daughter, Sara, for this recipe. She read it in one of my issues of Gourmet Magazine, and when we were trying to figure out what to make for dinner one evening when our families were together, she recalled this recipe. We tried it, and it's been a fixture on my summertime menu ever since. It really could be made any time of year, but seems like it goes so well with grilled meats, even though it's done completely in the oven.

Although the preparation is simple, you do have to be hanging around in the kitchen off and on for the better part of 2 hours. It's amazing that onion halves in a 400° oven take nearly 2 hours to settle into soft silkiness, but they do. Don't skimp on the olive oil as it definitely enhances the flavor, and don't allow the pan to dry out because the wine and oil will definitely burn. Generally I add a bit more red wine and always have to add additional water towards the end of the baking time. If you don't have fresh thyme, you may use dried. Be generous with the herbs.

Baked Onions with Thyme
Recipe By : Gourmet Magazine, January, 2001
Serving Size : 12
Preparation Time :0:10 Start to Finish Time: 2:00

6 large red onions -- about 3.5 pounds
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
10 sprigs fresh thyme
1 pinch sea salt
2/3 cup Chianti -- or other dry red wine
1/4 cup water -- and you may need more

1. Preheat oven to 400°. (Do not use convection for this.) Remove both ends from the onions. Discard outer layers from the onions and cut each onion in half, crosswise.
2. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with olive oil spray and place onion halves, trimmed ends down into the pan. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Pour the wine over the onions, moistening each onion top some with the wine. Remove the leaves from the fresh thyme and sprinkle all over the onions. Season with the sea salt to taste and fresh cracked pepper.
3. Bake, uncovered, in the middle of the oven, basting with pan juices twice during the baking, for 40 minutes. Add water to the pan and bake until the onions are browned and tender, about another 50 minutes, watching that the pan doesn't dry out. Serve hot, or cool to room temperature to serve.

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 101 Calories; 4g Fat (47.4% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 8g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 14mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat.
Serving Ideas : You may want to double the batch so you'll have leftovers, as they are wonderful to throw into pasta, a salad, or just by themselves.

NOTES : If you use REALLY big onions, they will take longer to cook, but a small onion is too small. So medium-large is ideal. These onions are just mouth-watering, they're so good. It's a simple dish to make, and just requires you to be nearby. Be careful that the wine doesn't boil away completely, as then they will burn. Add water periodically if it does evaporate, and reduce the oven temperature a little bit. If you want to reduce the cooking time, cut the onions into wedges instead of halves, and they'll cook in about 90 minutes.

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