Chicken with Pancetta, Mushrooms and White Wine Sauce

    The rule in the house is that Sunday evenings are saved for a nice family dinner.  Surprisingly, we do eat many dinners together but I definitely want to start our week with togetherness and something a bit more fancy.  Many times, the three of us will gather in the kitchen and cook together.  I saw this recipe on the D'Artagnan website last week.  I have a very hard time going to this website without buying something and this time was no different. - 1 pound of Organic Chef's Mix Mushrooms and three packages of Medallions of Duck Foie Gras with Black Truffles (you can never have enough foie).  This recipe reminded me of one of my favorite Alsatian chicken dishes, Coq au Riesling, but it seemed just a bit less time-consuming.  The recipe calls for ventreche, which is basically a French version of pancetta.  I happened to have some on hand as we had Cassoulet several weeks ago.  This is easy, comfort food.

Chicken with Pancetta, Mushrooms & White Wine Sauce
Adapted from: D'Artagnan
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
4 - bone-In, skin-on Chicken Thighs
2 oz ventreche (or pancetta), chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/3 pound mushrooms, chopped (don't use button mushrooms, ramp it up a bit)
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used Riesling)
1 1/4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
Parsley to garnish
Salt and pepper

1.  Melt butter in a skillet, over medium-high heat.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper and place skin side down in the pan.  Cook, without moving, for 6 minutes.  Flip and cook an additional minute.  Remove chicken and set aside.

2.  In the same pan, over medium heat, add the ventreche/pancetta and cook until rendered and crisp.  Remove and set aside.

3.  In the same pan, over medium-high heat, add shallots and cook until softened, about 2 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook an additional minute.  Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and add thyme.  Cook until mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the wine and scrape any browned bits from the pan.  Cook an additional 5 minutes.  Add chicken stock and bring mixture to a simmer.  Add cooked ventreche and the chicken thighs, skin side up, to the pan.  Simmer on medium-low heat for about 15-25 minutes or until thighs are fully cooked and sauce has reduced.

4.  Stir in cream and season to taste.  Simmer until sauce has thickened.

5.  Place an amount of the mushroom mixture on a plate.  Top with one chicken thigh and garnish with parsley.

Enjoy

Will It Ever Be The Same?

     I remember my first post - we had moved to Germany and I was filled with such peace and happiness - back somewhere that I loved...looking forward to creating a new life for our daughter, travelling the continent, visiting markets and cooking.

     Overall, it was glorious.  Sure, there were bumps in the road - worries about careers and our families back home.  But overall, it was a wonderful experience.  Dear Daughter, as I called her back then in those posts, thrived first in German elementary school, then an American school run by the Department of Defense and finally in an international community in Belgium.  We moved back five years ago but there is probably not a day goes by that we do not think (and perhaps, dream) about our time there.  We have been lucky to return each summer for a few weeks; to visit old and new places; to spend time with cherished friends.

     When we moved back, I had every intention of continuing my writing.  But somehow, along the way, I realized that I didn't have many adventures to share.  Our travels in the States have been limited to school holidays, and when we weren't planning our summer trips, we spent other school holidays doing our second favorite hobby, skiing.  I am not complaining and in fact, BC (before corona), we had several wonderful trips to Savannah to see family and I always enjoy our long weekends in Canada.  However, life did change a bit and perhaps, I didn't mold myself into it as I should have.

     But now, we all probably wonder, "Will life ever be the same?"  We are on Day 6 of working/schooling at home.  In a few short minutes, we will get the message that schools will be closed for another two weeks and we will be ordered to "Shelter In Place".  Many places are in a far worse condition.  Cate's best friend in Italy has been under similar orders for a much longer time - so much time - that she may have to repeat this school year once schools reopen.  For our own daughter, her excitement of college and opening college acceptance letters has turned into anger, boredom and a little fear as she is contained at home.

     Knowing that this may be a longer prospect, we are doing what we can so that each member of our tiny household has a "place" of their own.  Cate turned her school office into  a lounge so has a comfortable place to talk to friends (via Facetime now) and watch her shows.  Jamie complimented our small workout area in the basement with more equipment that he likes to use as he cannot go to a gym.  Me?  I always have the kitchen.  Prior to the orders, I had been stocking up on freezer and pantry items.  Last week, I inventoried all of our food and made a weekly meal plan.  I am trying to incorporate both new and trusted menus; old favorites that will prompt memories and new experiments that may or may not work.  And now that the shelter-in-place order has been given, we are hoping that our family meals will help bridge the social gap that Cate will ultimately miss.  It won't make up for the cancelled graduation, the missed prom, the lack of social interaction that drives her.  But maybe it could help.

     So, we started off this new chapter with a picnic.  Anyone that knows me knows that I am addicted to picnics.  I have forced (encouraged) my family to have picnics in the rain, in the sun, in the cold, on the beach, in a vineyard, even in a hotel room.  So, why not put a fire on and have a picnic in the house.  Here is what it looked like:

Meats from Austria; cheeses from France, wine and a baguette took us back in time to other places and other adventures.

For now - here is my new office. 

I wish you well.  I hope you are safe.  I have some other ideas about posts.  Forgive my photography.  It has never been good.  For now, hang in there.  We will get through this together.