Bouillabaisse de Poulet - Away A While Recipe Favorites

Bouillabaisse de Poulet

French Chicken Stew

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Fall is wonderful in its abundance. In a scant few weeks prices will again begin to rise, but for now, the fruits and vegetables with which I love to cook are affordable and encourage generosity in the kitchen. Once our first rains fall, I put away the recipes of summer and replace them with those that speak to cooler weather. It's time for robust soups and stews and casseroles. It is especially time for bouillabaisse. Most of us think of bouillabaisse as a heady Mediterranean stew that's made with fish and served with grilled bread and thickened with rouille, a red pepper mayonnaise. Julia Child and Patricia Wells both take the elements of that classic bouillabaise, but replace the fish with chicken and make what they call a "bouillabaisse de poulet." The results are delicious, perfect for family and friends who enjoy checkered tablecloth fare. The dish should be assembled a full 24 hours before serving. It takes that long for the flavors of the Pernod and fennel to permeate the chicken. The good news is that all the work is done the day before the dish is cooked and you really are free to enjoy the company of your family and friends. Like many old French recipes, this one, designated peasant fare, requires the purse of a prince to assemble. Pernod, fennel bulbs and saffron come dear, but they are absolutely necessary for the success of this dish. For what it's worth, this is one of my ten favorite meals. If you decide to make this, your mindset must be "in for a penny, in for a pound." You will not regret it. You can find the recipe, here. Bon appetit!

                    

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Swedish Saffron Batter Bread - Saffronsbrod

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This year, my feature for the feast of St. Lucia is a simple batter bread that I found in The Great Scandinavian Baking Book. The book was written by Beatrice Ojakangas and most of her recipes are updated versions of the Scandinavian classics that we love to bake at this time of year. I chose to share this one with you because of its versatility and the ease with which it comes together. Even beginners can make this simple bread, though I have a few tips that I want to share with them and keep as reminders to myself. Under the best of circumstances, this is a slow rising bread, so it is really important to start with ingredients that are all at room temperature. Even the eggs. While it may be arbitrary, I pull my ingredients from the refrigerator about 2 hours before I plan to start baking. Butter at that point is easy to cream and there is no danger of cold eggs slowing the action of the yeast. The creamed mixture, by the way, will look terribly curdled. Not to worry, the dough will come together as flour is added, but it will remain shaggy and sticky to the touch. Avoid the temptation to add more flour. You will have to scrape the dough into a pan for its final rise but that's as it should be. The best part of this recipe is its versatility. I decided to use the original recipe in this post, but you can substitute a teaspoon or more of cardamom for the saffron, or make an almond bread by using toasted almonds and almond extract in place of the raisins and saffron. The possibilities are almost limitless and the best part is the bread tastes a bit like panettone, though it is much easier to make. I really enjoy this bread and I hope you will give the recipe a try. You won't regret it. Here's how the bread is made.

Swedish Saffron Batter Bread - Saffronsbrod...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Beatrice Ojakangas

Ingredients:
2-1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk, scalded and cooled to lukewarm
1/4 teaspoon powdered saffron
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup golden raisins
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions:
1) In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water.
2) Cream butter and sugar in bowl of an electric mixer. Add eggs and salt and beat until smooth. Stir in milk, saffron, and yeast mixture. Gradually beat in flour. When flour has been added, beat at medium speed for five minutes, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Mix in raisins.
3) Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
4) Meanwhile, generously butter a 10 cup kugelhopf or bundt pan and dust lightly with flour.
5) Stir down dough which will still be sticky, and pour or scrape it into prepared pan. Cover and let rise in a warm place until dough almost reaches top of pan, about one hour.
6) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
7) Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until loaf is well-browned and sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool in pan 15 minutes, then invert onto rack to cool. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Yield: 1 loaf.

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Three Years Ago Today: St. Lucia Buns

Persian Fried Chicken

The Valley of the Fairy Chimneys

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is an absolutely wonderful dish that I first sampled while we were in the Valley of the Fairy Chimneys in Turkey. The dish is actually Persian, but I had the good fortune to have a cooking instructor whose husband was Iranian and she often prepared this chicken for him. Working on the assumption that all Americans love fried chicken, she also made the dish for us. Strangely, despite requests, she refused to share her recipe with us. Her rationale was that the dish was Persian and we had come to her kitchen to learn Turkish cooking. Her logic may have been convoluted, but her resolve was a straight as an arrow and she refused to be swayed. After the fact, I realized that her language skills were limited and that while she spoke English, she couldn't write it. Her wonderful recipes had been translated for us by someone else and her refusal was not as arbitrary as I first had thought. I so liked the chicken that I refused to give up on it, and, once home, began to search for something like it. Thanks to Google and The New York Times I've found it and can now share the recipe with you. I think you, too, will love the dish. The chicken is very easy to prepare, but it is a bit pricey and requires some advance planning. The chicken must marinate for several hours before it can be cooked and the marinade contains that costliest of spices, saffron. I promise the wait and cost are worth it, and as long as you don't serve it every week, I think a good case can be made for an occasional caloric splurge. Here's the recipe. Enjoy and hold onto your socks!

Persian Fried Chicken...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of The New York Times

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon saffron
2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2-1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons paprika
1 tablespoon dried mint
1 tablespoon salt, more for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Oil for frying
1 cup walnut pieces
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Directions:
1) In a small bowl, combine saffron with 1 tablespoon water and let soak 10 minutes. Place in food processor with yogurt and garlic and purée until smooth and yellow. Place chicken in glass or ceramic bowl; pour yogurt mixture on top, turn to coat; cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.
2) In a medium bowl, combine flour, paprika, mint, salt and pepper. Heat a generous half-inch oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Drop in a bit of bread to test temperature; oil should bubble vigorously. Working in batches to avoid crowding, dredge chicken pieces in flour mixture, then fry until golden brown on both sides, about 7 minutes a side. Remove and drain on paper towels.
3) Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately, topped with walnuts and lemon wedges. Yield: 6 servings.


***The photo of the Fairy Chimneys was taken by Dick Wolfe who traveled with us throughout Turkey. He is a great photographer and an even better companion. Thanks Wolfie :-)***








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Fennel and Saffron Bread and the Suitcase Saga

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...There really is a connection between today's recipe and what the Silver Fox and I call the suitcase saga. We returned from India seven weeks ago. It was a wonderful trip, save for the fact that our luggage and that of the small group with whom we were traveling was lost. The airline was not helpful, and, as it happened, our luggage stayed in Kathmandu for a far longer time than we did. I was especially irritated because one of the suitcases contained gifts for the children, notes from cooking classes and spices that included a large quantity of saffron. We were about to begin negotiations for claims reimbursement, when Santa, in the guise of a Fed-Ex man delivered the supposedly irrecoverable luggage on Christmas Eve. The only problem was his truck contained all of the missing luggage and I had a momentary skirmish with the driver when I refused to accept any suitcase that had a luggage tag that did not bear our name. It took several phone calls and some head scratching to determine the next course of action, but the matter was finally resolved to every one's satisfaction and rest of the luggage was rerouted and sent on to its rightful owners. The good news was I had my saffron and that meant we could have bouillabaisse on New Year's Eve. It also gave me the opportunity to try a bread originally designed to go with the soup. The bread is the creation of Jacques Collet whose bread shops are famous in France. The bread is made with crushed fennel seeds and saffron and it is not for the faint of heart. It has a soft lovely crumb, and the addition of semolina also gives the bread a crisp exterior that makes it perfect for dipping into bouillabaisse. The bread is strongly flavored and some thought should be given to when you might want to use it. It is perfect for Mediterranean soups and stews, but I don't think it works for much else. I find its unique flavor too strong for sandwiches or toast. The bread is very easy to make and its color in daylight is beautiful. I really like this. I think you will too. Here's the recipe.

Fennel and Saffron Bread...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Jacques Collet

Ingredients:
1-1/4 cups lukewarm water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
2 to 2-1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon fennel seed, freshly ground
1/8 teaspoon ground saffron
1 cup semolina flour
Coarse cornmeal

Directions:
1) In a large mixing bowl, combine water, yeast, sugar, and 1 cup unbleached flour. Stir until thoroughly blended. Proof for about 5 minutes.
2) Once proofed and foamy, add salt, fennel seed, and saffron, and stir to blend. Add semolina flour, little by little, stirring to blend. Stir in up to 1-1/4 cups more unbleached flour, working dough until it is too stiff to stir. Place dough on a lightly floured work surface and begin kneading, adding additional unbleached flour if dough is too sticky. Knead until dough is smooth and satiny, about 10 minutes.
3) Place dough in a bowl. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
4) Sprinkle a baking sheet with coarse cornmeal. Punch down dough. Shape into a firm ball and set on baking sheet. Cover with a cloth and let rise again until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
5) After about 40 minutes, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
6) Bake bread in center of oven until crust is crisp and brown, about 40 minutes. Set on a rack to cool before slicing. Yield: 1 loaf

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Pain au Levain - Stumptown Savory
Rustic Potato Herb Bread - Playing House
Italian Bread - Annie's Eats
Basic Potato Bread - Cooking with K
New York Deli Rye Bread - Smitten Kitchen
Sourdough Seeded Rye Bread - Coconut and Lime
Debbie's Whole Wheat Bread - Tasty Tidbits

This post is also being linked to:
Wild Yeast - Yeast Spotting

St. Lucia Buns - Blue Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Christmas celebrations in Sweden begin with the feast of St. Lucia on the 13th of December. Lucia is the patron saint of light and she is honored on this day. In homes that still observe the feast, the eldest daughter awakens early, dons a white garment sashed in red and places a crown of laurel that holds 4 candles upon her head. Legend tells us that Lucia, whose name means light, placed candles in a wreath she placed on her head in order to free her arms to carry bread she was smuggling to Christians hiding in the catacombs. These days the daughter leads a musical procession with her younger siblings in tow and serves the family special buns called lussekatt for their breakfast. The saffron flavored buns are usually shaped like the figure eight and are topped with raisins at either end of the spiral. The children may, if they wish, wear their costumes to school on this day. Winter months are dark in Sweden and the candles in Lucia's crown symbolize the light of faith and the promise of the sun's return.



Last year my nod to Lucia was a special coffee cake and a recounting of Christmas misadventures with Claire, who dreamed of being chosen to led the St. Lucia Day procession. That story is here should you like to read it. Today's treat is the saffron buns that are traditionally served on this holiday. They are very easy to do, so I'll get right to the recipe.

St. Lucia Buns...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1-1/3 cups milk
1 teaspoon saffron threads, chopped fine and soaked in a few drops of water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, divided use
4 cups unbleached flour + flour for kneading
Raisins for garnish

Directions:
1) Melt butter in a small saucepan set over medium heat. Add milk and saffron and heat until just until warm. Pour into bowl of an electric stand mixer. Sprinkle yeast over milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. Add sugar, salt, 1 egg and 2 cups flour. Beat with paddle attachment until smooth and well combine, about 2 minutes on medium speed. Add final 2 cups of flour. Using dough hook, beat until mixture is smooth and begins to climb beater. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until perfectly smooth. This dough has a wonderful velvety texture to it. Place in a greased bowl, turn once to coat all surfaces, and let rise, covered, in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
2) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Punch dough down, roll into a cylinder 36 inches long. Cut 18 2-inch pieces from cylinder. Roll each piece into a 10-inch rope. Form each piece into an S, spiraling ends to form a figure eight. Transfer pieces to to prepared baking sheet. Let rise, covered, until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Brush buns with reserved egg. Tuck raisins into spirals at each end of figure eight. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Yield: 18 buns.

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday

This recipe is linked to:
Wild Yeast - Yeast Spotting


Photo of Lucia procession courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons license.