Taste Buds

Ah bonjour mes amis within your nice villages in Tribuneland. This issue I am telling you about another firm favourite here at Chez Pierre: Suprémes de Volaille Camembert.

from the kitchen of

SUPRÉMES DE VOLAILLE CAMEMBERT

Nothing at all to do with lovely Diana Ross and her lady friends or, as you might think, an old rooster bird stuffed with a lot of soft French cheese. No, a subtle and beautifully tender offering that is not just pleasing to see and taste but also very nice and easy to create. This was often ordered by the great and much missed entertainer Sir Bruce Forsyth who in the past would phone ahead of dining at my grand-père’s family restaurant in Ascot. He lived nearby at Wentworth by the golf course and was a regular patron after golf playing with his good friends Ronnie Corbett and Sean Connery. Ah, I digress. Camembert you must know is a lovely rural village in North Western France, not far from England for travelling. Normandy’s famous cheese is of course named after this traditional village and was created here in the late 18th century by a farmer’s wife and her lover, a priest from Brie who she was protecting during the Revolution. This dish is including also another local product, cidre, and I imagine the farmer’s wayward wife and her less than holy boyfriend consumed a fair bit of this amber nectar during the affair too? My recipe is created since this time of course and has changed slightly with different chefs over the years but remained firm to the beautiful French cheese.

Ingredients

For 4 guests: 4 chicken breasts sliced along one side to create a pocket 4 thickish slices of crust-on Camembert 3 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp fresh thyme, roughly chopped 2 finely sliced garlic cloves 2 large banana shape shallots, finely chopped A good handful of sliced chestnut mushrooms 300 ml dry cider 100 ml chicken stock, made with ½ a cube 4 tbsp full-fat crème fraiche 1 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 tbsp fresh parsley to garnish.  Heat the oil in a large, lidded frying pan and add the shallots  Cook for 2-3 minutes until beginning to soften  Add the garlic and thyme and cook for another minute  Add the chicken and cook for 5-6 minutes, turning once  Remove the chicken and keep warm while you pour in the cider and bubble for a while to reduce, before adding the stock and reducing still further  Return the chicken, cover with the lid and simmer for about 30 minutes  Remove the lid, gently push the camembert slices into the chicken pockets with the sliced mushrooms (adding the rest to the pan) and cook for another 12-15 minutes until the sauce has thickened, the cheese softened and the chicken is tender and cooked through.  Finally, stir through the crème fraiche and mustard and finish with a scattering of parsley  Plating up, I will serve the breasts with the sauce spooned over one end only and around, with green beans sautéed in butter and roasted new or dauphinoise potatoes.

Bon chance, Pierre x

askchezpierre@gmail.com Wine selection:

Wine to enjoy is normally a Chez Pierre cellar standard Gamay 2019 dry red from Ardèche which compliments the richness of this dish. If your guests prefer a white wine I will recommending a lightly-chilled smooth and dry Chenin Blanc.