Curried Chicken and Stuffed Mushrooms with sauteed apples and tomatoes

Curried Chicken & Stuffed Mushrooms with sauteed apples and tomatoes

When planning your dinner choices, what’s better than opening a marvelous recipe book and realizing you have all ingredients on hand for some new Georges Blanc delicacies? Eating the final product, that’s what – oh, and even better yet, raising your wine glass to a friend whose birthday you just found out it was, and dedicate the dinner to him across the miles: Buon Compleanno al mio amico e paesano Gary Corseri! It was a pleasure to make you dinner, in spirit, and by the way … it was very, very good! 😉

Mushrooms-stuffed Mushrooms with Curry (adapted from Georges Blanc)
12 large mushrooms caps, plus 6 smaller ones for the stuffing

Baked Chicken in Curry Paste, a la Rosaria
1 whole chicken, quartered if small, or cut in 6 or more pieces if larger

Prepare the paste for the chicken about 2 hours ahead of time; this will allow the chicken 1 hour to marinade and then 1 hour to bake, while you prepare the mushrooms and the sauce.

Paste for chicken:
~ 6 peeled garlic cloves
~ ¼ cup olive oil
~ ¼ cup lemon juice
~ 1 stalk green onion, coarsely chopped
~ 1+ Tbsp Madras curry
~ Salt & pepper to taste (about 1 tsp each)

Blend all paste ingredients in a small food processor until it forms a creamy mixture. Coat chicken pieces well and refrigerate covered for at least one hour. When ready to bake, coat a small baking dish with olive oil, arrange chicken pieces in a single layer and bake for 45-60 minutes at 350 degrees. Note:  start baking chicken a half hour before the mushrooms go in so both dishes can come out at about the same time. Meanwhile, prepare the mushrooms and sauce as follows:

Mushrooms:
~ 12 very large mushrooms, stems removed
~  ½ lb smaller mushrooms, stems removed
~ ¼ cup lemon juice
~ 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
~  1 shallot, finely chopped
~ 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
~ 2 Tbsp crème frâiche
~ 2 egg yolks
~ 2/3 cup fine, plain breadcrumbs
~ 1½ Tbsp chopped parsley
~ 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
~ 1 tsp curry powder
~ 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
~ 1 small apple, peeled, cored and diced small

Sauce:
~ 2/3 cup crème frâiche
~ 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
~ 2 Tbsp finely minced white onion
~ 1 tsp curry powder
~ 1 Tbsp finely chopped blanched almonds
~ ½ tomato, peeled and seeded, cut into small dice

Prepare Mushrooms:
In a medium saucepan, combine all mushroom caps with 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 cup water and toss well. Add 1 Tbsp butter, a pinch of salt, and continue to mix. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 2 minutes (if cooked too long, mushrooms will shrink drastically). Drain mushrooms and reserve the liquid. Finely chop all small mushrooms caps, preserving the 12 largest ones for stuffing.

In a large skillet, heat 2 Tbsp butter and sautée chopped mushrooms about 5 minutes, until liquid evaporates. Add shallot and garlic and cook another minute. Stir in egg yolks, crème frâiche, bread crumbs, parsley, nutmeg and curry. Season with salt and pepper, mixing well. Add some of the reserved mushroom liquid, if necessary.

Stuff the mushrooms caps with the stuffing mixture, making a generous mound on top of each hollow cap. Place in a buttered or oiled baking dish and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt 1 Tbsp butter in small skillet and sautée diced apple pieces and toss until golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare the Sauce:

Bring reserved mushroom liquid to a boil until reduced to about half cup. Stir in crème frâiche, return to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes and set aside. In a small skillet, melt 1 Tbsp butter and sautée the onion for several minutes. Add the curry and stir, cooking for another 2 minutes, until fragrant. Scrape curried onion into sauce, add almonds and bring to a boil. Simmer sauce until all flavors are blended, about 5 minutes, and season with salt and pepper. Let sauce cool down a bit and purée in blender.

To serve:

Reheat diced apple, spoon sauce onto 4 serving plates, and place 3 stuffed mushrooms and a piece of the chicken in the sauce. Garnish with sautéed apple and diced tomato, and your choice of herb sprigs. Sprinkle with more curry and serve.

Merci beaucoup, Georges Blanc … e Buon Compleanno, Gary!

RSA

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