All Easy Recipes. Cook all that you can cook. Chicken And Ham On Rusks With Mushroom And Bearnaise Sauces
(Chicken Rochambeau)
 
This elegant chicken dish is said to be named for Count Jean Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur de Rochambeau, who commanded the French forces that supported Washington in the American Revolution.

What You Need:            (To Serve: 4)
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MUSHROOM SAUCE
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 cup finely chopped scallions, including 3 inches of the green tops
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 2 cups chicken stock, fresh or canned
  • ½ cup finely chopped fresh mushrooms (¼ pound)
  • ½ cup dry red wine
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground hot red pepper (cayenne)
  • ½ teaspoon salt

    CHICKEN
  • 2 one-pound chicken breasts, boned and halved but with the skin intact
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup flour
  • 12 tablespoons butter, cut into ½-inch bits

    HAM
  • 1 teaspoon butter
  • Four ¼-inch-thickslices Canadian bacon or lean cooked smoked ham
  • 4 Holland rusks

    BEARNAISE SAUCE
  • 2/3 cup tarragon vinegar
  • ¼ cup finely chopped scallions
  • 1 teaspoon crumbled dried tarragon
  • 4 sprigs fresh parsley
  • ¼ teaspoon whole peppercorns
  • 12 tablespoons butter, cut into ½-inch bits
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 2 tablespoons strained fresh lemon juice
  • ¼ teaspoon ground hot red pepper (cayenne)
  • ½ teaspoon salt

    • How To Cook:
    MUSHROOM SAUCE:
    1. First prepare the mushroom sauce in the following fashion: In a heavy 1- to 1½ -quart saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over moderate heat.

    2. When the foam begins to subside, add the cup of scallions and the garlic and stir for about 5 minutes, or until they are soft but not brown. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and mix well.

    3. Stirring constantly with a wire whisk, pour in the chicken stock in a slow, thin stream and cook over high heat until the sauce comes to a boil, thickens lightly and is smooth.

    4. Stir in the mushrooms, reduce the heat to low and simmer partially covered for about 15 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender but still intact.

    5. Then add the wine, Worcestershire, 1/8 teaspoon of red pepper and ½ teaspoon of salt, and stir over low heat for 2 or 3 minutes. Taste for seasoning, remove from the heat and cover tightly to keep the sauce warm.

    CHICKEN:
    1. Pat the chicken breasts completely dry with paper towels and season them on all sides with the teaspoon of salt and the black pepper. Roll one piece of chicken breast at a time in the ½ cup of flour and, when evenly coated, shake vigorously to remove the excess flour.

    2. Melt 12 tablespoons of butter bits in a heavy 10- to 12-inch skillet set over moderate heat. Do not let the butter brown. When the foam subsides, add the chicken breasts skin side down and, turning the pieces occasionally with tongs, cook over moderate heat until they are lightly brown on all sides.

    3. Reduce the heat to low, cover the skillet tightly and simmer the chicken for about 20 minutes, until it is tender and shows no resistance when pierced deeply with the point of a small sharp knife. As it simmers use a bulb baster or a large spoon to baste the chicken every 7 or 8 minutes with the pan juices.

    HAM:
    1. Meanwhile preheat the oven to its lowest setting. In another large skillet, melt 1 teaspoon of butter over moderate heat and brown the ham.

    2. Turn the slices with tongs and regulate the heat so that they color richly and evenly on both sides without burning.

    3. When they brown, arrange the ham slices in one layer on a large baking sheet, drape loosely with foil and keep them warm in the oven.

    4. Place the Holland rusks side by side on another baking sheet and put them in the oven to warm.

    BEARNAISE SAUCE:
    1. About 10 minutes before the chicken is done, make the "bearnaise sauce". Combine the vinegar, ¼ cup of scallions, tarragon, parsley and peppercorns in a small enameled or stainless-steel saucepan.

    2. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook briskly, uncovered, until reduced to about 2 tablespoons. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a small bowl, pressing down hard on the seasonings with the back of a spoon to extract all their juices before discarding the pulp. Set the strained liquid aside.

    3. In a heavy 8- to 10-inch skillet, melt the 12 tablespoons of butter bits over low heat, stirring so that the butter melts evenly without browning. Remove the pan from the heat and cover to keep the melted butter warm.

    4. Working quickly, combine the egg yolks and water in a 1½- to 2-quart enameled or stainless-steel saucepan, and beat with a wire whisk until the mixture is foamy.

    5. Then place the pan over the lowest possible heat and continue whisking until the mixture thickens and almost doubles in volume. Do not let it come anywhere near a boil or the yolks will curdle; if necessary, lift the pan off the heat from time to time to cool it.

    6. Still whisking constantly, pour in the reserved hot melted butter as slowly as possible and beat over low heat until the sauce thickens heavily. Beat in the reserved strained liquid, the lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon of red pepper and the salt, and taste for seasoning. Set it aside off the heat.

    7. Before assembling the chicken Rochambeau, stir the mushroom sauce briefly and warm it over low heat if necessary. Arrange the rusks on a large heated platter or four individual serving plates.

    8. Place a slice of ham on each rusk and spoon the mushroom sauce over the slices, dividing it equally among them. Set a chicken breast on top of each ham slice and ladle 2 or 3 tablespoons of bearnaise over it. Pour the remaining bearnaise into a sauceboat and serve it at once with the chicken Rochambeau.
    		 
    		 
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