Julia's Supremes de Volaille aux Champignons {Chicken Breasts with Mushrooms and Cream}

 Here I am with yet another Julia Child recipe. In fact, it is the very same chicken recipe, just a different twist. Julia has several variations of Chicken Breasts with Cream sauces and I literally want to try them all.

Now, hear me when I say, I enjoyed last week's chicken dish so much that I decided I would try Julia's Supremes de Volaille aux Champignons, which is the French way of saying Chicken Breasts with Mushrooms and Cream.

I DO NOT LIKE MUSHROOMS. I haven't liked them for 46 years, but I keep trying because I want to like them. 

My favorite cook on Youtube, Anti-Chef, made Julia's chicken with mushroom cream and I thought if anyone can make me like mushrooms it's Julia.

Guess what? The dish turned out perfectly, but I still don't like mushrooms. I tried. Oh, how I've tried. My husband has tried. We did manage to eat a few mushrooms slices, but it's just a texture thing. We love the flavor. We just don't love mushrooms.

Regardless, don't let me sway you at all. If you're a mushroom lover then you should definitely try this version of Julia's Chicken Breasts with Cream. The sauce is crazy good. Like fine dining good.

Julia's recipes can be somewhat fussy and take time to put together, but these chicken breasts recipes with cream are super easy and fast, on the table in less than 30 minutes.

I highly recommend both of the recipes~!

Supremes de Volaille aux Champignons

Adapted from Mastering The Art of French Cooking

by Julia Child

Serves 4

For The Chicken

4 supremes (boned breasts from two fryers)*

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

salt and pepper, to taste

heavy, covered, fireproof casserole about 10" in diameter

1 round of waxed paper 10 " in diameter and buttered on one side 

For The Sauce

1/4 cup white or brown stock or canned beef bouillon

1/4 cup port, Maderia, or dry white vermouth

1 cup whipping cream

salt and pepper

lemon juice, as needed

2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley

5 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon minced shallot or green onion

1/4 pound diced or sliced fresh mushrooms

salt, to taste

Notes: Julia's supremes must be very small if they only take 6 minutes to cook completely in the oven. I have found that I need to cut my chicken breasts in half lengthwise and cook them on one side for 6 minutes and then maybe 4-5 minutes on the other side. Each piece of chicken will cook differently. Best to check often.

Preheat the oven to 400F

Start with the Mushrooms: Heat the butter in the casserole over moderate heat until foaming. Stir in the minced shallots or green onion and saute a moment without browning. Then stir in the mushrooms and saute lightly for a minute or two without browning. Sprinkle with salt.

Time For the Chicken: Rub the supremes with drops of lemon juice and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Quickly roll the supremes in the mushrooms and butter, lay the buttered paper over them, cover casserole and place in hot oven. After 6 minutes*, press top of supremes with your finger. If still soft, return to oven for a moment or two. When the meat is springy to the touch it is done. Remove the supremes to a warm platter and cover while making the sauce (2 to 3 minutes).

For the Mushroom Sauce: Pour the stock, bouillon, or wine into the pan with the mushrooms and the cooking butter and boil down quickly over high heat until liquid is syrupy. Stir in the cream and boil down again over high heat until cream has thickened slightly. Off heat, taste carefully for seasoning, and add drops of lemon juice to taste. Pour the sauce over the supremes, sprinkle with parsley, and serve at once.

Julia Child's Supremes de Volaille a l'Ecossaise {Chicken Breasts with Diced Aromatic Vegetables and Cream}

 I am completely enamored with Julia Child's recipes right now. I've really only made about 4 of her recipes, but they have all been mouthwateringly delicious. The best of the best.

Julia has a variety of chicken breast recipes with various sauces in her book. I had a very hard time deciding among them, but I finally settled on this version with the aromatic veggies and cream. We are having a Garden Party over at I Heart Cooking Clubs and the carrots, onions, and celery in the sauce remind me of garden-style cream cheese. It's a stretch, I know. I was really looking for any reason to make this recipe.

You begin by sauteing carrots, onions, and celery in butter until tender; then drizzle some lemon juice, salt, and pepper on the chicken breast before adding them to the pan with the veggies and the butter; top them with buttered parchment, and a lid, and bake in the oven until done (depends on size of breast). 

Then comes the good part. The sauce, which is really almost like a pot pie sauce, is very comforting and flavorful.

The chicken goes onto a warm plate and you add stock and either Maderia, or white vermouth, and whisk until it becomes syrupy, before adding the cream and reducing until thickened and saucy. Add the lemon juice and parsley and pour over the chicken.

This dish is OUTSTANDING! It is just seriously SO DANG GOOD. Chef's kiss to Julia Child because her recipes have been knocking it out of the park lately.

Do yourself a favor and make this dish sometime! 

 Supremes de Volaille a l'Ecossaise

{Chicken Breasts with Diced Aromatic Vegetables and Cream}

Adapted from Mastering The Art of French Cooking

by Julia Child

Serves 4

For the Veggies:

1 medium carrot, cut into 1/16" cubes

1 to 2 tender celery stalks, cut into 1/16" cubes

1 medium white onion, cut into 1/16" cubes

1/8 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons butter

For the Supremes:

4 supremes (chicken breast)

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

big pinch white pepper

a heavy, covered, fireproof casserole about 10" diameter

a round of waxed paper 10" in diameter and buttered on one side

4 tablespoons butter

For The Sauce:

1/4 cup white or brown stock or canned beef bouillon

1/4 cup port, Madeira, or dry white vermouth 

1 cup whipping cream

salt and pepper

lemon juice, as needed

2 tablespoons minced parsley

For the veggies: Cook the diced vegetables slowly with the salt and butter for about 10 minutes in the covered casserole until tender, but not browned.

For the supremes: Preheat the oven to 400F. Rub the supremes with drops of lemon juice and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Quickly roll the supremes in the butter with the aromatic veggies, laying the buttered paper over them, cover casserole and place in hot oven.

After 6 minutes, press top of supremes with your finger. If still soft, return to oven for a moment or two. When the meat is springy to the touch it is done. remove the supremes to a warm platter and cover while making the sauce (2 to 3 minutes).

For the sauce: Pour the stock or bouillon and wine into the casserole with the cooking butter and boil down quickly over high heat until liquid is syrupy. Stir in the cream and boil down again over high heat until cream has thickened slightly. Off heat, taste carefully for seasoning, and add drops of lemon juice to taste. Pour the sauce over the supremes, sprinkle with parsley, and serve at once. 

Garden Party @ IHCC

Julia Child's Biftek Haché à la Lyonnaise {Ground Beef Burgers with Onions and Herbs}

My family loves what I like to call The Blue Plate Special. When I refer to The Blue Plate Special, I pretty much mean any old-fashioned dish you might find at a local diner. It usually consists of some type of meat with a gravy or sauce, some kind of potato, and a veggie. 

Just good old-fashioned comfort food.

I found this recipe on one of my favorite Youtube channels, Anti-Chef. The fella who runs the channel is named Jamie and he does a segment called Jamie and Julia that is well worth watching. Sometimes it is laugh out loud hilarious, sometimes I learn a thing or two, and other times it is downright delicious and drool-worthy.

A little while ago Jamie featured Julia's Hamburger with Onions and Herbs, aka Biftek Hache a la Lyonnaise and it really got my attention. The ingredients are always something I have on hand, the recipe was very approachable, and it looked and sounded delicious. I knew I had to make it soon.

Turns out Jamie found and shared a recipe that will grow to be one of my family's favorites!

Per Julia, the French do eat hamburgers, but not on a bun. Turns out they mix butter, salt, pepper, thyme, and sauteed onions into the beef before shaping them into patties, coating the patties in flour on both sides (giving them an amazing crust), sauteing them, then serving them with a beefy buttery rich and flavorful sauce poured over top.

I'm gonna tell you right now...this is an absolutely amazing dish! The burgers are buttery and rich and full of flavor, they develop a little bit of a crust from being dredged in the flour, and the beefy and buttery sauce poured over top just takes it to a whole new level. I'm gonna tell ya...you take a bite and it will blow your mind because you'd never expect this to be so wonderfully delicious.

My husband was skeptical, especially when he discovered there was no bun. He took one bite and he was like "Holy cow...this is delicious. I wasn't expecting this to be so flavorful and tender and rich."

This really is a stunningly delicious and flavorful dish that pairs well with any type of potato and veggie. I'd also like to highlight that it is extremely economical, which I feel is very important right now.

This is hands down one of my favorite dishes that I've shared this year and it will be put into my regular rotation. My entire family absolutely loved it and I sent the recipe to all of my friends. I cannot say enough good things about it.

 

If you have time, take a few minutes to watch Jamie make the burgers in the video above. I think you'll find that he is most enjoyable to watch; and, you might also be just as tempted as I was to make this dish!

Biftek Haché à la Lyonnaise 

{Ground Beef Hamburgers with Onions and Herbs}

Adapted from Mastering The Art of French Cooking

by Julia Child

Serves 6

For The Hamburgers

1/4 cup finely minced yellow onions

2 tablespoons butter

1-1/2 pounds lean, ground beef

2 tablespoons softened butter, ground beef suet, beef marrow, or fresh pork fat

1-1/2 teaspoons salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon thyme

1 egg

1/2 cup flour spread on a plate

1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil, or sufficient to film the bottom of the skillet

1 or 2 heavy skillets just large enough to hold the patties easily in one layer

a warm serving platter

For The Sauce

1/2 cup beef stock, beef bouillon, dry white wine, or water or red wine*

2-3 tablespoons softened butter

Cook the onions slowly in the butter for about 10 minutes until very tender but not browned. Place in a mixing bowl. Add the beef, butter or fat, seasonings, and egg to the onions in the mixing bowl and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon to blend thoroughly. Correct seasoning. Form into patties 3/4 inch thick. Cover with waxed paper and refrigerate until ready to use. Just before sauteing, roll the patties lightly in the flour. Shake off excess flour.

Place the butter and the oil in the skillet and set over moderately high heat. When you see the butter foam begin to subside, indicating it is hot enough to sear the meat, saute the patties for 2 to 3 minutes or more on each side, depending on whether you like your hamburgers rare, medium, or well-done.

Arrange the hamburgers on the serving platter and keep warm for a moment while finishing the sauce.

Pour the fat out of the skillet. Add the liquid and boil it down rapidly, scraping up the coagulated pan juices, until it has reduced almost to a syrup. Off heat, swirl the butter by half-tablespoons into the sauce until it is absorbed. Pour the sauce over the hamburgers and serve. 

Family Favorites @ IHCC

Top Ten Favorite Recipes of 2020!

 

As a kid, the year 2020 was always in our social studies books. I can remember being 8, 9, and 10 and learning all about what the year 2020 would have in store for us: high-tech computers, houses and appliances that talked to you, and maybe....flying cars! Not to mention, the movie Back To The Future was HUGE and it also featured 2020. It was going to be THE YEAR!

My point is, we kids really looked forward to it. 2020 carried A LOT of hype. At the time, 2020 seemed SO FAR away! But, like I said, it was going to be THE YEAR!  Until it actually happened. 2020 was NOTHING like we thought it would be. It WAS NOT what we waited for all this time.

It was absolutely a mind-blowing year and one that we will NEVER forget! I mean, we have to hand it to 2020, it will definitely be a year that goes down in the history books.

I am not, however, going to start bashing 2020 and going on about how horrible it has been. It has definitely not been the best year, but I have to count my blessings. I am incredibly thankful for the health and safety of my family, friends, co-workers, and students. I am also beyond thankful for this blog and all of you, as well as the additional time I've had to indulge in my hobbies. I have read more books this year than I've ever read before and I have cooked some amazing food. I have played endless board games with the family and stayed in touch with family and friends more than I've ever been able to before. Since these are the things that matter most, I can honestly say that although 2020 was not what I expected, I truly had a great year.

As this year comes to a close, I am counting my blessings and hoping and praying that 2021 brings healing for all.

2020 was a delicious year! The ten recipes below are are my absolute favorites! They are in no particular order. As always, if you click on the recipe title you will be directed to the original post with the recipe.

 

Julia Child's Roast Chicken 

Before making Julia's Roast Chicken I was a HUGE fan of Ina Garten's Engagement Roast Chicken (it is a fabulous recipe), but after making Julia's Roast Chicken there is absolutely NO GOING BACK! Julia's recipe is fussy. You have to baste and flip and baste and flip, but it is the juiciest and the most delicious chicken you will ever make. It is definitely THE ROAST CHICKEN recipe!

Nigella Lawson's Caramel Croissant Pudding

 

At the very beginning of the pandemic, I had way too much bread on hand and I needed a plan. Never one to waste, I took my croissants and made this extremely indulgent Caramel Croissant Pudding from the one and only Nigella Lawson. OH MY....this is heavenly! Sticky, crispy, flaky, buttery, and a little salty from the pinch of salt I added, it is one heavenly dessert. You should definitely make this if you have leftover croissants! You should even consider buying croissants and making this, it is incredibly good.

 

Mark Bittman's Fruit and Cereal Bars

 

 There are a couple of ingredients that I hoard. Pasta is one (I usually have at least 20 boxes). Granola and dried fruit is another. During the pandemic my habit worsened. I was not going to be found without granola, dried fruit and shelf stable coconut milk. Looking for a way to use some up, I stumbled across Bittman's Fruit and Cereal Bars and fell in love. They are SO GOOD and you can change them up according to what you have. I crave these and have made them several times since. I prefer them to ANY and EVERY fancy granola bar out there. Stop paying top dollar for fancy convenience bars and make these instead. They are far healthier and far more delicious!

 Ina Garten's Radishes with Herby Butter and Salt

 

My dad and I used to snack on green onions and radishes dipped in a little salt when I was a kid. Midway through the pandemic I was homesick for my Dad and I came across this dish. Ina's herby butter is a blend of dill, parsley, green onions, and a splash of lemon juice. When you pair the herby butter with the crusty bread, salt, and the radishes you have a sophisticated snack that anyone would love, me and Dad included! If you love radishes, do give this a try!

 

Ottolenghi's Shallow-Fried Potatoes with Sumac and Garlic Scapes

 

There is always at least one potato dish in my top ten favorites of the year and this year's amazing potato recipe belongs to the one and only Ottolenghi! Do you see those big chunks of shallow-fried garlic and potatoes? Holy cow. Do yourself a favor and make this one. Do yourself another favor and double the garlic. Wow, talk about a flavor bomb! Potatoes never had it so good!

Giada's California Turkey Chili

 

We make a lot of chili and this recipe is my current favorite! If you're a chili lover then you definitely need to give this version a try. It is perfectly balanced, just the right mix of meat and veggies and beans (a very important requirement in chili) AND it is so flavorful. Plus, I love that she serves it over Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf. Easy, healthy, and delicious...do yourself a favor and try this recipe during chili season!

Ina Garten's Kielbasa with Mustard Dip

 

I love all the recipes in this roundup equally, but if I had to pick a number one favorite, this recipe for Kielbasa with Mustard Dip is the hands down winner. I have made this recipe at least 10 times since I originally shared it. I tell everyone about it and they love it as well. It is EASY and simple. You just saute some kielbasa and whip up a batch of the mustard dip. The mustard dip has the zestiness from the horseradish and it is a wonderful dipper to have on hand. I find myself spreading it on sandwiches and dunking my fries in it. I keep the dip on hand because I absolutely crave it! Definitely make this for any party, (sometime in the future when covid isn't a threat) or safely at home for your family, and watch it disappear!

Ina Garten's Applesauce Cake with Bourbon Raisins and Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting

 

 Mark my words, "I have NEVER made a dessert that was better than this." I mean it. Never!  Apples and raisins and bourbon are not my favorite things, but this cake is absolutely incredible. It tastes like something you'd find at the finest bakery or the winning dessert at a fine dining establishment. I was just so impressed with it. Everything about it is total perfection and the bourbon just takes it over the top!

Ina Garten's Fried Chicken Sandwiches with Buttermilk Herb Mayo (Shake Shack Copycat)

 

Everyone has their favorite chicken sandwich. Mine is the Fried Chicken Sandwich from Shake Shack, and thankfully for me, it is Jeffrey's favorite (Ina Garten's husband). Ina Garten bought the Shake Shack cookbook and I'm sure she tweaked it to write this magnificent recipe for a Fried Chicken Sandwich with Buttermilk Herb Mayo. She goes over all the basics, right down to the construction of the sandwich and which rolls to buy. This is an insanely delicious sandwich and one that would please the kids, as well as anyone else.

Ina Garten's Raspberry Baked Alaska

 

Another good thing about 2020, I tried my hand at making Baked Alaska and it is definitely delicious! Ina's version is made by placing vanilla ice cream (only the good stuff, Haagen Dazs), and Raspberry Sorbet on top of store-bought pound cake and topping it with a meringue. I need to work on my peaks, but this is such a treat! We all loved it!

Ina Garten's Sausages with Peppers and Onions

 

I'm very partial to sausage with peppers and onions and this recipe, roasting it all in the oven, is THE WAY to go! I highly recommend making this FLAVOR BOMB of a recipe and cooking the entire batch because this makes for a perfect family dinner and the leftovers are incredible.

 

 

 

 

2021 photo credit 

  2020 photo credit