French Recipes

To serve four to six persons

Ingredients

• 1 chicken ( 1,4-1,8kg)1.5 kg
• 1 Spanish onion
• 50g cooked ham or lean bacon
• Salt and black pepper
• 4 tablespoons of Calvados
• 1 dessert spoon of finely chopped celery leaves
• 275ml dry still cider or unsweetened apple juice
• 2 large egg yolks
• 150ml double cream
• 2 dessert apples
• 25g unsalted butter

Preparation

1. Peel and finely chop the onion
2. Wipe the chicken inside and out with a clean damp cloth and set the giblets to one side. Season the chicken with salt and pepper
3. Melt the butter in a pan over a moderate heat and cook the onion until soft and transparent. Stir in the ham or bacon and cook for another 2-3 minutes
4. Brown the chicken all over lightly in the butter
5. Warm the calvados in a small pan and set alight (it will produce a fair amount of flame). While the spirit is still flaming, pour it over the chicken. Shake the pan gently until the flames die out.
6. Add the chicken neck, gizzard and heart to the pan, but omit the liver.
7. Sprinkle in the shopped celery leaves and pour over the cider or apple juice. Let it come to the boil and simmer for a few minutes
8. Turn the chicken on its side and cover well and closely with foil and then with a lid
9. Cook over a low heat. You may prefer to put the contents on a large casserole dish and cook centre over at 165 degrees
10. After 20-25 minutes cooking turn the chicken over onto the other side and cook for a similar period, still covered.
11. Finally turn the chicken breast upwards, cover and cook for a further 10 minutes
12. Lift the chicken onto a warm serving dish and keep hot. Strain the liquid and reduce by fast boiling and remove the pan from the heat
13. Beat together the egg yolks and the cream, mix in a few spoonfuls of the warm liquid and whisk into the pan juices.
14. Stir over low heat until the sauce has thickened
15. To make the garnish peel and core the apples and cut into thick rings, In a small frying pan, fry them in the melted butter until brown, turn only once

To serve

Pour the hot sauce over the chicken and garnish with apples rings. Serve with boiled potatoes and green salad.