Can we just breathe real quick?! It’s Sunday and this past week has been. Wow! So much. And this.
I won’t go into all the details now because I’m sure your week was bursting bright right open too. Maybe some of it was dripping sunshine light and some of it was the gray, mundane life we all walk through. Every day. Everyone.
But always, no matter the day, my kitchen has become a sanctuary. It feels like that sheet tent I would build with my brother and sister when I was young. We all huddled in this thing we created with our hands.
Sheets. Tape. Sticks from the yard. Canned tomatoes as the cornerstone. We would sit in there. Our knees right up to our chin. And we would just breathe. Like the world couldn’t see us. Like all the secrets we shared would live in there and nowhere else.
Those sheets contained giggles and sobs. Sometimes I would find my younger brother sleeping in that tent. Like he crawled right back into the safety of the womb. Where the Creator touched and formed and created his little body.
Your kitchen can be a safe place too. I enter it at the end of the day with a deep breath. I acknowledge the threshold I will cross into. I welcome its presence in my life and allow it to welcome me.
And then, I create. I make art. Let’s do it together!
So many months ago I posted a picture of my dinner in Instagram.
French Onion Chicken with Gruyere cheese.
And I appropriately noted that it is 1 part chicken. 83 parts cheese.
That seemed to strike a chord with you 🙂
You asked how to make it. I love when you ask me that question! So I made it again. Tough life. And I documented it. Now we can all have chicken and cheese and much love.
French Onion Chicken Recipe
This recipe comes from the kitchen – one of my favorite cooking sites. You should check it out!
It starts with incredibly fresh ingredients.
And just in case we need a close-up:
Butter.
I will not lie to you. This recipe is a labor of love. It is not hard. But it takes some time. So I like to make it on a Sunday when there is time.
One of the reasons time is involved.
This:
Those golden beauties are caramelized onions. And you cannot rush caramelized onions!
Fresh rosemary makes the richness of the onions pop a bit.
And lets not forget the chicken. Which is braised in this rich broth of caramelized onions and…oh my goodness, I want you to come to my table right now and share it with me!
We serve it on top of arugula. So the sauce drips warm onto the peppery green.
So, here is to Sunday. Safe, reprieve that she is.
French Onion Chicken with Gruyere
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 pounds onions, sliced into thin half-moons
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 garlic cloves, sliced
- 4 small sprigs thyme, leaves only
- 4-inch sprig rosemary
- 2 cups chicken broth, divided
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 4 chicken breasts (you can also use thighs)
- 2 ounces (or 1 cup) grated Gruyère cheese
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a deep 10-inch sauté pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted completely and foams up, add the onions. Stir the onions to coat them in the butter. Sprinkle lightly with salt and black pepper. Cook the onions for about 25-30 minutes over low or medium heat, stirring occasionally.
- When the onions have developed an evenly light beige color throughout, add the garlic, thyme leaves, and whole rosemary sprig, and cook for a few minutes more, stirring frequently. Turn the heat up to high and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring frequently. You want dark, slightly burnt spots to appear on the onions, and for them to develop a rich mahogany color. When the onions get quite dark, add 1/4 cup of the white wine. Deglaze the pan by scrapping up the brown bits vigorously as you pour in the wine. Then add 1 cup of the beef or chicken broth. As you add it, scrape up any burnt or stuck-on bits from the pan. When the liquid has been added, bring it back up to a simmer and simmer lightly for 5 minutes, or until it is somewhat reduced.
- Take the onions off the heat and pour them into a 3-quart oven-safe dish with a lid. (If you don’t have a Dutch oven or another oven-safe dish with a lid, you can use a 9×13-inch baking dish. Just cover it tightly with a double layer of foil.)
- Heat the oven to 325°F.
- While the onions are cooking, brown the chicken. Heat another 10-inch or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the chicken dry and season lightly with kosher salt and black pepper. When the skillet is hot, add the chicken and brown for about 3 minutes on each side, 6 minutes total. When they’ve developed a golden-brown crust, remove from the pan and set on top of the caramelized onions in the baking dish.
- Add the remaining 1 cup broth to the pan. Stir vigorously, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Whisk in the balsamic vinegar and Dijon mustard. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until reduced by half. Pour this sauce over the chicken and onions, and put the lid on the baking dish.
- (At this point you can refrigerate the dish for up to 48 hours. Let it sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes before baking, or else add about 5 minutes to the bake time.)
- Bake at 325°F for 30 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven and turn the heat up to broil. Take the lid off the baking dish, and sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top of the chicken. When the broiler has heated up, return the dish to the oven and broil for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and golden on top.
View comments
+ Leave a comment