May 3, 2006

Vanilla is, without a doubt, my favourite spice. Just a whiff of it brings back memories of the kitchen of my youth and watching my mum bake. She never used a measuring spoon for vanilla extract, opting instead to simply fill the cap of the bottle. In my culture (Canadian), it is most definitely a sweet ingredient.

The challenge then was to use vanilla in a savoury recipe. And so I offer Chicken Scallopine with Vanilla and Garlic Veloute…

Veloute:

1.5 cups chicken stock
1 vanilla bean, scraped
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1.5 T. butter
2 T. flour
freshly ground pepper
salt to taste

Chicken:

4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts
flour for dredging
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

1. Bring stock to boil in a small pot. Add vanilla bean scrapings, the pod, and the garlic. Remove from heat, cover, and steep for 30 minutes.

2. When the stock has finished steeping, strain the liquid to remove the large solids.

3. Make a roux with the butter and flour. Slowly add the hot stock, stirring until thickened.

4. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm while the chicken is prepared.

5. Pound chicken breasts out to 1/4″ thick. Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a bowl and set aside.

6. Heat oil in a large pan until shimmering. Quickly dredge the chicken in the flour and fry until nicely browned on one side. Turn and do the same for the other side.

Makes 2 servings.

The vanilla truly added a subtle roundness to the veloute. Fabulous!