Normandy Potatoes Recipes

BOULANGèRE POTATOES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Fry the onions and thyme sprigs in the oil until softened and lightly coloured (about 5 mins).
• Spread a layer of potatoes over the base of a 1.5-litre oiled gratin dish. Sprinkle over a few onions (see picture, above) and continue layering, finishing with a layer of potatoes. Pour over the stock and bake for 50-60 mins until the potatoes are cooked and the top is golden and crisp.

CROCK POT NORMANDY PORK WITH APPLES, SHALLOTS & CIDER

Steps:

• Trim the pork of any thick fat. Cut into large cubes of about 4" square or even bigger - it shrinks with cooking & works better with larger pieces of meat.
• Peel the shallots and set to one side.
• Halve & core the apples and set to one side with the shallots.
• Turn the crockpot onto High. Mix the cider, cider apple vinegar, creme fraiche, salt & pepper, thyme & thickened chicken stock together in a large pouring jug & pour into the crockpot.(If using fresh thyme - leave to last.) Add the cored and halved apples and replace the lid whilst you brown the pork & shallots.
• Heat up half the butter & half of the olive oil in a large skillet or wok-type pan, one with fairly high sides.
• As soon as it is smoking but not burning, brown the shallots in batches - you want a deep caramelised colour & the shallots just softened on the outside. When all the shallots have been done, put them all back into the pan - turn up the heat & add the balsamic vinegar and stir briskly making sure all the shallots are well coated.
• Add the shallots & Balsamic vinegar mixture to the crockpot.
• Heat up the remaining butter and oil, adding more if necessary & start to brown the pork pieces, again do not overcrowd the pan - they need to be well coloured & seared to seal in the juices. As the pork pieces are browned, add them to the crockpot.
• When all the pork is browned & added to the crockpot, give all the ingredients a good mix around in the crockpot with a wooden spoon. If using fresh thyme, pick about 4 large sprigs and place on top of the Normandy Pork - the leaves fall off during cooking & leave the bare branches for throwing away!
• Cook on high for between 6 - 10 hours.
• Just before serving, pour in Calvados and mix through. Serve each person with 2 -3 pieces of pork, a cooked apple half & 1 or 2 shallots; add a dollop of creme fraiche on the side & garnish with Thyme & a fresh Apple sliver if desired. Decant the excess sauce into a gravy boat for extra saucy bits!
• Great with spiced red cabbage, fluffy mashed potatoes or pommes Dauphinoise.
• To cook in an conventional oven, follow recipe as above, but cook in a La Creuset type oven proof dish; pre-heat oven to 175 C or 350 F and cook slowly for about 6 hours, checking after 4 hours. It will cook quite happily for up to 8 hours if this helps in your time management, you may have to turn the oven down to about 125 C, 250 F after 4 hours for a long slow 8 hour cooking time.

NORMANDY POTATOES

Steps:

• Peel potatoes.
• Cut into approximately 1/2 inch dice.
• Rinse to get most of the starch out.
• Place in cold water.
• Par boil (just until water comes to a boil).
• Drain potatoes in a colander.
• Meanwhile, place bacon in frying pan.
• Fry bacon, until crisp. Remove bacon from pan.
• Drain Bacon.
• Place onion with bacon drippings and garlic clove in fry pan over low heat.
• Sweat onion and garlic for approximately 5 minutes.
• Add drained potato(es) to fry pan.
• Fry for approximately 20 minutes or until potato cubes become brown and crusty. Seasoning half way through with salt and crumbled bacon.
• Serve with flavored salt (the type you used to cook with).

CHICKEN NORMANDE WITH MASHED APPLES AND POTATOES

Steps:

• Combine first 3 ingredients in heavy large pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer until parsnips are tender, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer parsnips to small bowl. Add potatoes and apples to same pot. Cover; simmer until very tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Using slotted spoon, transfer potatoes and apples to large bowl; add 3 tablespoons butter. Mash until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Pour broth mixture from pot into medium bowl; reserve pot.
• Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper and 4 teaspoons thyme; dust with flour. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in reserved pot over medium-high heat. Add half of chicken. Sauté until brown and cooked through, turning with tongs, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer sautéed chicken to 11x7x2-inch glass baking dish. Repeat with remaining chicken. Top with parsnips, remaining 2 teaspoons thyme and peas. Return broth mixture to same pot; add brandy and whipping cream. Boil over medium-high heat until sauce is reduced to 1 1/4 cups, scraping up browned bits, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over chicken. Cover with potato-apple mixture. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Refrigerate until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated.)
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake casserole uncovered until potato topping is crusty and chicken filling is heated through, about 35 minutes (about 45 minutes if refrigerated).

PORK NORMANDY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Heat butter in an oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Place pork tenderloin in butter, and brown on both sides. Remove from skillet, and set aside.
• Stir in onions, and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in apple, and cook until golden brown. Stir in flour; cook about 30 seconds.
• In a bowl, stir together stock and apple cider. Stir into skillet, and bring to a boil. Return tenderloin to skillet. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover skillet.
• Bake in preheated oven until tender, about 45 minutes. Remove tenderloin to a cutting board, and cut into 1 1/2-inch slices.
• Pour the sauce, including the onions and apples, into a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan, and reheat over medium-low; stir in 2 tablespoons cream, and heat until warm. Serve sauce spooned over sliced tenderloin.

PORK CHOPS NORMANDY

Steps:

• In a large skillet, brown pork chops in butter. Remove and keep warm. In the same skillet, saute pears and shallots until crisp-tender. Add garlic; saute 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat. Stir in brandy; cook over medium heat until liquid is evaporated., Stir in the cream and seasonings; cook for 2-3 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened. Return pork chops to skillet; cover and cook for 8-10 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160°, turning once.

CHICKEN NORMANDY (ESCALOPE DE POULET A LA NORMANDE)

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Pan-sear chicken breasts in the hot oil until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove chicken breasts from the skillet.
• Add drained mushrooms to the pan juices in the skillet and cook until they start to pop, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk together cream, egg yolk, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper in a small bowl; pour into the skillet with the mushrooms. Return chicken breasts to the skillet and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent the egg yolk from setting, until chicken is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, 15 to 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the chicken breast should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Serve with cooked white rice.