Pan-Seared Breast of Chicken with Spring Favas, Cherries & Fresh Morels

Pan Seared Breast of Chicken with Morels & Cherries

Served with a sauté of fresh morel mushrooms, black cherries, spring fava beans and sun dried cherry merlot infusion

Recipe Created by Chef Kevin McKenzie

Ingredients

Individual Chicken Breast                  4 each, skin  on

Merlot                                     1 bottle

Red Wine or Balsamic Vinegar               2 tablespoons

Roasted Chicken Stock                      1 cup

Veal Stock                                 1 cup

Fresh Morel mushrooms 4 ounces, cleaned with brush and cut in half (or 2 ounce dried)

Dried Black Cherries                       2 ounces

Fresh Cherries                             4 ounces (pitted and cut in half)       

Fresh Fava Beans                           1 cup (lightly blanched and shelled)

Unsalted butter                            4 tablespoons

Sea Salt & Pepper                           To taste

Method

                Re-constitute dried morel mushrooms in warm water. Remove mushrooms from water and either leave the mushrooms whole if they are small, or cut them in half, which I think is better to further insure that they are clean. Set one cup of mushroom water aside for use in the sauce. Rinse mushrooms several more times in cold water to assure that all sediment has been removed.

                Place dried cherries, 1/3 bottle of merlot, 1 cup of stock, two tablespoon of vinegar and the mushroom water in sauce pan and reduce until sec. Continue the process (with the exception of the cherries and cleaned morels) until all of the wine and stock has been reduced to desired thickness.

                When the sauce is beginning to thicken to your liking through in the fresh cherries and morels and cook about five minutes longer on low heat, to allow the cherries and morels to cook and emulsify with the sauce. Just before serving stir in the butter.

Heat sauté pan until just smoking and add chicken breast to pan skin side down. Turn flame to medium heat and cook chicken on skin side until brown and crispy, take care to baste top of breast with the fat of the pan. When crispy turn chicken over and cook for one minute until seared. Remove pan from stove, place chicken skin side down on cookie sheet and cook for 4 minutes in 350 degree oven for medium rare. When done, remove chicken from oven and allow to rest for five minutes or until sauté is finished.