Sunday, March 20, 2011

Mosaic Monday: Spring herbs!

You can definitely tell it's getting to be spring around here. There's growth in the herb garden. I can't believe they survived this past winter! I can't believe I survived this past winter! So much snow. But what a nice sight to finally see! The thyme, tarragon and chives are starting to show. Soon enough they'll be big, beautiful and lush, and I can find lots of recipes to for them. This was an outstanding recipe for the chives and tarragon, Chicken Louisa. I've posted it before and it was so good, it's definitely worthy of a do over!

Thyme               Tarragon                Chives



Chicken Louisa
adapted by There's Always Thyme to Cook
Source: Gourmet - June 2000, recipe by Peter Micheli
Printable Recipe

4 chicken cutlets, pounded thin
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 medium shallot, sliced thin
1/2 cup dry vermouth (or use dry white wine)
3/4 cup heavy cream
4 or 5 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 extra-large chicken-bouillon cube, crumbled

Garnish: chopped fresh chives

Season with salt and pepper. Heat the oil and butter in a large heavy skillet over moderately high heat until the foam subsides. Brown chicken on both sides in 2 batches, about 3 minutes per batch. Transfer chicken to a plate and keep warm.

Add shallot to skillet and saute, stirring, until tender, about a minute. Add the vermouth and boil over high heat, scraping up brown bits, until reduced by half. Stir in cream, tomatoes, tarragon, and bouillon cube, then simmer, stirring, until tomatoes are softened and sauce begins to thicken, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Return chicken, with any juices accumulated on plate, to skillet and simmer until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Joining Mary at the Little Red House for Mosaic Monday. Stop by the Little Red House to see more mosaics!






42 comments:

  1. I'm working on an herb garden in a sunny corner of the garden. The Great Dane started a great many box plants for me last year as an edging and now I've got to figure out how I want to plant and what I want to plant. I have an idea of something a bit more formal than anything we currently have.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It is so nice seeing the herbs greening up...I am not sure of the sage at this point, though.
    That chicken louisa dinner looks yummy!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Always fun when things green up! My chives and mint are up, the Rosemary took a beating though, don't know if it will come back. This year I'm planting thyme but going to try to contain it in a terra cotta planter under ground. We'll see how that works-Happy Spring:@)

    ReplyDelete
  4. This recipe sounds so good. I'm going to work in the herb garden today. Yeehaw!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. You always find the best and simple recipes. Wow, I could smell the fresh herbs. I am not a gardener, but maybe I can plant them in the pots.

    I saw one of my favorite greens, bokchoy! In fact they were on sale (how cheap is 3# for $1) I also use this when I make chow mein noodles.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great with your herb garden! Some plants just started to pop up this weekend and can't wait to see green grass. Great chicken dish!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Your herbs look so pretty. I can't believe I've survived the winter either -- I just hope it's nearly done!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I'm so glad your seeing signs of spring! Those herbs can take a LOT. Some like rosemary and lavender are a little more finicky, but thyme and chives are nearly indestructible. Have you tried sage? Mine is very hardy and I love having it handy for cooking. Tastes so much better than the dried stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Forgot to say the chicken looks great! I almost tried this a couple of weekends ago and still want to.

    ReplyDelete
  10. We are in full flush of spring here. The trees are in bloom and the bulbs are up and in full flower. Your chicken sounds absolutely delicious. I'd love to join you for a serving. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

    ReplyDelete
  11. :P Here I just bought seeds yesterday to start some more herbs and you have them up already..lucky duck!
    The chicken sounds wonderful, I love sauces in vermouth..great with steaks too.
    BTW = don't be jealous!!! lol

    ReplyDelete
  12. This Chicken Louisa looks amazing! Spring herbs popping up are such a welcome surprise. We are having a huge downpour this first day of spring. I hope you are having more sun where you are.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Well, NOW you're making me jealous - FRESH herbs straight from the garden. :))

    ReplyDelete
  14. I always try to cook with fresh herbs too. The flavour is completely different. This recipe looks delicious and I can't wait to see your Hoisin chicken one from last post too. Yum!

    Best wishes and happy week,
    Natasha.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Carol. How encouraging to see those herbs growing. The recipe really looks yummy! Happy Spring to you!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Lucky you! Maybe my herbs will poke their little heads up this week.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I will have to enjoy your herbs, way to early for them here. Enjoy your week.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Your herb garden is looking very tempting! The chicken recipe is perfect for a week night.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Oh how terrific that the herbs are growing. That dish looks absolutely wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  20. It must be wonderful to use fresh herbs as you cook. Thanks for your visit and kind comment!

    ReplyDelete
  21. I grow all my herbs in flower pots and I dragged them all out of the garage last week so they could begin to wake up with the nice spring weather we've been having. It's so nice to add fresh herbs to food isn't it?

    Love this recipe! I'm always looking for new ways to make chicken cutlets.

    ReplyDelete
  22. We are finally getting a few blooms around our neck of the woods as well.
    Thanks for another great recipe!
    Blessings!

    ReplyDelete
  23. My how wonderful that recipe sounds! It does look tasty! have a wonderful week! Cathy

    ReplyDelete
  24. I can't believe that your herbs are up! So jealous! We are getting snow again tomorrow. Not much but I'm so over it. Your Chicken Louisa looks soo good. Thanks for posting it again. I think I must have missed it. Hope you have a great week! Candace

    ReplyDelete
  25. I am anxious to see how my herbs did over the winter. Not that much is blooming at our house yet.

    ReplyDelete
  26. That's great! Not one of mine survived! I am gad the cilantro died. We hate it, I planted it by mistake!
    Nice you will have a good crop!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Your herbs look great. I feel like nothing is green here yet. Your recipe is wonderful too!

    ReplyDelete
  28. It must be wonderful to be able to use your own fresh grown herbs. Thanks for the Chicken Louisa recipe, it sounds and looks delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  29. This meal looks so scrumptious! Beautiful herbs mosaic..

    ReplyDelete
  30. Love using fresh herbs in my kitchen and this dish sounds Delicious!
    http://yvettesblogs.com/2011/03/21/springtimes-laughter/

    ReplyDelete
  31. Sweet mother, I have to go out back and see if my little darlings survived the winter. I only brought in rosemary and sage (that reminds me of an old song), because they're what I use most. The other herbs were left out to fend for themselves.

    Btw, I'm a big fan of any dish which includes shallots, wine and, be still my heart, heavy cream.

    ReplyDelete
  32. I love the flavor of herbs in cooking and although I don't drink I enjoy very much alcohol in my cooking. This is a great meal Carol!

    ReplyDelete
  33. I cleaned out my herb bed recently. Fresh herbs are just wonderful and I use them a lot. What a delicious sounding recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  34. My that sounds good! I have never tried to grow herbs, maybe this year.

    ReplyDelete
  35. A great post, Carol! We use a lot of herbs, we need to plant some in a big pot to have fresh! ♥

    ReplyDelete
  36. Wow, great post! Must feel great to just walk out to your backyard, n gather herbs for cooking! I've only a small balcony garden now, but do hope to have a big backyard full of veggies, someday :) Do drop by my blog to have a look at my mom's green space!

    ReplyDelete
  37. Oh how I wish I had an herb garden! Yours sounds wonderful!

    I've actually never really cooked with tarragon before but from what I hear about what it tastes like, this chicken dish must be delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  38. Having joined Mosaic Monday this week I am now enjoying blog hopping around the world admiring everyone else's beautiful photography and gaining inspiration. It cheers me when so much of the world around us is in turmoil for one reason or another.

    So good to see your fresh herbs mine are also looking happier now Spring is here!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Mmmm, it sounds delicious! And how cheerful to see your herbs sprouting up. Thanks for sharing at MM. :)

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment. They are fun to read and very much appreciated! Sorry for comment moderation, the spam has been overwhelming lately.

Back to top