Chicken Champs Elyseé

 

This was definitely a different recipe. I put my mom in charge of picking a recipe and she opted for this entree. First of all there are no measurements. You kind of have to go with it until you "feel" like you've added enough. Second, this one was found in an old book that was put together by hand. You know those church type of recipe books that everyone contributes to? It's like that, only all the recipes are handwritten and it's put together by hand. SO COOL! It's the St. Paul's Methodist Church Cook Book. Compiled by The Woman's Society of Christian Services of St. Paul's Methodist Church Monroe, Louisiana 1953. Illustrations by Ruth Henry. There was so much love and work put in this book, I wonder how many they actually made. See picture of inside cover after the recipe below. My Mom's neighbor growing up, Clara Mason, passed the cookbook down to her in 1999.

My interpretation of the recipe:

Chicken Champs Elyseé

L. Slade Brown

Place bread in bottom of dish and cover with cooked chicken and crisp bacon and cooked broccoli. Make a cream sauce & to every cup of sauce add 1 T. dry sherry or sauterne. Pour over chicken and broccoli. Grate cheese and sprinkle on top and put in moderate oven until brown.

* We used a deep 9x13 baking dish

* We used 5 slices of Mrs. Baird's large white sandwich bread.

* We boiled a pound and a half of mixed chicken (about 2 cups chopped)

* We cooked 6 slices of bacon until crispy, and chopped it up

* We used about 2 cups of chopped steamed broccoli

* We made a basic white cream gravy, about 3 cups

* We used just regular white wine

* We used about 8oz of shredded colby jack cheese

* We baked it at 350° for about 25 minutes and then turned the broiler on just for a few minutes to brown the cheese on top.

* If we make it again, we would probably tear the bread into pieces so that it's easier to spoon out and more like the other layers on top of it. 

Here's the inside cover

* Fun Fact: Lutcher (L.) Slade Brown was a Broadway Producer known for Bye Bye Birdie *

I hope you enjoy and give this recipe a second chance in your kitchen too.

Revival Time Once Again

It's the time of year when I realize how many recipes I've acquired and how much I really want to get this blog up and running once again. So...here I go! I've decided to open this up to some guest contributors to help keep me motivated. If you happen to stumble across this blog, read this post and think of an old handwritten recipe that you have and would like to have it featured, let me know! I would be honored to keep it going. 

With that said, I'm off to sort through some recipes to see what I can make with things I currently have on hand. 

Please feel free to leave any input or advice. I will also start another post where you can suggest a recipe to be made :)

Have a beautiful day!

~Kristy

1 Pie Crust

After a long dry spell, we've finally found some new recipe cards from a few estate sales. I found a recipe for an Oatmeal Pie that I wanted to try, but I didn't have a pie crust on hand to make it. So, I kept looking through the bag full of cards and found this gem. Simple. To the point. No directions. Perfect! A homemade pie crust.

I have to say, it was as easy as the ingredients to make! The finished product wasn't too bad. I did use butter flavored Crisco, since that's what I keep on hand for baking. I also used a pastry cutter to mix it all. I ended up having to add about ¼ cup more of flour because it was really sticky. Plus, I floured my rolling pin and silpat mat when I was rolling it out. I did end up getting my hands in there to mix it a bit just to make sure the texture was right for rolling. Sticky, but not too sticky :)

Here's my interpretation of the recipe:

1 Pie Crust

2 Layers 

1 cup flour - more if needed

½ cup lard

¼ cup water

¼ teaspoon of salt

* I'm not sure what the 2 Layers means. I only rolled it out for one crust. I guess I could have rolled it out thinner to make a top layer too.

I hope you enjoy and give this recipe a second chance in your kitchen too.