Radishes at the farmer's market

What do you do with a chicken breast to make it more exciting?  I thought about this last night and decided to make a cream sauce.  The end result was fantastic.  This cream sauce would probably work with fish and vegetables as well.  It is a pretty free form recipe.  Once you’ve made the roux to your liking, everything else is just included in quantities your taste buds see fit.

The roasted radishes are wonderful and extremely easy.  I always thought I didn’t like radishes.  I don’t like their spicy bite.  Then my uncle taught me to roast them.  Roasting them takes the bite away and leaves a sweetness behind.

Finally, I hate kitchen waste, always wanting to stretch my dollar and prevent usable things from ending up in the garbage.  The radishes came with green tops, so they must be eaten as well.  Radish greens, like radishes, have a bit of a bite that is diminished with longer cooking.  If you don’t have radish greens, other spicy greens like mustard could be used in this recipe.

Recipes for all 3 dishes below.

This post is submitted to Real Food Wednesday.

Chicken with Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

• 4 small chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups milk
• Tarragon
• Sage
• Thyme
• Salt and pepper
• 1 or 2 tablespoons of lemon juice

In a large frying pan, sear the chicken breasts on both sides.  Reduce heat, cover, and cook on med-low heat, checking and flipping occasionally, as needed, until done.

For the sauce, Melt the butter over medium heat.  When melted, add the flour and stir.  Then add the milk and whisk.  You’ll need to whisk a lot.  The sauce should thicken quickly.  You really can’t take your eyes off this for more than a few minutes.  Don’t let it boil.  Keep whisking.  When you have your desired consistency, add the tarragon, sage and thyme.  Then add salt and pepper to taste.  Just before serving, add a little lemon juice.

To help you time your meal, the sauce will only take 5-10 minutes.  Spoon the sauce over the chicken breast right before serving.  I put a generous portion of sauce on my chicken.

Roasted Radishes

Ingredients:

• Radishes
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Sesame seeds

Cut the radishes into quarters.  Toss with olive oil until coated.  Sprinkle salt and sesame seeds, and place into a baking dish.  To save on cleanup, I usually put the radishes in the baking dish and use that dish to toss with the olive oil. Roast at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.  Simple!

Braised Radish Greens

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch radish greens
• 1 tablespoon bacon grease
• A splash of water
• 3 tablespoons of reduced beef stock

Heat bacon grease in a good braising pot on medium heat until melted.  Add the greens and sautee.  Add a small spash of water and 3 tablespoons of reduced beef stock (glace).  Cover, reduce heat to low, and let it cook for 30 minutes (less for spicier greens, longer for milder greens).  When you have cooked it your desired length, take the lid off, raise the temperature to medium, and let the liquid cook off, while watching it and stiring often.