Chicken à la King Crêpes

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© Paden Reich

This is one of my mom’s recipes that she made for my brothers and me on regular weeknight dinners. Not until recently did I consider how advanced her skills were to make these for our entire family. She was part gourmet chef and part short order cook, and versatile enough to experiment with little French pancakes. I’ve updated it slightly, with a little more intense seasoning, without monkeying with the traditional thrill of tasting chicken in a cream sauce laced with sherry. Time-consuming but worth every minute it takes to melt the butter, whisk the cream, and fold your crêpes, this dish indulges any comfort food mood. Make this when you want to seriously impress family or friends with a rich, creamy, and delicious meal. I only make this on a special occasion when everyone is hanging out in the kitchen, laughing, listening to music, and perhaps sharing in the process of making a romaine salad for the side.

Instructions

1. Process the milk, eggs, 1 cup of the flour, 3 tablespoons of the melted butter, and 3/4 teaspoon of the salt in a blender until smooth. Cover and chill for 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the onion and mushrooms; cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 8 minutes. Add the bell pepper, black pepper, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 8 minutes. Add the sherry, and cook until the liquid is nearly evaporated, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, and set aside. Wipe the skillet clean with paper towels.

3. Heat the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in the skillet over medium. Whisk in the remaining 1/4 cup flour, and cook, whisking constantly, until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the broth; cook, whisking often, until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream, and cook, whisking often, about 1 minute.

4. Reduce the heat to low; stir in the vegetable mixture, chicken, cayenne pepper, and 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Cover and keep warm.

5. Stir the chives and remaining 2 tablespoons parsley into the chilled batter. Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low.

6. Brush the skillet lightly with about 1/2 tablespoon of the melted butter; pour about 1/4 cup of the batter into the skillet. Quickly tilt the skillet in all directions so the batter covers the bottom of the pan. Cook until the crêpe is almost set and can be shaken loose, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn the crêpe; cook about 30 seconds. Remove from the skillet; place about 1/4 cup of the vegetable mixture on the crêpe, and fold the crêpe into quarters. Repeat the procedure with the remaining melted butter, crêpe batter, and vegetable mixture.

Ingredients

1 cup whole milk
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
1 (8-ounce) package sliced button mushrooms
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup heavy cream
4 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (from 1 large rotisserie chicken)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives