CREAMED CHICKEN

SERVES 4 PREP TIME 20 MInuTES COOK TIME 1 ¼ hOuRS

This recipe was born one summer weekend when my friend Elizabeth Metcalfe was visiting. After a busy day working up our appetites, we went to the garden to pick vegetables and herbs for supper and made up this recipe. It is a perfect example of how a few simple ingredients can combine to create something far greater than the sum of its parts. It is important to allow plenty of time to first brown the chicken, then for the cream and wine to reduce as this will intensify the flavour of the herbs. Use a good heavy pan that can sit on the stove and go in the oven. I like to serve this with green vegetables and some new potatoes that I can crush into the sauce.

1 tbsp olive oil

25g butter

8 chicken thighs handful green herbs, coarsely chopped, plus extra to garnish (parsley, tarragon, chervil and lovage will all work beautifully, but if using lovage, go easy as the flavour is so strong) thyme sprig

300ml double cream 600ml white wine salt and pepper

★ Preheat the oven to 200C/ 180C fan/gas 6.

★ Heat the oil and butter in a heavy, ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chicken thighs skin-side down and fry for about 15 minutes, turning them once, until they are well-browned all over (otherwise the finished dish will look too pale).

★ Place the herbs on top of the chicken then pour over the cream and wine. Season with salt and pepper. Bake in the oven, uncovered, for 1 hour – it’s important to do this without a lid so that the sauce can reduce; the finished sauce should have a custard-like consistency.

★ Serve garnished with extra chopped green herbs.

Where possible, I like to make use of more than one part of the plants I grow, and pea shoots are a particular favourite of mine for their beauty and excellent flavour. This recipe comes from my great friend Lee Hallman who lives in Fort Worth, Texas, where she has a wonderful container garden. The risotto is a real taste of early summer, and a great way to show off tender young vegetables at their best. You could also use young broad beans and broad bean tops in addition to, or instead of, the peas. This is delicious with a lightly seasoned baby-leaf salad dressed simply with olive oil.

1 tbsp vegetable oil small piece of butter

5 spring onions, finely chopped 50g pea shoots

300g risotto rice

1.2 litres warm vegetable stock 100g sugar snap peas, halved on the diagonal if large 30g grated parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

1 tbsp crème fraîche salt and pepper

★ Heat the oil and butter in a pan over a medium heat, add the spring onions and cook for about 2 minutes until translucent.

★ Meanwhile, finely chop the pea shoots, reserving a few and leaving them whole for a garnish, if desired.

★ Add the risotto rice to the pan and cook gently for 2 minutes, stirring all the time, without colouring. Add a ladleful of stock, stir through and continue cooking at a gentle bubble until the liquid has been absorbed. Repeat the process, gradually adding the stock – a ladleful at a time – until about two-thirds of the stock has been used. This will take about 20 minutes.

★ At this point, add the sugar snap peas, then continue adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, until it is all used up – this will take about 5 minutes more. The rice should be cooked through but still retain a slight bite.

★ Stir in the parmesan, crème fraîche and chopped pea shoots and season with salt and pepper to taste.

★ Serve garnished with the reserved pea shoots, if using, and the extra parmesan to sprinkle over.