This is a good example of the sort of elegant rustic dish the French do so well, using what’s local and what’s in season. Serve with a good heaping of buttery mashed potatoes and a green salad to follow.
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in chicken legs with thighs attached
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 6½ tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 2½ tablespoons honey
- 1 cup chopped yellow onions
- 3 carrots, peeled and cut into thin rounds
- 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
- 4 cups Gravenstein hard apple cider
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons raisins
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 3 Gravenstein apples, peeled, cored and cut into ½-inch-thick slices
Preparation
Season the chicken legs with half of the salt and half of the pepper. In a frying pan over medium high heat, warm 1½ tablespoons of the olive oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter. When the butter foams, add the chicken pieces and saute until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove to a bowl.
In a heavy-bottomed casserole or Dutch oven with a lid over medium high heat, heat 2 more tablespoons of butter. When it is hot, stir in 1 tablespoon of honey and add the chopped onions, sauteing until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, cider, vinegar, thyme, bay leaves, garlic and raisins, followed by the chicken. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Simmer until the chicken begins to pull away from the bone and is tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
Remove the chicken and set aside. Remove the thyme and bay leaves and discard.
Increase the heat to high and, stirring, reduce the sauce to 1½ cups. Combine 1 tablespoon of the remaining butter with the flour and stir into the sauce. Keep stirring as the sauce thickens.
When the sauce has thickened, return the chicken to the sauce, and warm over medium heat to heat through, about 4 minutes.
While the sauce is reducing, in a large frying pan over medium high heat, heat the remaining 1½ tablespoons of butter. When it foams, stir in the remaining 1½ tablespoons of honey, add the apple slices and saute until golden, about 3 minutes. Turn and saute the other side until golden, another 2 to 3 minutes.
To serve, place a whole chicken leg on each of 4 dinner plates and divide the sauce equally over them. Garnish each serving with an equal amount of sauteed apples and onions.
