Monday, July 8, 2019

10th Anniversary - Julia Child's Chicken Breasts from Krista Davis



My first recipe ever on Mystery Lovers Kitchen paid homage to Julia Child. When I was growing up, my mom always made these chicken breasts for me because they were my absolute favorite dinner. Whenever I came home to visit, I could count on this for dinner with rice and a salad. This recipe taught me how to cook chicken. The breasts and tenders are still regularly on the menu at my house.

But The Diva Takes the Cake was only book number two in the Domestic Diva Mysteries. I just turned in book number thirteen, The Diva Spices It Up! And I added two more series along the way. The Dog Who Knew Too Much will be number six in the Paws & Claws Mysteries. And at the moment, I'm writing Murder Between the Lines, number three in the Pen & Ink Mysteries! That means I'm writing my twenty-second book!!! Who'd have thought it? Not me!

Julia and Me

Before Paula Deen and Rachel Ray, before Martha, there was Julia Child. My mom loved her show, and I was the lucky beneficiary of many delicious dishes based on Julia Child's recipes. One recipe for chicken breast stood out as my favorite. It's very simple and I still make it today, although I've simplified it a bit. I've searched through Julia's cookbooks and can't find the exact recipe, but I think she may have called it Chicken Supreme.


Ingredients

three chicken breasts or one package of chicken tenders
two tablespoons butter or olive oil
half a lemon
two tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt

Julia's original recipe called for butter. Over time, with the push to eat less saturated fat, I started using olive oil instead. Until I made it both ways for this blog, I was happy with the olive oil version.
  1. (Optional) Julia's recipe began with folding waxed paper over the chicken breasts and pounding them so that they are uniform in thickness. This is a great idea and will yield more consistent results, but I'm generally too lazy and skip this step.
  2. Heat a saute pan (or similar) over medium/low heat. Add butter or olive oil. Place the chicken in the pan and squeeze the juice of half a lemon over the meat. Cover the pan. (Julia Child's version called for covering the meat with waxed paper and then putting a lid on the pan. I don't see much difference when I do that.)
  3. When the meat turns white around the edges (about three minutes for chicken tenders, five to six minutes for chicken breasts) turn the pieces over, add the parsley, cover and continue to heat.
  4. Cook just until the middle is no longer pink (about three to four minutes for tenders, about six to seven minutes for breasts, depending on the thickness).
  5. Salt to taste and plate the chicken. Drizzle the juices from the pan over the meat and serve.
Rice is a perfect match for this dish and I can't help thinking that Julie's White House Worthy Rice would be excellent with it! While it tastes delicious made with olive oil, I have to admit that it's better with butter. It's exactly the kind of dish that Sophie, the protagonist in my Domestic Diva Mysteries, would serve to her friends on short notice.


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ENTER OUR 10th ANNIVERSARY

10-BOOK (+ TOTE BAG) GIVEAWAY!


And you can carry your books in this clever
tote bag with a special crossword puzzle 
featuring Mystery Lovers' Kitchen authors!



To enter our giveaway,
you must first use
the form below.

Then be sure to leave a
blog post comment.

You must do both
to be entered.

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2-WEEKS OF FAVORITE, RETRO POSTS!


We're throwing a two-week party to celebrate a decade of blogging at Mystery Lovers' Kitchen. Every day (through July 13), one of the authors of MLK will post a retro "anniversary" recipe from our blogging past. Stop back each day to see what we post. Each time you leave a comment on a post, you'll earn an extra entry in our drawing and increase your chances of winning our grand prize package. Be sure to use the entry form above to register with our contest *and* be sure to leave a blog post comment. (You must do both to be entered.)


GOOD LUCK and...

HAPPY 10th ANNIVERSARY,

MYSTERY LOVERS' KITCHEN!

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68 comments:

  1. I'll be making chicken from your recipe. It sounds delicious and easy. Thank you for the chance to win this Give away.

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    Replies
    1. Donamae, I hope you like it. It's so simple, but delicious!

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    2. I will soon it does sound delicious

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  2. 22 books quite the achievement! Grants!

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  3. My family loves chicken! My Mom loved Julia Child and made this all the time. Looking forward to reading, "The Dog Who Knew Too Much". Just finished, "The Diva Sweetens the Pie".

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    1. Oh, I love to hear that. Another family who liked this recipe!

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  4. I love chicken and I’m always looking for new ways to cook it. This sounds delish!

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    Replies
    1. We eat chicken a lot too!

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    2. It's so simple. Once you do it a couple of time, you don't need a recipe at all.

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  5. I have read all your books and eagerly await the next one in all your series. My mom is visiting in a couple of days and I plan to make the chicken pot pie from "The Diva Sweetens the Pie".

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    Replies
    1. That's so exciting! I hope you both love it!

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  6. Your books all look wonderful. I think I need to read them. Thanks for sharing about the chicken. quilting dash lady at Comcast dot net

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Lori! I hope you'll like my books.

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  7. I love the Diva series and this recipe looks great.

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  8. I loved Julia Childs! She was wonderful. I've read all the Diva books--great series and hoping for more.

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  9. This is a true Julia classic and we make it often, typically using tarragon rather than parsley. But don't skip the pounding! (Saran works just as well as waxed paper, which I suspect a lot of people don't keep around any more.) It makes for such even cooking and really improves the texture. Yay for Chicken Julia!

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    Replies
    1. Tarragon would be great, Leslie. Do you use fresh or dried?

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    2. Leslie, I didn't read this before I commented but I do the exact same---plastic wrap and usually dried tarragon unless I have fresh on hand. Great minds...;)

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    3. Forgot to say I sometimes use both the fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley with the tarragon or basil.

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  10. Such a great recipe and giveaway! Thank you for both!!

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  11. I will be trying the chicken this week. I'll be a Diva in the kitchen! Thanks!

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  12. Happy Anniversary to all of you. I'm always on the look out for different ways to fix chicken since it is one of the most economical meat to purchase. Thanks also for the wonderful giveaway. My fingers are crossed.

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  13. A delectable and appetizing recipe which I would make for the family. Thanks for this lovely feature and giveaway.

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  14. This looks like such a gentler method of cooking chicken breasts than I am accustomed. However, mine tend to be dry and this likely fixes that issue!

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    1. Lil, overcooking does make chicken dry. I highly recommend a meat thermometer. Chicken breast is done cooking at 165 degrees. I use mine all the time to be sure the chicken will be tender.

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  15. Books AND recipes! The recipe sounds simple and delicious. Thanks for this giveaway!

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  16. Happy 10th Anniversary MLK!
    The chicken recipe looks delicious, this is one I'm going to try.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

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  17. Happy 10th Anniversary! ��Reading this blog is like receiving a present. �� I enjoy reading about the authors and the wonderful recipes! Thank you for always keeping us up to date with the books, interviews, and of course food! Here's to another ten years! ������

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  18. I have read a couple of the Diva books and liked them a lot. Julia Child was fun to watch. :)

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  19. Can't wait for the next books in each series! thank you for sharing this chicken recipe... it sounds simply delicious!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Amanda. It's still one of my favorites.

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  20. My Mom loved watching Julia Child and trying out some of the recipes.

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  21. I cook with both butter and olive oil. While I know olive oil is healthier, I do like the taste butter provides in many dishes. I use grass-fed, organic butter and believe it's ok to use in moderation. I enjoy reading about Julia Childs and have several books about her. bluedawn95864 at gmail dot com

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  22. I use a lot of butter. I think all the health claims about olive oil got to me and I simply fell into the habit of using oil instead of butter. And some things really do taste so much better when cooked in butter!

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  23. I love anything Julia makes! Thanks for the recipe - and Happy Tenth Anniversary! Also, congrats on publishing 22 books on three series. That's quite an achievement!

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  24. This recipe sounds so easy and so good. I want to try it with chicken thighs. Thanks for a chance to win! ljbonkoski@yahoo.com

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  25. I love chicken & I love easy, so this is perfect.
    turtle6422 at gmail dot com

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  26. Julia Child was a big deal in our house when I was a kid too. Congrats on so many great books!
    kozo8989@hotmail.com

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  27. Your recipe sounds great! I love simple chicken recipes!

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  28. Happy Anniversary, Krista! Mom and I used to watch Julia together and have lots of laughs, copying recipes quickly, before we got the cookbooks! I still make this dish, using both olive oil and butter and often adding more seasonings like tarragon. Thank you for all the years of great books to read, and wonderful recipes. I love this blog community and appreciate all your efforts to keep us entertained, inspired and informed! I have made countless recipes just from this site, to great success. (And still enjoy using all the cute cookie cutters I've won! Those were the days!) You're the best! xo
    lola777_22 at hotmail dot com

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  29. Looks yummy. Love your recipes and especially your books!!

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  30. Thanks for sharing. kckendler at gmail dot com

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  31. Julia Child brings back memories! Thanks for this opportunity! Wjcline (at) att (dot) net

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  32. Thanks for the recipe! I’m on a special diet and this is one I can eat!!
    faithdcreech at gmail dot com

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  33. The chicken recipe sounds delicious. Thanks for this amazingky generous giveaway. lindamay4852@yahoo.com

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  34. I love new recipes of chicken dishes!

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  35. Julia Child is still one of the most famous and best Cooks ever...thank you for the post.
    Marilyn ewatvess@yahoo.com

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  36. Thanks for the giveaway and the recipe!! It's nice to see the classics still have a place in today's cooking. egoehner(at)roadrunner(dot)com

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  37. Thanks for the recipe and giveaway. jcook22@yahoo.com

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  38. Thanks for another easy recipe, can't wait to try it. Thanks for the giveaway. doward1952(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  39. I learned to cook by watching Julia Child. She is the best. Chicken is a favorite in this house so I will try this recipe.

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  40. I like the picture of the book covers at the top. When I first heard of the coloring series and saw the covers, I thought there would be coloring pages inside!
    catbooks72(at)gmail(dot)com

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