Twombly Family Recipe Chicken in the Good Sauce After spending many years in a Norwegian household, and visiting Norway a few summers, I’ve come to love Chicken in the Good Sauce. Some say it is bland, but I find its subtle flavor addictive. I’ve had versions of this in good restaurants in France and Italy, and occasionally one can find something similar in the American deep South. I could not find the same recipe anywhere, so I had to recall the recipe taught to me many years ago by Ana Irene Lindevaldsen Andersen from Stavanger, Norway. Her onkel Siggy would hunt the Rype in the high plateaus above Askland in the Fjords. She would cook it for us and it was always amazing. The sauce is velvety, buttery, delicious comfort food and delightful with chicken or any game bird. INTRODUCTION This recipe is for Hen or Chicken in the Good Sauce (Norwegian: høne o kylling i god saus) . It was originally known as Rype i Gjetost (Snow Grouse in Goat Cheese). A Norwegian Snow Grouse is called a Rype . It is very similar to Ptarmigan, or Ruffed Grouse. Grouse is a small game bird that is a favorite of hunters in the highlands and northern climates. It is a bit gamey because it eats pine nuts, and sometimes the meat is tough. The word gjetost , also spelled geitost , consists of "geit" and "ost" , Norwegian for "goat" and "cheese", although it is not technically a cheese. Poaching the meat in this sauce tenderizes it and the Gjetost sweetens its gamey taste. The Good Sauce is based on a simple white sauce, also known as a Béchamel sauce . Béchamel goes with vegetables (it is great over Cauliflower), and can turn a casserole into a creamy dish, or can be ladled over seafood or sliced chicken. Many may use it "as is", make it into a Gjetost sauce, or spice it up with mustard, dill, or curry. It keeps for a couple days in the refrigerator and freezes well. Twombly Family Recipe Chicken in Good Sauce.docx Page 1 Twombly Family Recipe HISTORY The Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus ) is a medium-sized grouse residing in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. Snow Grouse inhabit temperate and subarctic regions throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from pine forests to moorland and mountainside. Grouse are non-migratory. It is the only species in the genus Bonasa . When startled, it can burst into flight reaching speeds of more than 55 miles per hour within a few feet. The ruffed grouse is sometimes incorrectly referred to as a "partridge", an unrelated phasianid, and occasionally confused with the grey partridge, a bird of open areas rather than woodlands. The ruffed grouse is the state bird of Pennsylvania, United States. I’m not really a hunter, but I think we all must take some responsibility for our existence, and fully understand what we consume, including meat. Many years ago, in 1976, I was “hunting” (actually just hiking through the deep woods, with a 410 shotgun) in Vermont during winter after about 4 inches of fresh snow had fallen and I encountered a ruffed grouse. It burst into flight about 10 yards away, about 15 feet up, from a tree branch, traveling directly away from me. The quiet woods burst into noise as it took flight. Completely startled, I swung my 410 up and somehow hit it. I field dressed it, took it home, and made a Grouse in the Good Sauce following the recipe. It was fantastic. Gjetost (yay’ – dohst) is a cheese-like product made from whey, sweeter in taste than most cheeses (tastes a bit like tangy brown sugar), caramel in color, and has a firm but creamy texture. Boiling down whey to create a soft, brown spread (such as the Norwegian prim and Swedish messmör) has been common practice in the Nordic countries since time immemorial . However, the creation of the modern, firm, fatty brunost is commonly attributed to the milkmaid Anne Hov from Gudbrandsdalen. In the second part of the 1800s Gudbrandsdalen, a rural part of Norway, economically suffered due to falling profits from grain and butter sales. While working at the Valseter mountain farm near Gålå in 1863, Anne Hov (sometimes named Anne Haav), came up with the idea of adding cream to the whey when boiling, and to boil it down in an iron pot until the fluid content was reduced to less than 80%, creating a firmer, fattier, more cheese- like product. She originally called it Feitost ("Fat Cheese"). In 1933, at age 87, Anne Hov received the King's Medal of Merit for her contributions to Norwegian cuisine and economy. Gjetost is sweet like butterscotch with a dense, rich texture. Gjetost is formed into rind-less squares or cylinders, and tastes best when sliced wafer thin and enjoyed open-faced on Norwegian flatbread and served with fresh fruit. Often enjoyed as a breakfast cheese in Norway, Gjetost also makes an excellent snack and a perfect dessert cheese. This unique Norwegian brown cheese is also known as Brunost, which is simply Norwegian for Brown Cheese . The Ski Queen variety is a blend of cow and goat's milk, whereas the Ekte Gjetost Cheese from Norway is made from 100% goat's milk. Gjetost is packed with energy and is extremely tolerant of temperature fluctuations. Because of these benefits, Gjetost is a preferred snack for Norwegians skiers who pack it in their backpacks and snack on it while on the trails. This is where the Ski Queen brand name derives, and may be one of the secrets to the Twombly Family Recipe Chicken in Good Sauce.docx Page 2 Twombly Family Recipe international success of Norwegian cross-country skiers. It is regarded as one of the country's most iconic foodstuffs, considered an important part of Norwegian gastronomical and cultural identity and heritage. Béchamel sauce, (/bɛʃəˈmɛl/ or /beɪʃəˈmɛl/; French: Béchamel ), is made from a white roux (butter and flour) and milk. Even though it first appeared in Italian cookbooks (constituting one of the simplest sauces of the Italian cuisine), it is considered one of the five mother sauces of French cuisine . Béchamel was a financier who held the honorary post of chief steward to King Louis XIV. The sauce first appeared in some Italian cookbooks of the Renaissance, but was introduced under its familiar name in Le Cuisinier François , published in 1651 by François Pierre La Varenne (1615– 1678), chef de cuisine to Nicolas Chalon du Blé, marquis d'Uxelles. The foundation of French cuisine, the Cuisinier François ran through some thirty editions in seventy-five years. The sauce was originally made for veal velouté with a large amount of cream added. Saulnier's Répertoire presents one recipe as: "White roux moistened with milk, salt, onion stuck with clove, cook for 20 minutes.” Béchamel sauce is the base for many other classic sauces. A few examples are provided below. (1) Mornay sauce is a Béchamel with cheese added. Gruyere cheese is typically used. Gjetost is used in this recipe. (2) Nantua sauce is a Béchamel with shrimp butter and cream added, typically served with crayfish. (3) Soubise sauce is a Béchamel with finely diced onions (that have been sweated in butter) added. (4) Crème sauce is a Béchamel made with heavy cream instead of milk. (5) Cheddar sauce is a Béchamel with cheddar cheese, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce added. (6) Curry sauce is a Béchamel with curry powder added to the flour. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon curry powder with the flour. Serve with chicken, lamb and shrimp. (7) Mustard sauce is a Béchamel with dry mustard (typically Dijon) mixed with the flour. Decrease butter to 1 tablespoon and flour to 1 tablespoon. After boiling and stirring sauce 1 minute, stir in 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard and serve, with beef, veal, ham and vegetables. (8) Welsh rabbit is based on a Béchamel. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon ground mustard with the flour. After boiling and stirring sauce 1 minute, stir in 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (2 ounces) until melted and serve with eggs and vegetables or over toast. (9) Recette de Gratin de poisson is based on a Béchamel. Make a Mornay sauce with recette . Stir in 1 teaspoon chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed and a dash of ground nutmeg with the flour and serve with fish. (10) The list continues with countless variations. Search for Béchamel and your favorite additive (cheese, meat, spice, etc.) and you are likely to find a fabulous recipe. Key Tools • Skillet / cast iron frying pan (about 12-inch, 30cm, diameter) • Two skillets make the recipe go faster. Recipe • Serves: 4 (about two cutlets each). • Costs: About $3/serving. An amazing value for high cuisine. • Time: 20 minutes for preparation, 20 minutes for cooking. Twombly Family Recipe Chicken in Good Sauce.docx Page 3 Twombly Family Recipe INGREDIENTS MEAT 1.5 lbs. (about .7 kg) boneless skinless chicken, about 6 breasts. One may substitute pheasant, grouse, etc. More can be used, but it won’t fit into the single skillet/fry pan, so it will have to be done in batches unless you have two skillets. 2 Tbsp. (30 mL) olive oil for browning the meat. I prefer butter but one must be careful not to burn the butter and still cook the chicken all the way through. OPTIONAL: Lingonberry preserves for garnish. This is great on chicken without the sauce too. OPTIONAL: Mashed potatoes. I always enjoy mashed potatoes. Norwegian plates always seem to be white on white, and this is consistent with that observation.