According to Chef John Ash, Sonoma County’s most well-known food and wine ambassador and co-host of the Good Food Hour, “Fried, grilled, sautéed, roasted, poached, it’s your choice… Chicken is a true global culinary star. Wherever you are… a four-star restaurant, an international street food market, sipping Grandma’s chicken soup at work, or sitting down to a home cooked Sunday meal; the versatility of chicken is unmatched. It can be wrapped and rolled, seasoned and sauced, while never losing its identity… and since we’re fortunate to live where delicious chicken is locally raised and available year-round, it’s the perfect ingredient for our Fall recipe contest. So look around… get creative, and have fun. There’s a whole world of chicken recipes to fuel your imagination.”

Four finalists assembled at G&G Supermarket located at 1211 West College Avenue, Santa Rosa on Saturday November 12th at 11am for the Good Food Hour broadcast and taste-off with Chef Ash, co-host Steve Garner and a panel of celebrity judges. Winners were selected during The Good Food Hour.

Entries were judged and awarded prizes that include $250 CASH for the first place winner courtesy of Petaluma Poultry, gift certificates, cookbooks, wine, and cooking classes! Special thanks to Mark Stark of Stark Reality Restaurants for his generous donation of a $100 gift certificate. And as a special honor this year, one of the winning recipes will be included in the upcoming John Ash cookbook, “Culinary Birds.” 

Pictured: Jodie Lau of G&G Supermarket, John Ash, Mark Stark, Jamie Brown-Miller, Steve Garner, Scott Fortney of Petaluma Poultry, and Patrick Mukaida of Ferrari-Carano.

Congratulations to this year's winner: Jamie Brown-Miller of Napa with her recipe for Lemon and Fig Stuffed Chicken Wrapped in Eggplant with Fennel, Honey and Goat Cheese!

FIRST PLACE: Lemon and Fig Stuffed Chicken Wrapped in Eggplant with Fennel, Honey and Goat Cheese

1 large eggplant
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 large lemons
3 medium dried figs, chopped
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bulb fennel, very thinly sliced
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Thinly slice eggplant lengthwise, no more than 1/4-inch thick. Place in a shallow dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper, then drizzle with the balsamic vinegar and half of the olive oil. Set aside.

Zest each lemon and set the zest aside. Remove rind from lemons and chop. Mix with the figs in a small bowl. Slice a pocket into the side of each chicken breast and stuff with the fig and lemon mixture. Wrap each chicken breast with a slice of eggplant, making sure to cover the pocket opening and tuck the ends of the eggplant underneath the chicken breast.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add wrapped chicken breasts and brown for 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a large baking dish, sprinkle with fennel and bake for 20 minutes or until done. To serve, drizzle with honey and sprinkle with goat cheese. Serves six.

Recipe courtesy of Jamie Brown-Miller

SECOND PLACE: CHICKEN BASTILLA

This recipe is mildly complex but is easily done in several steps. This recipe is enough for two pies.

STEP 1: Take one whole chicken – cut into quarter sections, remove skin and excess fat. (Can substitute 5#'s of boneless/skinless chicken thighs – will cook slightly faster.) Place chicken pieces in a large sauce pan and cover with no salt chicken broth, approx. 32 oz.

Add spice mix:1 T minced fresh ginger 2 t sea salt 1.5 t white pepper 1 t black pepper 1 t turmeric 2 - 3 sticks cinnamon (depending on size and taste preference) 4 cloves garlic crushed and minced 2 shopped large sweet onions

Bring to a boil and then reduce to mild simmer. Cook until chicken separates from the bone easily. Approx. 50 min. Strain and reserve broth – remove pieces of chicken and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, separate the meat from the bone and chop to fine mince. Approx. 7 cups (no problem if this includes pieces of onion and garlic) Set aside – this step can be completed the day ahead and refrigerated.

STEP 2: Place 12-16 oz of blanched Almonds in blender or food processor Pulse until finely chopped – approx. 3 cups In a side bowl, mix with 2/3 cup of sugar, 2/3 cup of dried currants, and 2.5 t powdered cinnamon and set aside. Can be done day ahead and refrigerated.

STEP 3: Complete this step just ahead of when you plan to construct the final product. Whisk together 8 whole large eggs. Melt 2 t butter in fry pan and before it turns brown pour in eggs and add ½ cup of reserved broth (Broth should be room temperature, if previously refrigerated, allow to warm ahead of process), add ½ – 2/3 cup of chopped cilantro. Continue cooking over medium head, stirring constantly to prevent sticking/burning. Cook until done but still slightly wet and shinny.

STEP 4: Mix the eggs into the chopped chicken (Should be room temperature, if previously refrigerated, allow to warm ahead of process). Stir well and breakup any large clumps.

STEP 5: Constructing the pie – as you start this step, preheat oven to 350 degrees Prepare 9” spring form baking pan with bottom removed or pie crust cutter – either non-stick or coated with butter – place form onto buttered or non-stick cookie sheet. Open one 1 pound package of room temperature Phyllo Pastry Dough – lay out flat and cover with slightly damp tea towel so it does not dry out between steps. On a clean surface lay out 3 sheets of dough and brush with melted butter Then place butter side down over cooking form covering slightly more than ½ of the pan, Gently press to bottom and along sides with excess hanging over. Repeat this step, overlapping dough sheets in the middle. Spread a layer of sugar currant mix on bottom – spread a layer of chicken/egg mix – cover this with another layer of sugar mix – add 2nd layer of chicken egg mix and top with final layer of sugar mix. Fold up the pastry from the sides up and over the top of the pie. You can trim off some if it seems too much. Pat this down and brush with meted butter.

Preheated 350 degrees oven Place cookie sheet with the pie(s) in center of middle oven shelf and bake until crust is golden brown, approx 50 min. If you wish to cook only one pie at this time, the second one can be frozen or refrigerated for cooking later.

Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. Place a plate over cooking form and invert so pie is now upside down. Remove the form and using a sifter, cover top with powdered sugar and sprinkle with powdered cinnamon. Wipe excess sugar from plate and it is ready to serve.

The Bastilla can be served as an appetizer in small slices or as main course with larger slices. Best warm but is also good at room temperature.

As an appetizer it pairs well with sparkling wine. As a main dish it goes well with couscous or quinoa pilaf.

Recipe courtesy of Bob Cronbach

THIRD PLACE: Tandoori Chicken Sliders

Makes about 8 sliders

Ingredients:4 chicken thighs, boneless and skinless ¾ c plain Greek yogurt 1 tsp garam masala (can be found in Indian stores and some grocery stores) 1 tsp ginger, minced 1 tsp garlic, minced 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp ground coriander ½ tsp turmeric 1 tbsp lemon juice 1 tsp salt 2 tbsp canola oil 4-5 drops red food coloring 8 slider buns or dinner rolls ¼ c melted butter Cucumber raita sauce (recipe to follow)

Directions:

1. Rinse and pat dry chicken pieces. Cut each thigh horizontally so that each piece is about 1/2 inch thick. Cut the trimmed pieces to fit the bun (depending on the size of your rolls), approximately 2 in by 2 in.

2. In a bowl, mix yogurt, garam masala, ginger, garlic, chili powder, coriander, turmeric, lemon juice, salt, oil, and red food coloring. Mix well to combine.

3. Add chicken pieces to spice and yogurt mixture, and mix to coat all pieces completely. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

4. Heat a grill or grill pan to medium heat. Once hot, add chicken pieces to the grill, allowing the excess mixture to drip into the bowl before cook. Cook 1-2 min on one side, and flip. Cook until firm and juices run clear, 4-5 min depending on thickness. Place finished pieces on a plate to rest.

5. Slice slider buns or dinner rolls horizontally, if not already done. Lightly butter each cut side and place on the grill until toasted.

6. To assemble, place bottom bun on plate, and top with one piece of tandoori chicken. Place a dollop (about 1 tsp) of the cucumber raita sauce on top of the chicken, and top with the top side of the roll. Serve hot, and with additional garnish (e.g., red onion, lettuce) if desired.

Cucumber raita sauce

Makes about 1.5 cups

Ingredients: 1 cucumber, peeled and seeded 1 cup plain Greek yogurt 2 tbsp lemon juice 1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender, and pulse until cucumbers are in small pieces (1/8” square or smaller). Season to taste, and use on tandoori chicken sliders. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce.

Recipe courtesy of Monica Francisco.

FOURTH PLACE: Pan Roasted Chicken Breast with Shitake/Spinach Base

For the Chicken:
2 boneless chicken breasts, air dried
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

For the Shitake/Spinach Base
2 tblsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 lb fresh shitake mushrooms, sliced 1/4 inch thick
3 garlic cloves sliced thin
2 tblsp red onion diced
4 cups baby spinach
Sonoma Smoked Olive Oil to finish

Directions:
Pat dry chicken and add salt and pepper to each side. Heat a heavy skillet to medium/high heat. Add Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add chicken skin side down. Cook until well browned (about 4 minutes). Turn and cook until just done, take off heat to rest.

For the second step you can use the same pan if you have to, over medium heat. Add 2 tblsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add mushrooms and garlic. When nicely browned, add the onion and cook until soft. Add all the spinach, toss and immediately remove from pan.
Drizzle the smoked olive oil over the mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe courtesy of Paul Gaudreau.