October 31: Baby and Big Bella Mushroom and Chicken Stew

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 portobello mushroom caps, black gills scraped with a spoon, cut in half, and then thinly sliced
1 10-ounce container cremini mushrooms, brushed clean and cut into quarters
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves cut into bite-size pieces
   Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 large yellow onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
4 medium red bliss potatoes, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
1 celery rib with greens, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 quart chicken stock or broth
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
   Crusty, farmhouse-style bread

Preheat a large sauce pot over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the EVOO. Add the portobello and cremini mushrooms and cook, stirring every now and then, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until all of the mushrooms are lightly brown. Remove the mushrooms from the pot to a plate, return the sauce pot to the heat, and add 2 more tablespoons of EVOO.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then sprinkle it with the flour. Add the chicken to the pot and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, then add the onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots, celery, bay leaf, thyme, salt, and pepper.

Continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the wine, cook for 1 minute, then add the chicken stock, bring it up to a simmer, and return the mushrooms to the sauce pot.

Simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the peas and parsley and simmer for 1 minute more. Fish out the bay leaf and discard. Serve the stew with some crusty bread.

4 SERVINGS

I took this meal from June 1 and switched it with today's recipe: Zucchini and Bow Ties. That is more of a springtime meal, while this one is a Fall meal. It was nice for cold weather. I ran out of carrots, so I didn't add them. Too bad, because they would have been really good in this stew. This was not a bad meal, but it had a lot of ingredients so it took a while to make, and the potatoes were just too big. I think I should have cut the slices into halves or quarters. The chicken also should have been cut into very small bite sized pieces. Pieces that big of the breast are rather unappetizing.