Since a lot of NYC restaurants are closed because of Covid 19 they have been sharing some of their coveted recipes online. One of my favorite classic New York City restaurants is 21. They have been posting “Cooking at Home with 21” for months now. I had been waiting and waiting for my favorite dish to make an appearance and wouldn’t you know….it was posted last week. I love the 21 Club Chicken Hash. It is honestly is the fancy cousin of the chicken casserole and one of my favorite dishes ever. I always order it but not on it’s signature bed of white toast, but with extra spinach. It does not look too hard to re-create. It is on my list for this upcoming chilly, maybe snowy weekend!! Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
3 cups chicken stock
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
½ cup unbleached white flour
¼ cup dry sherry
¼ cup heavy cream
1 ½ lb grated gruyere
½ tsp fresh grated nutmeg
- Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Bring the chicken stock to a
boil. Add the chicken breasts and lower the heat to a simmer. Poach the
chicken breasts 20 minutes or until fully cooked. - Remove the chicken from the poaching liquid and cool completely before
cutting into one-inch cubes. Reserve the liquid. - Combined the softened butter with the flour, kneading them together into a
paste. - Return the reserved chicken stock to a boil, and using a wire whisk, add the
flour/butter combination in one-tablespoon increments. - Cook 5 minutes then add the sherry and cream.
- Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Whisk in the cheese and nutmeg.
Remove from heat once cheese is melted. - Fold in diced chicken.
- OPTIONAL CRUNCHY TOPPING: Top with additional cheese, and brown lightly
under broiler. - Serve with spinach, Many patrons prefer the hash served over white toast (no crust) instead of rice.
Seared Spinach
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound fresh spinach leaves, thoroughly washed, stems removed
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Preparation:
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the spinach leaves and
sear quickly on one side. - Add salt and pepper.
- Toss/turn with tongs or a spatula to cook the rest of the spinach until just
wilted, but still bright green. (5 or 6 minutes)
A lot has changed over the last few months.
Thanks to the coronavirus, jobs have ended, travel plans have been disrupted, and we have all had to adapt to a new way of living. Wearing masks when out of the house is now the norm, and many of us are now a little more suspicious about close contact with people than we used to be.
It has been a rough ride, and it’s not quite over yet. However, we should take stock of the life lessons that the pandemic has taught us. Yes, our lives have been thrown into chaos, but we should still be thankful for these lessons, as they will positively impact our lives in the long-term.
Lesson #1: Our health matters
We know our health matters, of course, but some of us can be a little careless when it comes to self-preservation. We fall into bad habits, such as smoking, drinking too much, and snack eating. And we put off medical appointments because we’re too busy or because we assume we are probably okay.
The pandemic has made us all take better care of ourselves. We have seen the devastation it has done to the health of others, and this has shaped the way we live and behave. Ask yourself: How many times have you washed your hands today? Chances are, you may have washed them more than usual.
With the knowledge that our life is fragile, we should now have the incentive to take better care of ourselves. We should make an effort to overcome life-damaging habits, and we should make the necessary check-ups, be that with a doctor, quality dental care, or those other services that are unique to some of us.
Lesson #2: We need to care for our financial wellbeing
Over this last year, the financial position of many of us has changed. We may have lost our jobs or been forced to live on less if our employers haven’t been able to pay us our full salaries. We may have had to make cutbacks in an effort to reduce our living costs, and we may have had to delve into our savings to make ends meet.
It’s been a tough time, but it has been a reminder that we should start saving money for other emergency situations. It has also been a reminder that it is possible to live on less with a little bit of frugal thinking. When the pandemic ends, we should remember the financial lessons learned, for the long-term sake of our future finances.
Lesson #3: We should prioritize our relationships
Absence makes the heart grow fonder, or so the saying goes, and this has been true over the last year. Many of us have missed out on contact with family members, friends, and other loved ones. We haven’t been able to socialize like we used to, and this is because of self-protection and self-isolation, as well the preservation of the people we’re close to.
The pandemic has been a reminder that our relationships matter, and it might be a wake-up call to those of us who are sometimes too busy to make time for others. And knowing that the lives of our loved ones are also fragile, we might now be reminded to spend as much time with them as we can before they are no longer here at all.
What life lessons have you learned? Let us know in the comments below.