Saffron will cost you, but a pinch goes far

1 large pinch saffron threads (about 1/4 teaspoon)

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons ketchup

*1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds

Sprinkle chicken liberally with salt and pepper. Heat butter and olive oil over low to medium heat in a skillet large enough to hold chicken pieces in one layer. When butter is melted, add chicken parts and saute, turning to brown on both sides - about 5 to 7 minutes on each side. When chicken is browned, carefully pour off and discard most of the fat. With heat on low, stir in herbs de Provence, saffron, cream, and ketchup until blended and smooth.

Cover skillet and cook over low heat until chicken is tender when tested with a fork, about 30 minutes. Turn chicken once while cooking. Remove chicken to a large platter and sprinkle with optional toasted almonds before serving. (For a thicker sauce, transfer cooked chicken to a warm oven, and simmer sauce, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes, or until thickened to your liking.)

Serves 4.

* To toast the slivered almonds, place them in a single layer in a small frying pan - without butter or oil. Turn heat on low to medium and toast almonds, stirring constantly, until lightly browned; watch carefully as they can burn easily.

1 tablespoon butter

1-1/2 tablespoons minced onion

1 cup white rice (basmati, if available)

2 cups chicken broth

1 pinch saffron threads

Heat butter over low to medium heat in a 1-quart sauce pan. Add onion and sauté, stirring until onion is soft and translucent. Add rice, broth, and saffron; stir and cover. Cook over low heat for 18 to 20 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Makes a fine accompaniment to curried chicken or shrimp.

Serves 4.

The following recipe is from 'Secrets of Saffron: the Vagabond Life of the World's Most Seductive Spice,' by Pat Willard (Beacon Press, $23). Ms. Willard says of this dessert offering, 'This is my winter cake. I usually make the first one sometime after the heat goes on for the first time in the house, and always have it around for Christmas guests.' The recipe makes one large tube-sized cake or two loaf cakes.

For the glaze:

1/3 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 small pinch (about 15 to 20 threads) saffron

2/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind (zest)

For the cake:

Fine dried bread crumbs

1 cup milk

1 large pinch saffron (about 60 threads)

3 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound unsalted (sweet) butter at room temperature

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind (zest)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch tube pan or two loaf pans. Coat the bottom and sides with the bread crumbs and set aside.

Stir all ingredients for the glaze into a small bowl and set aside. For the cake, heat the milk in a small saucepan and when hot (but not boiling), remove from the heat and stir in the saffron. Set aside for about 20 minutes. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together; then beat the eggs in, one at a time. Alternately fold the dry ingredients and the milk into the batter. Stir the grated lemon zest into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake for 1-1/4 hours or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Immediately remove cake from pan. Place the cake on a rack over a bowl, and pour the glaze over it until all the glaze is absorbed.

Page: 1 | 2