Chicken Sandwiches With Chive Butter Food

CRESCENT CHICKEN BUNDLES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Beat cream cheese, 2 tablespoons butter, chives, milk, salt and pepper until blended. Stir in chicken., Unroll crescent roll dough and separate into eight rectangles; press perforations together. Spoon about 1/2 cup chicken mixture in the center of each rectangle. Bring edges up to the center and pinch to seal. Brush with remaining butter. Sprinkle with crushed stuffing, lightly pressing down., Transfer to ungreased baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Freeze option: Freeze unbaked bundles on baking sheets until firm; transfer to a freezer container. May be frozen up to 2 months. To use, thaw in refrigerator. Bake as directed, increasing time as necessary to heat through.

CHICKEN SANDWICHES WITH CHIVE BUTTER

Steps:

• Combine butter, chives, mustard and cayenne in small bowl; blend well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Butter can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to room temperature before continuing.)
• Spread chive butter on 1 side of each bread slice. Place chicken on buttered side of 2 bread slices. Top chicken with some watercress. Press remaining 2 bread slices, buttered side down, onto watercress. Cut each sandwich into 4 pieces. Arrange any remaining watercress on 2 plates. Top with sandwiches.

SKILLET CHICKEN THIGHS WITH WHITE WINE-BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Sprinkle them on both sides with 1 1/2 teaspoons each salt and pepper.
• Heat a large oven-proof skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs to the skillet skin-side down and cook, moving them around once or twice to ensure even browning, until the skin is very golden brown, 11 to 12 minutes.
• Turn off the heat. Grasp a wad of paper towels with tongs and mop up excess fat in the bottom of the skillet-this will prevent the grease from spattering all over your oven; carefully discard the paper towel. Repeat several times until there's only a thin film of oil over the bottom of the skillet.
• Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until the chicken is almost cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Flip the thighs so they are skin side up, then continue roasting until no longer pink near the bone, another 6 minutes. Remove the skillet from the oven and transfer the chicken thighs to a plate, skin side up. Wipe out the skillet and set aside.
• Meanwhile, start your sauce. Combine the vinegar, wine, shallots, lemon juice and bay leaves in a heavy 2-quart saucepan. Simmer over medium heat until the mixture is reduced to a wet paste, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the cream and continue to simmer until the mixture is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
• Reduce the heat to low and remove the bay leaves. Add a few chunks of the butter and whisk constantly until melted, then add a few more chunks and whisk again until melted. Continue adding and whisking the butter, which should melt into a creamy emulsion, until all the butter is incorporated, about 4 minutes. Do not let the sauce go over 130 degrees F or it will separate. If the sauce starts to break, remove from the heat, add 2 ice cubes and whisk until it cools down and comes back together.
• Season the sauce with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper. Transfer it to the cast iron skillet, nestle the chicken on top and sprinkle the whole dish with chives. Serve immediately.

DAINTY EGG AND CHIVE TEA SANDWICHES FOR TEA-TIME

Steps:

• Place the eggs in a small pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and cook for 6 minutes. Drain and run the eggs under cold water until cool.
• Peel and then coarsely grate or crumble the eggs into a bowl. Mix with the salad cream, mayonnaise and chives and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Cut off the bread crusts with a serrated knife - put them to one side for home-made breadcrumbs.
• Butter the bread and divide the egg mixture between 4 bread slices. Top with the remaining bread. Stack 2 sandwiches together and cut into 3 fingers, then serve.
• Cook's tips: Pierce the rounded end of each egg with a pin before cooking to help stop the shell from cracking.
• Cooling the eggs under cold water stops them from cooking further and prevents a dark ring forming around the yolk.
• For easy peeling, peel the eggs under cold running water over a colander to collect all the bits of shell. The water stops the shell from sticking to your fingers and the egg.