Fall in a Bowl!

I love the fall (except that for us, it means that winter is just around the corner and Chicago winters are tough). Fall reminds me of butternut squash, apples, braised meats, soups, pumpkins and fallen leaves. I made a recipe that was inspired by Emeril. I don't often like him but I have had to get creative and think out of the box since giving up carbs. My husband and I went on an adventure to Wisconsin this weekend. We bought brats from a meat market in Lake Geneva, had lunch in Lake Zurich with our friends, and hiked in Eagle, Wisconsin before returning home. This is the supper I made when we got home. It was a one pot meal with tons of flavor.

Apple Brandy Chicken with Cabbage (serves 4)

6 organic Chicken thighs with skin and bone
3 slices thick cut bacon or 6 slices thin bacon diced
2 granny smith apples diced
1 bulb of fennel sliced
1 head cabbage sliced
1 large onion sliced
1 cup no sugar added apple juice
1/3 cup Brandy or apple brandy
1/2 cup chicken stock
Salt and Pepper
1 TBL of fennel seed (optional, but delicious)

1) Get out your biggest dutch oven. Mine is a 7 quart red beauty that I got for my birthday from Pat
2) Dice your bacon and put it in the pot
3) Brown the bacon. While this is happening, start your prep
4) Slice your fennel first in half vertically. De-core (like an apple) and thinly slice
5) Slice your cabbage first in half (vertically) De-core and then thinly slice
6) Slice your onion and dice your apple after it is de-cored too
7) Remove cooked bacon to a plate and remove all but 2 TBL of bacon fat. Fat=flavor!
8) Salt and pepper your chicken thighs on both sides. (make sure that you are working with medium hi heat)
9) Place chicken SKIN-SIDE DOWN in the pot. It will be crowded, but give it some time
10) Let them cook for 5 minutes or so. Take a peak and see if there is a crust
11) Flip chicken (the first side should be beautifully browned)
12) Remove chicken and begin cooking your vegetables. I poured out some of the chicken fat before adding the vegetables. It is your choice. 
13) Fennel and onion go in the pot first (saute maybe 5 minutes)
14) Remember to season every layer as you go. Lightly salt and pepper the fennel and onion
15) Add 1/2 of your cabbage. Begin to saute the cabbage
16) After 5 minutes, add the rest of your cabbage
17) Add your fennel seed. Season with salt and pepper. Remember to do this with every layer of food
18) Once the second batch of cabbage is wilted slightly, add your brandy. Stir the brandy and it will help to deglaze your pan...i.e. pick up yummy bacon and chicken bits from the bottom. Let it evaporate
19) Place chicken on top of cabbage mixture
20) Scatter apples around the chicken (I don't like mine mushy. Add them earlier if you want)
21) Carefully pour one cup of apple juice and some chicken stock around the chicken and cabbage
22) Put a top on and let it cook on low heat for 45 minutes to an hour
23) Serve in bowls with juice
24) Garnish with fennel fronds (the green tops you cut off the fennel) and some diced raw apple
25) This was YUMMERS as my hubs says. It was not too sweet. The brandy and the apply juice produced a slightly sweet rich sauce.

*There is a caveat. I like crispy chicken skin. I removed the chicken from the pot at the last minute and crisped the skin on my cast-iron griddle. This is unnecessary, but I liked the effect.

Thick cut bacon rendering in the pan

Chicken browned in the bacon drippings

Sauteed fennel and onion. The brown on the bottom of this pan is called the FOND. It is flavorful and the brandy helps to pick up those yummy brown bits. 

Arrange your chicken on top of the cabbage mixture. Scatter apples around the chicken at this point

Finished product. Raw apple and fennel fronds are great garnishes for this meal.