Rosh Hashana at Gloria Kobrin's House: Chicken with Grapes and Mushrooms

Everyone has their go-to holiday recipes that they make year after year. This is one of those recipes in my house. I can't even imagine what would happen if I chose to make another chicken recipe for the first night of Rosh Hashana.

I am pretty certain that there would be mutiny!

Chicken Breast with Grapes & Mushrooms

INGREDIENTS

• 8 medium chicken breasts- wings off and skinned
  
• 15 unsalted non-dairy soda crackers (1 full cup)
  
• 1 tablespoon dried tarragon
  
• ¼ teaspoon finely ground black pepper
  
• 9 tablespoons non-dairy margarine
  
• 1 medium onion
  
• 1 cup chicken stock (instant or fresh)
  
• 1 cup dry white wine
  
• 1 pound white mushrooms- sliced
  
• 3 cups seedless green grapes- stems removed

EQUIPMENT

• large skillet
  
• large baking pan
  
• slotted spoon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to: 350 F.

2. Crush crackers finely. Mix cracker crumbs with tarragon and pepper. Set aside.

3. Clean chicken thoroughly. Remove any unsightly pieces of fat and bone. Rinse well.

4. Pour crumbs into a plastic bag. Add one chicken breast at a time and shake vigorously until it is completely coated with crumbs. Repeat process with remaining breasts. Set aside.

5. Melt six tablespoons margarine in skillet over medium-high heat. Place no more than three or four chicken breasts in skillet at one time. Brown them on both sides over high heat. Add more margarine- one tablespoon at a time if needed. Place browned chicken breasts in a single layer in baking pan.

6. Peel and chop onion finely. Sauté onions in margarine remaining in skillet. Add chicken stock and wine to the onions and bring to a boil. Remove skillet from heat. Ladle sauce over and around chicken breasts. Bake chicken breasts, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

7. While chicken is baking, wipe mushrooms clean trim their stems. Slice mushrooms thinly.

8. Melt three tablespoons margarine in skillet. Sauté mushrooms quickly over high heat. Remove mushrooms from skillet with a slotted spoon and scatter over baked chicken. (The recipe may be cooled, wrapped and frozen at this point. The grapes should be added after chicken has defrosted. Heat chicken in a 325 F. oven for 35-45 minutes before serving.)

9. Rinse grapes and scatter them over chicken. Bake 30 minutes more. Serve hot with rice.