Jane Henegar

Good morning, good reading friends. Last week's Life and Taste section was full of bright ideas, a reminder that every inch of this section holds ideas for your kitchen.

For Fare Exchange's part, today we are searching for Buffalo-style chicken salad like the one served at Chicken Salad Chick on Market Street and, in fact, for any chicken salad from their menu. In the dessert department, we are looking for candy bar cookies, homemade frozen yogurt and a mousse or gelatin dessert made with fruit, cream and bits of angel food cake.

Adelaide Evans is the requester of chicken and LaFayette Foodie, with an admittedly serious sweet tooth, asked for the dessert recipes.

Chicken will dominate today's discussion. First came a penciled recipe from the collection of Lillian Lewis of Jasper, who died recently at 97. Her cousin, Marilyn Garner, found in Lewis' kitchen treasures a cardboard notebook for storing recipe cards; it was titled "My Favorite Recipes: The Chattanooga Times." One recipe inside is titled Fried Chicken, but that title may be a little misleading for a 21st century cook, so we'll dare to amend the title slightly, but not the recipe itself.

Old Virginia Stovetop Chicken

Chicken

Butter

1 (16-ounce) can tomatoes

1 green pepper

1 cup chopped celery

Cut up chicken, if needed, as if to fry it. Heat butter until sizzling in a heavy Dutch oven and sear chicken until brown on all sides. Add tomatoes, green pepper and celery, cover and bake on top of stove, at low heat, for at least an hour or until chicken is tender and green pepper and celery are well cooked.

Adelaide Evans considers this curried version of chicken salad a favorite, and she believes she saw it first in Fare Exchange years ago. She is one of many who hope to get some tips from the downtown eatery Chicken Salad Chick for variations on this very Southern theme.

Chicken Curry Salad

Salt and pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup mayonnaise or more if desired

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

1/4 cup Craisins or more if desired

Handful of chopped fresh basil

1/2 cup lightly toasted coconut (optional garnish)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Tenderize chicken breasts with a clean hammer or kitchen tenderizing tool. Salt and pepper on both sides.

Heat olive oil in heavy, ovenproof skillet and brown chicken breasts, several minutes on each side. Put skillet of browned chicken in oven and cook about 15 minutes. Remove chicken from oven and cool. Toss with remaining ingredients, except coconut. Sprinkle toasted coconut on top, if desired, and serve.

You may make this ahead, but reserve almonds, Craisins and basil and stir in just before serving.

If you could see the photograph of this quiche, clipped by a reader from Southern Living's March 2012 issue, you would be heading to the kitchen to stir it up. The quiche was topped with minced fresh parsley, chives and mint for a pretty finish. Although not prescribed by the sending cook, these touches are worth considering.

Caramelized Onion Quiche

1 (14.1-ounce) package refrigerated pie crusts

3 large sweet onions, sliced (about 1½ pounds)

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

6 cooked bacon slices, crumbled

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Gruyere cheese

1 1/2cups half and half

4 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Unroll pie crusts; stack on a lightly greased surface. Roll stacked pie crusts into a 12-inch circle. Fit crust into a 10-inch deep-dish tart pan with removable bottom; press into fluted edges Trim off excess crust along edges. Line crust with aluminum foil or parchment paper, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place pan on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake 12 minutes.

Remove weights and foil and bake 8 more minutes. Cool completely on baking sheet or wire rack, about 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Meanwhile, cook onions in hot oil in a large skillet over medium high heat, stirring often, 15 to 20 minutes or until onions are caramel-colored. Remove from heat and stir in parsley and bacon. Place half of onion mixture in tart shell and top with half of cheese; repeat with remaining onion mixture and cheese.

Whisk together half and half, eggs, salt, pepper and nutmeg and pour over cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until set. Cool on baking sheet on a wire rack 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 6 to 8 servings. Total time: 2 hours.

Also tucked into the Fare Exchange file is a chicken cobber from Sheila Armstrong of Ooltewah; this entrée is good served with spinach and apple salad, pound cake and chocolate sauce and/or ice cream. The recipe begins thus: "Beneath chunks of cheesy sourdough croutons, a creamy mixture of chicken, mushrooms and peppers offers up a delicious filling." The evidence follows.

Chicken Cobbler Casserole

6 tablespoons melted butter, divided

4 cups cubed sourdough rolls (or substitute French bread)

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 medium-sized sweet onions, sliced

1 (8-ounce) package sliced fresh mushrooms

1 cup white wine

1 (10-3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup drained and chopped jarred roasted red bell peppers

2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss 4 tablespoons of melted butter with sourdough rolls, Parmesan and parsley; set aside.

Sauté onions in remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Add mushrooms; sauté 5 minutes. Stir in wine, soup, roasted red peppers and chicken. Cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until bubbly. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 9-inch square baking dish; top evenly with bread mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Substitution: Use an equal amount of chicken broth or buttermilk in place of the wine, if desired.

And here ends the reading for June 11. When the calendar turns to 18, we will be back... and we hope you will too.