Directions: |
Directions:Bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch the sweetbreads for about four minutes. Drain and plunge into a bowl of ice water. Peel the membrane from the outside of the sweetbreads. It might be necessary to pull apart the lobes to get the little shreds of membrane out, but don't break the sweetbreads up too much. Drain the excess water.
Combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Dust the sweetbreads with the mixture. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat until it bubbles. Saute the sweetbreads until browned lightly on all sides. Don't be concerned that they might not be cooked throughout; there's yet another stage of cooking coming. Keep the sweetbreads warm. Pour off the excess butter, but don't wipe the pan. Lower the heat to medium-low, and add the Calvados. Bring to a boil, whisking the bottom of the pan to dissolve the juices and butter. Be careful; Calvados is highly alcoholic, and the fumes may flame. When the Calvados is almost all gone, add the Chardonnay, mustard, and mushrooms. Saute the mushrooms until soft. Add the cream and bring to a boil, stirring the pan to blend the ingredients. Be careful not to let the cream foam over. Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper as needed. Return the sweetbreads to the pan and cook until heated through. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: Veal sweetbreads are the thymus glands of a veal calf. They're almost too tender, and have the flavor of veal but with an incomparable richness. That owes to a rather high level of cholesterol, which makes me think of sweetbreads more as an appetizer than as the entrée it classically was. This dish gets added richness from the cream sauce. The most time-consuming part of this dish is getting the sweetbreads ready for the saute pan. The fresh product seems almost liquid, but firms up when you poach it.
|
This recipe for Sweetbreads Normande is from