Julia Child was the reason I gained 5 pounds last summer. That said, I had to give up cooking from Mastering the Art of French Cooking until the weight fell off. Almost a year later and we’re finally back to our starting weight… which meant time for chicken with cream sauce!

(Don’t worry, I’ll eat her cooking in moderation now, so I can make it more often and post the recipes).

Chicken with paprika and onion cream sauce is one of the most amazing meals I’ve ever created in my kitchen. It was the first recipe I ever cooked of Julia’s and a favorite I come back to. I’ve altered it slightly (no one needs to use 9 tablespoons of butter!). Here’s what you need –

• 1 lb of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (thin cut works well)
• 2/3 cup finely minced onion (she recommends white, I only had a red and this worked just as well)
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp paprika
• Dash of salt
• White pepper
• Lemon juice

Preheat the oven at 400 F. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Add a few drops of lemon juice to each breast and rub in a sprinkle of white pepper and salt. Flip and repeat.

Drop the minced onions in boiling water for one minute. Drain, run cold water over them and drain again. In a heavy casserole, cook the onions with the salt, paprika, and butter over low to medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until the onions are translucent but not brown.

Arrange chicken in the covered casserole (on top of everything) and pop into the oven for 10 minutes. The chicken will feel springy to the touch when it’s done. Place on a plate and cover.

Place the casserole over a burner on low to medium heat again and add:

• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 3/4 cup heavy cream

Stir frequently until the sauce thickens (about five minutes). Plate the chicken and pour sauce over.

I served this with an arugula salad which consisted of arugula, roasted chopped almonds, olive oil, lemon juice, Romano cheese and pepper.

Julia recommends serving this chicken with artichoke. So, I decided to make my first artichoke. To do so, pull the stem off the bottom and trim down with a knife, trim the leaves and drop into a bowl of cold water with a teaspoon of vinegar (to help preserve color).

While the artichoke is soaking, bring water in a large sauce pan up to a boil. Add a dash of salt. Toss in the artichoke and cook for approximately 30 minutes or until soft. Remove and eat with the leftover cream sauce.

Feast!