Black and White Ball

Truman Capote threw “a little masked ball” for 540 of his closest friends on November 28, 1966.  When Capote summoned his pals for a night of dancing (and chicken hash at midnight), he was as famous as he would ever be, and flush with the profits from his critically acclaimed best-selling nonfiction book “In Cold Blood.”

I was always intrigued by Capote’s selections for his midnight dinner at such an extravagant affair which included the very all -American and very homey, chicken hash. It may give us insight into the genius of Capote. This is a beautifully balanced dish that is surprisingly like nothing I have tasted. The red peppers along with the tomato paste are the stars that makes this dish zing. Capote was on to something when he placed it on the menu.

Ingredients

2 whole (4 split) chicken breasts, bone-in, skin-on (see Note below)

16 basil leaves

Olive oil, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Six T unsalted butter, divided

2 lbs boiling potatoes, peeled and large diced

2 red onions chopped

2 large red bell peppers

3 garlic cloves minced

2 tsp fresh thyme leaves

1 tsp paprika

1 T tomato paste – Note: I used 2 T

4 minced scallion, white and green parts

1/4 cup chopped fresh leaf parsley

Sour cream, cheddar and sliced lemons for serving

Note: I used 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts and baked them for 12 minutes at 425 F.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Loosen the skin from the meat with your fingers, leaving one side attached. Place 4 basil leaves under the skin of each chicken breast. Pull the skin over as much of the meat as possible so the chicken won’t dry out. With your hands, rub each piece with olive oil and sprinkle very generously with salt and pepper. Bake the chicken for 35 minutes until the skin is lightly browned and the chicken is just cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones. Cut the chicken in large dice pieces and set aside.

Note: I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts and baked them for 12 minutes at 425 F.

Melt 4 T of the butter (saving 2 T) in a large saute pan. Add the onions and cook for a few minutes and then add the potatoes, 1 t salt and 1/2 t pepper and saute over medium heat for about 10 minutes until evenly browned and cooked through – but not mushy.

In a separate saute pan, melt the remaining 2 T butter and add the red pepper, garlic, thyme, paprika, tomato paste, 1 t salt and 1/2 t of pepper and saute over medium heat for about 5-7 minutes, until the edges of the peppers are seared.

Add the chicken and pepper mixture to the potatoes and heat through. Add the scallions and parsley, toss together and place on a serving platter. Finish with sour cream, cheddar and sliced lemons.