Beurre Blanc

The Classic French Sauce

One taste of this smooth, supple butter sauce and you will understand why it is a French classic! After seeing the movie Julie and Julia, my interest in the Beurre Blanc sauce was heightened. A dear friend of ours shared his cache of pheasant breasts with us. What a treat! I thought something this special required a special sauce. If your first thought is the sauce is too high in fat, remember the French paradox. Drink wine with the meal! The theory is, the French have the richest diet but have the lowest incidence of heart disease due to drinking red wine! I made one-half of the recipe and had leftovers!

Beurre Blanc

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup white wine vinegar (I used rice vinegar)

2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon white pepper, or to taste

2 sticks unsalted butter

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Directions:

Boil wine, vinegar, and shallot in a pan over moderate heat until liquid is syrupy and reduced to 2 to 3 tablespoons, about 5 minutes. Add cream, salt, and white pepper and boil 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and add a few pieces of butter at a time, whisking constantly and add new pieces before previous ones have completely liquefied (the sauce should have the consistency of Hollandaise), lifting the pan from heat occasionally to cool mixture.

Remove from heat, then season to taste with salt and pepper and pour sauce through sieve into a sauceboat, pressing on and then discarding shallot. Serve immediately. Yield 1 cup