Pan-Roasted Chicken with Morels in Cream Sauce

Another 10+/10...this is just. plain. delicio-city!  It's a splurge meal to make, given there are morels in it (unless you are one of those lucky people who have fresh ones on hand; if so, use 12-15 of those instead and count your blessings)--but it is sooooo worth it, I assure you :)

Link to original recipe: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019296-pan-roasted-chicken-in-cream-sauce
(You will most likely need a subscription to access the original recipe, should you click the link.)

Ingredients:

~3 lbs. chicken pieces (I used thighs and drumsticks)
Kosher salt, to taste
2 T. olive oil
1 oz. dried morels, reconstituted (I only used 1/2 oz. this time; it could easily have 1 oz.)
1/4 c. Cognac
~1 1/2 c. chicken stock
2/3 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. dry Madeira wine
1 T. unsalted butter
1 T. crème fraîche
1 tsp. fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh sage, finely chopped
2 tsp. fresh tarragon, finely chopped
~1/2 T. Italian parsley, to garnish

Directions:

1. Season chicken parts somewhat heavily with salt (original recipe says 'aggressive salt' it--I did such and it turned out a tad too much (but still great)).

2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy Dutch oven over medium-high heat, then add a few of the chicken pieces, being careful not to crowd.  Brown chicken all over, then transfer to a plate.  Repeat in batches until all pieces are browned.

3. Pour off all but around 2 T. of the oil in the pan and place off-heat on the stove.  Add the reconstituted mushrooms to the pan and stir to coat.  Let the residual heat of the pot cook the mushrooms for around 2 minutes, then add the Cognac to the pot and stir to coat the mushrooms.  Again, let the residual heat cook the mixture for around 2-3 additional minutes.

4. Push the mushrooms to the sides of the pot (forming a ring), then add the chicken pieces, arranging in a single layer as best as possible.  Pour in chicken stock, just until it is about halfway up the chicken pieces.

5. Place pot on burner with medium heat.  Bring mixture to a simmer, then cover and lower heat to medium-low or enough to keep mixture at gentle simmer, for 15 minutes.

6. Uncover pot and transfer chicken pieces to a small, rimmed baking sheet.  Increase the heat to medium-high and cook until mixture is reduced by a third.

7. Stir in the heavy cream and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 2 minutes.

8. Heat oven to 400°F.

9. Stir in the Madeira and continue cooking for around 5-6 minutes, or until sauce can coat the back of the spoon.

10. Transfer chicken to the oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until skin has re-crisped a bit.

11. Meanwhile, remove the pot from heat and stir in the butter, crème fraîche, thyme, and sage.  Then stir in the tarragon.

12. Serve the chicken pieces with sauce spooned over, garnished with the chopped parsley.  Enjoy!