Cock-a-doodle dooooooo!

Coq au vin means rooster in wine. Yum! Who doesn't love a good cock with some pork and wine? *Excuse me, I need to go giggle in the other room...okay, I'm back now.* So, ah hm, most cooks use chicken instead of rooster, and I'm one of them. Aren't roosters supposed to be tough and old? I found a likely looking coq au vin recipe on foodnetwork.com by Tyler Florence.

Ingredients
6 slices bacon
2 chicken breasts
2 thighs
2 legs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Kosher salt
Pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups pearl onions, peeled
2 cups mushrooms
2 carrots, cut in 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup cognac or brandy
1 bottle Burgundy wine
2 cups chicken broth
5 sprigs fresh thyme
2 teaspoons herbs de Provence
3 bay leaves
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
Directions
In a large, heavy skillet or Dutch oven, fry the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Coat chicken pieces in flour, salt and pepper. Brown chicken in hot bacon fat on both sides.
Add garlic, onions, mushrooms and carrots. Saute 2 minutes to soften. Pour cognac into a small glass. Remove pan from heat, pour in cognac, Flambe by lighting a long match and holding it just above the pot, light the fumes. The brandy will catch fire and the flames will burn out within 1 minute. When the flames die down, return the pan to the heat and gradually stir in the wine and broth. When the wine is well blended, add the herbs. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove cover and continue to simmer for 15 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce a bit. You may want to add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste or cornstarch to aid in the thickening process.
To serve, top the chicken and vegetables with reserved crumbled bacon and fresh parsley.

Being me, I can't just follow a recipe. I always think that I know better than some fancy nancy TV Chef who spent years in school and training perfecting his skill. So instead of pearl onions, I used a chopped yellow onion, and I used dried parsley because herbs are so darned expensive, and in the summer I grow my own, but in the winter I'm just not going to blow my budget on herbs (I did use fresh thyme, as I had another recipe this week I would use it in). I also split the recipe in half. And I used homemade chicken stock. I'm not bragging, just mentioning it. You know, it's homemade. I made it myself. In my home. Because I'm awesome.

Frankly, I almost didn't finish the recipe because the chicken, lightly dreaged in flour and fried in bacon fat looked absolutely AMAZING. I mean, how can it not? Bacon makes everything better...chicken, salad, ice cream, you name it. Sometimes I dab a little bacon fat behind my ears. However, I pushed through and I completed the recipe. Food network says it takes only about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Lying liars who lie with their lie holes. It took about 2 or so hours. Food Network always lies about cook times.

The verdict: it was good. Solidly good. Very warm and comforting and nice on a cold day. I loved the addition of the herbs de Provence (a mix of lavender, rosemary, and other wonderful herbs). I wanted a little more brightness, a little less heavy and savory and maybe more...something...maybe I'll add some lemon zest next time. Or I'll serve it on an herb salad or with a side of melon-mint fruit salad. Or eat it with a Lemon Drop Martini! Everything is better with a Lemon Drop Martini!