Betty, Please ... Chicken Tetrazzini!

I first heard of Chicken Tetrazzini in the late 70's while I was in fits watching the hilarious Laverne & Shirley episode where they attempted to open a diner called 'Dead Lazlo's Place.' The clip is below but even before youtube I always remembered Laverne stuffing a whole chicken in a pot of boiling water in an attempt to make the dish. Now, shield your eyes from the SPOILER ALERT: Hopes for the diner didn't pan out and by the end Shirley (responding to Laverne's sweaty calls of 'Betty, please' and 'Pick Up, Betty' as you may remember) suffered a total collapse and ran out shrieking at the grabbing hands and demands of the unruly customers and a burned mess of 'hash blacks.'



Somehow over the years however,  the dish lingered in memory ... then I happened to be poring through a grand, gilded-in-bronze edition of A Treasury of Great Recipes by Vincent Price (yes, that one--the celluloid ghoul of legend who also provided the cackle at the end of 'Thriller'). I discovered in its glorious pages a recipe for Emince of Chicken Tetrazzini au Gratin that he and his wife enjoyed at Sardi's. It may surprise you to learn that the Prices were international epicures and the cookbook reflects their culinary journeys, laboriously detailed with menus from some of the world's most historied chefs. But oh boy, was this glogging Tetrazzini loaded with fat on top of fat (ie. adding heavy cream to an already rich veloute sauce and then sour cream). No, no--although it may have been created for the opera star Luisa Tetrazzini ("when calories didn't count"), I have no plans of padding my bellows to thunder through a tempestuous Wagnerian epic. I enlisted the help of another, less frantic Betty instead, that old gal Betty Crocker came through. Armed with a cooked rotisserie chicken and low-fat cream soups (subbing for the veloute sauce), I easily prepared her much trimmed-down version of Chicken Tetrazzini, great for any night of the week and quick to go as well. So ... pick up, Betty!

The link is here. So, my suggestions? Just shred that aforementioned rotisserie chicken, and for the suggested soups, use one can each of low sodium/fat Campbell's cream of chicken and cream of mushroom with a can of 2% milk and 1/3 reduced fat sour cream. Pre-sliced baby bellas fit the bill for the mushrooms.

And in case you'd like to watch the entire Laverne & Shirley clip, in its hilarity, click here!

Chilled Potato Soup with Spinach

Long about the time I was in high school and somewhat beyond, Pepperidge Farm used to make the most delicious Vichysoisse to which I used to add thyme. I've since made my own version, chopping the leeks, boiling the potatoes and whatnot, but in a pinch I go for Campbell's Cream of Potato Soup. I still add thyme and ever since I saw Madonna's Truth or Dare movie with that curious scene when she's on the phone slurping something out of a tureen that I thought was spinach, that goes into the pot as well. A friend recently informed me that Madonna was actually having miso soup with seaweed. I've never made that but here is my recipe for Chilled Potato Soup with Spinach that I would like to propose as an absolute delight for summer. And yes, you can still make your own Vichysoisse and perhaps think to add thyme and spinach!

Chilled Potato Soup with Spinach
Serves two hungry people
Ingredients
1 can of Campbell's Cream of Potato Soup
1 can of spinach (I like Popeye's!)
1 cup of milk (2% if you'd rather)
2 teaspoons of thyme
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Several grinds of salt

Method
Over a low flame, add the can of soup to your pan and whisk in the milk. Continue to whisk occasionally, adding in the thyme. When the mixture becomes warm add in the can of spinach and let them get acquainted. Simmer slowly, tossing in the pepper and salt. Once heated through, let cool by placing the pan near an open window or something--when you can lift it without using oven mitts, put in the refrigerator to chill it thoroughly, at least two hours or so.

Enjoy!