Thai Basil Chicken Soup with Asparagus and Mushroom Filled Crepes and Thai Basil Butter on Toasted Baguette

By Tiller

Ingredients

• Thai Basil Chicken Broth;
• 1 whole chicken,about 2-3lbs
• 12 oz chiitake mushrooms, stems and caps separated, reserving caps for crepes
• 1 celery stalk,cut in half
• 1 med carrot, peeled and cut in half
• 1 med onion,skin removed and cut in half
• 1 lemongrass stalk, bruised
• 1 bunch fresh Thai basil, stems and leaves
• 1 tbsp. smashed fresh ginger
• 1 red thai chile split,seeded if no heat is desired
• Peel of 1 lime
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp. black peppercorns
• Thai Basil Soup garnishes;
• Thai Basil Chicken Broth,recipe above
• red finger chile, optional
• 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 cup fish sauce
• juice of 2 limes
• kosher salt
• leg meat, reserved from Thai Basil chicken broth
• 4 plum tomatoes, quartered,seeded and cut into 1/2" triangles
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled,seeded and sliced
• 1 bunch green onion, chopped
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 lime, cut into quarters
• Fresh Thai basil,stems and leaves
• Asparagus & mushroom filled crepes;
• egg crepes
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tbsp finely minced fresh ginger
• 6 eggs
• 1/3 cup 2% milk
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• salt
• Filling for crepes;
• 3 tbsp oil
• Shiitake mushroom caps, julienned
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 bunch fresh thai basil, washed , rinsed and leaves picked
• 1 cup butter, melted on low heat and cooled
• 1/2 baguette, toasted and cut into 4 pieces

Preparation

Step 1

Thai basil chicken broth;

place chicken, mushrooms,celery ,carrot, onion, lemongrass,thai basil, ginger, thai chile, lime peel, bay leaves, and peppercorn in a large pot.Cover with cold water. Bring mixture to a boil, and then reduce the heat to simmer, uncovered. Skim the top, removing the impurities throughout the cooking process. Cook for 1 hour at a low simmer. Remove the chicken from the pot. Remove the leg meat, pull into pieces and reserve for soup garnish. strain the stock into a clean pot..

For the Thai Basil chicken soup garnishes; Bring the stock to a boil. Add the chile, if using, sugar, fish sauce and lime juice. Season with salt. Add the pulled chicken meat, tomato and cucumber.Serve the soup, piping hot, garnish with green onion, sesame oil,lime , and thai basil.

To make Asparagus and mushroom filled crepes;
for the egg crepes; place 2 tbsp of melted butter in a bowl. Add the ginger, eggs,milk, sesame oil,and salt and whisk well . Heat a non-stick sauté pan over med heat. Dab a paper towel in the butter and coat the pan. ladle a thin layer of crepe batter in the pan, coating the bottom evenly. Once the batter begins to bubble in the middle flip the crepe and cook the other side. remove and lay on a dry kitchen towel.

for the crepe assembly;
heat oil in sauté pan over med heat.saute shiitake mushroom caps over med heat. Saute the shiitake mushroom caps over med heat until tender, 5 minutes. Season the mushrooms with salt, and pepper. set aside.
Place one crepe on the cutting board. Place 2 spears lengthwise, on one end of the crepe. Place a single layer of shiitake mushrooms over the asparagus. Roll the crepe beginning at one end. Place another crepe on the cutting board and roll the finished crepe inside. xut the crepe on a diagonal.

To Make thai basil butter:
Place the thai basil in a blender and pour the melted butter over.Pulse quickly until just incorporated, ensuring not to bruise the Thai basil.Transfer the mixture to a bowl, place in the freezer for 5 minutes. Remove the butter from the freezer and whisk the mixture until well incorporated, return the Thai basil butter to the freezer., Once the butter has solidified, approximately 5 minutes, whisk again.
Transfer the butter to a container and place in the fridge or freezer. |Spread the thai basil butter over the toasted baquette pieces.