Tishreen's Chicken Breast in Plum and Coffee Sauce

Nazareth in Israel may have been an insignificant village when Mary, Joseph and their son, Jesus, lived there, but Tishreen, with its contemporary Arabic food, has put it on the map for gourmets. Lunch there  was the most memorable meal I had during a wine and culinary tour of Galilee and visiting throughout Israel. And, believe me, we at some wonderful food.

Everything at Tishreen was exceptional from the nutty hummus to the stuffed mushrooms cooked in a traditional oven, but this chicken dish had our table of food writers oohing and aahing and begging for the recipe. Many thanks to Musa for his amazing cuisine and gracious generosity.

Tishreen's Chicken Breast in Plum and Coffee Sauce

1 spoon of butter

1/2 pound (250 grams) chicken breast, cut into chunks

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp. roasted coffee beans

1/2 tsp. ground and roasted coffee beans

3 dried apricots, halved

1 tablespoon raisins

1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounce, 40 ml) red wine

1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounce, 40 ml) beef stock

1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounce, 40 ml) plum juice

Marinate the dried fruit in the wine for 30 minutes.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken chunks and fry until golden and cooked through.

Add the ground and powdered coffee.

Remove the dried fruit from the marinade and add to the skillet together with the beef stock and plum juice.

Bring to the boil and remove from heat.

My advice: Double the recipe. Expect no leftovers.