Asparagus Chicken & Ratatouille & Individual Paris Breasts

Chicken

1. Gently pound each chicken breast.  Sauté onion and bacon in butter until onion is transparent, add drained and finely chopped asparagus, s & p.  Cut a pocket in each chicken breast, fill with asparagus mixture.  coat chicken breasts lightly with flour, dip in combined beaten egg and milk, coat well with breadcrumbs.  heat extra butter and oil in large frying pan, cook chicken until golden brown on both sides and cooked through; allow at least 3-5  minutes cooking time on each side.  Serve immediately with Parsley butter.

Parsley Butter

1. Beat butter until smooth and creamy, add parsley, shallots, s & p, beat well.  Spoon mixture in a rough log shape about a quarter of the way down a sheet of greaseproof paper.  Fold paper over roll, then with ruler push against the butter so that the mixture forms a smooth roll.  Roll in the greaseproof paper, refrigerate until firm.  Cut into slices.

Filling

1. Put egg yolks, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1/4 cup milk, sifted flour and cornflour into blender, blend on low speed until mixture is smooth or beat well until smooth.  Put remaining milk in pan, bring to boil, add to egg mixture, blend or beat for 30 seconds.  Pour mixture into pan, stir over low heat until mixture boils.  (Lumps may form during cooking; however the cream will become smooth with beating when the mixture boils and thickens).  Remove from heat, cool.  Whip egg white until soft peaks form, add remaining sugar gradually, beat until firm peaks form.  Fold the egg white into the cooled cream, add vanilla, mix well.

Pastry

1. Put water, butter and salt in pan.  Bring to boil, add sifted flour all at once.  Stir vigorously with wooden spoon over heat until mixture is thick.  When mixture forms a smooth ball and leaves sides of pan, remove from heat, place pastry on saucer, spread out with back of wooden spoon, leave for 10 minutes.  Place cooled pastry in small bowl of electric mixer, add beaten eggs, a little at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.  Mixture should be smooth and glossy.  Line oven tray with a sheet of greaseproof paper, mark four 8cm circles on the paper.  Fill pastry into piping bag fitted with 1cm plain nozzle.  Pipe choux pastry around edge of circles.  Bake in hot oven (200º ) 10 minutes, reduce heat to moderate (180º), bake further 15 to 20 minutes or until dry.  Using a sharp knife, cut pastry rings in half horizontally.  Return the pastry rings to oven, leave for a few minutes to dry out.  Stand pastry on wire rack until completely cold.  Spoon prepared filling into piping bag fitted with 1cm plain nozzle.  Pipe cream evenly into bottom half of each pastry ring.

Topping

1. Combine chopped chocolate and butter in top of double saucepan.  Stand over simmering water until chocolate and butter have melted.  Stir lightly to combine.  Spread chocolate evenly over top halves of rings. Put almonds on baking tray, bake in moderate oven 5 minutes; cool.  Sprinkle almonds over tops of chocolate rings.  Refrigerate pastry rings until chocolate is firm.  Put chocolate rings evenly on top of filled bases.