Pheasant a la Champagne

Season the flour with salt and pepper to taste. Dredge the pheasant pieces in the flour. Save the remaining flour. Heat a frying pan to medium heat; add half the butter and oil. saute the pheasant pieces until lightly browned. Remove to ovenproof casserole. In the meantime preheat the oven to 350F. Add the 1 tablespoon butter to the frying pan and saute the onion and mushrooms. Add to the casserole dish. Keep warm. Heat the rest of the butter and oil in the frying pan; stir in the reserved seasoned flour. Add the champagne very slowly, stirring constantly. Add the chicken stock and cook and stir over medium heat until it thickens. Pour this over the pheasant. Bake for about 30 to 45 minutes; don?t overcook or it will get tough. Add the grapes for the last 15 minutes of cooking time. Serve with wild rice. Serves 4 to 6. Source : this recipe was contributed to ?Bite of Bauer? by Chloe Mueller. This cookbook was created by the Bauer Activites Recreational Committee (BARC) as a fundraiser to help feed families needing assistance through Northwest Harvest. There is no date on my copy of the book. Notes : The rosemary is my own addition. The original recipe called for using straight butter, but I prefer to use a mixture for two reasons. It raises the burning point when oil is added and it cuts down on the cholesterol. The original recipe called for 2 small cans of seedless green grapes but since I haven?t found that locally I substituted fresh grapes. Also, the original recipe called for champagne that was ?appropriate for cooking?; I believe in only cooking with wine I am prepared to drink. :) Formatted for MasterCook by Hallie du Preez. Recipe by: Bite of Bauer Posted to KitMailbox Digest by buddy@connect.ab.ca on Sep 07, 1997