Orange Tart Sunday, Jul 6 2008

INGREDIENTS:

Puff Pastry Shells, baked

2 large eggs, cold
2 large egg yolks, cold
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) cold unsalted
butter, cut into 6 pieces

DIRECTIONS:

Bring about 1 1/2 inches of water to a boil in a pot that is slightly smaller than the diameter of the bowl you will be using for the sabayon. Meanwhile, in a large metal bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks, and sugar for about 1 minute, or until the mixture is smooth.

Set the bowl over the pot and, using a large whisk, whip the mixture while you turn the bowl (for even heating). After about 2 minutes, when the eggs are foamy and have thickened, add one-third of the orange juice. Continue to whisk vigorously and, when the mixture thickens again, add another one-third of the orange juice. Whisk until the mixture thickens again, then add the remaining orange juice. Continue whisking vigorously, still turning the bowl, until the mixture is thickened and light in color and the whisk leaves a trail in the bottom of the bowl. The total cooking time should be 8 to 10 minutes.

Turn off the heat and leave the bowl over the water. Whisk in the butter a piece at a time. The sabayon may loosen slightly, but it will thicken and set as it cools. Pour the warm sabayon into puff pastry shells.

Preheat the broiler. While the sabayon is still warm, place the tart under the broiler. Leaving the door open, brown the top of the sabayon, rotating the tart if necessary for even color; this will take only a few seconds, so do not leave the oven. Remove the tart from the broiler and let it sit for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve at room temperature or cold.

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Napoleon Sunday, Jul 6 2008

INGREDIENTS:

For Puff Pastry:
1/2 of a 17 1/4-ounce package (1 sheet) frozen puff pastry, thawed

For Cream Filling:
1/4 cup granulated or superfine sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup half and half or light cream
2 slightly beaten egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup whipping cream

For Glaze:
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-3 tablespoons boiling water

Fruit Preserve or Jam Filling: (optional)
1/3 cup seedless raspberry or strawberry jam or preserves

Chocolate Drizzle Topping:
1 1/2 tablespoons melted semisweet chocolate

DIRECTIONS:

For Puff Pastry: Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or plain brown paper; set aside.

Unfold puff pastry sheet and trim edges to a 9-inch square. Cut pastry into nine 3-inch squares. Transfer pastry squares to the prepared baking sheets; prick pastry. Bake in a preheated oven for 18-23 minutes, or until golden (Or bake according to package directions.) Carefully remove pastries from baking sheet. Cool on a rack.

For Cream Filling:
In a heavy, medium saucepan stir together sugar, flour, and salt. Slowly stir in half-and-half or light cream. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more. Slowly stir about half of the hot mixture into beaten egg yolks. Return all to saucepan. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Transfer mixture to a bowl. Cover surface with plastic wrap and cool just until warm without stirring. In a small mixing bowl beat whipping cream until soft peaks form. Fold whipped cream into warm pastry cream.

For Glaze:
In a medium mixing bowl combine confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. Stir in enough boiling water to make a glaze of spreading consistency; set aside.

To Assemble:
Use the tines of a fork to separate each pastry square horizontally into 3 layers.

If Using Fruit Jam or Preserves:
Spread about 1 teaspoon of the raspberry or strawberry jam or preserves on each bottom layer. Spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the pastry cream over raspberry preserves or if not using a layer of fruit jam or preserves, spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the pastry cream on the bottom layer and preceed as follows:
Top with middle pastry layers. Spread another 1 1/2 tablespoons of the pastry cream on each middle layer. Finally, top with remaining pastry layers. Spread glaze over top of napoleons, then drizzle with melted chocolate. Chill up to 1 hour.

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Cream of Asparagus Soup Sunday, Jul 6 2008

ABOUT:

This French recipe can be used with not just Asparagus but many other vegetables.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
2 14 1/2-ounce cans chicken broth
1 pound asparagus, tough ends discarded, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon dried summer savory
Sour cream or plain yogurt (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually mix in canned chicken broth. Bring mixture to boil. Add asparagus pieces and summer savory and simmer until asparagus is very tender, about 25 minutes. Cool slightly.

Drain asparagus, reserving cooking liquid. Puree asparagus in food processor. With machine running, Gradually add 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Return mixture to saucepan. Season with salt and pepper. (Soup can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Bring soup to simmer. Ladle into bowls. Top with dollops of sour cream or yogurt, if desired.

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Coq Au Vin Sunday, Jul 6 2008

SERVINGS:

4-6

INGREDIENTS:

24 to 30 pearl onions 4 chicken thighs and legs, or 1 (5 to 7-pound) stewing chicken, cut into serving pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 to 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons water
6 ounces salt pork, slab bacon, or lardon, cubed
8 ounces button mushrooms, quartered
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 (750-ml) bottles red wine, preferably pinot noir
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 medium onion, quartered
2 stalks celery, quartered
2 medium carrots, quartered
3 cloves garlic, crushed
6 to 8 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken stock or broth

DIRECTIONS:

Cut off the root end of each pearl onion and make an “x” with your knife in its place. Bring 2 to 3 cups of water to a boil and drop in the onions for 1 minute. Remove the onions from the pot, allow them to cool, and then peel. You should be able to slide the onions right out of their skin. Set aside.

Sprinkle the chicken on all sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place the chicken pieces, a few at a time, into a large (1 or 2-gallon) sealable plastic bag along with the flour. Shake to coat all of the pieces of the chicken. Remove the chicken from the bag to a metal rack.

Add the 2 tablespoons of water to a large, 12-inch saute pan over medium heat along with the salt pork. Cover and cook until the water is gone, and then continue to cook until the salt pork cubes are golden brown and crispy, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the salt pork from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan, using the remaining fat, add the pearl onions, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and saute until lightly brown, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside. Next, brown the chicken pieces on each side until golden brown, working in batches if necessary to not overcrowd the pan. Transfer the chicken into a 7 to 8-quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven.

Add the mushrooms to the same 12-inch saute pan, adding the 1 tablespoon of butter if needed, and saute until they give up their liquid, approximately 5 minutes. Store the onions, mushrooms and pork in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Pour off any remaining fat and deglaze the pan with approximately 1 cup of the wine. Pour this into the Dutch oven along with the chicken stock, tomato paste, quartered onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Add all of the remaining wine. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until the chicken is tender. Maintain a very gentle simmer and stir occasionally.

Once the chicken is done, remove it to a heatproof container, cover, and place it in the oven to keep warm. Strain the sauce in a colander and remove the carrots, onion, celery, thyme, garlic, and bay leaf. Return the sauce to the pot, place over medium heat, and reduce by 1/3. Depending on how much liquid you actually began with, this should take 20 to 45 minutes.

Once the sauce has thickened, add the pearl onions, mushrooms, and pork and cook for another 15 minutes or until the heated through. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, remove from the heat, add the chicken and serve. Serve over egg noodles, if desired.

Cook’s Note: If the sauce is not thick enough at the end of reducing, you may add a mixture of equal parts butter and flour kneaded together. Start with 1 tablespoon of each. Whisk this into the sauce for 4 to 5 minutes and repeat, if necessary.

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Ratatouille Thursday, Jun 12 2008

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 lb tomatoes (4 large)

8 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
20 fresh basil leaves, torn in half
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 lb eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 large onions (1 1/2 lb total), quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
3 assorted bell peppers (green, red, and/or yellow; 1 1/2 lb total), cut into 1-inch pieces
4 medium zucchini (2 lb), quartered lengthwise and cut crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick pieces
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Garnish: Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings and fresh basil

DIRECTIONS:

Cut an X in bottom of each tomato with a sharp paring knife and blanch together in a 4-quart pot of boiling water 1 minute. Transfer tomatoes with a slotted spoon to a cutting board and, when cool enough to handle, peel off skin, beginning from scored end, with paring knife.

Coarsely chop tomatoes and transfer to a 5-quart heavy pot with garlic, parsley, basil, and 1/3 cup oil. Simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes break down and sauce is slightly thickened, about 30 minutes.

While sauce is simmering, toss eggplant with 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large colander and let stand in sink 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook onions in 3 tablespoons oil with 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer onions with a slotted spoon to a large bowl, then add 3 tablespoons oil to skillet and cook bell peppers with 1/4 teaspoon salt over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Transfer peppers with slotted spoon to bowl with onions. Add 3 tablespoons oil to skillet and cook zucchini with 1/4 teaspoon salt over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer zucchini with slotted spoon to bowl with other vegetables.

While zucchini are cooking, pat eggplant dry with paper towels. Add remaining oil (about 1/4 cup) to skillet and cook eggplant over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 10 to12 minutes.

Add vegetables, remaining teaspoon salt, and black pepper to tomato sauce and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are very tender, about 1 hour. Cool, uncovered, and serve warm or at room temperature.

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Chocolate Mousse Thursday, Jun 12 2008

SERVINGS:

8

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups chilled heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped

Garnish: lightly sweetened whipped cream
Special equipment: an instant-read thermometer

DIRECTIONS:

Heat 3/4 cup cream in a 1-quart heavy saucepan until hot. Whisk together yolks, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a metal bowl until combined well, then add hot cream in a slow stream, whisking until combined. Transfer mixture to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until it registers 160°F on thermometer. Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and stir in vanilla.

Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a pan of simmering water (or in a glass bowl in a microwave at 50 percent power 3 to 5 minutes), stirring frequently. Whisk custard into chocolate until smooth, then cool.

Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream in a bowl with an electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. Whisk one fourth of cream into chocolate custard to lighten, then fold in remaining cream gently but thoroughly.

Spoon mousse into 8 (6-ounce) stemmed glasses or ramekins and chill, covered, at least 6 hours. Let stand at room temperature about 20 minutes before serving.

EXTRA:
To vary the flavor, you can replace the 1 teaspoon vanilla with 2 teaspoons instant-espresso powder (dissolve it in the hot cream) or 3 tablespoons Grand Marnier or 2 tablespoons Cognac (either one whisked into strained custard).

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Chicken A La King Saturday, Apr 26 2008

ABOUT:

From Gourmet Magazine

INGREDIENTS:

1 3/4 cups chicken broth (14 fl oz)
1 1/2 lb skinless boneless chicken breast halves
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 each yellow, red, and orange bell peppers, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (2 cups)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 lb white mushrooms, trimmed and quartered
3 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons dry Sherry, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon paprika (not hot)
6 (1/2-inch-thick) slices firm white sandwich bread (preferably Pullman), toasted
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

DIRECTIONS:

Put broth and chicken in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan and bring just to a simmer over moderate heat, uncovered. Turn chicken over and gently poach at a bare simmer, uncovered, until just cooked through, about 5 minutes more.

Transfer chicken to a cutting board. Pour broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a heatproof 2-cup measure and reserve for sauce.

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a 4- to 5-quart wide heavy pot over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then cook peppers, stirring, until softened (do not brown), 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer peppers to a bowl and stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Add onion and remaining 3 tablespoons butter to pot and cook over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add flour and remaining teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and reduce heat to low, then cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Whisk in 3/4 cup broth, then all of cream and mushrooms, and simmer until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together yolks, lemon juice, Sherry, and paprika in a small bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup sauce, then stir yolk mixture back into sauce remaining in pot. Cook over low heat, stirring (do not simmer, or sauce will curdle), until sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and reserve.

Cut chicken crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices and add along with peppers to sauce, then cook over low heat (do not simmer, or sauce will curdle), stirring occasionally, until chicken and peppers are just heated through. Add more broth to thin if desired.

Spoon chicken à la king over toast on 6 plates, then sprinkle with parsley.

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Sour Cherry Clafouti Saturday, Apr 26 2008

ABOUT:

Clafouti is a custard-like baked French dessert that is typically made by baking fresh fruit (traditionally cherries) and a batter, somewhat similar to pancake batter, in a baking dish. This recipe came to me from one of chef Cheryl Vea from PCC class

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups pitted Sour Cherry
1/3 cup Grand Marnier
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups milk
5 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup sifted all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoons melted butter
Powdered Sugar
Caramel Sauce
Creme Fraiche

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 F
Combine cherries with Grand Marnier and 1/4 cup of sugar.
Let it sit while making the rest of the batter.
Place the rest of the sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla, salt, 2 Tablespoons of melted butter
and the flour in a blender and blend at top speed for about 60 secs.
Pour the remaining butter in the bottom of a 7 - 8 cup ovenproof pan and set the pan over a medium heat on your stove.
Pour in a thin film of batter and cook for about 1 - 2 mins or until it begins to set lightly.
Remove the pan from the heat and pour the cherry mixture over the surface of the batter, reserve the drained liquid. Pour the rest of the batter over the cherries and smooth out the top with a rubber spatula.
Bake until the top is puffy and golden, about an hour.
Heat caramel sauce to a liquid consistency.
Mix in together Cherry Liquid and Creme Fraiche.
Dust with powdered sugar and serve either hot or warm.
Drizzle the flan with caramel sauce and creme fraiche sauce.

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Cheese Souffle Saturday, Apr 26 2008

INGREDIENTS:

Butter, room temperature, for greasing the souffle
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
1 1/2 ounces (3 tablespoons) butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/3 cups milk, hot
4 large egg yolks (2 1/2 ounces by weight)
6 ounces sharp Cheddar
5 egg whites plus 1 tablespoon water (5 1/2 ounces by weight plus 1/2 ounce water)
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

DIRECTIONS:

Use room temperature butter to grease an 8-inch souffle mold. Add the grated Parmesan and roll around the mold to cover the sides. Cover with plastic wrap and place into the freezer for 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a small saucepan, heat the butter. Allow all of the water to cook out.

In a separate bowl combine the flour, dry mustard, garlic powder, and kosher salt. Whisk this mixture into the melted butter. Cook for 2 minutes.

Whisk in the hot milk and turn the heat to high. Once the mixture reaches a boil, remove from the heat.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks to a creamy consistency. Temper the yolks into the milk mixture, constantly whisking. Remove from the heat and add the cheese. Whisk until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, using a hand mixer, whip the egg whites and cream of tartar until glossy and firm. Add 1/4 of the mixture to the base. Continue to add the whites by thirds, folding very gently.

Pour the mixture into the souffle. Fill the souffle to 1/2-inch from the top. Place on an aluminum pie pan. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes.

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Chocolate Souffle Thursday, Apr 17 2008

INGREDIENTS:

7 oz semisweet chocolate
4 tbl grand marnier
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
8 egg whites (room temp)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400.
Butter 6 souffle molds and coat with sugar.
Melt chocolate with liquor in a double boiler until partially melted. Take off heat and stir until completely melted. Cool mixture to room temp.
Beat yolks and add 2 tbl sugar until a thick pale ribbon is formed when beaters are raised (sabayon). Add to chocolate mixture.
Beat egg whites and add the remaing sugar when they hold a shape. Beat until stiff.
Fold into chocolate mixture.
Cook for 15-20 minutes

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