It's All About the Garnish!

Latest Patch.com Article: Is Home Cooking Becoming a Lost Art?

Happy Weekend! Check out my latest article on Napa.Patch.com:  Is Home Cooking Becoming a Lost Art?

 

 

From the Valentine's Day Dinner: Sous Vide Pork Belly with Wine-Soaked Onions

(This is Post 4 in a four-part series on Valentine's Day Dinner)

In any multi-course dinner, the meat course needs to be the centerpiece. It's what all of the previouse courses had led to, had set the stage for so to speak. Pork belly is the new go-to for decadence so it was the natural choice. I had read enough of Thomas Keller's Under Pressure, the bible for sous-vide for professionals. He cooks it a 180 degrees for 12 hours, so I followed his lead.

 
Sous Vide Pork Belly with Wine-Soaked Onions

1 pound pork belly, trimmed

Smoked sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 teaspoons truffle oil, divided

1 small red onion, mandolin-sliced

1 cup red wine

Preheat sous vide machine to 180 degrees. Rub pork belly with salt, pepper and half of the truffle oil. Place in a foodsaver bag and cook for 12 hours.

Place onions and wine in a small oven-proof dish and roast at 425 degrees for 45 minutes fluff with a fork.

Heat a cast-iron skillet to high heat and sear pork belly on all sides. Slice into portions and plate, topping with onions and remaining truffle oil. Serves two.

 

From the Valentine's Day Dinner: Reverse Salad with Greens Croutons

(This is Post 3 in a four-part series, Valentine's Day Dinner)

For the salad course, I wanted to do something original. But how? I mean, how can you make a bunch of leaves on a plate original? So, I reversed it. The croutons became the leaves and the leaves became croutons, with a little help from some Gellan gum in my molecular gastonomy kit.

 

Reverse Salad with Manchego Tuile

1 cup mixed greens

Salt to taste

1 teaspoon Gellan gum

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

Garlic powder to taste

Smoked paprika to taste

1/2 cup Manchego cheese, finely grated

Black pepper to taste

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Puree mixed greens in a food processor until they are a watery consistency and salt to taste. Pour into a small saucepan and whisk in the Gellan gum. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour into a shallow, wide container and refrigerate for 3 hours. Slice into squares.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Slice puff pastry into leaf-like shapes and place on an ungreased baking sheet. Sprinkle with garlic powder and smoked paprika. Bake for 15 minutes or until light golden brown.

Line the baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle Manchego cheese into 6-8 similar-sized clumps. Sprinkle with black pepper and place in the oven with the door slightly ajar. Immediately turn the heat off. Remove tuiles after 7-10 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, egg yolk, red wine vinegar and mustard.Pour into a squeeze bottle.

To assemble, divide puff pastry leaves out to 4-6 salad plates. Carefully arrange the croutons made of greens onto the leaves. Squirt dots of dressing onto the croutons, then wedge the cheese tuiles into the leaves. Serves 4-6.

From the Valentine's Day Dinner: Champagne Battered Tarragon and Shallot Shrimp

(This is Post 2 in a four-part series - Valentine's Day Dinner)

The second course in our Valentine's Day dinner was to be shrimp, but how would I make it a little different and luxurious at the same time? The husband had eaten enough spicy, garlicky shrimp and I wanted to serve him something different, but with big flavors.

 
Champagne Battered Tarragon and Shallot Shrimp

1 cup flour

2 egg yolks, beaten

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 cup champagne

1 large shallot, crushed

1 tablespoon tarragon, finely chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

8 large shrimp, peeled, deveined, tail-on

Additional canola oil for frying

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, egg yolks, salt, pepper and tablespoon of oil. Slowly stir in the champagne, combining completely. Refrigerate for 3-6 hours.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the shallot, tarragon, olive oil and red wine vinegar. Toss with the shrimp and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Heat oil in a deep fryer according to manufacturer's directions. Shake marinade from shrimp and dip into the batter. Fry until goldn brown, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serves two.

From the Valentine's Day Dinner: Duck Foie Gras with Orange Rum Reduction

(This is Post 1 in a four-part series - Valentine's Day Dinner)

Setting the stage for an extravagant dinner can be problematic. You want to give the diner an idea of what's to follow, but you don't want to jump the shark. I felt that each dish in my Valentine's Day dinner was going to be sumptuous and decadent, so that was the direction in which I would head:

 
Duck Foie Gras with Orange Rum Reduction

Zest of four mandarin oranges

1 2x4-inch slice duck foie gras, halved

1 tablespoon butter

Juice of four mandarin oranges

3 ounces dark spiced rum

Salt and pepper to taste

Supreme of one mandarin orange (pith and ends removed), diced

Press the zest into one side of the foie gras slices, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter on medium high heat. Add the orange juice and rum and bring to a boil. Turn heat to medium and reduce to half volume.

Heat a small skillet to almost smoking. Unwrap the foie gras, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and sear zest-side down for one minute. Turn foie gras and turn off burner. After one minute, place each slice of foie gras in the center of a small plate. Drizzle with sauce and top with orange supremes. Serves two.

Five Courses for My Favorite Husband

Obviously, Valentine's Day is all about love. It's a day to be thankful for love in your life and appreciate those who give it back to you. However, I don't think it should be about cards, flowers or sparkly gifts. For me, it's about making my husband a sumptuous feast interspered with movies, cocktails and hot tub breaks!

Last year, I created a five-course dinner that went like this:

* Smoked Tomato Bruschetta with Spiced Mozzarella

* Bacon-Wrapped Scallops with Ancho Avocado Drizzle

* Shallot-Dressed Greens with House Made Croutons

* Beef Carpaccio Rouladen with Shiitakes and Spanish Blue Cheese

* Sticky Toffee Pudding with Cabernet Port

This year, with a new arsenal of avant-garde culinary toys at my disposal (Sous Vide Supreme Demi and Ferran Adria's Texturas), I want to bring the dinner offerings to an entirely new level. Here's what I'm planning:

* Amuse Bouche - Whatever looks fresh and inspriring at the market!

* Fish - Champage, Tarragon and Shallot Battered Shrimp with Goat Cheese Burre Blanc

* Salad - Inside-Out Salad with Puff Pastry Leaves and Arugula Croutons

* Meat - Sous Vide Pork Belly with Truffle Oil and Smoked Sea Salt

* Dessert - Cabernet Cheesecake Ice Cream Pies with Mouverde Drizzle

Photos and recipes to follow! Also coming up:  Reverse Chicken Pot Pie on Sunday!

Game Day Snack: Frank's Firecracker Shrimp Bites with #FranksRedHot

The big game is just a few days away, so I thought I'd share my recipe for one of the easiest and tastiest Super Bowl snacks out there:  Frank's Firecracker Shrimp Bites!

I made these last weekend and knew they were a hit when my husband said, "Yum! I could eat these ALL DAY!"

Frank’s Firecracker Shrimp Bites

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
6 tablespoons Frank’s Red Hot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce, divided
36 raw shrimp, peeled, deveined, tail-off
4 bunches baby bok choy
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce (In the Asian foods section of any grocery store)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
36 buttery crackers
Kosher salt to taste
* Additional Frank’s Red Hot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce if desired

In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil and 3 tablespoons of the Frank’s Red Hot Sauce. Add shrimp and toss to coat. Refrigerate until ready to cook, mixing occasionally.

Remove the leaves from the bok choy stalks. Mince the stalks and set aside. Thinly slice the leaves into ribbons. Set aside.

In a food processor, whip together the cream cheese, hoisin sauce, lemon juice and remaining 3 tablespoons of the Frank’s Red Hot Sauce. Add the minced bok choy stalks and pulse to combine. Scoop into a small zip-top bag and gently push mixture toward one corner. Use scissors to snip a small piece of the corner from the bag.

To assemble, squeeze about a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture onto the center of each cracker. Cook the shrimp on high heat for 2-3 minutes or until just opaque, stirring frequently. Add salt to taste. Place one shrimp on each cracker, then top with a sprinkling of the bok choy ribbons. Serve.

* Sprinkle with additional Frank’s Red Hot if desired.

#FranksRedHot

Vanilla Win!

I'm SO excited to share this with you:  I've been named the winner in the Spice Islands Flavor Explorer Vanilla Challenge.

The contest challenged entrants to use their Vanilla in a sweet or savory recipe. And, because their new vanilla extract doesn't contain corn syrup, I was happy to give it a try. I don't bake, so I racked my brain for any savory recipes in my arsenal that would be improved with the addition of vanilla. I'd been making my famous butter-poached halibut for a few months now and knew that chefs have been adding vanilla to their trout, lobster and crab dishes lately. Why not halibut? I had also perfected a nice Meyer Lemon Gastrique with which to drizzle on said halibut but thought it was a little too sweet to be paired with vanilla in a savory dish.

Then, inspiration struck and I came up with the Ancho-Orange Drizzle you'll see on the winning recipe here:  Vanilla Butter Poached Halibut with Ancho Orange Drizzle

Special thanks to head judge Matt Armendariz at mattbites.com

A Foray Into French

In the past year, my cooking skills have advanced quite a bit. Last year, I had never heard of sriracha, bonito flakes or microgreens. Since getting into competitive cooking, my horizons have broadened considerably and I'm always looking for ways to strech myself. So, when I asked my brother and his pescatarian girlfriend over for dinner, I decided to not only serve a variety of fish I'd never dealt with but to also go with a theme:  French.

Choosing a protein is the easiest way to build a meal plan. It sets the tone for the flavor profile and helps when trying to figure out the rest of the food such as the vegetable and starch. I decided on halibut because it's in season and something that would easily pick up the nuances of whatever I cooked it in. Sure, I could do the whole sear-and-bake route, but that's too easy. Watching the various cooking shows such as Top Chef, I knew that poaching was a great way to keep fish moist. But what about imparting flavor? To me, poaching seems just a little more grandiose than boiling! So, because we all know that the secret to French cooking is 'butter, butter and more butter' I decided to poach the halibut in butter, then broil to make them pretty. But every blast of butter needs an acid to showcase it, I went with a lemon gastrique (equal parts vinegar and sugar, plus the zest and juice of one lemon) to drizzle on top.

But what of the side dishes? They needed to be flavorful to be able to stand up by themselves, but without spice because I didn't want to overpower the delicate nature of the fish. For the vegetable, I went with grilled endives, stuffed with a roasted eggplant and garlic puree, topped with caramelized shallots, d'Aubergine blue cheese and fresh tomatoes. They were delicious, with a smoky flavor and supple texture.

Next, the starch...I didn't want to do something trite, like a rice or bread. I felt they would be too heavy and demand the inclusion of spice to keep them bright. Aha! Vichysoisse! To keep things interesting, I first braised fennel and red onions, then added them to the mix, topping the whole thing off with an herbed creme fraiche. The fennel lent just the right amount of warmth to the cold dish, disappearing just before one could slurp up another spoonful. 

I feel really good about this meal; I stepped outside of my comfort zone and worked with ingredients (fennel, halibut, endives) that hadn't yet become part of my repertoire. I can't wait for the next dinner party!

 
 
 
 

 

Gilroy Results - Stinky Like Garlic

We arrived in Gilroy on Friday afternoon and tooled around town a bit, playing tourists. You could literally smell garlic in the air, and it smelled delicious! We had lunch at an unremarkable bar and grill, then a bit of splashing about in the hotel pool. Then, it was time to get ready for the contestants' welcome dinner at the home of one of the organizers.

Arriving at the palatial home nestled in a private golf course development, we were greeted by fellow contestants and local luminaries. I met my 'chaperone' (helper/runner) Erin and chatted with contestant Derick and his wife. As I walked across the patio to obtain another glass of wine (of course!), I bumped into a handsome man who exclaimed, "Ciao! Bella! It is great to meet you!" It was none other than Fabio from Top Chef! He was even more good looking in person (although a bit shorter than I expected), and I found myself blushing, which I never do!

The next day, we rose early to arrive at the cook-off stage by 8am. My start time wasn't until 9:40, so I took a leisurely pace in setting up my work station. Everything went well, and I had time to chat with the judges and entertain the spectators a bit. I was even called over to the front of the stage to show off my outfit, which matched my display tray in a "Mad Men" sort of theme to match the classic 50's feel of my dish. Unfortunately, after the food was served and the votes were tallied, I was not to emerge a winner.

While I'm still so very honored to have been chosen as one of eight finalists for the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival Cook-off, I'm a bit bummed as I didn't place. BUT... I do feel like I did my very best and was able to really practice my showmanship. I'll be back next year!!!