It's All About the Garnish!

Amuse Bouche: Garrett's Spanish Tapas

My brother Garrett brought back a bit from his recent travels to Spain:  tapas! He divided his square plates into four quadrants:  two appetizers and two tapenades. On one corner, he presented a Spanish tortilla, which is like a potato-based quiche with spinach. Diagonally opposite were fried gnocchi. He topped both with different cheeses and meats, two of which were manchego cheese and serrano ham. Opposite corners held pepper and olive tapenades. We love the plating, the flavors and the colors, and everything paired beautifully togther, yet didn't get muddled even though there was a lot of variety:

Amuse Bouche: Intermission

The night of the Amuse Bouche Party, the dishes were so rich, so heavenly and so well thought out...we had to take an intermission. After Jen's crab cakes and Andy and Rachel's rice bowls, we just simply weren't hungry anymore, but wanted to soldier on with the remaining two dishes. So, we took a break. Plates were washed, more wine was consumed (to digest our food!) and we took a breather. Next up:  Garrett's tapas and Jamie's carpaccio!

Amuse Bouche: Rachel and Andy's Rice Bowl Surpise

Our second course of the evening was brought into the house via a closed-lid basket and squirreled away until it was time to serve. Andy and Rachel hustled into the kitchen and amid hushed whispers, assembled onto plates. Behold:

They lined a bowl with sticky rice, then stuffed it with shrimp, onions and other goodies so when opened, revealed this:

 It was definitely as good as anything one might find in a high-end sushi restaurant, gorgeous and inventive. Let's see if we can get Andy to share the recipe...
 
 

Amuse Bouche: Jen's Almond-Dusted Crab Cakes

Our first course of the evening was Jen's Almond-Dusted Crab Cakes, served on a bed of arugula and mixed greens with avocado and lemony vinaigrette. If she'll share the recipe, I'll post it for you, but here's a shot:

She used king crab for the filling and coated each cake with pulverized almonds. They were absolutely delicious, and paired beautifully with the tangy salad!

Chocolate Covered Bacon

I'd been seeing it online and hearing about it from fellow foodies, and this was the day I had the perfect storm of reasons to make chocolate-covered bacon. 1) I was going to my friends' house for a Memorial Day barbecue and the host loves meat more than anything else. 2) My Dad was thinking of entering it in the Pork category for the Napa County Fair Barbecue Contest and was wondering about methodology and toppings. 3) I had the itch to make something weird.

So, I first baked a bunch of bacon. I used both applewood smoked Niman Ranch fancy bacon and Jimmy Dean whatever bacon. I baked them in a broiler pan on a rack so the fat would drip off, as you really want your bacon as crunchy and dry as possible. (Make sure you save that bacon grease for future use!)

There was going to be about 50 people at the party, so I cooked up three packages (minus the slices the husband and I had for breakfast).

I then put the bacon in the fridge to cool down a bit more while I dealt with the chocolate. It's simple:  empty two bags of good quality chocolate chips into a double boiler with a tablespoon of canola oil. Melt. Dunk the bacon slices (which I halved) into the chocolate and place on waxed paper. If you're going to put toppings on any of them, this is the time to do it, so they'll stick. I left most of the slices plain, but put chopped candied pecans on some and 'crazy dust' on a few more. The crazy dust was a combination of equal parts cinnamon, chili powder and Kosher salt. When you're done making them, they're still not very attractive, so make sure you arrange them nicely, like this:

The verdict? When I passed the plate around at the party the guests' reaction was easily broken down into three types:  revulsion, curiosity and enthusiasm. Obviously, those repulsed by the concept didn't even try them, but of those who did, most really enjoyed it. The ones topped with the candied pecans were the biggest hit, and a British guy really like the crazy dust (not sure what to make of that...).

These aren't a snack for everyone. If you're going to make these, make sure most of your guests have adventurous palates. Don't serve these to people who like Lunchables, hot dogs or garden salads with ranch dressing.

I wonder if peanut butter or caramel sauce would work with these?

Guest Post: Andy's Peppered Shrimp over Avocado and Corn Salsa

Well, he did it again. Our friend Andy presented us with this stunner over the weekend:

Take it away, Andy:

Peppered Shrimp over Avocado and Corn Salsa

This marinade can be used successfully with just about any kind of white meat; shrimp, chicken even lobster tails (I'm going to try it with scallops next time!) The salsa is light and easy to prepare, and in my opinion, really brings the dish together. You may get a little frustrated when you read the ingredients because there are no measurements. I left my measuring spoons in the drawer for this one on purpose. You can make it as spicy or tame as you like. I wouldn't recommend more than a tablespoon of any one dry spice though.

Ingredient list (Marinade):

Olive Oil

Limes

White Wine

Pepper

Salt

Garlic

Ground Coriander

Chili Powder

Cayenne Pepper

Chipotle Pepper

Any other fun pepper you might have on hand, like poblano or serrano if you're brave!

Add all your dry spices in a bowl. I mixed mine in a sealable plastic bowl so I could add my shrimp to it, shake it and toss it in the fridge for a few hours. Now add your olive oil and white wine. Add enough to adequately marinade whatever meat you decided on. Then squeeze in a lime or two and whisk everything together. Drop in the shrimp, toss to coat and throw it in the fridge for at least an hour, up to four hours.

Fire up your grill and cook your shrimp until opaque, usually a few minutes per side. When using shrimp, get the biggest ones you can afford. They're easier to cook on the grill and more impressive when you serve them. Get rid of the marinade when you put the shrimp on the grill (it had raw meat in it, duh!) At first I tried cooking mine on some foil on the grill, but I wanted more smoky flavor and the cool grill marks on the shrimp. This would be a good time to use that grill basket you have lying around.

The salsa:

One ear of white corn, shucked

One large ripe avocado, diced as small as you can without making it into mush

One or two green onions, chopped(use both the green and white part)

One jalepeno, seeded and finely chopped (don't use the pickled ones, if you don't have a fresh one omit the ingredient and use a few pinches of cayenne pepper instead)

One ripe tomato, diced (I used two romas, I like them for this salsa because they aren't too runny and they're easy to dice)

Two limes

Salt and pepper to taste

Once your ear of corn is shucked and cleaned, carefully take a sharp knife and cut the kernals off. Use nice even strokes straight down the length of the ear. The sweet corn is fresh, not cooked, and it adds a consistency and fresh taste to the final product that will be lacking if you decide to use something frozen or canned. Add them to a non-reactive mixing bowl. Add the avocado, onions, tomato and jalepeno. Juice a lime or two into the bowl and lightly toss. Be careful here or you'll crush the avocado and make a mess of the whole thing. Salt and pepper to taste. Don't be shy, a couple of pinches of salt won't really be enough, but you can't remove it if you add too much. You could also use a quarter of a red onion but not too much if you substitute-too much red onion will overpower this salsa and you'll lose the taste of the fresh sweet corn and the zing of the jalepeno.

Presentation: Spoon the salsa into martini glasses and top with your grilled shrimp.

Party Food: The Battle Between Good and Evil

Spinach-Bacon Bites
(Or as I like to call them: The Battle Between Good and Evil)

Hors d'oeuvres aren't generally considered to be healthy. Sure, you can try to convince yourself that those Ranch Dressing-covered sticks of celery and carrot are part of your daily requirement of vegetables, but we know the truth. The fact is, party food is supposed to be bad for you. That's part of the fun! The recipe below is an attempt to assuage the guilt of gorging with wild abandon. Is it healthy? No. But, it IS 75% spinach, and that has to count for SOMETHING, right?

1 medium red onion, chopped
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Salt, pepper, seasonings (it's up to you!)
2 cups frozen, chopped spinach (thawed and squeezed of juice)
1 cup Panko (Japanese white breadcrumbs, you can find them by the soy sauce)
1 cup crumbled cheese (bleu, feta, ...something STRONG)
1 package thinly cut bacon, pieces cut in half crosswise

Sautee onion until it begins to brown at the edges, about ten minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
Mix eggs, seasonings and spinach in a large bowl. Add Panko, and combine. If the mixture doesn't begin to ball up (almost like dough), add more Panko until it does.
Roll mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls. Stuff each ball with a bit of cheese, and wrap with 1/2 slice of bacon.

Heat a large skillet to medium-high. Place as many bacon-spinach balls as you can, without squishing them, into the pan. Make sure the bacon 'seam' is touching the bottom of the pan. The heat will 'seal' them.

Cook for about 5-7 minutes. Turn once, cook for another 5-7 minutes. Remove to a serving tray and garnish with additional sprinkles of cheese. Kid yourself you're eating something wholesome.

Potluck Fun! (Or, how to have a dinner party without doing much or stressing out)

It's always good to have an excuse to get together with friends and share home-made cuisine and drink your share of wine. That's why the Potluck Dinner Party was invented.

It's easy because each person brings one dish to share, and can really shine, instead of laboring over an entire complement of dishes for the dinner. If you're the host, take the main dish, and assign sides to the great cooks and maybe let the hesitant ones bring wine instead. The idea is to provide a place for good friends to get together without stressing over a whole meal.

***Party Food Alert: My brother, Garrett, likes the idea of everyone bringing heavy appetizers instead of sit-down dishes if you're having a more boisterous gathering. You just need to know your crowd, and what kind of mood everyone will be in...if there are kids or you're feeling particularly sedate (on a cold winter evening as opposed to a warm summer one), you might want to stick with chairs and forks..***

We hosted one of these soirees last night, and it was definitely an all-around success. We had eight for dinner, and it honestly couldn't have been easier, because all of the dishes besides the main course were covered by my friends: Andy and Rachel brought some serious flavor with their vegetable kabobs (on the grill, and on the table, pictured), Garrett brought crunchy, cheesy garlic bread, and the spouse and I grilled up a couple of tri-tips (recipe listed in one of the WAY back posts). Hopefully, we'll get another guest post from Andy on the veggies, because it's the first time I've ever scarfed down something that was THAT good for me!

I used to feel bad asking guests to bring something, thinking I should be the perfect hostess and labor all day long to present the perfect meal. But you know what? The perfect meal is simply one that's accompanied by good wine and great friends. Thanks, everyone!

Crab Cakes: Quick, Easy and Affordable!

Crab season is finally here, so it’s time to make crab cakes! Yes, I know cooked, dipped-in-butter crab is the way to go, but this is an economical way to get that delicious crab fix without making your wallet feel violated: Canned Crab Claw Meat. I’m not talking about the little cans stored next to canned tuna year ‘round. Believe me, I’ve tried it and there’s absolutely no taste or texture. You might as well make a 50’s casserole out of it.

I'm talking about cans of fat, juicy lumps of the very best of the crab, claw

meat. You really need to wait until late December when this treasure

shows up, and it’s so worth it. Look in the refrigerated seafood/meat section of the grocery store for cans that specify ‘premium claw meat’. You can usually get four crab cakes worth of meat for about $10.

Here’s how to do it:

Crab Cakes

1 Egg (beaten)
2 tablespoons Brown or Dijon Mustard
1 tablespoon Mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper
1/3 cup Finely Chopped Red Onion
1/3 cup Finely Chopped Green Onion
2 tablespoons Finely Chopped Red Bell Pepper
1 12oz. can Premium Crab Meat
2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
1 ½ cups Panko

(found in the Japanese/Ethnic Foods section of the grocery store, DON’T use Italian Bread Crumbs!)

2 tablespoons Butter
2 tablespoons Olive Oil

Garlic-Cayenne-Cilantro Aioli

5 cloves Crushed Garlic
½ cup Plain Yogurt (low fat or fat free)
½ cup Sour Cream (low fat or fat free)
1 teaspoon Cayenne Powder
½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
½ teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper
¼ cup Finely Chopped Cilantro

Aioli:
Place garlic in a ramekin with about a teaspoon of water, and heat on high in the microwave for about 40 seconds. We’re not trying to cook it, per se, just ‘kill it’ a little. The water keeps it from drying out. Mix the garlic with the rest of the ingredients, seasoning to taste. Keep chilled in the fridge until ready to serve.

Crab Cakes:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix the first five ingredients well. Add the onions, peppers, crab meat and old bay, mixing thoroughly. Roll this mixture into 3-inch round balls. One at a time, shape them into patties and press into panko, making sure they’re coated well and evenly.

***Party Food Alert! You can shape the crab into 1/2 –inch to 1-inch balls, then form into bite-size patties for a party crowd!

Crab Cakes Continued: Heat skillet with butter and olive oil to medium-high heat. If your skillet is on the small side, I recommend doing this in batches, so use half the olive oil and butter for each batch. Have a cookie sheet ready. Cook the crab cakes for about five minutes on each side, or until the panko has turned a golden brown. Place them on the cookie sheet and finish in the oven, about 8-10 minutes.

To Serve: Place one crab cake flat in the middle of a plate, and lean the other on it. Spoon a dollop of the aioli around them, and garnish with a sprinkle of leftover cilantro.

Guest Post: Andy's Beef Wellington Bundles

This has been the most requested recipe in recent memory, and I'm so honored I was able to enjoy the dish at last month's birthday bash. Andy whipped up a fabulous appetizer that disappeared quickly and left guests clamoring for more. Take it away, Andy:

Andy's Beef Wellington Bundles

Ingredients:
(For duxelle)
1 large shallot, finely chopped
½ pound assorted mushrooms, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
Approximately 1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon flour
1/3 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste

(For bundles)
4 beef tenderloin steaks-approximately 4 ounces each
Olive oil as necessary
6 sheets refrigerated pie pastry (3 boxes)
2 eggs, beaten
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Make a mushroom duxelle by heating the olive oil in a 12 inch sauté pan over medium high heat. Add your finely chopped shallot and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add your mushrooms and the minced garlic and cook thoroughly. Dissolve the flour in the heavy cream and add it to your mushrooms and shallot with the butter, add salt and pepper to taste. Cook until mixture has thickened and remove from heat.

I like to use portobello and porcini mushrooms for my duxelle, but you can use any variety you like. I list the ingredient as 1 tablespoon of olive oil, but if the mixture seems a little dry when you’ve added your mushrooms, add a little more in ¼ teaspoon increments so you don’t add too much. You will ruin it if you add too much oil.

Season your beef steaks with salt and pepper and heat about a tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy sauté pan over medium high heat. You may need to add more or less olive oil. The goal is to sear the steaks, they aren’t called Beef Wellington Bundles for nothing, but only cook them to what you’re comfortable with. The steaks are going into a hot oven next, so it’s hard to undercook them.

It is however, easy to overcook the steaks at this stage so be careful. I like to sear each side of each steak for 1 minute; use tongs to hold the steaks on their sides to sear the sides. Remove them from the pan and let them cool enough to safely cut the steaks into 1 inch cubes.

Unroll your pie pastry and cut each one into squares. You could use puff pastry but it’s a lot more expensive. The pie pastries unfortunately come in circles. If you can get square or rectangle shaped pie pastry it is easier to cut the squares. You can get 4 large squares out of each pie pastry but your bundles will be borderline doughy. If you use 4 large squares then cut your steak cubes a little larger than 1 inch square. Otherwise shoot for 6 squares of pastry from each circle. Some may not be perfect squares, but I’m sure you can make it work.

Put one cube of beef in the middle of each pastry square and top with about a teaspoon of duxelle. Use some judgment here. You want to be able to bring the opposite corners together and pinch the seams together to form a tight seal. If you pack the bundle with too much duxelle, or if you don’t pinch it closed tightly, the bundle will pop open in the oven and all your hard work will dry out. Wasting a tenderloin fillet like that should probably be a crime, just be careful.

Place each bundle on a well-greased cookie sheet and brush each one with the egg wash (2 eggs, beaten). It’s very important to grease the cookie sheet, or you’ll destroy your bundles when you have to pry them off the cookie sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for about 18-20 minutes. You’re looking for the pastry to be golden brown, and you want the pastry to be flaky but the insides to be juicy.

For a little extra flair, you can sprinkle some shredded parmesan cheese on the bundles after the egg wash before you bake the bundles, and add a small (about a ¼ teaspoon) dollop of horseradish sauce to each bundle-or keep some on the side and let guests add it themselves.

***Note from Jamie: I'll post a photo of Andy and/or the bundles soon!