goût de luxe: caviar taste. legume budget. perfect.

January 20th, 2011

goût de luxe:

caviar taste.  legume budget.  perfect.

Goût de luxe means “luxurious taste” or “taste of luxury.”   Sometimes you want to indulge your taste for luxury without paying the monetary price typically associated with it.   So what is easy to do that tastes expensive, but isn’t?  Beluga lentils and that is why a Beluga lentil hors-d’oeuvre is this week’s simple pleasure.

Lentils are a legume   (which is a fruit with edible seeds in a pod).  Other legumes include soybeans, green beans,  fava beans, garbanzo beans, and peanuts.  Legumes are full of dietary protein and fiber  (both soluble and insoluble) and are often used as a meat substitute.   Legumes are not only good for your health but a delight for your budget (compare one pound of organic aged beef which can cost around $22-24 per pound with a pound of heirloom beans for about $3-4).

When we think of lentils, generally most people think of the dark green Puy lentils from Velay, France (which admittedly are wonderful).  These green lentils are commonly prepared creamy-style or served in a salad (often with roasted red beets).  However, lentils come in a variety of sizes and colors, including red, orange, ivory, canary yellow, various shades of green and brown, and black.  The green, brown, and black varieties retain their shape better then the orange, red and canary colored varieties.  The orange, red and canary colored lentils are often found in Indian cuisine and take on a very creamy consistency when simmered.  Lentils (eaten out of the pod) do not need to be rehydrated and take only 20-30  minutes to simmer.

Beluga lentils look exactly like the famous caviar for which they are named.    They are shiny, dark black, small, and round.  Beluga lentils are delicate and mild-flavored.  They can be prepared al dente or simmered longer for a creamier texture.  They are wonderful additions to soups and salads and they pair well with fleshy white fish (i.e., Sea Bass or Cod) as well as with pork and game (including two of my favorites:  wild boar and crispy pork belly).   Beluga lentils are also good puréed.

This Beluga lentil hors -d’oeuvre is true to the caviar theme.  Beluga caviar is typically served with sour cream on top of halved boiled new potatoes (and accompanied by a bottle of ice-cold vodka encased in ice).  Here, instead of sour cream, we use crème fraîche with freshly grated horseradish.  Instead of potatoes or toast points, we use thinly sliced raw turnips.   Instead of water or vegetable stock (which is the typical fare in which to simmer lentils), we use white wine and fish stock, keeping with the caviar theme and giving the lentils a slightly salty, seafood boost.

This hors -d’oeuvre takes about 20 minutes active time.  It can be prepared in advance and tastes best when it has chilled overnight.  The crème fraîche and the turnips can also be prepared in advance.

So fancy, here is to your luxurious — budget and health conscious —  taste.   The chilled vodka is optional.

Je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

LM

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Bœuf de Noël

December 24th, 2010

Bœuf de Noël

Every year a number of home-cooks try their hand at creating the French classic Bûche de Noël (also known as the Yule log or Christmas log).  The Bûche de Noël signifies the European tradition of placing a Yule log on the fire during the Christmas holidays.  The Bûche de Noël, an edible rendition of a yule log, is a génoise sheet cake covered with buttercream.   The cake is then rolled,  creating a swirling pattern of cake and buttercream visible from the sides.  The rolled cake is covered with frosting, scored to create tree bark appearance, and decorated with marzipan mushrooms and sometimes marzipan holly leaves.   This week’s simple pleasure takes the theme and techniques of a Bûche de Noël and applies them to the savory side.  Instead of a dessert, we are making the main course.

Bœuf de Noël (not a French tradition but my own play on words) is a beef tenderloin, butterflied to a thickness of one inch, covered with a delicate chestnut and fresh herb stuffing, rolled, and then enclosed and roasted in puff pastry dough.  You can dress up the dish by adding foie gras or wild boar sausage to the stuffing.  Truffles can be also added (either to the stuffing, the sauce, or sliced and sautéed and served with the mushrooms);   however, the recipe is written with just the basic ingredients (but if you have these specialty items on hand, use them!)  The idea is similar to France’s rôti de boeuf en croûte (roasted beef in pastry) or England’s Beef Wellington (a popular dish in the 1960’s), except this recipe uses the French preparation technique of roulade (basically stuffing and rolling a food) as well as the en croûte method (to enclose a food in dough) and it resembles the Bûche de Noël in spirit.

In addition to the woodsy flavors (sage, thyme, chestnuts), this main course looks like a yule log.  The puff pastry is scored to create the appearance of bark.  You can also add “tree limbs” by rolling smaller bits of puff pastry and attaching them to the “trunk” (let your imagination be your guide for this).  When you slice into the tenderloin, there is not only the pastry puff layers (the “bark”), but the swirling patten of the stuffing and the meat, resembling the tree’s rings.  Instead of marzipan mushrooms, sautéed whole small brown mushrooms (combined with wild mushrooms if you like) are served on the side to complete the yule log.  A thyme-port reduction sauce is a perfect compliment to the stuffing, meat, and the pastry.

While the dish may sound a little complicated, it is not.  Cut.  Stuff.  Roll.  Roast.  This is a great dish for a holiday dinner because it is special enough that your guests will not see it every day yet it is simple for the host because the majority of it can be ahead of time.  On the day of your dinner, all you have to do is roast the meat and prepare the sauce while the meat is in the oven and then resting.  You can make this dish with a less expensive cut of meat (such as a flank steak); however,  the tenderloin is the better choice because the delicate, tender cut pairs best with the puff pastry, the smooth sauce, and the fine-textured stuffing.  Turkey breast also works, but  I imagine most people are tired of turkey after Thanksgiving.

A couple of ingredient and production notes.  While I usually advocate making everything from scratch, you only need one sheet of puff pastry for this recipe so if you do not have it on hand, it can be purchased  in the freezer section of your grocery store or speciality food store.  There are actually some decent puff pastry doughs out there (although there are some bad ones too). Buy a quality puff pastry, defrost it in the refrigerator, and make sure that it is not too thick (roll it with a rolling pin if it is).  Also, make sure the pastry dough is cold but pliable when you wrap it around the meat.  Once you have wrapped the meat, return the entire thing to the refrigerator for about 15 minutes (although you can do this the day before and put it in the refrigerator overnight).

You want to make sure the meat is cooked correctly and that the puff pastry is golden brown and and not doughy or soggy.  The latter I find to be the biggest trouble spot.   According to Harold McGee, about 75% of a meat’s weight is water and as meat cooks, the meat firms up, squeezing out the  moisture.   This water (the juice) has to go somewhere so even a barrier between the pastry and the meat (i.e., prosciutto or pâté) will not eliminate the moisture factor.   I find that the best way to deal with this is to minimize it: (1) use a thin layer of quality pastry dough and do not overlap it; (2) score the dough to allow heat to penetrate the pastry dough, (3) bake the log on a wire rack to allow the oven heat to surround the log (I also make some fork piercings in the bottom of the dough as an escape route for cummulative moisture);  and (4) start the oven off at a high temperature, even though you have already browned it in a skillet, which will allow pastry to rise better and turn some moisture into steam.    Also, if the meat is not too big (if you roast only 1 pound instead of 2), you can turn it on its side  when it cools so any draining juice will not sit on the bottom of the puff pastry.

Lastly, the meat should be taken out of the oven when it registers 130 degrees Fahrenheit on a meat thermometer.  This will give you medium/medium-rare meat that is still pink in the middle which is what you want.   Normally, I would suggest taking it out at a much lower temperature but the enclosing the meat in pastry artificially raises the temperature of the meat (and also prevents it from cooking as it would without the pastry around it).

Serve this dish with simple roast winter vegetables (see companion post) or a creamy winter soup.  Below I have included the recipe for the thyme-port sauce as well as sautéed mushrooms to go with the Bœuf de Noël.

Whether you make a Bûche de Noël or a Bœuf de Noël (or both),  je vous souhaite un bon appétit et je vous souhaite un très Joyeux Noël  du fond de mon coeur (and I wish you a very Merry Christmas from the bottom of my heart).

LM

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roasted brussels sprouts and chestnuts

December 24th, 2010

roasted brussels sprouts and chestnuts

serves: 6-8

what you need:

1/2 cup lardon or pancetta, cubed
1 pound brussels sprouts, halved
12 chestnuts, steamed and halved (shells and skins removed)
olive oil (as needed)
kosher salt (as needed)
freshly ground black pepper (as needed)

how to:

  • Prepare Chestnuts.  Cut in half.
  • Partially Cook Lardon or Pancetta.  In a cast iron skillet (or in the microwave on paper towels), cook the pancetta or lardon until  the meat has pinked up.  Do not cook all the way and do not cook until crispy.  Drain on paper towels.  This step is merely to eliminate the majority of the animal fat.
  • Prepare Brussels Sprouts.  Wash and dry brussels sprouts.  Cut in half lengthwise.  Add to bowl with chestnuts.  Add drained pancetta or lardon.
  • Coat With Oil.  Coat the brussels sprouts and chestnuts lightly with oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.  Toss to coat.  Place in a baking dish.
  • Roast. Roast in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Use a wooden spoon to toss the brussels sprouts, chestnuts, and meat to ensure even cooking.   Cook until the brussels sprouts are slightly browned and some of the edges are crisp.

royal icing

December 17th, 2010

royal icing

what you need:

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon dried egg whites (or meringue powder)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 cup water

OR

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 egg white
1 teaspoon lemon juice

how to:

  • Sift Dry Ingredients.  Sift powdered sugar and meringue powder (or dried egg whites) and place in the bowl of a stand along mixer.
  • Add Liquid And Mix.  Using the whisk attachment, turn the mixer on low speed and add the lemon juice and water.  Mix until incoporated.  If you are using a raw egg white (instead of the dried whites or meringue powder), omit the water.

vin chaud

December 11th, 2010

vin chaud

Le vin chaud (hot wine or “mulled wine”) is a warm, festive treat for the holidays that is easy to make (the simmering wine makes your home smell good too).  Here are a few suggestions to help you with your preparation.

First, I like to toast the spices and fruit in a dry pan before adding the wine because that intensifies their flavor.   Once the spices are fragrant and a fond from the fruit has begun to form on the pan bottom, I add a touch of brandy and then immediately add the wine. The brandy adds a nice depth to the wine and releases the fond from the pan (however omit the brandy if you are simmering cider instead of wine).

Second, simmer the wine for about 45 minutes.   Do not boil the wine or simmer longer than one hour or the wine will become bitter.  Do not simmer for less than 30 minutes because the spices will not have been infused.  You can add additional spices to your taste (I often I add licorice root as well); however, do not add any ground spices or your wine will be chalky and cloudy.

Third, most mulled wine recipes add sugar to the wine (anywhere from 1/4 to 1 cup per bottle).   I omit the sugar completely.   It is not necessary and wine already has sugar in it.  However, I do add a couple of dried cherries (you can use raisins if you want) which slightly sweeten the wine and compliment the fruit overtones in the wine.

Fourth, with respect to the wine, avoid earthy Bordeauxs and full-bodied Cabernets.  Use a medium-bodied red wine such as a Pinot Noir or Red Zinfandel (although Merlot and Shiraz could work as well).   I include two Pinot Noir recommendations below (thanks to my friend Mark at The Wine House).  The Cloudline (from Oregon) is more fruit forward while the Santa Maria Pinot is more of a subtle, classic Pinot Noir.  Choose according to your taste preference.

Lastly, I am always asked how much money to spend on a bottle of wine with which you are going to cook.  In my opinion, you can neither select nor eliminate a wine based solely upon price  (price is also subjective).   Instead, my rule of thumb is that you should buy a wine that you would drink and enjoy but not a wine that you would sip and savor.

Santé !

LM

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vin chaud (en français)

December 9th, 2010

vin chaud

Below is the mulled wine recipe written en français for those of you who want to practice your french.

À votre santé !

LM

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fruit is dessert

December 3rd, 2010

fruit is dessert

Children today do not consider fruit to be dessert.  To them, cake, ice cream, or a piece of pie is dessert and adults‘ ideas of what constitute dessert is no different.   However,  it is our routine and excess consumption of added sugar (sugar found in these commonly thought of desserts) that is ruining our health and the health of our children.  The American Heart Association (www.heart.org/HEARTORG) estimates that one of three American children is overweight or obese which is causing children to have high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and elevated blood cholesterol levels.  The statistics for adults are no better.

Are you consuming excess added sugar?  The AHA recommends that women consume only 24 grams (100 calories) of added sugar per day which is equal to 6 teaspoons (or 2 tablespoons). The recommendation for men is 36 grams (150 calories)  per day which is equal to 9 teaspoons (or 3 tablespoons). For reference,  a  3 1/2 ounce piece of chocolate cake has approximately 428 calories,  38 grams of sugar, 16 grams of fat, and 73 grams of carbohydrates.  While by no means am I advocating the elimination of chocolate cake, we need a reminder that fruit is dessert.

This week’s simple pleasure is pears poached in red wine and brewed chai tea.  Pears are in season and they store well.   They are nutrient dense with fiber, no saturated fat and no cholesterol, and a  3 1/2 ounce pear contains only 58 calories.  Although fruit is typically poached in simple syrup (equal amounts of granulated sugar and water) combined with spices and sometimes wine, my recipe is different.  The poaching liquid is a combination of the pears’ peels, brewed chai tea, red wine, reduced apple cider, spices, and only one tablespoon of agave nectar.

This dessert is simple to make.  It takes 20-30 minutes to poach the pears.  The pears can be served warm or at room temperature.  They can be served out of the pot you poached them in or out of a large bowl and spooned into shallow soup bowls with some of the poaching liquid.  You can also reduce the poaching liquid down to a syrup and spoon it over the pear.   As an added bonus, the pears can be stored in the refrigerator in their poaching liquid for a few days, making it a great dessert to do ahead of time and have on hand.   When you do store them, they become a deeper rose color going perfectly with the autumn season.

A quick note about the ingredients.  Use a quality chai tea preferably loose leaf (it was actually the delicious chai tea at Caffe Luxxe which inspired me to write this recipe).  The wine you use should be mild and fruity, I recommend something from the Loire Valley if you can find it.  When deciding how much money to spend on the wine my general rule is that you should use a good wine that you want to drink, but not one that you would sip and savor.  Lastly, use ripe pears (without soft spots or bruises) that are still firm but slightly give at the neck when pressed on.  Pears should not be purchased soft unless you are going to use them immediately (pears decline rapidly).  Rather, chose pears that are firm, put them in the refrigerator for a couple of days, then store them at room temperature in a brown paper bag.   Do not use Asian pears for this recipe because they are too juicy and crisp and their best attributes will be lost.  Rather, use European pears.  Bosc pears (with their elegant long necks) and  Seckel pears (also called sugar pears which are sweet and a perfect size) are my favorite.   However, I also use Comice pears (Doyenne du Comice) and d’Anjou pears (Beurré d’Anjou) although of the two I prefer the taste of the Comice for this recipe because of their winey overtones.   Simple.  Easy.  Delicious.  Dessert is served.

Je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

LM

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a bouquet garni – detail with a difference

November 24th, 2010



 

 

a bouquet garni

 

Ce sont les petits choses qui font toute la différence (it is the little things that make all the difference).   In life and cooking the details matter.   A bouquet garni (a little gathering of herbs) is a detail that makes all the difference.

A bouquet garni imparts flavor to its surrounding and typically used in anything that simmers (i.e., braises, stocks, and soups).  A kitchen string keeps the herbs in a bundle and is usually tied to the handle of a stockpot (so when the garni has done its job, you grab the string and toss the bouquet).

Traditionally a bouquet garni is Italian parsley, thyme, and bay leaves wrapped inside a leek.  However, the combinations are endless (some chefs will wrap the herbs in a slice of bacon or add a piece of citrus peel).  A sachet is used like a bouquet garni but the herbs and spices (i.e., peppercorns, juniper berries) are placed inside a piece of muslin or cheesecloth.   Sachets are preferable if you are using dried herbs and small spices.  A bouquet garni (or sachet) should be small so not as to overwhelm the food, but create a subtle aroma.


This week’s simple pleasure is making a bouquet garni for use not only as a flavor enhancer but as a place-setting/party favor and a host gift.  The bouquets can be used fresh or when they dry out.  This project is easy to do.  Moreover, it adds a personal, fresh touch to your dinner (or a thoughtful host gift) and is something you can do with your children to incorporate them in preparing for the festivities.   Focusing on the detail of a few fresh herbs this Thanksgiving will impart more than flavor, it will impart smiles.

Je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

 

LM

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persimmon and apple caramel with fleur de sel

November 24th, 2010

apple and persimmon caramel with fleur de sel

Easy and delicious.  Make the most of those special persimmons and apples you found at the farmer’s market.  This caramel is great to have on-hand and the perfect companion to a range of treats:  yogurt, vanilla ice cream, warmed pears, or formage blanc.  You can also brush the caramel on roasted fall vegetables (i.e., carrots or parsnips).  If you are worried you will run out, preserve it and it will last until next year when brown sugar persimmons and caville blanc d’hiver apples reappear.

Je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

LM

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perfectly mashed potatoes

November 19th, 2010


perfectly mashed potatoes

The mistake home-cooks often make at Thanksgiving is trying to do too much.  Too many items.  Too many new recipes.   Too many ingredients.  In an effort to do everything, the basics are neglected (and the host is left stressed and exhausted). This is unfortunate because when it comes to Thanksgiving, what people want is simple:  they want a turkey that is not dry; stuffing that is neither soggy nor tastes like sawdust; and they want good mashed potatoes. Cranberries and vegetables are usually left-over, people are trying to move away from eating gravy, and if given the choice of yams or mashed potatoes, most people would choose mashed potatoes. While you may make the best gravy or perfectly brulée the marshmallows on the yams, if the mashed potatoes are gummy and the turkey is dry, no one will remember the gravy or the yams, they will remember the dry turkey and gummy potatoes.   My advice is to focus your efforts on perfecting the basics: the turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes, and build your  meal from there given your talents and time (i.e., if it is a question of making the stuffing or a pumpkin pie, focus your efforts on the stuffing and ask someone else to bring the pie or find a quality bakery where you can buy one).

Although turkey and stuffing may be enjoyed primarily during the holidays,  Americans’  sincere affection for mashed potatoes lasts throughout the year. Mashed potatoes should be light, creamy, soft, rich and buttery without being greasy.   Sadly, that is not often how they end up.    The key to understanding how to make perfect mashed potatoes is to understand what can go wrong and how to prevent it (or correct it).

Below is a “do” and “do not” summary followed by my mashed potato recipe.   There are only three ingredients in this recipe:  potatoes, butter, and cream.   My favorite potatoes to use are Russian Banana Fingerling but I provide suggestions of several other potato varieties that will produce equally wonderful results.   As important as using quality potatoes is using quality butter and cream.  You will notice that I provide a range of how much butter and cream to add.   Use the low range for lighter and “healthier” potatoes, use the higher range if you want richer, more restaurant-like potatoes.  If you follow these easy steps, you will have mashed potatoes that your guests will remember long after  Thanksgiving and will be requesting all year long.

Je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

LM

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