my nutty, chocolaty (gluten free) tart with brandied cream

November 21st, 2013

chef morgan tart 1

I am thankful for…
many things, but especially dessert 

my nutty, chocolaty (gluten free) tart with brandied cream

I inherited my father’s affinity for sweets. At no time is this truth put to the test more than during the holiday season. For all of you who appreciate the sweet things in life as I do, and especially for those of you living a gluten-free lifestyle, this tart is for you. This week we are headed to the table with a delicious way to complete our Thanksgiving meal with a nutty, chocolaty (gluten free) tart with brandied cream.

à table !

LM

Read the rest of this entry »

carrot soufflé

November 7th, 2013

chef morgan

making carrots count and thank you chef Trotter

recipe: carrot soufflé

This week we bring to the table another side for Thanksgiving: carrot soufflé. I wrote this recipe long ago and have used it for various occasions and events. While it was inspired by a visit to Paris in my twenties, I dedicate it to chef Charlie Trotter who left us this week. 

Read the rest of this entry »

wild mushroom and chestnut brioche stuffing with fresh sage

November 15th, 2012

wild mushroom and chestnut brioche stuffing with fresh sage

THANKSGIVING TIP:
This is a rich and flavorful stuffing. Instead of using animal fat
as a tenderizer (additional melted butter, bacon, or sausage) this stuffing gets
its moisture from lowfat milk. The autumn flavors comes from well-browned,
earthy mushrooms and fresh sage and thyme. To make things easy for yourself on
Thanksgiving Day, you can prepare the stuffing in advance and bake it on Thanksgiving Day.

 

serves 8-10

what you need:
1 loaf or 4-5 large buns (5 heaping cups) quality brioche, cut into ½ – 1” cubes 1 ¼cup lowfat milk
1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf and 1 cluster of sage leaves)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves 8-10 fresh thyme stems, stripped Read the rest of this entry »

spicy sautéed kale and broccoli rabe

November 15th, 2012

spicy sautéed kale and broccoli rabe

THANKSGIVING TIP:
This is another good side to balance the starch-heavy meal of turkey, stuffing and potatoes.
You can omit the chili peppers if you or your guests do not want spice.
Tuscan kale is also referred to as “black kale” or “dinosaur kale”

 serves 4

 what you need:
1 pound Tuscan kale and rapini leaves, thick stems and ribsremoved
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon koshers salt 
8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon crushed red peppers Read the rest of this entry »

roasted sweet potato and citrus farce

November 15th, 2012

 roasted sweet potato and citrus farce

 

THANKSGIVING TIP:
This side is a crowd pleaser. It is great for the host too because it can be prepared in advance
and the purée  can be re-warmed  just before service (or served at room temperature).
It also can be garnished  in various ways. I prefer garnishing the purée with nothing more
than toasted pecans. However, you can use the traditional
toasted marshmallows or brulée brown sugar on top…let your Thanksgiving spirit be your guide…

makes 4-6 oranges 

what you need: 
4-5 sweet potatoes 
½ cup light sour cream
¼ cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 tablespoon fresh orange juice Read the rest of this entry »

radicchio and fennel salad with pears and hazelnuts

November 15th, 2012

 

radicchio and fennel salad with pears and hazelnuts

THANKSGIVING TIP:
Serve a balanaced (in color, texture, the food and its components itself).
This seasonal and crunchy, light  salad is perfect to  balance to a starchy Thanksgiving meal!

 serves 8

what you need:

salad
1 small head radicchio, core removed
2 small fennel bulbs, core removed
1 ripe Taylor’s Gold or Bosc pear, sliced (core and seeds removed)
¼ cup hazelnut pieces, toasted
¼ cup dried currants
⅓ cup fresh pomegranate seeds

dressing
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
4 tablespoons walnut oil
1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon heavy cream
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon gros sel de Guérande (or sea salt) Read the rest of this entry »

kabocha pie with flaky chestnut crust

November 15th, 2012

 

kabocha pie with flaky chestnut crust

THANKSGIVING TIP:
Try to make your desserts the day before Thanksgiving (use Thanksgiving day to cook/finish the things that have to be done that day…gravy, the turkey). In fact, to spread out your workload,
the pie crust and the filling can be made separately at least two days before Thanksgiving and stored in the refrigerator.
Combine the crust and filling and bake the pie the day before Thanksgiving. 

serves 4
makes 1  pie crust large enough for a 12” tart pan

what you need:

flaky crust
½ ounce chestnut flour, sifted
11 ounces unbleached all-purpose King Arthur flour, sifted Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: , , ,
Posted in desserts (les desserts) | Comments Off on kabocha pie with flaky chestnut crust  Make a Comment

gobble, gobble, gone: perfectly roasted turkey

November 20th, 2011

Turkey Wish Bone

 gobble, gobble, gone: perfectly roasted turkey

There are several occupational hazards to being a chef. One hazard is the repetitive slumping over counters and stovetops which sometimes sends me to the chiropractor, as it did again this week. Looking at my crooked frame, he asked me what I did to get myself in this mess. “I am a chef,” I replied. “That is funny,” he said, “I was just going to say that it smells like Thanksgiving in here.” Just then I got a whiff of my own hair which smelled like . . .  well, roasted turkey. Occupational hazard number two: smelling like the food you are cooking.

The turkey smell made me think of the first time I cooked a Thanksgiving turkey. I was in college, wanting to demonstrate my culinary and domestic enthusiasm for my boyfriend and his parents.  I am paraphrasing, but I believe it was Thomas Edison who said that that he had not failed but he “found 10,000 ways that [wouldn’t] work.”  That Thanksgiving produced many turkey discoveries.

My first discovery was that purchasing a 22 pound turkey for 6 people is just too much turkey.  My second discovery was that it takes a long time for a 22 pound turkey to thaw. I could not get it brined in time for the planned meal, nor could I defrost it fast enough. This massive, flightless poultry-iceburg was too large for my tiny apartment kitchen sink and I was forced to defrost it under cold, running water in the bathtub (of course I left it in plastic wrapping but the whole thing, image and all, was just wrong). However, this turkey’s Calgon moment was not the last of the trouble this bird would cause me for when it was time to pull it from the oven, the heavy bird tipped in the roasting pan, the pan fell forward, the turkey landed on the open oven door and turkey sucs, the grease, and the roasting liquid gushed all over the oven, the oven door, and the kitchen floor. Major mishap for me but manna from Heaven for my Yorkshire terrier who jumped in the lake of turkey juice lapping it up, and then ran throughout the apartment tracking her greasy paws on the 80’s white (white!) carpet, and bouncing on the furniture to allude capture. 

It was a culinary and housekeeping disaster: apartment a greasy mess; gravy nonexistent; dog vomiting from the rich turkey sucs; and overcooked, mushy or dry side dishes (as my attention was focused on salvaging the turkey and cleaning up the mess). I laugh about it now and I also know that I am not alone. Everyone has a turkey gone bad story. Overcooked. Undercooked. Turkey frozen in the middle. Turkey on fire. After over twenty years of practice, culinary school, and teaching others, I have discovered many ways that do not work and things that do. Making sure your Thanksgiving turkey turns out just right was the inspiration for this week’s simple pleasure: perfectly roasted turkey.

Read the rest of this entry »

perfectly roasted turkey

November 20th, 2011

perfectly roasted turkey

stats:

approximate 2 ¾ – 3 hours roasting time
serves 8

what you need:

Read the rest of this entry »

vegetables first

November 24th, 2010

vegetables first

When you think of the Thanksgiving meal, vegetables do not immediately come to mind.   They are side dishes and the last thing to be eaten, if at all.   It is time to change our perspective and give vegetables their proper place in our celebration of the harvest.  This year, make vegetables a first course, a purposeful dish with importance as well as a preview of more (not the only) good things to come.

Vegetables first makes sense for several reasons.  Vegetables are good for us and their texture, flavor and colors balance the bland starchy, fatty foods to follow (i.e., the mashed potatoes, stuffing, and butter-basted turkey).    Additionally, eating a modest serving of vegetables first makes us less likely to overeat the subsequent things that are not so healthy (and if you are watching your caloric intake, this will help you keep your calorie consumption down as well).

Below are three recipes for your vegetable “first course”.   All are simple to make and if you do the prep work (the washing and cutting of the vegetables) the day before then you only have to roast the vegetables on Thanksgiving day (and at the same temperature you are roasting your turkey).

A couple of comments about the vegetables.  First, always buy vegetables with their tops on.  The tops of vegetables are the first thing to decline if the vegetables are old (which is why some markets remove the tops).  Second, do not feel committed to my vegetable suggestions but buy what is freshest in your market and take advantage of the various textures and colors of the season.  Lastly, if you cannot decide which vegetable first course to serve, make two.  It is no more work  (the vegetables are all basically roasted so you can put it all on the same baking tray) and it can make things fun.   For example, if you have 12 guests, give every other person (guests # 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11)  starter #2  with squash, mushrooms, and onions, and remaining 6 guests starter # 1 with carrots, turnips, and beets.   If you have a young child who is learning patterns at school this is a great way for them to practice their pattern skills by creating a pattern (i.e., ABABAB)  to correspond with plate assignments.

Keep the old traditions and add a few new.    I wish you and your family a happy and healthy Thanksgiving and, of course, je vous souhaite un bon appétit !

LM

Read the rest of this entry »

« Older Entries