Velvet Ratatouille

I've been gone for a long, long time. But that doesn't mean I haven't been cooking. In fact, I've been cooking more, which is one of the reasons I've had less time to tell you about it.

Getting straight to the point, I'm going to post the recipe that sparked my return to this blog. It's simple and unfussy, just the kind of supper I'm always in the mood for. It's a creamy, velvety ratatouille made with oven-roasted vegetables, their insides silken and tender. And on top, a perfectly poached egg whose runny yolk serves as a blanket of sauce.

Roasted Ratatouille

Serves 4

1 large eggplant, sliced into 1/2" rounds

2 zucchini, sliced into 1/2" rounds

1/2 large yellow onion, diced

2 red bell peppers, seeded and quartered

1 can diced tomatoes, preferably San Marzano brand

Olive oil

2 Tb fresh thyme

1 tb dried oregano

Salt and pepper, to taste (this takes a lot of salt)

1. Place rounds of eggplant on a large baking sheet. Toss with olive oil to coat, and season with salt and pepper. Roast in a 400-degree oven for appoximately 30 minutes, until soft and lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool.

2. Repeat with zucchini rounds and red bell pepper quarters. After eggplant, zucchini, and red pepper have been removed from oven and cooled, dice the cooled pieces.

3. In a skillet, heat 1 Tb olive oil and saute diced onions until soft. Add eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, and canned tomatoes to pan. Stir. Add thyme, oregano, salt and pepper, and heat through on very low heat until flavors permeate entire dish. Ratatouille is done when all vegetables are soft and fully flavored.

4. Serve in a dish with a poached egg on top. (To poach egg: Bring a pot of water to a near-simmer. Add a couple drops of vinegar to water. Swirl water in a circle with a large spoon, and gently place cracked egg in swirling water. Cook at a near-simmer for 2-3 minutes, and then quickly dunk in an ice bath to stop the yolk from cooking. Place on a paper towel to pat dry, and serve immediately.)

Egg Creams

Vanilla Egg Cream

3 Tb vanilla syrup (1 cup water, 1 cup sugar, 2 tsp vanilla extract boiled and cooled)
1/2 cup milk (whole is best for this)
1/2 cup cold seltzer

1. Make and cool vanilla syrup.

2. In tall glass, pour vanilla syrup, milk and seltzer, in that order. Stir with a straw until foamy and drink immediately.

Short Ribs with Tagliatelle

Short Ribs with Tagliatelle
Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis
Serves 4-6

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 pounds short ribs
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 (14-ounce) can tomatoes (diced)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 1/2 cups beef broth
3/4 cup red wine
1 pound fresh or dried tagliatelle
4 to 6 teaspoons shaved bittersweet chocolate (optional)

Place the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium heat. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, and dredge in the flour. Add the short ribs to the pan and brown on all sides.

Meanwhile, finely chop the onion, carrot, parsley and garlic into a fine mince.

Once the short ribs are browned, remove from the pan and drain out excess fat/oil. Add vegetables to pan and soften, but do not brown. Add diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Mix well. Add thyme, oregano, bay leaf, beef broth, and wine. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Remove the lid and simmer for another hour and a half, stirring occasionally. Remove the meat and bones from the pot. Discard the bones. Shred the meat and return it to the pot. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta liquid 1/4 cup at a time, if needed, to moisten the pasta. Transfer to serving bowls, top each bowl with 1 teaspoon of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.

Lemon Madeleines

From Martha Stewart's Cookies
Makes 2 dozen large madeleines, or 4 dozen small madeleines

1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp coarse salt
3 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 Tb finely grated lemon zest
2 Tb fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pans
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)

1. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.

2. Put eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest and juice in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until pale and thickened, about 5 minutes. Mix in butter. Using a spatula, fold flour mixture into egg mixture. Let batter rest 30 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter two madeleine pans (not necessary if they are non-stick).

4. Pour batter into prepared pans, filling the molds three-quarters full. Bake cookies, rotating pans halfway through, until edges are crisp and golden, 7-8 minutes. Let cookies cool slightly in pans on wire racks. Invert, and unmold. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 1 day.

Beer-Battered Fish

Using a leftover trout fillet from my last recipe, I fried up some fluffy beer-battered fish the other night. It's a simple and quick way to use up leftover fish.

Beer batter
1 cup beer
1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne (to taste)

Season fish with salt and pepper.

Mix together dry ingredients. Heat oil in a deep-fat fryer or 2" in a skillet. When oil is ready, mix the beer with dry ingredients until smooth and lump-free. Dip fish in batter and fry until golden brown and crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove from oil, immediately season with salt, and keep warm in oven if necessary.

I served mine with a homemade dill-lemon mayonnaise.

Crusted Trout in Lime-Curry Mussel Broth

Crusted Trout in Lime-Curry Mussel Broth

Serves 8

For the mussels
2 lb mussels
2 shallots, ciseler
250 mL (1 cup) white wine
1 sprig thyme
1 Tb butter

For curried broth
2 Tb olive oil
100 g carrot, brunoise
1 shallot, ciseler
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
30 g ginger, brunoise
1 Tb curry powder (plus more to taste)
2 tomatoes, monder and brunoise
60 mL (2 oz) fresh lime juice
1 Tb (plus more to taste) crème fraiche
Reserved mussel broth
500 mL (2 cups) chicken broth
Salt and pepper

For the trout
8 trout fillets, halved, skin on
3 Tb fresh, finely grated horseradish
1 cup toasted panko crumbs
2 Tb melted butter
Dill fronds
Red pepper, macedoine
Salt and pepper
2 heads baby bok choy

For the mussels
1. Sweat shallots in butter, then add mussels, thyme and white wine.

2. Cover, and shake often until the mussels open. Remove from the heat and let rest 5 minutes.

3. Strain the mussels and reserve the liquid.

4. Shell the mussels and place in a small amount of the mussel liquid, cover with plastic and reserve for service.

For curried broth
1. Heat oil in a sautoir and sweat carrots, shallots, garlic, and ginger until soft and the flavor has developed.

2. Add curry powder and cook briefly.

3. Add tomatoes and cook 2-3 minutes.

4. Add the chicken stock and reserved mussel broth to the tomato mixture, then cook to combine flavors and reduce by half.

5. Strain out the brunoise and set aside for garnish.

6. Add lime juice to the curry broth and whisk in crème fraiche. Taste for seasoning and froth with an immersion blender for service.

For bok choy
1. Separate baby bok choy into individual leaves. Blanch quickly in salted water. Shock in cold water. Drain.

2. Make knotted bundles made with three leaves. Set aside.

To prepare fish for service
1. Season trout fillets with salt and pepper.

2. Heat a nonstick pan with oil to coat until very hot. Add the trout, skin side down, and crisp the skin for 3-4 minutes.

3. When fish is nearly cooked through, top with mixture of panko and horseradish. Spoon over a little melted butter and place pan in 400F oven until cooked through, 2-3 minutes.

To serve
Place baby bok choy bundle in middle of shallow bowl. Place 5 small spoonfuls of brunoise mixture around plate. Use reserved mussels (out of shells) to sprinkle around bottom of plate. Place a freshly steamed mussel (in shell) in each spoonful, standing up. Crisscross two trout slices in center of plate. Top with dill frond and red pepper dices. Spoon frothed broth around perimeter of bowl.

Avocado and Radish Salad with Onion Tempura

Avocado and Radish Salad with Onion Tempura

Serves 4
Adapted from Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges

Onion Tempura

1 medium onion, cut into ½” slices crosswise
Coconut milk, 1 can
¼ tsp salt, plus more to taste
2 cups cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
Corn, canola or vegetable oil for frying

Lime-Chile Salt
7 kaffir lime leaves, center ribs removed
1 fresh red Thai chile, seeded and minced
¼ tsp salt

Mustard Sauce
1 ½ tsp Chinese mustard
1 ½ tsp sugar
2 Tb minced fresh ginger
1 ½ Tb peanut oil
1 fresh red Thai chile, seeded and crushed
1 Tb fresh lime juice
1 Tb rice vinegar
½ tsp salt

Citrus Vinaigrette
1 ½ Tb nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
3 Tb fresh grapefruit juice
1 ½ tsp mustard oil
¼ tsp sesame oil
1 ½ Tb fresh lime juice
¼ cup rice vinegar
1 Tb cornstarch

2 avocados, preferably Hass, seeded, peeled, and cut into ½” slices
Salt
½ cup paper-thin slices round red radishes
½ cup paper thin slices breakfast radishes
1 ½ cups watercress

Tempura: Separate the rings of the onion slices from one another and lay them in an even layer in a shallow baking dish. Pour over the coconut milk and salt. Let the onions soak in this mixture for at least 1 hour. Mix the cornstarch and baking powder together in a shallow dish. Drain the onions and dredge them in the dry ingredients.

Heat oil (at least 2 inches deep) to 350 F. Carefully add the onions and cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown and crisp. Do not overcrowd; work in batches, if necessary. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels. Season with salt while still hot.

Lime-Chile Salt: Microwave the lime leaves and chile in 10-second intervals until they are dry, about 1 ½ minutes total. The time will vary depending on the strength of your microwave, but you will be able to see when the leaves and chiles have dried out. Cool completely and then grind in a spice grinder to a very fine powder and season with salt. Set aside until ready to use.

Sauce: Put mustard in a blender with sugar, ginger, peanut oil, chile, lime juice, vinegar, and salt. Puree until smooth. Set aside until ready to use.

Vinaigrette: Put the nam pla, grapefruit juice, mustard oil, sesame oil, lime juice, and rice vinegar into a medium mixing bowl and whisk well. Let stand for 15 minutes, then transfer 2 Tb of the dressing into a small mixing bowl. Add the cornstarch to the small bowl and whisk til completely dissolved, then pour the cornstarch mixture back into the dressing. Whisk until well incorporated, then set aside until ready to use.

For each serving, put a little pool of mustard sauce in the center of a round serving plate and top with avocado slices. Season the avocado lightly with salt, then top with the radish slices and watercress. Put 3 onion rings on top of the avocado so that the radishes are in the center of the rings. Sprinkle everything lightly with the reserved lime-chile salt and pour the citrus vinaigrette over the whole salad. Serve immediately.

Blueberry-Buttermilk-Blood Orange sorbet stack

Blueberry-Buttermilk-Blood Orange sorbet stack

In a parchment-lined ring mold or disposable plastic cup, layer three flavors of sorbet and freeze. Unmold right before serving.

Buttermilk Sorbet
Makes 1 ½ quarts
The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook – The Original Classics

1 ¾ cups sugar
2 cups buttermilk
1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract

1. Combine sugar and 2 cups water in a medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves completely, about 10 minutes. Increase heat, and bring just to a boil. Let cool.

2. In a large bowl, combine the sugar syrup with the buttermilk and vanilla. Transfer the mixture to an ice-cream maker, and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer the sorbet to an airtight container, and place in freezer for at least 1 hour before serving. Store in a plastic container in the freezer for up to 1 week.

Blueberry Sorbet
Makes 1 quart

1 ¼ cups simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, boiled and cooled)
1 lb blueberries (fresh or frozen), pureed and strained

1. Mix blueberry puree and simple syrup together, preferably in a food processor.

2. Transfer the mixture to an ice-cream maker, and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container, and place in freezer for at least 1 hour before serving. Store in a plastic container in the freezer for up to 1 week.

Blood Orange Sorbet
Makes 1 quart

1 ¼ cups simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, boiled and cooled)
1 cup blood orange juice

1. Mix orange juice and simple syrup together.

2. Transfer the mixture to an ice-cream maker, and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container, and place in freezer for at least 1 hour before serving. Store in a plastic container in the freezer for up to 1 week.

The FCI Files: Braised Lamb Shank

I've been MIA for a long time, I know, but I've been swamped. Guilt has consumed me, so here I am. My friends keep asking me what my favorite recipe from culinary school is, so I'll share it with you here.

If you've been reading my blog at all, you've probably figured out by now that I'm not a big fan of meat. Sugar, yes. Meat, no. But now that I'm learning how to cook meat to [near] perfection, I'm surprising myself a little -- last week I found myself buying and breaking down a whole chicken in my kitchen, with bare hands ... no rubber gloves! This is something I never thought I'd be able to stomach. Anyway ...

The answer to my friends' question is braised lamb shank. I've only had bad experiences with lamb in the past (which my chef explained is caused by the United States' loose specifications on the age of the meat. In the US, meat that often passes by as lamb would be too old to be considered lamb in Europe, where it would instead be sold as mutton, which has a much stronger -- and unpleasant -- taste).

But in this case, the shanks are braised until they're nearly falling off their dinosaur-sized bones. They're coated in a flavor-drenched sauce and served over couscous scented with orange and cranberry. Try this. It's incredible.

Jarret d'Agneau Braise (Braised Lamb Shanks)
Serves 4

2 large (1 1/2 pound) lamb shanks
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 Tb plus 2 tsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
5 1/4 oz. carrots, chopped in large chunks
5 1/4 oz. onions, chopped in large chunks
3 1/4 oz. celery, strings removed, cut into 1" pieces
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 1/4 cups red wine
2 cups plus 2 Tb brown veal stock (replace with beef stock if you can't find this)
5 1/4 oz. very ripe tomatoes (peeled, deseeded and cut into large chunks)

Prepare all ingredients as listed and preheat oven to 300-325F.

Trim the lamb shanks of excess fat, leaving a thin layer covering the shank. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the lamb shanks and sear, turning frequently, until all sides are nicely browned. Using tongs, remove the shanks from the pan and set aside. Leave the pan on the heat.

Add the garlic, carrots, onions and celery and saute for about 4 minutes or until the vegetables begin to color. Remove from the heat and carefully drain off the fat.

Return the pan to medium heat and stir in the thyme, bay leaves, and rosemary.

Add the wine and stir to deglaze the sucs. Stir in the stock and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and return the reserved shanks to the pan.

Cover, place in the oven, and braise for approximately 2 1/2 hours or until the shanks are very tender but not falling off the bone.

Remove the pan from the oven and uncover. Allow the shanks to rest in the hot liquid for 10 minutes. Using a ladle, carefully skim off and discard the fat that is floating on top of the sauce.

Transfer the shanks to a warm plate. Tent lightly with foil to keep warm.

Return the pan to medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, continuing to skim off any fat that rises to the surface. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until slightly reduced. Taste, and if necessary, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Cut the meat from the shank and place it into the sauce. Serve hot, with couscous.

Orange/Cranberry Scented Couscous
Serves 4

6 1/2 oz. couscous
1 cup white chicken stock
1 Tb plus 1 tsp unsalted butter, melted
Salt and pepper to taste
Orange zest, to taste
Dried cranberries, to taste

Place couscous and orange zest in a stainless steel bowl.

Place stock in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer.

Immediately pour the hot stock over the couscous and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to rest 20 minutes, then add the melted butter and season with salt and pepper to taste, fluffing occasionally, layer by layer, with a fork. Stir in dried cranberries and serve warm.

Sneak preview

When I get a little free time in the near future, I'll be posting the following recipes from my Thanksgiving feast.

Raisin pie (a different version than the one I posted earlier this year)


Towering apple pie

Pumpkin pie with pecan praline topping

Poached pears with spiced cranberries

The FCI Files: A lesson for Rachael Ray

I've been overwhelmed with classes, work and volunteering, so I'm a little behind in my blogging.

Here's what you've missed since Lesson 3 from the French Culinary Institute: Sauces, soups, preserving food (and I'm not talking about jam, I'm talking about duck confit and gravlax), emulsified sauces and salads. I've learned so much that it's impossible to digest it all, but I'll post my favorite recipe of all below -- bearnaise sauce.

We also learned a valuable lesson about olive oil. I'd heard this before, and I heard it again today from our chef -- NEVER, ever cook with extra virgin olive oil. I know Rachael Ray uses "E.V.O.O." to cook/fry/sautee/roast everything under the sun, but don't do it! Extra virgin olive oil is called "extra virgin" because it's the result of the first cold press of high-quality olives. It must, by law, have an acidity level of less than 1 percent to be labeled "extra virgin." When it's cooked, it loses its delicate flavor. You might as well use corn oil.

Anyway, here's the classical French recipe for bearnaise. Enjoy! (And please excuse the metric measurements ... in class we must do as the French do. I still have no idea how big a centimeter is, though.)

Sauce Bearnaise
For reduction
80 ml white wine vinegar
40 g shallots, finely minced
5 grams finely crushed black peppercorns
3 grams dried tarragon
150 ml water

For sauce
2 egg yolks
20 ml water
200 ml clarified butter
3 grams tarragon (fresh), finely chopped
3 grams chervil, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Combine the reduction ingredients in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and simmer until reduced by eight-tenths.

2. Place the yolks, water, and half the reduction in a bowl. Whisk them together.

3. Place the bowl over a pot of water at a low simmer, making sure that the bottom of the bowl is not touching the simmering water.

4. Using a whisk, whip the egg yolk mixture until it thickens and becomes stiff and airy, and until the whisk leaves streaks on the bottom of the bowl. This mixture, light yet thick, is called a sabayon. Be careful not to overheat it, or the eggs may scramble.

5. Remove the mixture from the heat and add the warm (not hot) clarified butter in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly. Go slowly at first to start the emulsion; the sauce may break if the butter is added too quickly.

6. If the sauce gets too thick, carefully thin it with warm water to achieve the proper consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

7. Once the butter is added, add the chopped fresh herbs and season to taste.

8. Keep warm for service, but do not allow it to get too hot, or it will break.

The FCI Files: Lesson 3

Today was "organ day" in another group's class, meaning my class was "treated to" samples of calf kidney, liver, sweetbreads, brain and tongue. This could have been devastating if not for the pistachio souffle pancake with cranberry swirl ice cream and cranberry compote that was later brought to us by the pastry class. The piece of Parmeggiano-Reggiano that came from a $1200 wheel (and brought to us by Mario Batali's executive chef of Del Posto) didn't hurt, either.

My class, however, is building on the fundamentals. We learned how to make the five basic stocks -- fond de veau brun (brown veal stock), fond de volaille blanc (white chicken stock), fumet de poisson (fish stock), marmite (white beef stock with blackened onions) and bouillon de legumes (vegetable stock).

The two simplest and most useful are outlined below -- chicken stock and vegetable stock. Tomorrow we'll be using them in sauces -- hopefully not sauces to spoon over lamb tongue.

Fond de volaille blanc

(White chicken stock)

Makes 5 liters (use these proportions but change amounts as necessary)

3 kg poultry bones
6 liters cold water
250 g onions, cut in mirepoix (pieces the same size as the bones)
250 g carrots, cut in mirepoix
100 g celery, cut in mirepoix
100 g leeks, white and pale green parts only, chopped (optional)
2 garlic cloves, crushed
Bouquet garni (peppercorns, dry thyme, bay leaves, fresh parsley and one whole clove)

1. Trim bones of fat and skin. Rinse under cold running water, making sure to scrape out blood and viscera.

2. Place bones in a stockpot -- cover with cold water and bring to a boil, skimming.

3. Simmer and skim. Add aromatics, and simmer for two hours, skimming often.

4. Strain and cool in an ice bath to store in refrigerator, unless you're using it right away.

Bouillon de Legumes

(Vegetable stock)

Makes 1 liter

50 g onions
100 g carrots
100 g celery
100 g mushrooms
2 leeks, greens only
100 g plum tomatoes
50 g butter or oil
2 garlic cloves
2 liters cold water
A sprig of fresh thyme and parsley

1. Emincer the vegetables (slice them thinly). Concasser the tomatoes (coarsely chop them).

2. Place veggies in a saucepan and sweat in the butter, without adding color.

3. Add 2 L (8 cups) cold water (important to add cold water in stocks to preserve clarity). Simmer for 20 minutes.

4. Add thyme and parsley. Simmer 10 more minutes.

5. Remove from heat. Let steep for 10 minutes, and strain well.