Christmas 2013

Here are some notes on our Christmas Eve dinner. That was the feature dinner this year. We had a leisurely dinner at around 6 and then had plenty of time to enjoy the meal, clean up, and go to mass at 10:30 to return home by 1:00. Good thing we had eaten well!

Starter was slices of Metropolitan whole grain baguette with Raineer smoked chicken (the chicken that tastes exactly like ham!) along with Otolith smoked salmon. Served with Prosecco or sparkling cider.

Entree was Bouillabaisse Style Fish Stew from Cook's Illustrated recipe published September 1, 2001.
For stock--definitely the most important ingredient--I varied from the recipe by using two whole branzino instead of frames. Also  used celery instead of fennel bulb. Used two heads of garlic instead of three because my garlic is so strong. For wine, used a bottle in inexpensive Chardonnay. Rest was more-or-less by the book. Cooked the stock for probably two hours before putting through a strainer and then a sieve. It was fabulous and extremely rich. After infusing it with orange zest and saffron (more than the 1/2 t in the recipe), I did not re-strain it, and it was fine.

For seafood, I used about a pound of halibut and a half pound of sable, both Alaskan from Otolith at the Rittenhouse Saturday market. Also used a pound of shrimp from them as well as a half pound of scallops quartered and a bag (about 2 lb.) of excellent mussels from Jonn Yi at Reading Terminal.

Marinated by the book with a little less garlic and 2T Pernod. Also more saffron.

For assembly, did a quick boil and didn't need to let stand as recommended. Mussels were fine and very tasty.

Best part perhaps was the Rouille--totally new to me. This was also from a Cook's Illustrated recipe. Used an out-of-season red bell pepper and broiled it before skinning and pureeing. Used Metropolitan white baguette for the bread, and went for volume (2 c) instead of weight (2 oz.) Probably used closer to 4 oz. bread. Toasted it first in cubes, then put in food processor. After other items added and oil, processed thoroughly. Did not become "mayonnaise-like" as the book said, but was a very good texture for a spreading and just the right balance of head from cayenne and punch from the garlic blended with the soft quality of bread crumbs.

Served the soup with the recommended toasted garlic-rubbed baguette slice topped with the Rouille and a sprig of parsley. Also served the Rouille on the table and everyone enjoyed it on bread and or additionally in the bouillabaisse.

Vegetable dish was a variation of a salad from Jane that calls for haricots verts and shitake mushrooms. I slow cooked some bacon then, after gettin grid of most of the fat, used the same pan to sautee the chifoneed (sp?) Brussels sprounts (in season) along with Shitake mushrooms. Seered on high heat and deglazes with white wine. Served on a bed of spears of very crispy red cabbage (on a beautifuly bright yellow plate) and tossed with a Dijon vinagrette, topped with thin 1 in. bacon strips. Quite good and rich.

Did a greens salad with a mix of bitter and sweet greens and a simple Balsamic vinagrette.

Dessert was a quince paste and apple pie prepared by Richard--with cardamom whipped cream. Decafe coffee with foamed milk.

Altogether a lovely meal, and just the right amounts. Maybe two portions of the bouillabaisse left over. More of the Rouille, but it's good on everything! (Even with chocolate mousee as Nathaniel and I discovered a day later.)

Summer 2013 Pig Roast Palooza

These are notes on our Great Pig Roast of 2013 in New Hampshire. Fed about 80 people with lots of leftovers--and the best pulled pork I've had. (Writing this now as I'm wishing for summer while fall sets in I guess.)

The recipe was a variation of Ian Knauer's Whole Roast Pig directions in The Farm (Houghton Mifflin, 2012.)



THE PREP
With the help of the backhoe attachment on the tractor, my cousin John was able to dig the size hole that Ian Knauer recommends: a 4 x 6 foot hole that's 4 feet deep. Finishing was done by shovel, and the whole thing took about 2 1/2 hrs.

Instead of one 5 x 8 ft. sheet of corrugated roofing, we got two sheets that were 4 x 8 and overlapped them. This worked particularly well for the thermometer. (See below.)

Instead of 4-ft. lengths of iron piped coupled for spitting, we used a 10-ft. length of electrical conduit pipe, about 3/4 in. diameter and stainless steel coating. This went through the pig well from end to end, and the extra length was good since the 6 ft. long hole can "expand" a little if sides collapse in a bit. 2 feet extra at each end was just right. Also we used a 5 ft. length of same piping for inserting in the ribs to stabilize. Worked just fine.

We lined the bottom and sides of the pit with about 15 pieces of 4-ft. long wood split for large fireplace use. Mixed hardwoods from the pile in the field. Covered the bottom of the pit (no way to leave an opening there for a pan as Knauer describes, and then up the sides. Also bought three small bags of MatchLight charcoal to get it going in the morning. This worked extremely well. Had other bags of charcoal on hand to beef up the temperature quickly if need be but never needed them.

The thermometer we used to monitor the interior temperature of the pit (I was very nervous about this having never done this before and since we invited 80+ people to come over and eat it.) was Wireless Barbecue Thermometer Set by Maverick with the extra 6-foot extension cable as well.



THE PIG
Used a 110 pound pig from White Gates Farm in Tamworth, New Hampshire. Hank Letarte met us at his farm when we went there one day to pick up ribs his stand didn't have at the Tamworth Saturday Market. He raises food in with rotation and self-sustaining practices like Pollyface (in Omnivore's Dilemma) and beyond that. Hank makes his own bio-diesel from restaurant oil, he heats his greenhouses with compost heat (130 degrees H2O temp. in January!), and rotates cows, chickens, and grass in his pastures. Pigs forage in a woodlot and are fed organic foods as well.

Hank had the pig prepped and ready for us to pick up from the walk-in fridge on his property so we could get it at day-break (4:30 am) on the day of the roast.

Easter 2013 Menu

 Appetizer

Squares of carrot and turnip blanched. Sprinkled with crumbled bacon and dried coconut.

Starter

Mushroom tart tatin on a bed of arugula drizzled with sweet Balsamic. Cremini mushrooms; dried porcini mushrooms soaked in sherry and smoked chicken stock; sherry and broth reduced and added.

Entrée

Roast leg of lamb and potatoes; lamb coated in oil processed with 1 ½ heads garlic and rosemary 1 day ahead; potatoes cooked in roasting pan and tossed with toasted/rendered lamb “chitterlings.” 

Braised red cabbage with tarragon; cabbage braised in cocedo broth; garnished with fresh dill.

Slow cooked carrots  garnished with fresh marjoram.

Salad

Endive in cinnamon-mayonnaise dressing; apple slices tossed in lemon juice, cinnamon, and vanilla salt; orange slices, dried cranberries, and edible flowers.

Dessert

“He-is-risen” Chocolate Soufflé

Apres

Coffee and dried figs and apples with almonds

Perfect Pork Pastie

In the pastie line, this was my first real attempt. Because of the success of the dough, I think, it came out very well and is worth recording here to try again later. It was made from leftovers of a sort of pork stir-fry. The result was a holdable delicious combination of meat and crispy dough with a bit of sweetness from sprouts. Everything in this except non-perishables was local and sustainable.

Filling Ingredients
1/2 med. onion, chopped 1/2 in to 1/4 in. pieces
1 lb. pork cutlet from local provider at Fair Foods. Cut was tender and thinly sliced. I cut it in strips to create texture similar to beef stir-fry meat you can buy.
1/2 piece thick cut smoked bacon across width in 1/4 in slices
1 1/2 boxes (pt. size) Brussels sprouts, trimmed and chiffonade, not too thin.
paprika, about 1/4 t
cayenne pepper, sprinkle--1/8 t or less
thyme, 1/2 t
salt to taste
black pepper, 1/8-1/2 t
olive oil

Directions
Dough
Make and refrigerate dough. Used processor dough recipe from Jane. Used 1/4 c. butter and 1/4 c. rendered fat with 2 c. white flour, baking powder, and salt.

Filling

1. In large (14 in.) pan, brown onions in 2-3 T oil to darkish, then cut heat to low and caramelize briefly--5-10 min. while prepping other ingredients.
2. Put chopped port in bowl. Add a little oil and the spices. Toss.
3. Put heat to high and move onions to perimeter of pan. Add meat to center. Let heat through. I added the bacon then, but could be earlier. Cook through, tossing in pan and mixing with onions when browned.
4. Push all of this to perimeter of pan. Add Brussels sprouts to center on high heat. Let sit and sear, then toss and wait again. When well seared--some black here and there--cut heat to med or med-low, and cover pan for two minutes to cook them through. 
5. Deglaze pan with a bit of water to get everything that may be stuck to it.
6. Add salt and black pepper and more cayenne to taste.

Pastie
The sealing process for this was not elegant but it worked.

Preheat oven to 400. Rack on top setting.

1. Let dough warm from refrigeration--5 to 10 minutes.
2. With lots of flour on hand, make ball just a little bigger than a golf ball.
3. Roll into circle that's 9" in diameter. I traced a plate with a knife. It should be pretty thin.
4. Put 1/2 c of the filling into the center and fold in half--moon shape. 
5. Dampen edges with water on finger, then fold them over in one direction. Press with fork from both sides.
6. Place on pan in hot oven. Check in 15 min. Should be nicely brown on both top and pan side. 

I liked that the dough took on the lumpy shape of the filling and that it was quite crisp. The filling also tended to stay in the pastie when you ate it--neater eating.  A reheat in microwave for about 15 sec. from room temperature was good. Could be a little longer probably.

Nathaniel's Amazing Sausage and Apple Pizza

This pizza was created (and baked) by Nathaniel with me helping out. It is one of the best pizzas I ever tasted. It's based off of a bacon and apple one they do at Otto where here worked in Boston. The taste combination was just terrific. The sausage was called Linguica  from a local farm. It was mildly spicy and had a rich wine flavor, paring well with the apple, fresh mozzarella cheese and herbed crust.

Ingredients:

pizza dough, herbed (could use plain)
garlic, 4 large cloves minced
olive oil
half and half, about 2 T
oregano
about 1 lb. Linguica  pork sausage
med red onion, thin sliced
1 Gold Rush (sweet-tart) apple, thin sliced in crescents
Asiago cheese, about 2 oz. plane grated (could use a medium hot sausage of most kinds)
1 lb. ball fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced in rounds
fresh ground pepper
salt

8 slices
Preheat oven to 500 or Broil.

Directions:

1. If refrigerated, set dough out to warm while you prep.
2. Prep garlic. Put cloves of the minced garlic into 1/3 c. olive oil to steep. Reserve rest.
3. Slice sausage and cook in large skillet--high heat, then lower until cooked through. (About 1/2 in. slices or as thin as you can make it.) Remove from pan.
4. Add onions to pan on high heat until soft, then low for at least 5 min. 
5. Flatten and stretch dough to 16" circle. Sprinkle corn meal on pizza pan (or oil it), then lay dough on it.
6. Brush dough with garlic oil then layer on in this order: 1/2 Asiago cheese, black pepper, apple, cream, onions, minced garlic, mozzarella, sausage, oregano, salt, and top with rest of Asiago.
7. Cook on top shelf in oven 12 min. or until edges are nicely toasted.

 2 slices is a good serving as it's very rich and delicious!

Warm Winter Fish Chowder

This is a fish chowder I cooked up on a coldish rainy day in February. All foods were local and in season except for the tomato sauce I made last summer and froze. It's a not too creamy but well blended group of flavors and had a beautiful pinkish tinge from the cream and tomato sauce together. The Brussels sprouts were a bit of a risk but I used them in lieu of something sweet like corn. I think they worked well.  Here's how it went:


Serves 4-6 as main course.

Ingredients:

3 thick slices bacon
1 large onion, chopped small
2/3 of a head of garlic, minced
1 med carrot, chopped small
1 pt. Brussels sprouts, chunky chopped into 4-6 pieces each
2 large Yukon potatoes, peeled and 1/2 in. diced
1 small fillet flounder
1 med. fillet monk fish
4 large dry scallops
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
2 T butter
salt and pepper
Cajun season mix
2 T olive oil
1/2 bunch parsley

Directions

1. In a large soup pot, slow cook bacon slices whole, rending as much fat out as possible.
2. While bacon is cooking (maybe 20 min, turned occasionally), prep veggies--onions, carrot, garlic, potatoes, sprouts.
3. Remove bacon from pan and reserve. Add chopped onions and carrots on high heat. Soften, then turn to low heat, add, garlic, mix through, and let caramelize for maybe 5-10 minutes.
4. While veggies caramelize, first prep parsley by rough chopping enough leaves to garnish soup--3-4 T. Then fine chop the rest, stems and all. 
5.  Prep fish by cutting into bite-size pieces--about 1 in. chunks. I cut scallops into eighths. Put in a bowl. Add 2T olive oil, 1 T Cajun season, 1/4 t salt, and fine chopped parsley. Stir in gently with rubber spatula and let sit.
6. After  veggies caramelized a while, push to sides of pot. Turn heat to high, and add sprouts to center of pot. Let sit for 3-4 minutes, then mix it and continue on high heat. 
7. After about 4 min., stirring frequently, add the tomato sauce. Heat through. 
8. Add the diced potatoes and then add enough boiling water to cover them well--probably 3-5 cups. Bring to boil, then let simmer until potatoes are soft.
9. Add fish and more water if needed to cover well. Bring to boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until fish tastes well done.
10. While fish is simmering, dice the three pieces of bacon for garnish.
11. Add cream and mile a bit at a time, stirring with rubber spatula. Add the butter and stir in.
12. Adjust for salt and a generous about of fresh ground black pepper.
13. Ladle into wide bowls and garnish first with bacon and then parsley.

We ate this simply with some oil crackers and a mixed green salad with Balsamic vinaigrette.  Very warming, tasty, and satisfying.

Carnival 2013: with Roasted Beet Soup recipe

Just wanted to record the feast prepared for Carnival 2013, a nice quiet dinner for 6:

appetizer:

brochette with sauteed pea greens and garlic; brochette or cracker with Doe Run Barn Owl cheese (very bloomy); carrot squares with Shepherd's Hollow Blue de Ewe cheese. 

-->The sauteed pea greens and garlic came out particularly well. Small amount of oil to toast the two cloves of minced garlic, then what probably amounted to two cups plus of pea greens, just past wilted. One teaspoon full spread on each toasted baguette round. Also prepared the carrots in squares by using very large (but good) storage carrots--maybe a 1 1/2 to 2 in. diameter--and slicing them into 1/4 inch slabs then cutting those to roughly square pieces. Crumbled the blue on top. A great pairing.

soup:

variation on Roasted Beet Soup with Creme Fraiche

Here's the recipe. I altered a recipe from epicurious.com to create it:

Ingredients:

8 med. beets, roasted at 350 for 1.5 hrs.

3 med. leeks, white end only, sliced

1/2 med. red onion, thin sliced

3 T butter

1/4 t each of ground ginger, allspice, and white pepper

2 bay leaves

sprigs of fresh thyme

4 sprigs fresh parsley

3+ cups water

creme fraiche (optional)

salt to taste

Directions.

1. Roast and peel beets. Cut 1/2 of one into small cubes. Reserve for garnish.
2. Saute leeks and onion in pan until soft and starting to brown.
3. Add spices and beets, quartered. Simmer for 10-15 min. Adjust salt. Remove bay and sprigs as much as possible.
4. Puree and add water to make a medium consistency.
5. Let cool to room temperature. 
6. Serve each bowl with handful of beet cubes and garnish with sprig fresh thyme. Also garnish with creme fraiche if desired. (I served without and like the lightness of it as a first course.)

entree

my version of a traditional Galician Cocido: pork, chicken, beef, chorizo, greens, chick peas, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes

It will be based on what I did in 2011 (nice picture of Nathaniel eating it), the description of it in John Barlow's Everything but the Squeal, and my friend Anxo's description of what his mother prepared every Sunday.  This is also traditional Carnival fare in Galicia. 
This dish included:
*1/2 of a smoked chicken, about 5-6 lb. chicken
*about 2 lb. or country pork ribs that I covered in about 3 lb. of salt with a maybe a 1/2 cup of my dry rub mixed in. cured overnight in refrigerator.
*a beef chuck roast of about 2 1/2 lb.
*2 lb. of fresh Chorizo sausage
*about 2 lb. of pork cheeks
Seared all of the meats first, then braised in a lot of liquid for about six hours. Added soaked chick peas after about three hours of cooking. Also cooked separately: 5 Yukon potatoes, 2 very large carrots, 1 small head purple cabbage. Cooked cabbage, then changed water, added others, and added a few cups of the meat stock.

salad

Boston lettuce with radishes and mustard vinaigrette and salted sweet potato chips.

dessert

fried Haloumi cheese with pear and spiced dates
Recipe from Spice by Ana Sortun. Used Tina's homemade plum brandy instead of the recipe ouzo for flambe. 

chocolates by John & Kira with decaf San Francisco blend from Old City Coffee