al GRESHco feast 7-29-10
Heirloom tomatoes are tossed with fresh herbs, olive oil and a splash of sherry vinegar. The broth around the plate is yellow tomato water. Topped with a seared scallop and some mini arugula.
Heirloom Tomato & Scallop
As soon as I laid eyes on these plums from Seedlings Farm I turned to holly and said we are cooking foie gras tonight! The base is a thick cut petite brioche loaf prepared in a vanilla accented french toast style. We smeared the top with the sweet “magic” plums that were caramelized, cooked down with orange juice and finished with the rendered foie fat! YUMMM! Topped off with seared foie gras, a drizzle of the sweet plum liquid and then the sour yellow plums were sautéed with thyme and finished off the plate.
Foie Gras with Sweet & Sour Plums
The “Corn”ed Chicken dish is a boned out chicken where I use the entire chicken skin to wrap it back up into shape. The breasts are left whole while I make forcemeat with the legs and garnished with lots of black pepper and shrimp. The entire chicken was then cooked in corn juice for 2 hours. It was then sliced and served over pea tendrils, vadiallia onions, a truffle corn sauce and a few Chioggia beets.
"Corn"ed Chicken
Grilled Lamb Loin served over beautiful haricot vert and a sauce made from cooking heirloom tomatoes with fresh garlic and a touch of veal demi glaze. The eggplant torta begins with grilled eggplant that is then chopped and sautéed with shallots, garlic and fresh herbs. I folded in a few chopped hard boiled eggs and topped it with buttered breadcrumbs accented with red chili flakes.
Lamb Loin & Eggplant Torta
I Have Too Many Zucchini!!!
Zucchini Grande!
As most things in life when it rains it pours! I recently was extremely busy with work and neglected my garden for a few days; yeah I know “bad gardener”. I have since made up for it and my crops love me again! I was stuck with the age old dilemma what to do with this zucchini especially the really large ones that generally are tough and fibrous when cooked. I already had a great flank steak marinating for 2 days in the fridge begging to be grilled, so I pulled out my Vita-Prep Blender (best blender out there, it will grind up anything!) and pureed both the skin and the flesh separately. I let the flesh drain through a chinois (fancy chef term for a fine mesh sieve) and kept the skin separate and cold to add a great color to the risotto. Many times we cook vegetables in their own juices to intensify the flavor, same goes with pasta or risotto in this case. I used entirely zucchini juice for the liquid, finished with just before serving with the skin puree and of course a little bit of diced zucchini, topped with the grilled flank steak and marinated cherry tomatoes and onions from the garden in extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Now thank god thats one less loaf of zucchini bread out there!
Peeled, Chopped Zucchini
Zucchini Skin
Zucchini Flesh Juiced
Zucchini Skin Puree
Risotto with Onions
Zucchini Risotto
Grilled Flank Steak, Zucchini Risotto & Marinated Tomatoes
al GRESHco Feast 6-30-2010
This week I unveiled LORD STANLEY, when the Chicago Blackhawks made it to the playoffs we started an all natural starter made from flour, water and organic grapes. This fermented until the Blackhawks beat Philadelphia and brought the cup home. In every kitchen Ive worked in we have always named our starter, its a living thing that needs love and attention, daily feedings and overall some excercise too. There was only one name that fit, at last Lord Stanley was named. Enjoy the photos, I appoligize I didnt take a photo of the smoked beef dish, I was too busy nibbling on the trimmings!
Walking the Lawn at the White House
In June I had the honor of being one of the 700 chefs who were addressed by Mrs. Obama for the Chefs Move To School iniative. It was a great treat to walk on the south lawn of the White House and the vegetable garden. Im excited to help my school incorporate healthy food education in ways never really done before. For example instead of teaching children in math class fractions on a pieces of paper, have them adjust recipes and measure out dried beans using measuring cups. Get the children involved in understanding where food comes from in history class instead of just the “Columbus sailed the ocean blue….”, how the plentiful supply of food or lack their of shaped countries accross the world. If you want to learn more about this iniative please check out – http://www.letsmove.gov/index.html
Oh How I love PORK!
I had another offsight charity event, decided to make a prochetta. George from Swan Creek Farm brought me one of his fantastic pigs. I took the skin off first leacing it attached to the head, made a fennel forcemeat garnished with toasted pinenuts and started building it by laying a layer of housemade hot coppa. Next came the forcemeat and then the loins. I rolled it up and tied it off. the next morning we roasted it in our la caja china roasting box, served it with ramp pesto. You can tell by the pics I love to have fun in the kitchen! 
This was after the event! All guests were served!
al GRESHco Feast 5-12-10
The first al Greshco Feast Menu, the walleye from www.Sea2Table.com was amazing! Holly and I had alot of fun this day cooking. Enjoy the Photos!
When Fashion & Food Meet!
I was asked to participate in a fun event for the Les Dames Escoffier In May, 2010. The idea of this event was to show artistic insipration using multiple formats, food and fashion. I was paired up with Michelle Tan, a designer with a shop in bucktown on Damen Ave. We picked words out of a hat, one was food and one was fashion, our words were ginger and geometric. Michelle and I had the worst schedules, when I was in town she was out of town and vice versa. Finally I went by her store and saw the outfit, it was amazing! As soon as I looked at all the plaid design with the crinkle cut edge (I know theres a fashion term but I’m a chef its crinkle cut! Its my blog!) I knew exactly what I was making. Alobster and ginger filled ravioli using squid ink to mimic the colors and crinkle edge tecture. She a frilly head piece our model was going to wear so I made a petite herb salad with crispy rings of shallots and shoestring potatoes. Underneath the ravioli I placed a celery root slaw and drizzled the plate with a bit of chili oil. The night we walked out on stage was pretty funny, both of us barely worked face to face on this project but we both sported our black hats and found out what true rockers each of us really are! Thanks Michelle, I had a blast. Go Check out her sight and visit the boutique http://michelletan.com/
Whiskey Planked Rabbit Ribeyes
I love Whiskey, its one of my favorite things in life. I was very fortunate when my friend Michael from Templeton Rye gave me some used whiskey barrel pieces from his operation in Iowa. Templeton Rye is one of my favorites! I love it neat with a water back, mmmm I might need to have one right now. In early may Stephanie Izard, Guiseppe Tentori and I came together for another dinner this time featuring rabbits. Its always fun to cook with other chefs, especially in a neutral kitchen, that way no chef is the host, they don’t have to worry about making sure we have everything etc. We just cook and have fun catching up on what is going on in the industry, farmers and each other. I knew I wanted to use the ribs for something but what? I looked at my sous chef Dino and said “should we french them like we used to at the Dolphin?” in translation that meant “Dino start frenching these 30 rabbit racks”. I saw his face and heart just sink, this was a task he mastered 10 years ago when we worked together at Green Dolpohin Street, after about 40 seconds of making him sweat I told him I was kidding. To understand frenching a rabbit rack, you must take all the meat and sinue off the small delicate bones so that the bones are completely clean and the eye of the loin is the only part left attached, in other words its the biggest pain in the A$$! Then again anything food related that is “frenched” pretty much is a time consuming process, I think sometimes that it really translates into “Pain in the A$$” hehe.
To make heat the barrel pieces for 30 minutes in a 450 degree oven, toss the rabbit chops in salt, pepper and vegetable oil. Place the chops on the hot barrel pieces and return to the oven for approximately 10 minutes. Remove from oven and toss in whiskey bbq sauce. Serve on more planks that are only warm, you dont want your guests burning their fingers. The fun part of this dish is that the whiskey flavor roasts into the rabbit meat, think of this as a new version of cedar planked salmon.
Going Green, But I’ve Always Been Green!
Those of you who know me can prove that I’ve been wearing green shoes for 20 years now, not the hemp save the earth don’t harm the animals type of green! Something about my green shoes makes me happy, my old green 3 eylet gibson green doc martens have been retired to my woodshop, they are now covered in glue and dust, the back heel is torn, I can’t get rid of them, they are a part of me. I was so depressed when my good pair started to go and I wanted to purchase new ones but doc martens discontinued making them, SHAME ON YOU! I searched high and low all over the world, I would have shipped them from anywhere to have my green docs! I had to move up to the 9 eylet boot in green, for a guy who basically works in pajamas and slippers all day putting on a boot just sucks! I fought the urge to buy a higher type clog, I used to wear them in the kitchen and as we all know who wear them the “clog blowout” where you twist your ankle on a kitchen mat or something is just painfull! I broke down and bought a pair of black clogs, yeah they were comfy, I wasn’t twisting my ankle, but they were black, BORING!!! I was determined to find a green shoe, this could not be the end of an era for me. Finally I found a company who made them for me in Sweden! I love you Sweden! Actually the gentleman lives in North Carolina that arranged all of this, thanks to Jans Fagerberg I have my green clogs. Here is his websight – now one of my favorites for sure! http://www.janswedeclogs.com/
Himalayan Salt Plancha
Its no secret we use and cook with a TON of himalayan pink salt at primehouse. I used to do an amuse of a small salt block that was made very hot by placing it in the oven for 2 hours and then into a high flame on the stove for about 7 minutes. We placed a piece of kobe sirloin onto this hot salt and sent it out to the dining room with a little stripe of kobayaki sauce. The guest would flip the meat and then dip it into the sauce, the modern hot rock was born.
Every kitchen has that one piece of equipment that no matter what it just doesnt seem to work right! No matter how many people try to fix it it just is useless unless you get pretty creative. We have a gas grill that is exactly that, in order to use it we need to cover it with sheet pans to retain the heat, then put the item we want on it and once finished cooking replace the sheet pan. Isn’t cooking in a pro kitchen challenging enough that now I’ve created an obsticle course to making a dish? Dont worry everyone our steaks get cooked in 1 of our 3 broilers, this grill became pan storage. As a chef how aggrevating is that? Staring at you every night in the center of the line, taunting you, that useless expensive piece of equipment! UGGHHHH!
Recently I met a great guy in the salt business, I looked at some samples and loved the products they offered! I received a huge shipment of Himalayan salt, so many different sizes of salt and great pricing! Presto the salt plancha was born! I took 6 pcs of 7″wide by 14″long, 1 inch thick tiles and set them on the grill grates covering the surface of the grill. Remember I have to cover it with something to get it to stay hot, why not the thick salt/stone which retains heat? It is a fun sight to see my crew both front and back of house look at me like “what the hell is this crazy (insert word) doing now?” We had fun trying out different items on the plancha last night. Maybe now we can finally use this tool for something on the menu or at least some specials instead of pan storage! What’s the old saying, make lemons out of lemonade?
Togarashi Spiced Hiramasa
Another recent addition to the dinner menu at David Burkes Primehouse, Togarashi spiced hiramasa with chipotle creamed corn, sweet and sour peppers, cilantro pesto.
Togarashi is made from dried orange zest, black & white toasted sesame seeds, cayenne, ginger, Szechuan pepper & nori.
Hiramasa is Yellowtail Kingfish found in the pristine waters of Australia. The basic formula is that the farm spans the fish, allows them to grow and then releases them to the ocean where they live a normal life until net caught at a certain size and then brought back into the farm to finish feed to appropriate size. This sort of farming can be found in the video documentary Tuna Cowboys or to find out more go to: http://www.australianhiramasa.com/
Spring Kitchen Photos
This is only part of the 50 pounds of pickled ramps we started the about 2 weeks ago. We are pickling and krauting ramps every week so we have plenty to last us for a while. So delicious, I wish I could eat these every day!
The new smoked octopus on the spring menu at primehouse – Cold smoked octopus which is then sous vide in extra virgin olive oil and herbs. We peel it and then it’s griddled, tossed with spring radishes, pickled ramps, frisee, extra virgin olive oil, drizzled with chili oil and place over a garbanzo bean puree.
Razor Clams – Thanks Carl!!!! Razor clams al la plancha with verjus, fennel, tomato confit. Another thing I could eat every day!!
Hands Back In The Dirt!
I have been terribly busy the past two months, between work and all the pr events, menu changes and trying to stay on top of spring housework I have had very little time or energy to blog. I did however take pictures! Above is my garden as I left it last year, pretty straight forward its a plot of dirt. I battled with all the weeds, some wet areas, some dry spots and re designed the garden this year. I have been working the soil for 5 years now, lots of compost, lime to break up the clay, peat moss to lightnen the soil in certain areas etc.
This is after I did the work, 4 raised beds, 3 rows and an irrigation system for each section of the the garden. I installed a weed block fabric and mulch, easily enough to move away to tend to each row in the fall/spring when turning in compost etc.
2 of the beds are for strawberries, currently since I transplanted into the new beds i have froast blankets on them and I installed the bird netting over the new row hoops so I can actually enjoy some berries this year!
This is my root crop bed, currently also under frost blanket, completely planted and doing amazing! I have garlic, green onions, red onions, vidallia onions, red radish, french breakfast radish, a mixed bag of carrots, red, yello and chiogga beets. Im excited because in the fall I will top this box with a cold frame and keep my garden going!
My new pride and joy, the irrigation system! Every row, or box has its own control. Perfect watering only to the plants that need it.
My vegetable seedlings growing outside on a warm day, soon they will be in the ground!
A Rare Vintage Affair
On March 10, 2010 my good friend Rodrick Markus & I have teamed up to create an exciting event. This is the first time I’ve ever offered a complete tasting of the David Burkes Primehouse Dry Aged Steaks ranging from 28 days up to 75 days. If you dont know Rod, you deffinately need to come meet him because he is the guru of all things tea, his collection of rare teas is the best in the country! Cave aged pu-erh teas are absoutly amazing, there are so many great teas to enjoy and currently we are putting the fininshing touches on the tea cocktails and wines for the evening. The menu is listed below, it is all inclusive for 79 dollars, please call 312-660-6000 to make your reservation, remember space is limited. http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants/article/tea-it-up/1796655/content
A Rare Vintage Affair
Wagyu Nibbles
Tartar With Freeze Dried Grape Caponatta
Emperors Lotus Blossom Leaves Crusted Braised Shortrib
Ninja Sausage Dumplings with Pineapple Shoyu
Dinner
Wet Aged Ribeye Versus 28 Day Dry Aged Ribeye
stewed green lentils with wild osmanthus petal & almond chutney
Emperor’s 2008 Oak Barrel Aged Keemun
40 Day Sirloin
emperor’s houjicha pickled carrots & buckwheat custard
2001 Vintage Pu-erh Wild Rose
Slow Roasted 55 Day Dry Aged Prime Rib In Fresh Green Kukicha
smoked potato dumplings, swiss chard crema
75 Day Ribeye
spicy crab with sicilian blood orange pu-erh sauce maltaise
1983 Vintage Private Reserve Masterpiece Pu-erh
Fields Of France Rooibos Biscuit
soft fleur de sel caramel, roasted mexican vanilla ice cream, brown butter sautéed mango,
wild osmanthus hedonistic orange blossom
Emperor’s Late Night Elixir
Executive Chef: Rick Gresh
Executive Pastry Chef: Jove T. Hubbard
Master Of Tea: Rodrick J. Markus
Sommelier: Rachael Johnson Hussar
WGN Cooking Demo
Today I cooked a great winter dish on WGN news, its really simple and somthing I’ve been making for years. When I was at Green Dolphin Street we could hardly keep up with production. I’ve adapted the recipe a bit so its easy to make at home, you can always substitiute a beef roast or lamb leg if you dont eat pork. Enjoy!
http://www.wgntv.com/videobeta/?watchId=ddadfc1a-bf8e-4711-85c3-3b265e673c15
Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder with “Mole Broth” & Tortilla Flan
5 # Bone in pork shoulder
1 ea onion, chopped
4 ea garlic cloves
2 ea ancho peppers, soaked for 30 min in warm water, stemmed and seeded
1 tbsp black peppercorns
½ ea vanilla bean, split and scraped
4 sprigs thyme
4 sprigs marjoram
1 ea carrot, chopped
1 ea Celery stalk, chopped
3 qts Chicken Stock
¼ bunch cilantro, chopped
½ cup almonds
To taste salt and pepper
Method:
- In a blender combine onion, garlic, drained ancho peppers, black peppercorns, carrot, celery and blend together using the stock to help blend this smooth.
- Season pork with salt and pepper, in a hot pan over high heat sear the meat until deep golden brown. Remove and turn flame down to medium heat.
- Add blended liquid and remaining stock, vanilla bean to the searing pan, bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer for 30 minutes. Add herbs and seared pork, cover and place in a 325°F oven for 3 hours.
- Add the almonds and cilantro and return to the oven for approx 1 more hour. Pork should be tender. Remove from pan, reduce sauce if necessary, adjust seasoning, strain and serve over the pork.
Tortilla Flan
1 bag corn tortilla chips, plain
3 ea poblano peppers, charred over an open flame
10 oz tomatillos
2 ea garlic cloves
1 bunch cilantro
4 ea eggs
1 qt heavy cream
2 cups mild cheddar cheese shredded
To taste salt and pepper
As needed vegetable spray
Method:
- In a blender puree peppers, tomatillos, garlic cloves, cilantro, eggs and cream until smooth. Season.
- Pour over chips and mix together well.
- In an oven proof pan, spray with vegetable spray. Add layers of chips and cheese until pan is full. This mixture should be wet, pour over additional cream mixture to ensure. Set aside covered for 40 minutes at room temperature.
- After 40 minutes check to see if the mixture is too dry, add additional cream mixture as necessary. Cover and bake in a 325°F for approx 30 minutes until set.
Brunch In A Box
I just launched my Brunch in a Box concept at David Burkes Primehouse, the follow up to American Dim Sum Brunch. Every week I offer a menu of collections in a bento box, for example the hangover box which contains mini burgers with french fries, mac n cheese with crispy bacon and a monte cristo made with house cured proscuitto & rockstar sunglasses! Yep the perfect cure for the hangover, some weeks I think I should just call this breakfast haha! I love to try many different things in a meal so this a fun way to taste the menu and enjoy multiple flavors. If you are truly a dare devil, try the mystery box, this is where we really get to have fun as chefs! Don’t let the steakhouse fool you, we are always cooking something cool in the kitchen! Here is a copy of the Brunch in a Box menu.
Brunch Boxes
Griddled 15
Cinnamon raisin french toast…maple syrup
Buttermilk pancakes…blueberries
Crepe…stewed fruit
Breakfast Sausage
Eggs 17
Benedict…spicy ham, hollandaise
Lobster Scrambled…crème fraiche, caviar
Peppers & Eggs… kobe paprika sausage, brioche
Bacon Biscuit
Little Bull 21
207L Beef Tips…arugula, blue cheese, tomato vinaigrette
Grilled Steak…mushrooms, onions & whipped potato
Shortrib Dumplings…horseradish, cheddar cheese, bbq sauce
Tempura Green Beans
Big Bull 42
Petite Filet…garlic spinach
Petite Kansas City Sirloin… asparagus
Delmonico…basil whipped potatoes
Petite Mixed Green
Hangover 16
Mini Burkers….spicy mayo, french fries
Mac N’ Cheese…chopped bacon
Monte Cristo…proscuitto, gruyere, tomato tapanade
Shells 21
Pretzel Crusted Crabcake…poppy seed honey
Angry Shrimp…basil, lemon, chili
Scallops…lobster fried rice, miso glaze
Oysters
Mystery Box priced daily
let go & let Chef Rick treat you to a culinary surprise
Pop Up Vegan Tasting
The email came through that guests of theJames hotel needed a vegan tasting menu, excellent! Its not often we get requests for vegan cuisine afterall we are Chicago’s premier steakhouse! This day took me back in time when I was just a line cook working at Trio in Evanston for Chef Shawn McClain, I was on entremetier (veg station). We had tons of food requests, special diets and overall a passion and audiance to create great cuisine highlighting vegetables.
I started out with some simple nibbles in the lounge, grilled eggplant arancinis that we placed on a bed of crushed nicoise olives with roasted garlic and fresh oregano. Three sisters farm grit cakes topped with smoked mushrooms and sweet and sour peppers. The last nibble was truffle root vegetable crostinis. Look at that knife work, my Sous Chef Nolan clearly passed skills class!
We had to play with our new kitchen toy, seeing the look on my Sous Chef Dino’s face when he plays with the cryovac machine is priceless, he’s happy Dino! We made compressed watermelon carpaccio topped with marinated kumatos, watermelon radish, slivered onion rings, cucumbers, fried capers, fried ginger and mint.
We had some beautiful local baby carrots, I cooked each seperately golden with garlic, orange with ginger and purple with chilies. They were cut into small rounds and tossed with dried baguette and the remaing cooking liquids and parsley to make a panzanella. This was wrapped in basic eggless pasta dough and baked. Garnished with olive oil poached fennel and a pesto of arugula and hazelnuts.
At this point in the evening the rest of the guests at the table were eating steaks and drinking bigger red wines, so I took a simple and beautiful approach to match. Grilled king trumpet mushrooms, asparagus and watercress emulsion, corn shoots and (below) caramalized caulifower and olive oil crushed yukon gold potato gratin with fresh thyme.
Dessert, I didnt get to take a picture but it looked and tasted amazing. John a.k.a. PC1 and Amanda made a heirloom apple crisp with organic oat struesal and orange sorbet. A fun day of cooking during a classic Chicago winter blizzard!
Getting Ready For South Beach Food & Wine
I’m excited, plain and simple! I can’t wait to go to SOBE Food & Wine! I cooked at Aspen Food and Wine last year and it was a blast! I know that Miami will only be better, theres so much more to do.
One of the dishes I will be making is a 14 day dry aged duck breast with foie gras dumplings and mango chutney. The key to this dish is having a dry aging room, lucky for me I have one at David Burkes Primehouse. It all starts with making a brine of 5 parts soy, 3 parts water, 2 parts honey, ginger, lemongrass, star anise and chilies all boiled together for 30 minutes and then chilled completely. Next I trim up any excess fat on the ducks, prick the skin all over and submerge them in the chilled soy brine for 30 min. After that its into the drying room, this happens approximately every 12 hours (twice a day). After 14 days the ducks are ready to be roasted. I can’t wait, they are so tasty, you just cant stop eating it. If you are in SOBE stop by the Best of the Best Event and try a plate, or two.
History Repeats Itself
I started 2010 by looking back in history, when it comes to food there is something to be said for “grandmas cooking”. For such a long time the culinary world shunned the thought of cooking food simply and set its sights on a higher caliber of product. I know my grandmother didn’t have the time to refine her skills in the kitchen to the point of 4 star perfection; she had to get food on the table. She couldn’t contemplate if she used a different olive oil how that slight change would affect the dish.
I think sometimes we take ourselves a bit too serious in the food world, yes both chefs and guests alike, chasing the perfect bite of flavor. I’ve actually witnessed guests at a recent wine dinner I attended put every dish under the microscope and pick it apart around the table so much that they forced themselves not to have a good meal. This is an actual quote from the evening “Yes this bass is exceptional, but in a dream world I would want more flavor from the fish, I think poaching the fish and then searing the skin crispy would have made the dish perfect”. In a dream world? Sorry I’m back here on planet reality, now chefs have to compete with a dream world? You go and poach your fish first then sear it crispy, let me know how that works out for you! How about the real issue was that the fish was farm raised and lacked the true flavor of wild line caught striped bass?
I meet young culinary students all the time, fascinated by the culinary world, eager to rise through the ranks like a rocket. The important thing is that no matter what your title or experience, you have to keep learning. I remember some of my early days in the kitchen working on a project and the chef would come over and show me another technique or recipe, wow I still use it today! In our own kitchen family kind of way we produce heritage recipes, one that is passed on from one to another over time.
Now that I’m looking back at old family recipes I realized that I’ve never once in my life used a pressure cooker. In the kitchen we always had the time to braise things for hours, we planned ahead for it. Plus who are you feeding in a 6 quart pressure cooker? We would need a 30 gallon pressure cooker at the hotel! So I purchased a home model and went at it, not having a clue as to how to cook with one of these. I read the book that came with it, clearly written in 1950 so I didn’t quite understand everything, but I’m a chef I’ll figure it out. I put some pork spare ribs in with onion, water, smoked and dried green chilies from the garden, homemade canned bbq sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Put the lid on and then put it over a high flame until the pressure built up and the release cap was rocking back and forth. Turned the flame down so the cap would just rock back and forth for 15 minutes and then it was done. I let it cool at room temperature for approximately 45 minutes, opened it up and in front of my eyes in the pot was the most tender pork spare ribs I’ve had in such a long time. I turned the broiler on and while waiting I ate a 5 bone rack, they were so delicious. Once the broiler was hot enough I charred up the outside, glazed them with bbq sauce and sat down for a feast, just like grandma used to make (well a few improvements, grandma didn’t have smoked dried green chilies from the garden or homemade bbq sauce).
Michigan Farm, Beer & Cheese Trip
Back in October 2009 I took my crew on a trip to vist local sustainable farms, brewery and cheesemaking operation. This video is a snapshot of our weekend and we had such a great time! I have more trips planned for my staff this summer, its great to get out and see where your food really comes from. Thanks Michael Mason for putting this video together.
Lobster & Avocado Salad for Valentines Day
I put together a 3 part short cooking demonstration filmed in my home kitchen along with the recipes for a simple elegant meal that you can make in your own home. I have to thank Michael Mason for shooting on his high def camera and editing the material. This was a fun project and I hope you enjoy the video and the recipes. Now watch the video, print off the recipes, go shopping and cook like a pro chef in your own kitchen on Valentines Day!
Lobster & Avocado Salad…tipsy tomato sauce
Tipsy Tomato Sauce
2 ea tomatoes, medium sized, rough chopped
2 tsp tomato paste
1 oz vodka
2 tsp horseradish, prepared
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp cracked pepper
10 drops tabasco or your favorite hot sauce
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Lobsters
2 ea lobsters, 1# each
2-3 tbsp mayonnaise
½ tsp basil chopped fine
1 tsp lemon juice
To taste kosher salt and pepper
Avocado Mixture
1 ea avocado, ripe but not mushy, rough chopped
2 ea scallions, sliced thin
1 ea jalapeño, seeded, finely chopped
2 tsp cilantro, chopped (optional)
½ ea lime juiced
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 ea tomato, small, peeled, seeded and small diced
to taste kosher salt and pepper
Garnish
1 cup mesclun greens
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
Method:
- The first 7 steps can be made the day before.
- In a blender combine all ingredients for the tipsy tomato sauce except the oil. Puree until smooth, while running on medium speed slowly incorporate oil. Adjust seasoning if necessary and place in refrigerator for later use.
- In a pot large enough to hold the lobsters bring salted water up to a simmer. Remove claws and tail by twisting, if you are squeamish you can kill the lobster by inserting a knife into its head. Push a bamboo skewer into the tail to keep it straight when cooking. You can save the lobster bodies for stock or soup, freezing for a later date is good, just wrap them well in plastic wrap or a freezer bag.
- Place claws in simmering water and cook for 6-7 minutes, and tails for 3-5 minutes. Remove and immediately plunge into ice cold water.
- Once chilled remove meat from tails and claws, again save the shells for use in another recipe. Cut tail meat into chucks and leave the knuckles and claws whole. Set aside in refrigerator.
- Combine mayonnaise, basil and lemon juice, set aside in refrigerator.
- Combine the extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice listed in the garnish section, set aside in the refrigerator.
- In a bowl combine all the ingredients for the avocado mixture. Set aside in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours, make sure to press plastic wrap onto the surface to prevent discoloring.
To assemble:
- Toss lobster in mayonnaise.
- Toss mesclun greens in lemon vinaigrette.
- On a plate spoon a small amount of avocado mixture down in the center of the plate.
- Place greens off to one side.
- Place lobster mix falling off the mixed greens.
- Drizzle the salad with the tomato vinaigrette.
Spice Roasted Lamb, Dried Fruits & Fennel Tart Tatin for Valentines Day
This is part 2 of a short cooking demonstration filmed in my home kitchen along with the recipes for a simple elegant meal. Now watch the video, print off the recipes, go shopping and be a star in your own kitchen on Valentines Day!
Spice Roasted Lamb…dried fruits & fennel tart tatin
Dried fruits
2 tbsp butter
3 ea garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 slice white bread, crust removed, small diced
1 tsp sugar, granulated
¼ cup raisins golden, soaked in ¼ cup warm water to plump
3 ea dried apricots, sliced
¼ cup almonds, sliced, chopped
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 ea anchovy fillets (optional)
2 tsp basil, chopped
Tart Tatin
1 sheet puff pastry
2 ea fennel bulbs, medium size, cut into ½ inch thick lengthwise slices
2 ea oranges,1/2 of one zested, both juiced
2 tbsp honey
½ tsp fennel seeds, ground
5 tbsp butter, cubed
to taste kosher salt and pepper
Lamb & Spice Mixture
2 pcs lamb loin, boneless, silver skin removed
As needed vegetable oil for cooking
To taste Kosher Salt
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp black pepper
pinch cayenne pepper
½ tsp fennel seeds, ground
¼ tsp cinnamon
As needed extra virgin olive oil
Method for Fruit:
- In a sauté pan over medium heat melt the butter, add the garlic and cook until lightly browned. Remove garlic and set aside.
- Add bread cubes and toast until lightly brown, remove and set aside.
- Add dried fruits with plumping liquid, sugar & vinegar and cook until almost dry.
- Remove from heat, add to breadcrumbs and garlic, add olive oil, anchovies and basil. Adjust seasoning, leave covered at room temperature for up to 2 hours.
Method for Tart:
- In a nonstick oven proof pan or a smaller cast iron pan combine orange juice, zest, honey, ground fennel, butter, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil for 1 – 2 minutes, swirl pan to combine.
- Remove from heat and arrange fennel in a star pattern. Simmer for over low heat for approx 40 minutes adding a little water as necessary to prevent the mixture form burning. Then fennel should be tender and nicely glazed , make special note not to move the fennel around too much, the star shape will be presented later. Remove from heat and cool completely.
- Once cool cut a round of the puff pastry to fit over the fennel, place on top and use a ring mold to prevent the rise/shrinking of the dough in the oven. If you do not have a ring mold use a ring of aluminum foil. Keep in refrigerator until ready to bakes.
Method for lamb:
- Combine all spices together. Season lamb with spice mixture and salt when ready to start cooking.
Cooking & Assembly
- Preheat oven to 400°F degrees and bake tart for approx 10 minutes, drop oven temp to 325°F for approx 20 minutes.
- In a hot pan over high heat sear lamb on all sides until deep golden brown. Approx 3 minutes per side. Place in oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and lest rest in a warm place.
- Place tart over burner on low heat to warm the syrup, Remove from heat, invert a plate or cutting board onto the top of the pan and carefully flip over using towels and being very careful. Garnish with some fresh cracked pepper and fennel fronds.
- Slice lamb into medallions, season meat. Place on plate and garnish with fruit topping and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Chocolate Creme Pot for Valentines Day
Part 3 of my short cooking demonstration filmed in my home kitchen along with the recipes for a simple elegant meal. Now watch the video, print off the recipes, go shopping and cook a great meal in your own kitchen on Valentines Day!
Chocolate Creme Pots…caramilized oranges & madeleines
7 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 ¾ cups heavy cream
3 tbsp butter
Method:
- Bring the cream up to a boil.
- Melt chocolate and butter together over a double boiler, whisk thoroughly with a whisk. Whisk cream into this mixture.
- Pour mixture into ramekins or desired dish, refrigerate until ready to serve.
Garnish
4 pcs Madeleine (available at most coffee shops)
1 ea Orange, cut into segments
3 tbsp Sugar
As needed your favorite coffee or espresso drink
As needed powdered sugar, optional
Method
- Remove chocolate cream pot form refrigerator.
- On a oven proof pan lay out orange segments, sprinkle with sugar. Using a blowtorch caramelize the sugar. If you do not have a blowtorch using you r broiler set on high caramelize the oranges under the broiler.
- Be very careful removing the oranges place on top of the chocolate, garnish with a dusting of powder sugar. Serve with madeleine’s on the side and your favorite coffee drink
Second Generation Bacon Candle
The bacon candle is a huge hit, but how do I take it to the next level? It just seemed natural to make a great spinach salad with a warm bacon vinaigrette. The candle itself is bacon fat mixed with chopped herbs and then diced red wine vinegar jelly is folded into the fat and it is left to chill completely. We light the candle upon your order and send it out to the table, this is steakhouse aromatherapy! We present the spinach salad garnished with grilled red onions, spiced eggs and feta cheese, grab the candle and pour the candle dressing over the salad.
DandyID
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