Veal Chops with Roasted Pearl Onions

Recipe: Veal Chops with Roasted Pearl Onions
Page: 189
Date Cooked: June 1, 2011

According to Jonathan Waxman, "chops are the quintessential American cut of meat." While I'm not sure what the statement is based on but if the statement is indeed true, I suppose it makes sense that the recipe is in a book called "A Great American Cook."

Ingredients: Rosemary, lemon, butter, salt, pepper, pearl onions, veal chops, balsamic vinegar

The first part of this recipe entailed making a rosemary-lemon butter. I hadn't done this before and was surprised by its simplicity. However, because it was my first time, the butter wasn't as "pretty" as I would have liked. I mashed the butter in a bowl and then added lemon juice, rosemary, salt, and pepper. I then formed the butter into a log, but it into equal parts, wrapped it in plastic, and put it in the freezer.

Rosemary-lemon butter

I then began prep for roasting the onions. The onions were tossed together with rosemary, butter, salt, and pepper. Afterward, I created a package using parchment paper - rolling up the edges to seal, and placed the pearl onions in the oven to roast.

From Left to Right: Pearl onions tossed with rosemary, butter, salt, and pepper; Package of peal onions; After roasting

Once the onions were done roasting, I let them cool, and then proceed to peel the pearl onions. JW makes reference to "juices" that will be in the packet and placing them into a skillet. When I opened the package, there wasn't any liquid at all. Nonetheless, I proceeded as usual.

Peeled pearl onions

The chops were the easiest part of this recipe. They were seared on each side for a few minutes and then placed in the oven to roast for a bit.

Searing the veal chops

While the veal chops rested after being roasted in the oven, I finished preparing the pearl onions. I added balsamic vinegar to the skillet of pearl onions and heated through. Finally, I was ready to plate the veal chops, the pearl onions, and the rosemary-lemon butter.

Veal Chops with Roasted Pearl Onions

The dish was simple and tasty. I actually really enjoyed the roasted pearl onions and they could have easily been my favorite part of the meal. However, peeling all those onions was no fun task. There must be an easier way. The veal came out perfectly. I think I ended up with a really nice sear on both sides! Finally, the pat of rosemary-lemon butter on top = delicious.

BUT I need to make an important point about the butter. Jonathan Waxman is cuhrazy if his butter proportions are correct. The amount of butter shown in the picture is half the amount of butter he suggested (and even that was too much). Don't get me wrong...I love butter. I think it makes everything incredibly delicious. But, I also would like to avoid clogged arteries. I suppose that would be my 1 major criticism of this recipe. Nonetheless, I kept the remaining butter in the freezer and plan on using it for something else.

Enjoy!

Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes

Recipe: Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes
Page: 170
Date Cooked: May 29, 2011

Tartare is said to be named after the nomadic Tartar people of Central Asia. The legend is that they ate raw meat as they rode their horses and the meat was kept under their saddles in an effort to tenderize it during the day. Similarly, I believe this is also the legend behind the burger. Nonetheless, though the Tartar people may have given barbaric vibes, eating raw meat and all, I think they were on to something!

Ingredients: Filet mignon, red potatoes, olive oil, salt, pepper, shallots, garlic, lemon, jalapeno chile, serrano chile, red onion, parsley, tomato, lime, raclette cheese, and Tobasco sauce

I believe any tartare preparation is really about the knife work. You want that perfect dice on the meat as well as the assorted vegetables and herbs. The key is to have everything be as small and even as possible in an effort to really enjoy all the components of the tartare. With all that in mind, the first step was to dice the meat and let the potatoes boil.

Diced filet mignon

While the potatoes cooked in boiling water, I went right to work on mincing the shallots, garlic, chiles, onion, tomato, and parsley.

Top: Shallots; Garlic; and Chiles
Bottom: Red onion, Tomato, Parsley

With all my ingredients minced and ready to go, I proceeded to finish the tartare. I first mixed the meat with salt and pepper. I then added the shallots and garlic. Thirdly, I added lemon juice and some Tobasco sauce. As I was nearing the end stages of tartare preparation I placed the sliced potatoes under the broiler until they began to brown. I then sprinkled them with the raclette cheese and put it back under the broiler for the cheese to melt.

Browned slices of potatoes

While the cheese melted, I began plating. A mound of the tarate was put on each plate and topped with the minced chiles, onion, parsley, and tomato. Finally, I took the potatoes with melted raclette out of the broiler, put them on the plates.

Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes

I was really happy with the tartare. It had just the right amount of salt and pepper, while the acidity of the lemon juice, lime juice, and tomato worked perfectly. Also, I am a huge fan of the spiciness factor and thought that the Tobasco, jalapeno, and serrano gave the tartare a right amount of kick.

But the best bites were those taken along with the potatoes and raclette. I had never tried raclette before and was surprised by how well the mild, nuttiness of the cheese went with the potatoes (just in case you were wondering, raclette is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese that is commonly used for melting). Nonetheless, the beef and potatoes were in harmony and I truly enjoyed the dish. Who knew I was a meat and potatoes kind of gal?

Enjoy!

Soft-Shell Crabs with Spicy Peas

Recipe: Soft-Shell Crabs with Spicy Peas
Page: 235
Date Cooked: May 25, 2011

Well everyone...they're here! It's soft-shell crab season and the moment I saw them at the fish counter I immediately remembered that JW happened to have a few recipes in "A Great American Cook" that needed this ingredient. A soft-shell crab (a.k.a. blue crab) is simply a crab that has recently molted their old exoskeleton. Thus a real time saver when you think about the fact that you get to just bite right into it! Yep, no cracking any shells - just immediate crab.

Of course the recipe calls for live crabs and even outlines the instructions on how to go about cleaning them on a different page (page: 102). Luckily for me, I could get my "fishmonger" (a Jonathan Waxman term) to clean them for me. Moreover, it appears that I have many firsts during this project and this was the first time I personally cooked a soft-shell crab.

Ingredients: Soft-shell crabs, fresh peas, lemon, unsalted butter, red pepper flakes, and salt

The first step was to shuck the peas, which of course took more time than I would have liked. The recipe gives you the option to use frozen peas and that is definitely something to keep in mind for next time. Regardless this was the only real laborious portion of the recipe.

Shucked peas

With the hard work behind me, I then focused on the crabs. I melted some butter in a skillet and once it stopped foaming, I added the crabs top side down. After a few minutes, I flipped the crabs, added the peas, red pepper flakes, and some salt.

From Left to Right: Soft-shell crabs; Crabs in butter; Flipped crabs with peas, red pepper flakes, and salt

Once the crabs were cooked, I removed them from the skillet and put them on plates. Upon turning off the heat, I added some more butter to the peas and red pepper flakes. And then I finally topped it off with some lemon juice. I then spooned the sauce and peas over the crab and I was done.

Soft-Shell Crab with Spicy Peas

I need to emphasize how incredibly quick and easy this recipe really was. Had I used frozen peas...it would have taken 10 minutes tops! It was ridiculous how quickly this meal came together. The kick from the red pepper flakes with the buttery-lemon sauce = amazing. Furthermore, the peas complimented the crab perfectly. The crab was also a no-brainer to make.

Cooking a certain kind of shellfish for the first time (or cooking anything for the first time) comes with a bit of anxiety; and I was pleasantly surprised to find out how easy it was to make soft-shell crab. There is no doubt in my mind that I would make this again. It was quick, simple, and delicious! Heck it even looks beautiful on the plate!

Enjoy!

Fried Shrimp with Caper Mayonnaise

Recipe: Fried Shrimp with Caper Mayonnaise
Page: 40
Date Cooked: May 21, 2011

There was a pub-food like quality to this recipe that I truly enjoyed. It was a delicious way to make shrimp but yet soo accessible. There isn't much to say in the intro of this recipe so I will just get right to it.

Ingredients: lemon, egg yolks, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, capers, parsley, red pepper flakes, olive oil, salt, pepper, corn oil, all-purpose flour, salt, white wine, shrimp, and sea salt

So many of you know that the ONE thing I seem to be having the most difficulty with in this project is mayonnaise. I'm not going to lie...I cringe a little whenever I choose to do a recipe that requires making mayonnaise. Yet every time, I hope that THIS recipe will mean success. If anything at all, I am making soo much progress and this time I was definitely the closest I have ever been!

I whisked the yolks, mustard, vinegar, capers, parsley, and red pepper flakes together. I then slowly added the olive oil drop by drop while continuing to whisk. Finally, I added the lemon juice, as well as salt and pepper to taste. In the end I got mayonnaise.

Caper Mayonnaise

Then it was on to making the batter for the shrimp. I combined flour, salt, wine, and some water all together to make a batter. All the ingredients were mixed thoroughly until the batter was smooth.

Batter

I coated the shrimp with the batter and placed it into the hot corn oil until the shrimp were crispy.

Left: shrimp in the batter
Right: Frying the shrimp

I drained the shrimp on paper towels and sprinkled them with salt. I then served the shrimp with the caper mayonnaise.

Fried Shrimp with Caper Mayonnaise

I really enjoyed this recipe. The shrimp were amazing good. I really think the dry white wine in the batter may have done the trick. Also, this may have been my favorite mayonnaise flavor thus far. I used it on my sandwiches for lunch for a few days afterward as well. Overall, this was a fun and quick recipe. It really is a great starter in general or even a fun change for the usual fried fare that someone may serve.

Enjoy!

Sardines with Green Salsa

Recipe: Sardines with Green Salsa
Page: 216
Date Cooked: May 15, 2011

I've always felt that serving a whole fish had a grandeur to it. I just love the way it looks on a plate. And it doesn't hurt that many times it has tasted delicious. Yet, I have always been somewhat hesitant to do it on my own. The concept seemed scary and I was sure I would ruin a delicate piece of fish. But most of all, I was scared about cleaning the fish myself. I am by no means a squeamish person and I also truly believe in respecting the ingredients themselves and wanted to follow through with the utmost precision. The "Sardines with Green Salsa" recipe provided an opportunity to get over my fear and also begin my whole fish dreams with a nice small fish - a sardine.

Ingredients: Anchovy fillets, garlic, basil, parsley, red pepper flakes, olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon, lime, sardines, and rosemary

I suppose it made sense to get the green salsa part of the recipe done and out of the way of fishy hands. With a blender, the anchovies, garlic, basil, parsley, red pepper flakes, and olive oil are mixed all together. I then proceeded to salt and pepper the salsa to taste.

Green Salsa

With the salsa out of the way it was time to deal with the fish. Like I mentioned, I'm not squeamish but it was strange holding a whole fish in my hand. I've never been fishing and though I've handled a lobster, this experience was completely novel. Jonathan Waxman advises you to "grasp the gills of each sardine below the head and pull them out." This technique is supposed to bring the innards out as well. Many time this worked perfectly fine, but once in a while I had to pull the innards out using my fingers.

Left: Whole sardine Right: Grasping the head to pull out the innards

I did this with all the fish and rubbed off any scales. I then rubbed olive oil, salt, and pepper on the fish and stuffed the cavities with lemon zest and a rosemary sprig.

Sardine cavity with lemon zest and rosemary sprig

With the "messy" part out of the way it was on to pan-frying the fish. I heated some olive oil in a skillet and fried the sardines in batches until just cooked through. The fish was put onto a plate, drizzled with salsa, and finally squeezed a little lemon and lime juice.

Sardines with Green Salsa

I was still thoroughly excited that I had FINALLY cooked a whole fish and delved right into my plate. I enjoyed the fish and the green salsa provided the right kind of balance to the sardines. However, being a small fish, there were tons of bones. I mean lots of bones. Of course I don't think eating a whole fish is the sexiest thing, so I think once you get past all the bones you get an opportunity to enjoy the fish and the salsa. However, my fellow diner felt that the fishiness of the sardine overpowered the dish in its entirety. They enjoyed the salsa very much but it was apparent that the fish wasn't the star of their plate.

So, my overall take on this recipe... Firstly, I am no longer scared to cook a whole fish. Second, I would do it again, but perhaps with a different kind of fish. Though I enjoyed the dish I did feel a bit "sardine-y" the rest of the day and could see how a less fishier fish could really improve the dish. Nonetheless the preparation was simple and I still believe the presentation was beautiful. All in all, I had a good time with this recipe and really felt like I learned a lot.

Enjoy!

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Tart

Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Espresso Tart
Page: 269
Date Cooked: April 30, 2011

I happen to have a bit of a sweet tooth and I'm not sure why, but it has taken me a while to make a recipe from the dessert section of this cookbook. So in an effort to make a dessert and fill in that Quick Puff Pastry from the previous post, I settled on the flourless chocolate espresso tart.

Ingredients: "Quick Puff Pastry", unsalted butter, bittersweet chocolate, eggs, sugar, brewed espresso, almond meal, salt, cocoa powder (not shown), and confectioners' sugar (not shown)

The first step was to bake the puff pastry created in the last post. I rolled out the pastry dough, fit it to the pan, pricked it all over with a fork, laid a buttered piece of aluminium foil on the dough and filled it with rice. The tart was then baked and removed to cool.

Left: Uncooked and pricked puff pastry Right: Cooked puff pastry

As the puff pastry cooked, I began putting the filling together. I melted butter and chocolate until the mixture became smooth and then removed it from the heat. Egg yolks, sugar, espresso, and almond meal were subsequently added to the chocolate mixture.

Chocolate mixture with egg yolks, sugar, espresso, and almond meal

In another bowl, I whipped the egg whites and salt till soft peaks formed. I don't know why I decided to do this step by hand, but I need to remember that for the next time a hand blender is definitely going to in the mix. Nonetheless, I am proud to say I whipped those egg whites into submission. The whites were then folded into the chocolate mixture.

Folding egg white peaks into chocolate mixture

Finally, I poured the chocolate mixture into the tart and it was all baked together to yield the final product.

Chocolate Espresso Tart
(with dusted cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar)

There is one word for this tart: RICH. It tasted delicious but it was rich and dense. Considering it is a flourless tart, I was prepared for the dense taste, but the texture remained incredibly light and a bit airy. I really love chocolate and heck I drink espresso like it's my job so I was happy the flavor combination. Overall, I enjoyed the filling very much.

However, I mentioned in the last post that I could only comment on the Quick Puff Pastry once I made it. And...I wasn't very impressed with the puff pastry. There is no doubt that the pastry achieved a flaky texture, but it was thick and hard to eat! I found myself eating the filling and leaving the pastry on the plate.

Yet, when I delved into a piece of the tart at a later time, I found the puff pastry to be quite manageable and good. The filling of course remained delicious. So I guess I'm a bit on the fence about this recipe. Perhaps I need to give the Quick Puff Pastry another shot or just make the filling and put it into something else.

Enjoy!

Quick Puff Pastry

Recipe: Quick Puff Pastry

Page: 271

Date Cooked: April 29, 2011

The secret to puff pastry is well butter and there is not a doubt in my mind that Jonathan Waxman was already well aware of this secret. In the past, I have either bought puff pastry from the grocery store or prepared it using a food processor, but this recipe called for a bit of elbow grease in the rolling pin department.

Ingredients: Unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, ice water (not shown), and salt

I placed the flour into a bowl and created a well in the center. Melted butter, salt, and ice water are then added to the well and all the ingredients were mixed to create soft dough. I then chilled the dough in the freezer for several minutes.

A well of flour filled with melted butter, ice water, and some salt

While the dough chilled, I used a rolling pin to smash some butter into a square. This step was a little more difficult than anticipated. The rolling pin continued to pick up pieces of butter. Moreover, I wanted to work quickly, so the butter wouldn’t melt or stick to the surface. It may not have been a perfect brick shape, but I believe it did the trick.

Brick of butter

I then pulled the chilled dough out of the freezer, rolled it out to the desired size, placed the block of butter into the center, and enclosed the butter by wrapping the dough around it. This nifty little package of buttery dough is then put into the refrigerator for a bit.

Package of butter filled dough

Lastly, when refrigerator time was up, the dough is rolled out into a rectangle, folded, then rolled out once more, and finally placed pack in the fridge. Since I knew I would be utilizing the dough the very next day it was kept in the fridge overnight.

After being rolled out twice

Because I didn't actually cook the dough in this recipe, I won’t comment on its texture and flavor in this post. Yet, I can comment on the process itself. At the time, the process appeared to be quite tedious (granted I was in the midst of writing 3 papers and felt the need to put in another recipe). Nonetheless, the technique was novel to me. I understood why the butter was smashed into a brick and placed in the center – a smart way of truly incorporating butter across layers of puff pastry – but it also seemed to just be an additional step. Moreover, the recipe required one chilled session in the freezer and two sessions in the fridge before you could even use the dough. That’s almost more than 2 hours of just wait time. I wasn’t thrilled about that component either.

However, the true and final test is the taste. And the verdict is still out on that…

Enjoy!