Wild Mushroom and Leek Soup

Recipe: Wild Mushroom and Leek Soup
Page: 61 and 78
Date Cooked: January 23, 2011

Being as it is freezing here in Central PA, making soup sounded like an excellent idea. The "Wild Mushroom and Leek Soup" happens to be the third soup (Butternut Squash and Jonathan Apple Soup and Mussel and Littleneck Clam Chowder) I've made from "A Great American Cook." The ingredients appeared simple and the combination was intriguing. All in all, I was looking forward to the soup.

Ingredients: Mixed mushrooms - crimini, shitake, and oyster, leeks, garlic, onion, olive oil, thyme, bay leaves, salt, black pepper, parsley, white wine, sourdough bread, and rosemary

The recipe required making a stock from the mushroom stems and dark green tops of the leeks. Accordingly, the mushroom were cleaned and stems removed; the leeks were sliced; and both the onion and garlic were minced.

Top Left: Trimmed mushrooms - caps and stems separated
Top Right: Sliced leeks, separated green tops
Bottom Left: Minced onions
Bottom Right: Minced garlic

With some olive oil, the mushroom stems, dark green leek tops, garlic, onion, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper were heated in a large pot. After a few minutes, the parsley, wine, and some water were added. The contents were brought to a simmer for 1 hour, during which foam was consistently skimmed from the top.

From Left to Right: 1. Initial ingredients for stock 2. Addition of wine, water, and parsley 3. Watching to skim foam

While I continued to watch the stock simmer, I went on to make the garlic croutons (page 78). Cubes of sourdough bread were placed in the oven and baked. Meanwhile garlic and rosemary were chopped. The croutons were placed in a bowl and sprinkled with olive oil and rosemary. Finally, the garlic was tossed in.

Garlic Croutons

After the hour, the stock was strained into another saucepan and kept warm. The diced mushrooms caps, leek whites, garlic, and olive oil were added to a Dutch oven. The ingredients were seasoned with salt and pepper and cooked till tender. The stock was then added and the soup simmered for another 30 minutes.

From Left to Right: 1. Mushroom caps, leek white, garlic, and olive oil 2. Tender mushrooms and leeks 3. Soup simmering

Additional, salt and pepper was added after tasting. The soup was then served with the garlic croutons.

Wild Mushroom and Leek Soup

Jonathan Waxman introduces the soup as a "forcefully flavored vegetarian soup" and I would have to disagree.I wanted to like this soup soo badly, I mean I skimmed foam from the stock for 1 hour. I wanted the time to be worth it. But quite honestly, it just fell flat. It had no dimension at all. It tasted fine. Just not good.

The best part of the soup were the croutons, which were quite delicious. Rosemary and garlic are both components that are near to my heart. But only when I got bits of rosemary and garlic with the crunchy texture of the croutons in my spoon (along with the soup) was a I satisfied. I re-read the recipe a couple of times after eating, trying to see if I missed something. I didn't. Unfortunately, I would have to say this soup is my least favorite recipe thus far.

Enjoy!

Beef Carpaccio with Warm Potato Salad

Recipe: Beef Carpaccio with Warm Potato Salad
Page: 42
Date Cooked: January 16, 2011

Carpaccio (raw meat or fish served ultra thing) is a dish I have only had in restaurants. To be quite honest, I've never trusted myself enough to make it on my own. However, this project gave me the impetus to prepare beef carpaccio. Not to mention, since it's raw I suppose there was no real hard cooking to do. Except of course for the hardest part of the entire recipe - the making of mayonnaise.

Ingredients: Sherry vinegar, salt, walnut oil, olive oil, shallots, filet mignon, egg yolks, lemon juice, pepper, small white potatoes, lime, red leaf lettuce, and chives

Jonathan Waxman instructs to make the vinaigrette first so it can stand for 1 hour and develop its flavors. Accordingly, sherry vinegar, salt, walnut oil, and olive oil were all whisked together. Minced shallots were added to the vinaigrette and the bowl was set to the side.

Vinaigrette

Then it was on to the meat. The beef was first cut into 6 portions - as equal as I could do it. A piece of parchment paper was oiled on one side and the meat was placed on this side. Another oiled piece of parchment paper was placed on top of the meat (oil side down). With a heavy rolling pin, I pounded the meat till it was nice and thin. Waxman says to get it to an 8-inch circle. However this was difficult considering my meat didn't come in rounds, but I did the best I could do.

From Left to Right: 1. Meat cut into 6 equal portions 2. One piece placed on oiled parchment paper 3. After pounding with rolling pin

Of course this was done with all six pieces of meat. I felt very "cave woman-esque." Getting my frustration out by pounding pieces of raw meat. After all the pieces had been carpaccio-ed, they were placed in the fridge.

All 6 pieces of beef carpaccio

Next step: Mayonnaise. If you have been reading this journey from the beginning, you are well aware of the battle between myself and mayonnaise making. I now see it in the cookbook and cringe just a little. It seems to be all about chance. I began by whisking egg yolks with lemon juice for 3 solid minutes. I then added olive oil, one teaspoon at a time, while continuing to whisk. And guess what: it actually began to look like mayonnaise! The consistency looked correct and I was super pleased. The only thing different, was that Jonathan Waxman calls for hot water to be whisked to the mayonnaise, which was somewhat surprising and upsetting - because the addition of water really liquefied the mixture. The mayonnaise was then seasoned with salt and pepper.

Left: Whisking away Right: Check out that consistency!

While I was the making the mayonnaise. The potatoes had been peeled, cut into small rounds, and boiled till tender. The cooked potatoes were then added to the mayonnaise and mixed together.

Warm Potato Salad

With all the components ready, it was time to plate. The lettuce was tossed in the vinaigrette and placed on the plate. The potato salad was spooned onto the middle of plate. Finally, the carpaccio came out of the fridge and after peeling one layer of parchment paper, the meat was inverted on the plate. The carpaccio was dressed with vinaigrette, chives, and some lime.

Beef Carpaccio with Warm Potato Salad

This was a meat and potatoes kind of meal and it was really good. Though I say meat and potatoes, it all felt so very light and fresh. I think with a carpaccio, you pay homage to the life you're eating. Truly enjoying the meat and savoring its natural flavors. The warm potato salad was also delicious and went so well with everything. One of my favorite components on the plate was the vinaigrette. This was not the first time I have been impressed with a Waxman vinaigrette (Three Tomato Salad Version 1 Vinaigrette). I don't know if I can adequately explain really how good this vinaigrette was - and the addition of the shallots was perfect. I suppose next time (since there will be a next time) I'll try to get those perfect rounds. But heck perfection is overrated!

Enjoy!

Pizza with Bacon, Scallions, Parmesan, and Tomato

Recipe: Pizza with Bacon, Scallions, Parmesan, and Tomato
Page: 116
Date Cooked: January 14, 2011

Great pizza is a God send and can be very difficult to find. The right crust, the right amount of toppings, and of course the perfect topping combination - you need it all for a great pizza. This was the first time I had attempted to make pizza dough and was worried I would mess it all up (the dough IS one the best parts). Luckily, that wasn't the case.

Ingredients: Unbleached all purpose-flour, honey, olive oil, active dry yeast, salt, bacon, scallions, tomatoes, grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, black pepper

Well you can't have a pizza without the base, hence dough preparation was the first step. Some flour, honey, warm water, olive oil, and yeast were added to a bowl and mixed together. This mixture was to sit in a warm place for 1 hour until it doubled in size. Being as it was my first attempt at making pizza dough, I documented this hour carefully.

Pizza dough sponge mixture at 20 minute intervals

After the hour, additional flour was added along with some salt; and the dough was kneaded. Jonathan Waxman makes note that "the dough should be moist, not dry." At this point, I was little worried because the dough appeared to be really moist, but I went with it. The bowl was covered and set aside for 2 hours for another round of doubling.

Left: Dough after kneading
Right: Dough after 2 hours - it doubled!

Once the dough was ready, the oven was set to preheat, and the toppings got some attention.

From Left to Right: Sliced scallions. Diced tomatoes. Diced bacon.

The dough was rolled out on a floured surface to about a 12-inch round. It was then sprinkled with the bacon, scallions, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese. Finally it was topped with some olive oil, salt, and black pepper.

Pizza ready for the oven

While the pizza baked, the smells were simply intoxicating - the dough, the bacon, and the tomatoes wafted throughout my house. Once I saw that the crust was a perfect golden brown, I knew it was ready to eat.

Pizza with Bacon, Scallions, Parmesan, and Tomato

I savored this pizza. It was soo good. The crust was just perfect. Simple but perfect. The flavor combination was also exactly what I never knew I wanted. Bacon is always a good choice. And tomatoes and Parmesan are quite predictable. But the use of scallions over other onions really made the pizza. You got the onion flavor without feeling like you were eating just onions. Every topping complimented the other.

I am now convinced that making pizza from scratch is the way to go. While it may seem like it takes time. Much of that time is spent waiting and the kind of waiting that doesn't require you to really do anything. Another great recipe. Another keeper.

And for all you pizza lovers, here is a close-up of the ingredients. Seeing this is just making me hungry again!

Pizza Close-Up

Enjoy!

Avocado and Crab Sandwich

Recipe: Avocado and Crab Sandwich
Page: 101
Date Cooked: January 11, 2011

So after my brief hiatus (vacationing in Florida over the winter holiday), I am back to State College and my usual routine. With my fridge completely empty, grocery shopping and another Jonathan Waxman recipe made the most sense. And after a long day, I wanted something quick, tasty, and filling. Luckily for me, the "Avocado and Crab Sandwich" was just the thing.

Ingredients: sweet onion, cilantro, avocado, Anaheim chile, lime, salt, lump crabmeat, multigrain bread, garlic cloves, and olive oil

Step One: Chop everything. The onions. The cilantro. The avocados. The chiles. And of course the limes were juiced. 

From Left to Right: Minced onions; chopped cilantro; diced avocados; stemmed, seeded, and minced chiles

The onions, cilantro, chile, and lime juice were mixed together. Salt was added. Finally, avocados were placed in the bowl and all the ingredients were mashed together.

Avocado Mixture

And that was all "hard part." I toasted the bread in the oven, and rubbed each slice with a garlic clove half. I had never done this before and initially didn't see how this would even make much of a difference, nonetheless the heat from the bread pulled the garlic flavor out. Each toast slice was then sprinkled with olive oil. One slice was topped with avocado mixture and then the crab. Finally ready to eat!

Avocado and Crab Sandwich

The sandwich was delicious. It felt light but filling and every component made sense. And it was super easy! Like I mentioned earlier I was unsure about the step that required rubbing half of a garlic clove on the toast, but it really made a difference. I ended up eating the same sandwich the next day but this time I skipped the garlic step. And it just wasn't the same. Disclaimer: I love garlic and put it in most of my cooking. But really it seemed to add another dimension to the sandwich that I truly appreciated.

Overall, it looks like I've been having a successful run with the last few recipes. And this is another ingredient combination I will keep under my belt. I also began to think how great this would be for an appetizer or cold finger food, by putting the same ingredients on those tiny pepperidge farm breads (seriously not an endorsement for this particular brand of bread) or something along those lines. Regardless the sandwich was exactly how Jonathan Waxman described it, "a purist sandwich."

Example of tiny bread.

Enjoy!