Greens, Pancetta, and Poached Egg Salad

Recipe: Greens, Pancetta, and Poached Egg Salad
Page: 81
Date Cooked: February 26, 2011

This particular recipe is a result of Jonathan Waxman's "quandary of coming up with a special egg dish at [his] restaurant Bud's in New York City" and I can say it is more than just an egg dish. This was my first time poaching an egg in red wine and I'm still not sure if I did it correctly. Nonetheless, I completed the dish.

Ingredients: Pancetta, shitake mushrooms, pepper, Beaujolais, red wine vinegar, curly endive, mustard, olive oil, and eggs

The pancetta is cut into thin strips and sautéed until crispy. The pancetta is removed from the pan, leaving the fat. Chopped shitake mushrooms are then placed into the same skillet, peppered, and cooked until lightly browned.

Top Left: Chopped pancetta strips
Top Right: Chopped shitake caps
Bottom Left: Crispy Pancetta
Bottom Right: Shitake sauteed in pancetta fat

While the mushrooms cooked, the Beaujolais and red wine vinegar were placed in a saucepan and brought to a simmer. The endive was washed and dried. Then the pancetta, shitakes, and pancetta fat were all added to the endive and tossed.

Left: Beaujolais and red wine vinegar simmering
Right: Curly endive tossed with pancetta and shitakes

The mushroom pan was deglazed with some more red wine vinegar. Mustard and olive oil were added to the pan and cooked for a few minutes. 

Mustard vinaigrette in the making

Finally, the eggs were poached in the red wine mixture. This step was a little harder than I expected and also the eggs looked a little strange having been poached in red wine. Nonetheless, all the components of the salad were now ready. The vinaigrette was tossed into the salad and the poached eggs were placed on the top. 

Greens, Pancetta, and Poached Egg Salad

Alright, I want to make note that I don't think this is the prettiest looking dish - that is the red wine poached egg is well kind of ugly. And this may very well be because I didn't poach it quite right but I guarantee you I did the best I could. 


Despite the visual, the salad was amazing. I ate it ravenously - every bite just got better. The shitakes were perfect - cooking them in the pancetta fat was just brilliant. Not only did it retain its meaty texture you got a bit of the salt from the pancetta and the additional pepper. The poached egg on top added a whole new dimension. Once you broke the yellow of the egg into the salad, you were able to sop it all up with the other salad components. And again it was just damn good. 


All in all, I loved the salad. Heck, I made it two nights in a row, I thought it was soo good. Now if only I could get that red wine poached egg to look pretty!

Enjoy!

Grilled Fontina and Prosciutto Sandwich

Recipe: Grilled Fontina and Prosciutto Sandwich
Page: 110
Date Cooked: February 20, 2011

The best way to describe this recipe is: Fancy Ham and Cheese. But not only is it a fancy little sandwich, it was pretty delicious as well. And boy oh boy, does Jonathan Waxman love his butter!

Prosciutto, Fontina, French sourdough, and butter

Slices of prosciutto and Fontina were layered on the bread. The top of each sandwich was also lightly buttered.

Layered slices of Fontina and prosciutto

Butter was melted in a skillet and once it began to bubble, the sandwich was added, un-buttered side down, flipped once, and cooked till golden brown on both sides.

From Left to Right: 1.Melting the butter 2.One side being grilled 3.The flip and other side being grilled

Once the cheese was visibly melting, the sandwich was removed, sliced in half, and served with pickles and mustard.

Grilled Fontina and Prosciutto Sandwich

Like I mentioned earlier, this is a fancy ham and cheese. However, I am a huge fan of Fontina cheese - it really has this wonderful earthy taste that pairs incredibly well with the prosciutto (and I'm sure the 45% milk fat content doesn't hurt either). All in all, it was good but not glamorous.

Enjoy!

Garden Salad

Recipe: Garden Salad
Page: 72
Date Cooked: February 14, 2011

This is the fourth Jonathan Waxman salad I have delved into. The previous salad recipes (Warm Squid Salad, Three Tomato Salad, Version 1, Warm Dandelion, Bacon, and Potato Salad) provided inspiration for my day to day cooking may that be a new found appreciation for the kumato, basic vinaigrettes, or even a new green such as dandelion. This recipe was the quintessential basic salad and I wasn't particularly inspired.

Arugula, Boston lettuce, baby frisee, black pepper, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil 

The recipe called for a variety of greens - from which I chose arugula, Boston lettuce, and baby frisee. The lettuce is washed and dried and placed in a bowl. Black pepper is added along with a touch of salt and the lettuce is tossed.

Washed and dried lettuce in bowl

Next, a small amount of balsamic vinegar is added to the greens and then tossed. Then the olive oil is tossed with the greens. You've added enough olive oil once the "salad glistens." And well....That is the end of the recipe.

Garden Salad

The salad tasted fine. But it wasn't anything exceptional by any means. Apparently, according to Jonathan Waxman, the key is to "always add the vinegar first." Why this is the case - I have no clue. I tried to find something about it, but came out of the search with no consensus. I want to assume it has something to do with the chemistry of oil and vinegar. Overall, the greens were good and the salad was just simple.

Enjoy!

Braised Lamb Shoulder with Fried Shallots

Recipe: Braised Lamb Shoulder with Fried Shallots
Page: 186
Date Cooked: February 13, 2011

"Braised Lamb Shoulder with Fried Shallots" is Jonathan Waxman's take on a classic French daube - a stew with meat (traditionally beef), wine, garlic, and herbs. If you ask me, I think braising meat is such a smart way to get a really hearty meal and it's difficult to mess up. Now I must state upfront, that I couldn't get lamb shoulder and had to make a substitution (my first one in this journey) - hence I used lamb leg. The biggest difference is that lamb leg is obviously a bit leaner than shoulder, which I was OK with.

Ingredients: Olive oil, salt, pepper, boneless lamb leg roast, Chianti, white onion, carrot, leek, garlic, jalapeño, kalmata olives, bay leaf, thyme, canned plum tomatoes, shallots, and all-purpose flour

The lamb piece is initially salt and peppered and then seared on all sides with olive oil. Once seared, the lamb is removed from the dish and Chianti is used to deglaze the pot. The lamb is then placed back in the dish and set aside.

From Left to Right: 1. Pre-seared lamb 2. Seared Lamb 3. Lamb with Chianti

Next, the onions, carrots, leeks, garlic, jalapeño, olives, and tomatoes are cut and chopped. All of vegetables along with the bay leaf and thyme were added to the casserole dish, scattered around the lamb. Water was added to the casserole dish as well - just until about the top of the lamb. The dish is then covered and placed in the oven to braise for 4 hours.

Seared lamb with vegetables and herbs

A few minutes before the 4 hours were up - I begin preparing the fried shallots. The shallots were thinly sliced and tossed in some flour. Finally they were fried in batches in hot olive oil. Once they achieved a crispy look, the shallots were removed from the oil and salted.

From Left to Right: 1. Thinly sliced shallots 2. Shallots tossed in flour 3. Frying shallots in olive oil

Finally, the fat was skimmed off the top of the stew and the bay leaf discarded. I was afraid that the lamb wasn't going to be tender enough (it looked as if it was still in it's entirety - see picture below) but surely as Jonathan Waxman makes notes, it broke apart in large chunks with no effort.

After 4 hours of braising in the oven 

A good piece of the lamb, the braising liquid, and some vegetables were spooned into a bowl. Finally, the stew was topped with the fried shallots.

Braised Lamb Leg with Fried Shallots

The stew was yummy. The lamb perfectly tender - it just melted in your mouth. Also, the braising liquid was incredibly flavorful. Moreover, I was somewhat amazed that the vegetables hadn't become a soggy mess. Don't get me wrong they were soft but still maintained remnants of their solid form. The crispy shallots on top provided a nice textural contrast and a little additional salt, which was appreciated. On a personal note, the fried shallots made me reminisce  about my mom's Indian cooking (fried onions are used in a number of Indian dishes).

The one thing I do need to comment on however is Jonathan Waxman's idea of portions. This isn't a novel thing in his recipes thus far, but I feel as it must be mentioned. I actually halved this recipe. However, the original recipe called for a 6 pound boneless lamb shoulder - which was estimated to make 6-8 servings. That's almost a pound of lamb + braising liquid + vegetables per person. A lot of food. I'm pretty sure using an approximately 3 pound boneless lamb leg gave me 6-8 servings. Luckily, I really like the stew because otherwise I'm not sure what I would do with 2 containers of braised lamb leg!

All in all, it was a great recipe and quite simple to make. Everything really cooks in its own juices and flavors and you get to really savor that, all with a touch of Chianti.

Enjoy!

Skirt or Hanger Steak Marinated in Soy, Ginger, and Lime with Red Onion Toasts

Recipe: Skirt or Hanger Steak Marinated in Soy, Ginger, and Lime with Red Onion Toasts
Page: 174
Date Cooked: February 7, 2011

I'm not a huge fan of skirt steak. I don't really know what to do with it other than make fajitas. But Jonathan Waxman's "Skirt Steak Marinated in Soy, Ginger, and Lime with Red Onion Toasts" was quick and tasty.

Skirt steak, ginger, lime, soy sauce, garlic, red wine, shallots, butter, salt, pepper, red onion, and sourdough bread

The ginger, lime juice, soy sauce, and garlic cloves were the marinade ingredients. The mixture was poured over the steaks, covered, and marinated in the fridge for 2 hours. After the two hours, the steak was removed from the marinade and the marinade was reserved.

Left: The marinade
Right: Marinade over steak

The red wine was brought to a boil, chopped shallots were added. The red wine was reduced till there was only about 1/4 cup left. Butter, salt, and pepper were stirred in and the reduction was set aside.

Red wine reduction

Meanwhile, the sliced onion rounds mixed with the reserved marinade were placed to broil until tender and dark brown. The steak was placed on the a pan and placed under the broil just until medium-rare. The bread was toasted under the broiler as well.

Onions with reserved marinade

Finally, the reduction was heated up and half a garlic clove was used to rub the slices of toast. And then it was ready to eat.

Skirt Steak Marinated in Soy, Ginger, and Lime with Red Onion Toasts

The flavors of this dish went quite well together. The onions with the marinade was quite surprising. The onion soaked the flavors of the marinade real nicely and made for a nice addition. Also the use of sourdough bread was the perfect choice. The steak was perfectly cooked as well. The marinade was flavorful and the red wine reduction added a whole new dimension. All in all, the meal was good but not mouth watering amazing. But a good choice for a quick meal. Furthermore, if the marinating portion wasn't included - the time involved was minimal.

Enjoy!