Hot Oysters with Black Pepper Butter

Recipe: Hot Oysters with Black Pepper Butter

Page: 41

Date Cooked: May 22, 2012

I feel like I have to quote Jonathan Waxman's first line for this recipe: "This recipe is so easy you'll suspect there must be a hitch - there isn't." And well... that is 100% true. I used two different kinds of oysters in this recipe - Hama Hama oysters from Hood Canal and Fanny Bays from Puget Sound. And to test the oysters, I made sure to eat one raw before purchasing them and they were delicious. 

Oysters, unsalted butter, and black pepper

I cleaned the oysters. I then melted butter in a small saucepan, cooked it until golden brown, and stirred in the cracked pepper. I placed the oysters on the grill and cooked until they just popped open.

Right: Black pepper butter
Left: Oysters on the grill

I pulled the top off the oysters and loosened them up a bit. Note: JW mentions stabilizing the oysters on a bed of rock salt, I omitted this step. However, that step was purely for presentation and these oysters didn't last very long on the plate!

Hot oysters with top shell off

Finally, I topped the oysters with a spoon of the black pepper butter and served immediately.

Hot Oysters with Black Pepper Butter

Like I mentioned there really is no work to this recipe and it tasted delicious. There really isn't much to say about this recipe. If you ask me, it was simply different from raw oysters. A fun item to make if you are already barbeque-ing. 

Enjoy!

Red Pepper Pancakes with Corn and Caviar

Recipe: Red Pepper Pancakes with Corn and Caviar
Page: 16
Date Cooked: May 20, 2012

I, like many people, love brunch. Not sure why brunch is so magical, but it appears to be that one meal where anything goes - sweet, savory, and both. And on a really great occasion, you can have "fancy brunch." Though this recipe was labelled a starter, it screamed fancy brunch to me and that is exactly what I sought.

Ingredients: red bell peppers, eggs, unsalted butter, lemon juice, all-purpose flour, salt, baking powder, chives, crème fraîche, smoked salmon, corn, heavy cream, salmon caviar, and cilantro 

I began by roasting the red peppers on the stove top until blackened and blistered all over. I put the peppers in a bowl, covered with plastic wrap, and steamed. I then peeled the peppers by hand, stemmed, and seeded them. I diced one of the peppers and put it aside.

(1) Roasting red bell peppers (2) Steaming bell peppers (3) Diced bell pepper

I blended the other red bell pepper in a food processor. I added egg yolks to the pepper puree and blended well. I whisked in some melted butter and lemon juice. I mixed the pepper puree mixture with flour, a pinch of salt, and baking powder. Finally, I whisked the egg whites to soft peaks and folded the whites into the flour-pepper mixture. I let the batter sit at room temperature.

Making red pepper pancake batter

In the meantime, I mixed the crème fraîche with the chives and cut the kernels off the corn.

Right: Kernels of corn
Left: Crème fraîche with chives 

I melted butter in a medium skillet and added the corn. After sauteeing for a few minutes, I stirred in the cream and diced red bell pepper. I finished the corn-pepper dish with a squeeze of lemon juice.

Corn-red pepper sauce

I heated some butter in a large skillet and poured in a tablespoon of batter for each pancake. I cooked until the pancakes were lightly browned on each side. 

Cooking red pepper pancakes

Finally, it was time to plate. I arranged a few pancakes on a plate and topped each one with crème fraîche. I coiled salmon strips onto each pancake and placed caviar on top. I spooned the corn sauce around the pancakes and garnished with cilantro.

Red Pepper Pancakes with Corn and Caviar

Let's see.... Smoked salmon - delicious! Salmon caviar - delicious! Crème fraîche - delicious! All these items on their own are delicious. And of course, when you combine them (which is a pretty traditional pairing) is delicious. Those are the ingredients that had the most flavor and really sang. The red pepper pancakes...completely mediocre. Don't get me wrong, the whole dish was delicious. But the work it took to make the red pepper pancakes was not quite worth it. I think I could have made a regular blini, which would have taken half the effort, and the end product would be just as delicious. The corn-red pepper sauce tasted good, but I found the addition of heavy cream to be a bit gratuitous. I mean I am already eating crème fraîche! My overall verdict is that the red pepper pancakes were a bit overrated but the rest was delicious!

Enjoy!

Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie

Recipe: Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie
Page: 267
Date Cooked: May 9, 2012

Lemon-lime flavored desserts are some of my favorite. I love the tartness of the citrus paired with something sweet. It's refreshing and hits that sweet tooth. Accordingly, I was excited to try this recipe out and of course review the pastry crust I made for this pie.

Ingredients: My Pastry Crust, limes, lemons, eggs, unsalted butter, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and confectioners' sugar

I rolled out the pastry crust dough, fit it to my pie pan, and put it in the refrigerator.

Fitting pastry crust

In the meantime, I juiced the lemons and limes and grated the zest from the lemons. I also separated the eggs, placing the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a large bowl.

Right: Juiced lemons and limes + grated lemon zest
Left: Separated eggs

I combined butter, sugar, and cornstarch in a saucepan and cooked over low while whisking together. I added the yolks to the pan, letting the yolks cook and constantly whisking. I slowly added the citrus juices to the pan. Finally, I added the grated lemon zest and cooked the mixture until thickened. I transferred the filling to a buttered bowl and covered it with plastic wrap.

Making lemon-lime curd

I took the pie shell out of the fridge and pricked it all over with a fork. I lined it with foil and filled it with rice. I baked the pie shell for several minutes. I then removed the foil and rice and baked until the crust was a golden brown. I set the crust aside to cool.

Baking pie shell

With an electric mixer, I beat the egg whites with salt until fluffy. I then added 2 tablespoons of sugar at a time and continued to beat until stiff peaks formed. I filled the cooled pie shell with the lemon-lime curd and topped the meringue over the filling.

Right: Lemon-lime curd in pie shell
Left: Pie topped with meringue

I put the pie under the broiler and watched it carefully. The moment I say peaks turn golden brown, I turned the pie accordingly. Once the meringue was evenly browned, I removed it from the oven and let it cool. Finally, I dusted the pie with confectioner's sugar.

Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie

I thought this pie was delicious! I absolutely loved the tartness of the lemon-lime curd. And the meringue was amazingly fluffy and light. The pastry crust, which I can now review, was delicious as well and really held up to the flavors of the lemon-lime curd. Overall, I truly enjoyed this dessert and I think it may show up on my kitchen counter again!

Enjoy!

And just for extra viewing pleasure, here is what is looked once you cut into it:

My Pastry Crust

Recipe: My Pastry Crust
Page: 266
Date Cooked: May 9, 2012

It feels somewhat strange to refer to this recipe as "My Pastry Crust" when in actuality it is Jonathan Waxman's pastry crust. Regardless, this is one of the quickest pastry crust recipes I have ever seen.

Ingredients: All-purpose flour, sugar, salt, unsalted butter, and ice water

In a large bowl, I whisked together the flour, sugar, and salt. I then made a well in the middle and added the cubes of cold water and water. I used my fingertips to work in the butter quickly, until the dough formed together.

Pastry crust dough in process

I then flattened the dough into a disk, wrapped it in plastic, and refrigerated.

My Pastry Crust

The recipe doesn't encompass actually cooking or tasting the dough (that will follow in the next post). Since, I cannot speak of those items, I can speak to the process. Well, there really was no process. It took little to no time, all stayed in the bowl, no mess and no fuss.

As for the verdict on flavor and texture, that's to be continued...

Grand Red Snapper Stew

Recipe: Grand Red Snapper Stew
Page: 210
Date Cooked: April 28, 2012

Living in Central Pennsylvania means there is a high premium for fresh (or as close to fresh as possible) seafood  and availability is sometimes in question. Furthermore, I shouldn't be surprised that it was hard to see red snapper at my grocer since they are said to be over fished. However, I did read an article saying that the fish was returning "from the brink." Regardless, if you can't find red snapper or prefer using another fish, JW does mention halibut, cod, grouper, or monkfish as suitable substitutes.

Ingredients: Fennel, red onion, garlic, celery, leek, olive oil, parsley, dry white wine, bay leaves, saffron, salt, pepper, red snapper fillets, unsalted butter, tomato, and sourdough bread

I began by prepping the components of the stew. I trimmed the fennel, keeping some of the fennel fronds. I thinly sliced the fennel bulbs. I cut the onion into thin strips. I thinly sliced the garlic. I cut the celery into pieces. I cut the carrot into coins. Finally, I sliced the leeks.

(1) Sliced fennel (2) Sliced red onion (3) Carrot coins

(1) Sliced celery (2) Sliced garlic (3) Sliced leeks

I heated olive oil in a Dutch oven and added the fennel, onions, garlic, celery, carrot, and leek. I sauteed the veggies for a minutes. I then added the parsley along with some wine, water, bay leaves, and saffron. I brought the stew to a simmer and let it cook. Finally, I turned off the heat and removed the bay leaves.

Making the stew

In the meantime, I prepared the garlic toasts. I placed the bread on a baking sheet and toasted them in the oven. I rubbed each slice of bread with a garlic half and brushed with olive oil.

Garlic toasts

To finish off the stew, I cooked the red snapper fillets. I salt and peppered the fillets and cut them into bite sized pieces. I melted butter in a large skillet, placed the fillet pieces skin-side sown, and cooked for only a minute.

Cooking snapper fillet

I added the snapper pieces to the stew and brought the stew to a simmer.

Adding snapper to stew

As the stew simmered, I sliced the tomato into rounds. I placed the tomato and garlic toasts into bowls. Finally, I ladled the stew into the bowls and garnished it with the reserved fennel fronds.

Grand Red Snapper Stew

I thought this dish was delicious. The fish held up nicely in contrast to the flavors of the root vegetables. I really enjoyed the licorice flavor of the fennel, it balanced well with the mild leek flavor and provided a textural contrast to the carrots and celery. Everything was seasoned to perfection. The sweet acidity of the tomatoes was great as well. And I think every great soup/stew needs a piece of bread to sop up all the flavors at the end. I could definitely see myself recreating the stew, but perhaps with the different piece of fish. Furthermore, it looked soo beautiful in the bowl.

Enjoy!