Wilted Greens and Goat Cheese Sandwich

Recipe: Wilted Greens and Goat Cheese Sandwich
Page: 100
Date Cooked: September 27, 2011

I don't have much to compare this sandwich to and in this case it's a good thing. I thought the flavors were simply unique. Furthermore, I think it really is a sophisticated (JW's word choice) vegetarian sandwich.

Ingredients: sweet onion, garlic, olive oil, chopped greens, goat cheese, salt,  pepper, red pepper flakes, parsley, butter, and sourdough bread

The sandwich concept is really simple but I think it's the small touches of what to cook that makes it soo good. The first steps included slicing the onion (even though the recipe intro mentions minced onions) and mincing the garlic. I then heated some olive oil in a pan, sauteed the onions, added the garlic, and sauteed it a bit more. I then added the greens, until wilted and tender. The pan was then set aside to cool.

1. Sliced onions 2. Minced garlic 3. Sauteed onions, garlic, and greens

In the meantime, I mashed the goat cheese with a fork and added salt, pepper, and red chili flakes. I then stirred in the greens mixture and the parsley as well as additional salt and pepper to taste.

Wilted greens and goat cheese mixture

I lightly buttered the bread and spread the goat-cheese mixture onto the bread slices. I also melted some butter in a pan and then placed the sandwich (un-buttered side down) until the bread was golden brown.

Cooking the sandwiches

Once the sandwich was cooked on both sides, I removed it from the pan, cut it in half, and it was ready for consumption.

Wilted Greens and Goat Cheese Sandwich

Like I said, this was a sophisticated sandwich and I really enjoyed it. I enjoy vegetarian sandwiches, but often find them to be a little one note, however this was not at all. There was just the right amount of garlic. The parsley gave a great earthiness that goes so well with the goat cheese. I had some leftover goat cheese-greens mixture and made the same sandwich the next day, but without all the butter, and it was still just as good!  Overall, the sandwich was filling and overall yummy.

Enjoy!

Broiled Lobster with Zucchini and Chile Butter

Recipe: Broiled Lobster with Zucchini and Chile Butter
Page: 233
Date Cooked: September 19, 2011

Summer is coming to an end and I haven't cooked a single lobster. Well that is all about to change starting now!  I walked into my grocery store the other day and saw that the tank was full of these clawed crustaceans. It was at that moment I knew I had to take one home to eat. Furthermore, I had all this amazing zucchini in my fridge from the farmers market - so this really was the perfect recipe to make.

Ingredients: red jalapeno chile, unsalted butter, rosemary, salt, pepper, lemon, lobster (in styrofoam box), zucchini, and olive oil

While a large pot of salted water heated on the stove, I began prepping the chile butter.  I stemmed, seeded, and chopped the chile. I then pureed the chile with the butter in a food processor. I placed the butter into a small dish and added finely chopped rosemary, salt, pepper, and a touch of lemon juice.

Chile Butter

Once the pot of water came to a nice boil, I dropped the lobster into the pan, covered and let boil for just a few minutes. I removed the lobster and let it cool. I then split the cooled lobster in half and lightly cracked the claws. I want to make a note here. Immediately, I thought the best way to split a lobster in half was from the underside (which is what I did). However, when I did some looking afterward I discovered the best way to do it is from the top - slicing from the head down. Doing it the latter way results in a really neat looking presentation. Regardless, once I split the lobster in half, I rubbed the chile butter all over the lobster meat and placed it in the oven to broil.

1. Live lobster 2. Boiled lobster 3. Lobster with chile butter before being broiled

In the meantime, I heated some olive oil and sauteed zucchini rounds (seasoned with salt and pepper) in a pan until they were brown but still crispy.

Sauteed zucchini rounds

With all the components cooked and ready, I decided to plate. I placed the lobster in the middle of the plate and surrounded it with the zucchini.

Broiled Lobster with Zucchini and Chile Butter

Jonathan Waxman has only two lines for the introduction of this recipe and I would like to repeat them. "Here's an uncomplicated way to cook lobster. The spicy butter is spectacular with the lobster meat." These two sentences were my thoughts exactly! The lobster was delicious! And "oh my goodness" the chile butter was amazing! I had some foresight and expected the butter to taste pretty damn good, so I actually saved some of the butter to eat with the lobster. Best idea ever! What I also loved was that the zucchini paired perfectly. It obviously wasn't the star of the plate but it was a nice flavor and texture to have on the side.

The dish was just yummy. Thinking about it now makes me want more. Heck, I'm thinking of making the chile butter and keeping it on hand just for fun.

Enjoy!

Succotash

Recipe: Succotash
Page: 249
Date Cooked: September 13, 2011

I have to say this upfront because it the first thing that comes to my find when I hear/read the word succotash. I immediately think of Daffy Duck from the Looney Tunes saying "suffering succotash." I'm not sure why succotash is oh so suffer-able, if you ask me...it was just super simple.

Ingredients: Corn, garlic, basil, salt, green beans, yellow wax beans, lima beans, sweet onions, tomatoes, olive oil, butter, and pepper

I think as you cook through an entire cookbook, you really get to know the chef behind the recipes. I've picked up on certain traits or techniques that I believe Jonathan Waxman stands behind. One of these happens to be vegetarian stock made from corncobs - which is done in this recipe and also in a previous recipe.

Accordingly, I husked the corn and cut the kernels off the cob. I placed the corncobs, garlic cloves, basil stems, water, and salt into a pot and allowed it to simmer for some time. Afterward, I strained the stock and brought the broth to a boil (trying saying the last part 3x real fast!).

Left: Making vegetable stock Right: Boiling strained broth

While the broth boiled, I topped and tailed the beans. Diced the onions and tomatoes. And also, smashed the garlic cloves. I also placed the beans into the broth, cooked till al dente, and removed them with a slotted spoon.

1. Diced onions 2. Diced tomatoes 3. Cooking beans in broth

I then pulled out the Dutch oven and heated some butter and olive oil over medium heat. I added corn, onions, garlic, and salt to the casserole and cooked for a few minutes. I then added the beans and cooked it for a bit longer. Finally, I added the tomatoes and basil and cooked just a bit longer.

Succotash in the Dutch oven - after added the tomatoes and basil

After all the vegetables had cooked to perfection (and JW makes a note in the recipe that "the only thing not to do is cook the vegetables until they fall apart), I was ready to plate. I spooned the succotash into a bowl and garnished it with a bit of basil.

Succotash

I've never made succotash before and quite honestly I didn't really know what it entailed. So I learned the following: it is a simple side dish that involves slow braising vegetables and traditionally includes corn and beans (oh and butter). In addition to taste, one thing I truly appreciate is the visual contrast a dish produces. JW's succotash hit the visual aspect right on the dot. It looked beautiful.

And it tasted good as well. I didn't have much of an "ah ha" moment in this recipe but I could see the value in the dish. However, if I made it again...I think I would add bacon. I missed that added dimension of fat and bacon really would have punched it up. All in all, it was an OK recipe. In closing, I suppose I have to say it... "Suffering Succotash!"

Enjoy!

Zucchini Blossom Beignets with Sun-Dried-Tomato Mayonnaise

Recipe: Zucchini Blossom Beignets with Sun-Dried-Tomato Mayonnaise
Page: 252
Date Cooked: August 20, 2011

When I first skimmed through JW's "A Great American Cook," I did some mental note taking of the recipes. This recipe in particular stood out to me because I had never seen zucchini blossoms in the grocery store. Accordingly, I have been on the lookout for them for almost a year. However, after doing some reading I found out that they are commonly found at farmer's markets in the summer time. Unfortunately, none of the vendors at my regular farmer's market seemed to carry them. One weekend, I tried out a market I hadn't been to before and there they were! I bought them and decided to make the recipe that very day.

Ingredients: Sun-dried tomatoes, lemon, corn oil, eggs, Balsamic vinegar, tarragon, salt, pepper, flour, lager, olive oil, and zucchini blossoms

First, I placed the sun-dried tomatoes to soak in hot water for some time. While the sun-dried tomatoes soaked, I made the batter. I put flour into a bowl and created a well. I added egg yolks, beer, olive oil, salt and pepper into the well. The entire mixture was blended well and placed on the side to rest.

Making the batter

With the batter now resting, I proceed on to the make the mayonnaise. The prospect of sun-dried-tomato mayonnaise was indeed quite exciting, except of course for the mayonnaise part. However, I've continued to keep trying. I drained the tomatoes and placed them into a food processor to puree. Later, I added the egg yolks, Balsamic vinegar, and lemon juice to pulse. This time in the mayonnaise making process I used an immersion blender. I put all the contents of the food processor into a a bowl and slowly added the corn oil as I continued to blend. Well ladies and gentleman, this is the moment I have been waiting for since the very first time I made mayonnaise......I DID IT! I made mayonnaise that looked like mayonnaise! Not liquid-y at all! Perfect, could have come from a jar, good ol' mayonnaise! I'm not sure if you can tell...but it was quite exciting. I added the tarragon, few drops of balsamic, salt, and pepper to the mayonnaise; covered it and put it in the fridge.

Sun-Dried-Tomato Mayonnaise!

I then focused my attention on the zucchini blossoms. I opened each blossom carefully and removed the stamen. I closed the blossoms back up and put them in the fridge until I was going to fry.

Zucchini blossoms with removed stamens

I beated the egg whites until soft peaks formed and folded it into the batter. With the oil hot and ready in a pan, I dredged the zucchini blossoms through the batter and situated them into the hot oil until they were nicely browned. I used a slotted spoon to remove the blossom and allowed them to drain on some paper towels.

Frying up zucchini blossoms

Finally, I served the zucchini blossoms alongside the sun-dried-tomato mayonnaise.

Zucchini Blossom Beignets with Sun-Dried-Tomato Mayonnaise

I really felt that this was a bit of a treat. Not to mention, I was still running on the high of actually making mayonnaise. I did enjoy the beignets, but as light as the batter was, I thought it was too heavy for the delicate blossoms. When I later read the intro to this recipe, JW also suggests "[stuffing] the blossoms with finely minced zucchini with a few herbs and olive oil or a little chopped tomato mixed with a good soft goat cheese." And when I think about it, that suggestion could have been the trick to my feeling so torn. Moreover, in the past when I was served zucchini or squash blossoms, they are often stuffed with something. Regardless, it was still a beautiful summertime treat.

The sun-dried-tomato mayonnaise paired excellently with the zucchini blossoms. The mayonnaise provided additional salt and acidity. Speaking of the mayonnaise, I began wondering that perhaps I was so successful in producing mayonnaise this time around because the recipe called for corn oil rather than olive oil. My understanding is that corn oil has a larger unsaturated to saturated fat ratio than olive oil and perhaps this was the reason the mayonnaise thickened faster. Nonetheless, my theory on the mayonnaise will continue to develop as I continue to delve into these recipes.

Enjoy!

Brined Pork Loin with Huckleberries or Blueberries

Recipe: Brined Pork Loin with Huckleberries or Blueberries
Page: 175
Date Cooked: August 19, 2011

The key word for this recipe was: brining. I personally was interested in what exactly brining did to the meat.  You hear about it many times, but what is the true difference between a brine and a marinade. Sorry the nerd in me is going to rant for the next few sentences. From what I gather a brine is simply salt water. Allowing meat to sit in a brine allows it to become more tender when cooked because the meat cells have absorbed a lot of water from the brine solution via osmosis. Furthermore, the salt in the brine denatures the meat proteins further preventing dehydration when cooked. All in all you end up with a tender and moist piece of meat.

Ingredients: Pork loin (not shown), salt, sugar, carrots, onions, garlic, shallots, ginger, leeks, celery, butter, bay leaves, Beaujolais Nouveau, small potatoes, pepper, blueberries, and red wine vinegar

The pork was placed in a brine overnight. To create the brine, I dissolved salt and sugar in boiling water. I put the pork in a dish and covered it with the brine, turning it a few times during the overnight process.

Pork loin in brine

The next day, I proceeded to prepare all the ingredients. I peeled the carrots, onions, garlic, shallots, and ginger; and cleaned the leeks. I cut the carrots, leeks, and celery into lengths and quartered the onions. During this time, I also removed the pork from the brine and placed it into a Dutch oven with butter and browned it on all sides.

Left: Veggie mise en place Right: Browning pork

After I removed the pork from the pan, I added the carrots, onions, shallots, ginger, and garlic and browned them all on sides. I then added the leeks, celery, bay leaves, pork, wine, and enough water to completely cover the meat. The contents were brought to a boil, the pan was covered and placed in the oven.

1. Browning carrots, onions, shallots, ginger, and garlic 2. Added the leeks, celery, and bay leaves
3. With the pork, wine, and water

After the meat was "fork tender," I removed the casserole from the oven and took out the pork and covered it on a plate. I then let the cooking liquid reduce down to a few cups. I emptied the contents of the pan, strained the liquid, and then placed it back into the pot along with the pork.

Pork with reduced braising liquid

While the braising liquid reduced I worked on the potatoes. I set them into a saucepan with some water and salt and brought it a boil. I drained the potatoes, placed them back in the saucepan, and mashed them. I added some butter, salt, and pepper and kept the potatoes warm.

Mashed potatoes

Finally, it was time to create the blueberry sauce. I put some blueberries and red wine vinegar into a pan and brought it to a boil until it thickened. I then added the reduced braising liquid along with the rest of the blueberries and allowed it to simmer for a bit.

Blueberry sauce

While the blueberry sauce simmered, I sliced the pork into thin slices and situated them onto the plate. Finally, I poured the berry sauce onto the pork and served it with the potatoes.

Brined Pork Loin with Blueberries

A big reason I selected this cookbook was because I don't really cook "American" food (at least in the way I define it). This meal felt very "American" to me. It was a traditional meal and was quite homey (maybe it was the mashed potatoes that did it). I enjoyed the dish very much. There is no doubt to me that the brining and braising amplified the pork's "flavor and richness." It was perfectly tender and I really loved the acidity and sweetness of the sauce. It made for a beautiful plate. The potatoes were a side, nothing too exciting there. But it made sense, the star on the plate was the pork and the sauce.

Enjoy!

Sea Scallops on Sweet Onions

Recipe: Sea Scallops on Sweet Onions
Page: 225
Date Cooked: August 17, 2011

The title of this recipe says it all. It really is all about the scallops and the sweet onions. And Jonathan Waxman makes a point to remind me that "it's a crime to mess around too much with scallops."

Ingredients: Sea scallops, white wine, sweet onions, unsalted butter, salt, pepper, and parsley

I placed the white wine and small scrap of a scallop in a small saucepan to reduce for a few minutes. The recipe actually calls for the small muscle attached the scallop, but the scallops I bought didn't have the muscles attached. I then strained the liquid and placed it on a side.

Sea scallop-white wine reduction

While the white wine mixture reduced, I sliced the onions as thin as possible. I then melted some butter in a pan and placed the onions along with some salt and pepper to cook on a low heat for quite some time. They continued to cook until "the onions [were] creamy and luscious." Later, I added the reduced wine to the onions and kept it all warm.

Cooking the onions will they are "creamy and luscious"

I salt and peppered the scallops and melted some butter into a pan. I placed the scallops into the skillet ("without disturbing them") and let them brown on each side.

Browning the scallops

Once the scallops were cooked on both sides. I placed the onions on a plate, put the scallops on top, and sprinkled on some parsley.

Sea Scallops on Sweet Onions

Scallops happen to be one of my favorite forms (if not my favorite) of shellfish and this recipe reminded me why. The simplicity of a scallop cooked to perfection sings on my taste buds. I just really enjoy it. The sweet onions were perfect in bringing out the sweetness of the scallops as well. But considering the onions were just cooked in butter over low heat for a while, I'm not all that surprised that it tasted soo good. This dish was simplicity at its best and didn't require much of a hassle. I really enjoyed it.

Enjoy!

Three-Tomato Salad, Version 2

Recipe: Three-Tomato Salad, Version 2
Page: 74
Date Cooked: August 7, 2011

The summer tomatoes have looked wonderful at the store and I couldn't help but buy some. I later remembered that there was another version of JW's three-tomato salad that I made earlier and figured why not get another recipe down. The last salad recipe really celebrated the pure taste of a tomato and so I had high hopes for this one as well.

Ingredients: Red tomato, yellow tomato, orange tomato, small tiny assorted tomatoes, green basil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil

The first step was to slice the large tomatoes and place them alternatively on a plate. I then cut the small tomatoes in half and julienned the basil. Note: the recipe actually calls for red or purple basil as well. I couldn't find any so I used additional green basil. 

1. Tomato slices 2. Halved small tomatoes 3. Julienned green basil

I then placed the basil into a bowl with the red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil. I drizzled some of the vinaigrette on the sliced tomatoes and then tossed the small tomatoes into the bowl of vinaigrette. Finally, I placed the small tomatoes on the plate and garnished it all with some pepper and basil.

Three-Tomato Salad Version 2

I thought the salad was delicious. Overall, I can say that the salad recipes in this cookbook have more or less turned out to be quite delicious. The tomato salad stayed true to the taste of the tomatoes. The vinaigrette, pepper, and basil just highlighted those flavors. All in all it is a simple, beautiful, and tasty salad. The presentation is also quite impressive. It's one of those great summer salads that would be nice to serve to guests.

Enjoy!