Oui, Chef

Profiteroles

In my humble opinion, profiteroles , these lovely ice cream filled and chocolate topped pastry puffs, are one of the French's finest contributions to the dessert course.  That is saying something, I know, given the number of delicious pastries, mousses, tarts, and cakes that grace the annals of French gastronomy.  To me, profiteroles are the French equivalent of our "brownie sundae", something that is so simple, pure and delectable, that you can't imagine ever tiring of them.  They are easy to make, and seem equally at home being served after a Friday night pizza fest, or a formal dinner party.

We've made them a couple of times recently.  First, a few weeks ago, when we were blessed to have a few guest chefs join us in the "Oui, Chef" kitchen, and then again today as fodder for a cooking demonstration that Grid shot for a film production class he is taking. 

Our guest chefs were the delightful 5th grade twin daughters of friends who were joining us for dinner, we shall call them Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.  One of the girls (can't remember whether it was Dee or Dum) has already expressed interest in being a chef, and so was excited to join our "Oui, Chef" crew on temporary assignment.  While Mom and Dad enjoyed a pre-dinner nibble and a glass of wine, Dee and Dum donned their aprons, rolled up their sleeves and whipped up our dessert for the evening.

Bouchon's Quiche Lorraine

OK. 

This is not a recipe for the casual, "I just like to throw it together" kind of cook, and certainly not one you will be whipping up in a rush on a weeknight, but if you have any interest at all in making what is likely the best quiche on the planet, I urge you to stop clicking on your mouse and hang with me here for a while.

It also is not a recipe that you can give your kids free reign over, but it does have plenty of elements that the kids can help with, and I encourage you to make them part of the process.  Not only will most kids LOVE this quiche, but I think it important that we make the effort to train our next generation in the fine art of quiche making, an art that is still alive and well in Europe, but sadly died here in the States in the "real men don't eat quiche" days of the early 80's.  Americanized quiches baked in factory-made, soggy pie shells, with over-cooked, curdled custards make me want to scream....our kids deserve better, don't you think?

This dish is actually not difficult to make, but as with every recipe Chef Thomas Keller creates, it IS exacting, and therein lies its brilliance.  Keller is not one of those chefs who lives on the bleeding edge of culinary adventure, like Heston Blumenthal, Feran Adria, or Grant Achats.  These guys make their livings pushing the edge of the envelope with regard to cooking technology and high tech ingredients, that allow them to reconstruct food in ways that leave diners giddily questioning what exactly it was they just ate. 

In contrast, what Keller does better than anyone else is rip classic dishes down to their most basic elements, and then reconstruct them using only the finest ingredients, and with such a finely honed and thoughtful technique, that the end result is a dish that is instantly recognizable for what it is, but is of a quality that has been elevated almost beyond measure.  When finished, you will immediately recognize this dish as a quiche, but what you will have created will make every other quiche you have tasted seem like a cheap, plastic imitation.  Successfully creating this dish will not require technical wizardry on your part, but it will require a tight eye on a few key details.  The rewards for your vigilance will be ample, I assure you.  You game?.....Then let's go.

Fig and Anise Clafoutis

 

I've been visiting a new website over the past few weeks, it is called Food 52.  It is the brain-child of Amanda Hesser (NY Times food writer) and her partner, Merrill Stubbs.  The purpose of the site is to hold recipe competitions among member "home cooks" every week for a year, with each winning recipe being featured in a cookbook that will be published by Harper Studio sometime in 2010.

My recipe for a Fig and Almond Clafoutis has been chosen as a weekly finalist....kinda cool, huh?  Users of the site have a week to vote on which recipe will win, AND THE VOTING DEADLINE IS TONIGHT, TUESDAY OCTOBER 20TH AT MIDNIGHT!

I suspect that the Fig showdown will be a close race, so I would REALLY appreciate your VOTE should you deem my recipe worthy.  CLICK HERE to register on the site and place your VOTE for my "FIG AND ANISE CLAFOUTIS".  Below, you can watch a video of Amanda and Merrill making the two finalist fig dishes, which is way fun.

Your Best Fig Recipe from Food52 on Vimeo.

I am so pleased with the way this recipe turned out, and am thrilled just to have been chosen as a finalist in the competition.  I encourage all of you fig lovers to try this recipe while fresh figs are still in season, it really is special!

Cheers and Thanks - Steve

Recipe:

Fig and Anise Clafoutis       

(Print Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients:

20 Black Mission Figs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon anise seeds, toasted
1 plump vanilla bean pod
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 tablespoon Calvados
3 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
6 tablespoons of AP flour, sifted
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup whole milk
Zest of one lemon, finely minced, about 1 packed teaspoon
Kosher salt


Method:

• Preheat the oven to 400 F
• Butter and sugar a 10 1/2 inch round baking dish
• Cut the stems off the figs, and quarter them lengthwise
• Spread the almond pieces of a sheet tray and toast in the oven for 6-8 minutes, until nicely golden, remove from the oven and set aside.
• Slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, and using a sharp knife, scrape the seeds out of the pod and onto a small plate.
• Place the anise seeds in a small, dry saute pan over low heat and toast gently till fragrant.  Remove from heat and let cool.
• Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat, and when ready, add the butter, honey, 1/2 of the vanilla seeds, and the vanilla pod, stir well.  Add the figs, a pinch of salt, the anise seeds, and cook, tossing occasionally, 2-3 minutes, until the figs are starting to soften, and are well coated with the honey butter.
• Pour the figs into the prepared baking dish, and spread evenly across the bottom.  Remove the vanilla pod, and sprinkle with the toasted almond pieces.
• Zest the lemon with a fine toothed micro-plane, reserve.
• In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, blend the eggs until frothy, add the balance of the vanilla seeds, the lemon zest, the sugar, cream, and milk, and Calvados, and mix well.  Add the flour and a pinch of salt, and mix until well incorporated, 1-2 minutes.  Let rest 15 minutes.
• Pour the batter over the figs, and place the dish in the center of the preheated oven.  Bake until the center puffs and turns a deep golden color, and the clafoutis feels firm and set, about 30-40 minutes.  
• Transfer to a cooling rack.  Serve slightly warm, or at room temperature, dusting with confectioner’s sugar, and with a dollop of freshly whipped cream if desired.

Shrimp Fried Rice

This is a recipe that was inspired by a Pineapple Rice dish that I recently found featured on the fabulous 101 Cookbooks blog.  I took Heidi's recipe and adapted it to what I had on-hand at the time when I first made this a few weeks ago.  It came out so well, that I thought I'd reproduce (and document) it for all of you.

Fried rice is absolutely one of those everything but the kitchen sink dishes, that lends itself well to any leftovers you have laying about.  You will find some combinations you like better than others, but as long as you start with a few cups of cold, cooked rice, and the makings of a tasty dressing, almost anything else you throw into the mix is sure to yield a satisfying meal.

Arthas put in some time working on his knife skills to pull this meal together, tailing and cutting the shrimp, mincing the garlic, and prepping the clementines.  This is one of those meals that is really all about prep, so if you have the space in your kitchen, pull a few of the kids into duty to speed along the slicing, dicing, and mincing process.  Once your "mise" is ready, only about five minutes of high heat stand between you and a healthy, delicious meal.

Enjoy!

Recipe:

Shrimp Fried Rice

Inspired by:  Heidi Swanson of "101 Cookbooks"

(Print Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup mild olive oil, or sunflower oil

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1/8 cup orange juice

1/8 cup lemon juice

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

2 garlic cloves, finely minced

pinch of kosher salt

2 cups cooked brown long grain rice, cold from the fridge

24 large, cooked, peeled and de-veined shrimp, cut into thirds

4 cups baby spinach leaves

2 ears of corn, kernels stripped from the cob

3 clementines, each segment cut in half cross-wise

1 shallot, finely minced

2 scallions, thinly sliced, white and light green parts only

1 cup roasted, salted cashews, roughly chopped

1 small chile, seeded and finely minced

3 eggs, scrambled, cooked into a thin omelette, and cubed.

Fresh Cilantro

Method:

• Make the dressing by whisking the first nine ingredients together in a bowl, set aside.
• Whisk the eggs with a little salt and pepper, and pour into a pre-heated small non-stick skillet.  Cook on low-medium heat, undisturbed, until totally set.  Flip briefly if you wish before slipping the omelette onto a cutting board to cool.  Cut into cubes and reserve.
• In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 tablespoon high-heat canola oil to almost smoking. 
• Add the corn kernels and cook for 1 minute. 
• Add the shallot, chile, rice, scallions, shrimp, and half the dressing, and cook till heated through. 
• Add the spinach, cooked egg, clementines, and cashews, and cook until the spinach wilts. 
• Taste for seasoning, adding more dressing if required.  
• Serve immediately, topped with freshly minced cilantro.

Serves 4-6

Chorizo and Spinach Frittata

Making a frittata, much like a fried rice, is a great way to use up all the left-overs in your fridge.  Pick a few main ingredients that will define your flavor profile, and then feel free to toss in little remnants of past meals that are hanging on, begging not to become a science experiment in the back of your refrigerator.

The dish is endlessly versatile, can be tossed together in minutes, is great hot or cold, travels well, can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  As long as you like eggs, it is a nearly perfect food.  I've even thought of making a large one each Sunday, strictly for use throughout the coming week.  A slice is great re-heated for a quick breakfast, can be a healthy addition to a school lunch, and a satisfying meal on the fly with a quick salad as you race between appointments on your evening schedule.