Oui, Chef - Part 48

Basil Infused Fresh Fruit Salad

July 23, 2010 By Steve Dunn 15 Comments

Having returned from Paris a few pounds heavier than when I left (imagine that), I thought it might be wise to pick up some fresh fruit to keep on-hand to satisfy my daily pangs for something sweet. Now that’s not to say that I didn’t eat any fruit while in France, because I did, its just that the fruit I ate there was almost always nestled in a big pillow of pastry cream, or resting comfortably in a butter-rich pâte sucré shell…..oh dear.

Thinking back to all the fabulous treats I ate while there, I can only think of one thing to say…..

VIVE LA FRANCE!

I can’t think of any other place on Earth where I’d rather pack on a few pounds than in France, can you? Without exception, the pastries we ate there were so dangerously good they should have come with warning labels. Though to be fair, the odds of our actually heeding their warnings would have been about NIL, but I’m just sayin’.

Paris

July 18, 2010 By Steve Dunn 18 Comments

(photo credit: my significantly better-half)

We're back…..have you missed us?

No?

What do you mean you didn't even know we were gone……

You make me sad.

For those of you who HAVE been wondering why we've had so few posts over the past weeks, the answer is that we've been doing a little traveling, and while we were able to pre-schedule a few posts to publish in our absence, they haven't been hitting the site with our normal frequency. In fact, I was in such a hurry to get the last few done, that I actually popped them in the queue while sitting at JFK, waiting for a flight with the boys as we jetted off for our annual "he-man" getaway at the end of the school year.

A day after returning home with them, my wife, the girls and I were on a plane to Paris (am I a lucky bugger, or what?).

Pork Tenderloin with Honey Mustard Sauce

July 8, 2010 By Steve Dunn 16 Comments

When people first learn that I trained professionally to be a chef, their eyes go wide and they look at me and say, “you must know how to make awesome sauces!”.

Sauce creation seems to be the one thing people hone-in on when distinguishing home cooking from restaurant cuisine. If you listen to people recounting their most memorable restaurant meals, they inevitably include a description of a fabulous sauce, either with the main course or dessert. A good sauce also happens to be the element of the meal that most home chefs think is beyond their grasp. Not so.

Jean-Georges’ Molten Chocolate Cake

July 2, 2010 By Steve Dunn 16 Comments

This is one of the first “fancy” desserts I ever learned how to make, their inclusion in my repertoire pre-dating my training in Paris, and they are absolutely one of the family’s favorites. Rumor has it that these little lovelies were born out of a mistake made in the pastry kitchen of legendary chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, when a tray of individual cakes were pulled from an oven before being baked through. Good thing he tasted one as it’s liquid chocolate center oozed across the plate, and didn’t just chuck it in the trash….can you image where we’d be right now without the ubiquitous “molten chocolate cake” in our cooking lexicon? Nowhere I’d want to be, I can assure you of that!

Shish Taouk with Toum

June 24, 2010 By Steve Dunn 20 Comments

This is yet another dish that was inspired by a Food52 recipe contest. When I mentioned the site’s recent “best use of a grill, lemon and thyme” contest to my wife, she looked at me flatly and said “there is no more perfect dish on the planet to enter into this contest than Shish Taouk”, and you know what….. she was right. This is a dish that she ate ravenously as a child in Lebanon, and its no surprise why. The freshness of the lemon/thyme marinated chicken, the addictive qualities of the toum (garlic sauce), the salty chew of the grilled halloumi, and the spice and sweetness of the papadews and grilled lemon, make every bite a celebration. We love this served on syrian bread, but it would also be great alongside some rice or couscous.

"The" Cookies

June 19, 2010 By Steve Dunn 28 Comments

When I first learned of these cookies, they were called something like “Showhouse Cookies” , or “Show Stopper Cookies”, or maybe they were even called “Heart Stopper Cookies”. Honestly I can’t remember, and I don’t really even care because for a long time now, we’ve simply called them “The” Cookies. They are a decadent mix of white chocolate, toffee bits, brown sugar, and nuts, rendered in form of a perfect, sweet – chewy – crunchy cookie.

A perennial favorite with Grid, he rarely goes more than a few days without some reference to them.

“Hey Dad, you think you can make some of THE cookies this week?”

“It’s been a while since you’ve made THE cookies, what gives?”

When caught hunched over in front of the freezer, arse in the air, and his head in the chill zone, one can often hear him mumbling, “I just know there has to be a bag of THE cookies in here somewhere….there just HAS TO BE!”

Kale, Sausage and Feta Frittata

June 15, 2010 By Steve Dunn 12 Comments

I know that we’ve already done a frittata dish here, but I am such a big fan I wanted to bring you another one. The last one we cooked together was a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants frittata that I threw together with a bunch of left-overs in the fridge, and it is that “everything but the kitchen sink” aspect of crafting a frittata that I love so much. Eggs, cheese, and almost anything else you can think of can make a delicious frittata, they are a perfect foil for any kind of leftover meat, fish or veggie you have laying about.

Today’s recipe is actually not that kind of free-wheeling creation, but rather one from a pretty great recipe that I found in Bon Appetit last month. It is a well balanced creation of meat, vegetable and cheese that really satisfies. Unlike many frittata recipes, this one is cooked in a baking dish, not a frying pan, and is cooked at a low enough temperature that it maintains a nice light texture, and doesn’t get tough as they can when cooked with a higher heat.

Oui, Chef's One Year Anniversary!

June 13, 2010 By Steve Dunn 26 Comments

Only on this day are the kids "all-thumbs"!

It's hard for me to believe that a year has already past since writing my first post back in June of 2009. Wow…..where does the time go?

No recipe to share today (boo), but rather a few words of thanks, and a moment for both reflecting on the year that was, and for looking forward to what lies ahead for those of us in the "Oui, Chef" kitchen.

First, a from the bottom of my heart THANK YOU for everyone who has visited our site and been a part, whether large of small, of our first year on-line. We feel blessed to have grown such a wonderful and enthusiastic readership, and are thrilled with the growing group of regulars that somehow always find the time to check out our latest posts, and make a point to cheer us along at every step. Your encouragement, warmth, and passion for what we do means a great deal to all of us here, and provides us great incentive to keep "Oui, Chef" moving forward, striving to discover more tasty food, and fun lessons to share with you all.

Challah French Toast Bread Pudding

June 7, 2010 By Steve Dunn 14 Comments

This started out as a Bon Appetit recipe years ago, but we’ve tinkered with it over time to come up with this luscious, yet easy indulgence. I think the only thing we haven’t changed is the use of Challah, because it is absolutely perfect in this dish. My favorite thing about this treat is that it is made in its entirety the night before serving, so in the morning, you just have to pop it into the oven, and set your timer. It is so easy, that I can even manage it before my first cup of morning coffee, and THAT is saying something.

Lamb Meatballs Stuffed with Chevre

June 3, 2010 By Steve Dunn 26 Comments

I have yet to dine at either A Voce or Locanda Verde, Andrew Carmellini’s wildly popular Manhattan restaurants, but they will certainly be on my hit-list the next time I’m in the Big Apple. I have become a big fan of Andrew’s cooking since buying his terrific cookbook, Urban Italian: Simple Recipes and True Stories from a Life in Food (which he wrote with his wife, Gwen Hyman), last summer.

The first dish I cooked from the book has become my favorite way to eat swordfish, and I’m sure I’ll be blogging that dish before long…think orange, olives, and harrisa…your mouth is already watering, yes?

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