Kitchen Conundrum

Beef Wellington’s With No Yelling Involved

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We have been wanting to make Beef Wellingtons for a while. Being rather big fans of Hell’s Kitchen and seeing them served nearly every week (for the past few seasons, they have been making lamb wellingtons, not beef) and laughing at Chef Ramsey’s disdain with his troops while he screams at them “The Wellington! Where’s the, curse word, curse word, Wellington!” Only to find out they are “RAW!!! RAWWW!!!”  It totally cracks us up. And makes us want to try and make them ourselves! They really can’t be that difficult, can they?

Our version is really simple. It doesn’t include ham or mustard like Chef Ramey’s Wellington but it is very flavorful and delicious. And really, very easy to make for even a weeknight dinner.

 

Ingredients

1 lb beef tenderloin cut into two 8oz. steaks

4 tbs vegetable oil

1 medium shallot, chopped very fine

1 cup fresh mushrooms, chopped very fine

2 sprigs of thyme leaves, chopped fine

2 ounces liver pate

2 tbs butter, softened

salt and pepper to taste

1 (17.5 ounce) package frozen puff pastry, thawed

2 egg yolks, beaten

1 (10.5 ounce) can beef broth

¼ cup red wine

1 tbs flour

1  tbs butter

Method

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Heat 2 tbs of vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over high heat.  Season the beef with salt and pepper and sear until browned on all sides. Remove from pan to a plate and allow to cool completely. Reserve pan juices.

In a large sauté pan over medium heat add the remaining 2 tbs vegetable oil. When hot, add the onion and mushrooms stirring for 5-7 minutes until soft and all the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat, add the thyme leaves, salt and pepper and let cool.

Mix together pate and 2 tablespoons softened butter.  Set aside.

Roll out the puff pastry dough into a square large enough to fold around the meat into little packages.

Spread a thin layer of the mushroom mixture in the middle of the dough as a landing spot for your beef.

Place a piece of beef in the center on top of the mushrooms. Spread a layer of pate (about 1 ounce) over the beef and cover with additional mushrooms.

Brush the edges of the dough with the egg yolk.

Fold the dough around the beef like a package and seal all the edges, making sure the seams are not too thick.

Place the beef on a baking tray, seam side down and cut a few slits in the top of the dough for venting. Brush the entire package with the egg yolk.

Bake at 450 degrees F for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 425 degrees F and cook for another  10 to 15 more minutes, or until pastry is a rich, golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to rest on a plate before slicing.

Place all reserved juices in a small saucepan over high heat. Stir in beef stock and red wine; boil for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly reduced. Wisk in the flour and softened butter to thicken the sauce and continue cooking until desired consistency.

Spoon some sauce onto the bottom of the plate. Slice the wellingtons in half. Place each half on the plate surrounding the sauce and serve with a vibrant vegetable such as roasted asparagus.  The moment of truth!

PERFECTION!  Crispy on the outside and pink and juicy in the inside, just how we like it! Ok, the sauce could have been plated differently, since it seems that the Wellington’s juice and the sauce combined, but it tasted amazing!  The meat was soft and buttery while the pate and mushrooms were rich and earthy. And it was all enrobed in a crispy, crunchy crust!

 

This dish, when paired with a nice bottle of Pinot Noir makes a great Fall dinner.  It’s rich and hearty and just feels luxurious. The earthiness of the Pinot Noir with it’s own mushroom and truffle notes, works beautifully in tandem to create even higher levels of complexity with the liver pate and the mushroom coated beef.  This meal will make your stomach happy!

Enjoy!

Thai- Simply, Fantastic Thai

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I really enjoy Thai food and have rarely dabbled in making it at home. It is far easier  just to order it in, or so I thought. I recently took a Thai cooking class given by the dynamic, Chef Phensri of Fantastic Thai that has forever changed my misguided views about difficulties of cooking Thai food.

The class was held at KITCHENNYC located at 306  W.51st Street in Manhattan. There is no sign and if you have never been there before, all you would see is an apartment building.  But look to the left and just before the entrance to the building  there is a stairway leading down and directly into KITCHENNYC.  It is a rather small space at just 450 square feet, which made for a very intimate class setting, but it is fully equipped and laid out very well.

Fantastic Thai is run by Chef Phensri and her husband Darien. Phensri (pronounced PENSI) was born and grew up in Udorn Thani, Thailand where she started cooking at home at an early age and learned everything there is to know about cooking  Thai food.  She then came to the U.S. and put her knowledge into practice by opening a restaurant in New Jersey. Not only does she have a restaurant, she also consults  for other restaurants who want to serve Thai food, she caters for various events, and she teaches Thai cooking classes in both New Jersey and New York. In addition to all of that, she has created her own line of Thai cooking sauces that make cooking Thai food extremely simple and nearly foolproof! She has quite an amazing entrepreneurial spirit! She is also an incredibly fun and patient instructor!

While English is not Phensri’s first language, she gets her point across and her husband Darien is right there to assist with anything you need. She has a small brass bell that she rings to get your attention if you become too distracted and are not paying attention. She doesn’t want you to miss a single detail!

The night of my class, there was wine flowing and we were all happily busy with the prepping of our meal. Each person had an opportunity to create a dish and also watch as the others prepared theirs. Since I went alone, I did not have a lot of opportunity to write down every step, but I was able to take a lot of pictures and at the end of the class, Chef Phensri gives out four laminated cards with eight of her recipes printed on both sides. Each of the printed recipes uses either her Fantastic Thai- Magic Sauce or her Fantastic Thai- Pad Thai Sauce.  These sauces make it very easy to recreate the dishes at home. But, if you wanted know what was in the recipes made without her sauce, you have to had been paying close attention in class! However, she is always willing to answer any questions after you leave the class, either by phone or email. You can also order her foolproof sauces here.

We made a total of five complete dishes in our class. First there was Tom Yum Koong Soup which becomes Tom Ka Gai Soup with the addition of coconut milk. This soup is made fragrant with the addition of whole lemon grass stalks and Kefir lime leaves that Chef Phensri brought from her own garden. (Have to try to grow lemon grass in my garden next year!)  There was also Galanga, a root much like Ginger, that gave off an incredible fragrance.  The smell was so amazing while  just the stock was simmering and even before any of the solid ingredients were added. Finished, it was a  nice, spicy chicken soup that could surely cure any cold.

I was tasked with making the Red Curry. First I gathered my mise en place.

We used the brand, Maesri Curry Paste, Red Curry paste for this dish.  There are many varieties and they all have different levels of heat and spice combinations.  This particular brand of coconut milk is the brand that Chef Phensri recommends using in the recipes. Chef Phensri thinks some of the other popular brands are too watery.

We used fresh cut vegetables, red and green peppers, bamboo shoots and fresh Thai basil. (Notice the cute brass bell that Chef Phensri used to get our attention!)

Among some of the ingredients was the Thai eggplant.  This small, round eggplant is about the size of a golf ball and doesn’t seem to depart much flavor, but it is quite pretty and offers a bit of a crunch to the stew.

Apparently, in Thailand, they only use them if they are fully white inside, but here, since they are much harder to locate, they are used even if they are brown inside. We cut them in quarters and soaked them in water to keep them from browning further.

This curry was magnificent! The spice from the curry paste, combined with the sweetness of the coconut milk was in perfect harmony with one another. It was also bright and beautiful while it was simmering.

I think this may have been my favorite dish of the night. The flavors were rich and complex, each bite sung with spice and sweet in a cohesive balance. Neither outdoing the other. It was perfect. I have made this at home a few times since the class and with a bit of trial and error (using too much paste the first time- OMG HOT!)  it is the stand out dish from the class and a new favorite in our house.

The Beef Basil recipe was made in two strengths of heat, inferno and mild. I sampled the Inferno by mistake and took a bite of what I thought was a green bean, finding out quickly that it was a green chili! I ate quite a bit of brown jasmine rice and drank several glasses of water after that along with the nice lady next to me who did the exact same thing!  We commiserate the heat, crying and sweating together. Once the fire was quelled, we both moved on to the mild version, the heat still resonating in our mouths. This hearty and quick dish was a hit amongst the classmates.

We also made two versions of Pad Thai, one with shrimp and one with chicken. It seems that among Americans, Pad Thai is the quintessential Thai dish. There are so many different recipes for Pad Thai, but this particular one was delicious and one of the best ones I have ever had.

 

 

Chef Phensri and Darien were kind enough to allow me to reprint it here for you to try at home. This recipe serves 2.

Chicken Pad Thai

 

Ingredients

4 tbsVegetable Oil

2 Egg

2/6th package of Rice Noodles (1 package can make 6 portions)

2 skinless boneless chicken breasts, diced into 1 inch cubes

2 tbs dry roasted peanuts, chopped fine

1 cup bean sprouts

1 lime, cut in quarters

8 tbs of Fantastic Thai-Pad Thai sauce or make your own sauce:

2 tbs Oyster sauce

2 tbs Fish sauce

1 tsp thin Soy sauce

1 tsp seasoning Soy sauce

4 tsp sugar

2 tsp Palm sugar

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp dark soy sauce

2 tsp tamarind juice (made from soaking 1 ounce of tamarind pulp soaked in 1 ounce of hot water)

2 tbs white vinegar

Method

About a half hour before you are ready to start cooking, soak the rice noodles in cold water until they are soft, drain and set aside.

If you are making your sauce from scratch, combine the ingredients now and set aside.

Heat your wok or frying pan over a medium high heat. Add the oil and move it around the pan to cover the bottom.

Once the oil is very hot, crack your eggs into the pan. As soon as the egg begins to set, scramble into small lumps.

Add the chicken and continuously turn it to cook through. Once chicken has cooked, add the rice noodles.

Stir in the Fantastic Thai- Pad Thai Sauce or the homemade sauce and stir-fry to distribute the ingredients throughout the noodles and chicken.

Turn off the flame, but while still hot, add the chopped scallion, roasted peanuts and bean sprouts.

Immediately transfer to a serving platter and enjoy!

If a more sour taste is desired, squeeze a slice of lime in your dish.

Note: This can also be made with shrimp, beef, vegetables and tofu. If you are using seafood or tofu, you should add them after you add the noodles and sauces, since they do not need very long to cook.

 

The class ended with a Classic Chicken Fried Rice.

Once all the dishes were made, we ate together and shared some wine and lively conversation. We had our fill and the leftovers were divided among any participants that wanted to take some home.  Then Darien gave a very informal pop quiz (you could cheat and ask the peanut gallery) about the different dishes we made and with the correct answers he presented us with personalized Cooking Class Certificates.

It was such a fun night out and I am happy that I learned how to make some Thai dishes with very authentic techniques. I would love to take more of Chef Phensri’s classes, especially with my husband. It would make a great date night.

Here are some notes and recommendations about the class:

  • Bring a small notepad and pen so you can write down each of the steps and ingredients.
  • Have some cash on hand to purchase some Fantastic Thai sauces and Kefir lime leaves.  They are inexpensive and well worthwhile to purchase.
  • You can bring your own wine, but you should bring enough to share!
  • Most importantly, just have fun!

Chef Phensri and Darien can be reached at (732) 416 9267  or online at Fantastic Thai.

(Disclosure: I paid full price for my class and I was not paid in any way for writing this post. I just happen to have really enjoyed my class and want to share it with you as something fun you can do!)

Pad Thai on FoodistaPad Thai

Sour Cream and Crème Fraîche, Partners in Cream- Beef Ribeye Roast with Horseradish Crème Fraîche Recipe

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Open any refrigerator and you are likely to find a container of Sour Cream. It’s a long standing staple of the American diet. Dollops of the luscious white cream can be seen atop baked potatoes, adorning tacos and garnishing hearty bowls of chili. When combined with onion soup mix, it makes a quick and tasty dip for chips and vegetables. It adds that cool, slightly tangy finish to the spicy and cheesy foods we love to eat.

The Unsung Hero- Sour Cream

Sour cream is not just a great accompaniment. It’s often the unsung hero of many recipes. When used in baked goods such as muffins and cakes it adds richness and a softer texture. It also produces a sharper flavor in pancakes and cookies. In fact, when you add sour cream to your baked goods, you can reduce the milk and fat in your recipes. Sour cream adds a delightful smooth finish to sauces and soups. However, care must be taken since sour cream will curdle if overheated. It should be added right at the very end of the cooking time and just heated gently through.

Full fat sour cream contains from 18 to 20 percent butterfat and has been treated with a lactic acid culture to create the bacteria responsible for its distinctive tang. Full fat sour cream is thick, heavy and adds a definite weight to the spoon. It has a bright, cool and creamy flavor but it is also quite calorie rich, so its best used in moderation, especially for those who are keeping track. A teaspoon to top soup, a baked potato or to accompany enchiladas is all that is needed. Light sour cream contains about 40 percent less fat than regular sour cream because it’s made from half-and-half. The thick, smooth texture and rich flavor makes it nearly indistinguishable from the full fat varieties and you will save about 10 calories per tablespoon. Light versions are perfect for use in baking and can be used successfully whenever a recipe calls for sour cream. Non-fat sour cream, which is made from skimmed milk, is thickened with stabilizers such as corn starch or gelatin. It is often called a ‘Sour Cream Alternative’. Fat Free or Non-fat sour cream tends to be rather watery and needs to be stirred to reincorporate all of the ingredients for a semi-thick consistency. The best uses for non-fat sour cream or fat-free varieties are for dips for crudités, as a fruit topping or in salad dressing recipes. You can use fat free or non-fat sour cream whenever you want a much healthier replacement. Light or full fat sour cream tastes so much better than the non-fat varieties and unless you are seriously counting the calories, then it’s best to use the fatter varieties.

Soy sour cream is not actually a dairy product as it contains no cream but rather is soy based combined with a non-dairy lactic acid and thickened with guar and carrageenan gums. This is a suitable substitute for those who are lactose intolerant or maintain kosher or dairy-free diets.

Oh là là– Crème Fraîche

Similar in flavor, sour cream’s richer, smoother and more sophisticated French cousin, crème fraîche (pronounced ‘krem fresh’) can also be used as a substitute for sour cream. Meaning “fresh cream”, crème fraîche, originally hails from the coast of lower Normandy in Northern France. It’s so beloved by the French that many even have their favorite merchants  they always patronize for their weekly supply. They will even look for Crème d’Isigny, the only crème fraîche to be awarded the AOC, or Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée status, equating it to a fine wine such as Burgundy or Champagne.

Crème fraîche contains 28 % milk fat or more. Crème d’Isigny varieties have 40%, making it literally, the crème de la crème!  Crème fraîche has a slightly nutty, more subtle tartness than sour cream. It also has a much more substantial consistency, ranging from thick custard to being a soft solid like margarine.

Crème fraîche and sour cream both lend a tangy taste to a variety of dishes. However, crème fraîche is more like a butter,where as sour cream is, well more like a cream. While crème fraîche and sour cream can be interchanged in a lot of recipes, crème fraiche has many advantages over sour cream.  It doesn’t curdle when heated because of its high fat content, making it the perfect ingredient for lending a velvety finish to rich sauces and thick, creamy soups. It can also be whipped to soft peaks and mixed with a little sugar to become a delicious topping for desserts and fruits.

Crème fraîche is so incredibly versatile it can be flavored to be used in a multitude of recipes. It assumes both savory and sweet identities, from mixing in a bit of fresh dill to pair with salmon to adding honey and lime zest and whipped to a fluffy cream to fill buttery tuiles. It makes delectable ice cream and can even be used instead of mascarpone in some recipes. In baked goods, it adds an opulence to even the richest of chocolate cakes.  There are few flavors that wouldn’t meld well with crème fraîche.

Unfortunately, it’s difficult to find in the local supermarket, and when it is located, often at gourmet markets, it’s price tag is a little steep. The good news is it’s extremely easy to make at home, and the results are good enough to lick the spoon.

Crème Fraîche Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup heavy whipping cream, (preferably Pasteurized, not Ultra Pasteurized)

2 tablespoons buttermilk

Method

In a medium saucepan over low heat, warm the cream to 105 degrees F. Remove from heat and whisk in the buttermilk.

Transfer the mixed cream to a sterile glass jar and allow this mixture to stand in a warm place, loosely covered with plastic wrap for at least 24 hours stirring at least three times over the period.

At the end of the 24 hours, the cream should be somewhat thick. (See note below.) Stir one more time and cover the jar tightly with its lid.

Place the jar in the refrigerator for another 24 hours after which time, it should be thickened and ready to use.

It will keep up to ten days in the refrigerator continuing to age and increasing in sourness over the time.

Yield: 1 cup

Cook Time: 3 minutes

Inactive Prep Time: 48 hours

Ease of Preparation: Easy

Note: If you are unable to find just pasteurized heavy cream it may take an extra half day for the crème fraîche to set when using ultra pasteurized heavy cream. It is perfectly fine and safe to leave the jar in a warm spot for even 36 hours as the live cultures in the buttermilk protect the crème from harmful bacteria. Once you have a semi thick consistency, cover and move to the refrigerator as outlined above.

Here’s a printable recipe card.

Here is a nice way to use your Crème Fraîche!

 

Beef Ribeye Roast with Horseradish Crème Fraîche

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 (3 to 4 pound) beef ribeye roast

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

Horseradish Crème Fraîche, recipe follows

Method

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Season the roast with salt and pepper and sear on all sides until brown, about 7-8 minutes.

Transfer the roast to a platter. Drain the oil from the Dutch oven.

Pat the thyme and rosemary into the meat and return it to the pot.

Place the pot into the preheated oven. Roast for 30 minutes for rare, or 35 minutes for medium rare.

Meanwhile, prepare the Horseradish Crème Fraîche.

Remove the meat from the oven and transfer to a platter, cover with foil. Let it rest for 10 minutes.

To serve, slice the roast into thin slices, about ¼ inch thick. Arrange on platter and serve with Horseradish Crème Fraîche on the side.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 42 minutes

Ease of Preparation: Easy

Horseradish Crème Fraîche:

Ingredients

1 cup crème fraîche

2 tablespoons fresh grated horseradish or 2 tablespoons prepared white horseradish

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

Combine crème fraîche, horseradish, thyme in a medium mixing bowl stirring well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Yield: 1 cup

 

Homemade Creme Fraiche on FoodistaHomemade Creme Fraiche