Kitchen Conundrum

Helene’s All White Salad – French Fridays with Dorie

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This week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe,  Helene’s All White Salad, seemed quite apropos for the whiteout we’ve been having here in the Northeast. With several feet of white snow falling, it’s quite a winter wonderland. It blends perfectly with background.  Which is to say, it’s also a little on the bland side.  I love salad. In many incarnations. But there was not much flavor to this salad. It’s just celery and Napa cabbage with accents of mushrooms and Granny Smith apples topped with a light Greek yogurt vinaigrette.  It’s light and fresh. And it’s very “vanilla”.

Being more of a chocolate girl myself, I think the best part of this salad were the semi-tart bites of apple. After the first plate was eaten, it was determined that the dressing also needed a lot more “jazzing” up.  Three cloves of crushed garlic added just the zing it needed.  Now, it was much better!  Plus garlic still falls into the “white” category, so I don’t think I cheated too much.

This salad might get another chance over the summer. But I really don’t want to see too much more “white” this winter. Unless it’s a mound of mashed potatoes- with gravy.

All White Salad-2-4

While I cannot share the actual recipe, you can (and should!) buy the book and cook along with us. It’s great fun! Every Friday we make a new recipe. Looking forward to next weeks! For details and to see how others are recreating the dishes from this awesome book, check out the FFWD site.

Buy the book:

greenspan

frenchfridayswithdorie16

 

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!

Bruschettas and Tapenades, Summer Eating Made Easy

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One of our favorite summer eats are a hearty loaf of bread, a bottle (or two!) of wine and some freshly made Tapenades and Bruschettas.  We can sit on the back porch and enjoy a simple evening meal that transports us to far away lands, dreaming of vineyards and olive groves. Some cool jazz playing in the background and a fire in the pit makes for a magical summer evening. This year we have had an amazing tomato garden with handfuls of fresh beauties daily. They are sweet and plump, some red and some yellow and absolutely delicious right off the vine. We can hardly get them all inside and washed before eating them. With some fresh snipped basil and olive oil they are transformed into a delicious, refreshing bruschetta. Our dear friends Sarah and Charles own Old Mill Wine & Spirits, a fabulous wine and liquor store in the town of Rhinebeck, NY (the same place Chelsea Clinton is getting married this very weekend!). They are both gourmands with incredible knowledge and passion and have graciously shared with us some of their favorite recipes. We spent yesterday making some of their amazing tapenades and bruschettas to share with you here. Be sure to “Like” them on Facebook.

The first recipe is a Bruschetta made with white beans. It’s delicious alone on toasted baguette rounds or as a base for the Tomato Bruschetta.

 

Bruschetta with White Beans

Ingredients

1 can cannellini beans

1 clove garlic, mashed

1 sprig fresh rosemary leaves, chopped fine

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil   (Reserve ¼ cup for the bread)

1 loaf peasant bread or baguette

Method

Drain and rinse beans with cold water. In a food processor, combine beans, garlic, rosemary, 1/4 cup of olive oil, vinegar, red pepper, salt and pepper.  Pulse the mixture into a coarse puree. Set aside.

Slice bread into ½” rounds and brush lightly with olive oil on one side. Broil until slightly toasted.  Spread with the bean puree and serve.

Another wonderful variation is made with mushrooms.

Bruschetta with Porcini Mushrooms

Ingredients

10 oz. fresh Porcini or Baby Bella mushrooms

1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

6 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 tsp. salt

4 cloves garlic

Freshly-ground pepper

2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 loaf peasant bread or baguette

Method

Wash and dry mushrooms, then chop very fine. Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Finely chop 2 garlic cloves and add to the oil. Saute until garlic turns golden, then add mushrooms and thyme leaves. Saute until mushrooms have reduced and liquid has evaporated, about 5-6 minutes. Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and stir until dry.

Slice the bread and brush with the remaining olive oil. Broil or grill both sides of bread until well toasted. Cut the remaining garlic cloves in half and rub toasted bread with the cut side of the clove. Spread mushroom mixture onto toasts and serve.

And now for the classic! If you are lucky enough to have your own home grown tomatoes and basil, then you will be even happier eating your bounty with great, simple recipe.

Bruschetta with Tomatoes and Basil

Ingredients

1 loaf peasant bread or baguette

1 lb ripe tomatoes

2 large garlic cloves

1 cup fresh basil leaves

½ cup olive oil

salt and freshly-ground pepper

Method

Preheat broiler to high. Slice bread into ½” pieces and drizzle lightly with olive oil on one side. Toast lightly on both sides, being careful not to burn. (*Can also be grilled for extra flavor.)  Slice garlic cloves in half and rub one side of the toasted bread with the cut garlic.

Quarter tomatoes and remove all pulp and seeds. Chop fine. Slice basil leaves into small pieces and add to tomatoes. Add remaining olive oil, salt and pepper to taste and toss to coat. Spoon onto toasts and serve.

If bruschettas are not enough, you can also make these delicious olive tapenades.  We love to make combinations with the bruschettas and the tapenades, layering each flavor on top of the toasted breads. The Black Olive-Lemon Tapenade is divine topped with the tomato bruschetta, the flavors, bright and fresh.  You can also use these tapenades mixed into salad dressings or pasta.

Black Olive-Lemon Tapenade

Ingredients

1 ½ cups pitted black Nioise olives

2 garlic cloves, peeled

2-3 anchovy fillets, scrapped of bones

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp Herbs de Provence

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Freshly ground pepper

Method

Place olives, garlic and anchovies in food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Add olive oil, herbs, lemon and pepper and process to a fairly smooth puree.

Black Olive Tapenade

Ingredients

1 ½ cups pitted black olives

2 garlic cloves, peeled

2 tsp. capers

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

10 large fresh basil leaves

5 stems flat leaf parsley

Freshly ground pepper

Method

Place olives, garlic and capers in food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Add olive oil, basil, parsley leaves and pepper and process to a fairly smooth puree.

If you are like us, you will make them all and when you are done, you will have an array of tasty delights to top your bread.

Pair with a bottle of Cotes du Rhone Rose and enjoy!