Pumpkin Gruyere Souffle

I have adapted this recipe from a recipe in The Essential Vegetarian Cookbook.  I bought this book about 15 years ago for side dish ideas.  This recipe is originally made by cooking Golden Nugget Squash, removing the meat and re-stuffing the squash to bake it.   It is very tasty and I will make it that way when the squash is available.  For now though, I found pie pumpkins are arriving in the produce section, so I used one.  I apologize the souffle fell before I photographed it (it rose to just above the rim of the souffle dish) but I an assure you this is a very tasty recipe.  Here is my adaptation.
Cut 1 Pie Pumpkin in half and and place it in a very large pot, fitted with a steamer basket and about 2" of water.  Cook over simmering water for about 20-25 minutes or until meat is tender.
While the pumpkin is cooking do a little prep.  Butter (all the way to the top) and sugar 8 individual souffle dishes.  Place them on a sheet pan.  Separate 3 Eggs, the whites into a bowl ready to beat and the yolks into a small dish for adding to the butter/flour mixture. Using a grater box, grate 1/2 Cup Gruyere Cheese.  Preheat oven to 415F.  To a medium bowl, scrape and mash the pumpkin, discard the skin.
Melt 4 Tbl of Butter over medium heat.  Add 3 Tbl Flour and stir for about 1 minute.  Gradually add 2/3 Cup of Milk, stirring to keep the mixture smooth.  Cook for another minute until the mixture is thick.  Remove from the heat.  Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.  Add grated gruyere and stir until it is smooth.  Add about 1/4 tsp Freshly Ground Nutmeg.  Add this to the pumpkin and stir until blended.  Using a hand mixer, beat egg whites until stiff.  Fold into the pumpkin mixture.  Add mixture to the souffle dishes and bake for 20-25 minutes or until puffed up and set.
Use a strong spatula to transfer each souffle dish to a dinner plate.  Warn your diners that the souffle and the dish are quite hot.  Delicious served with your fall favorites!

Fruit Smoothies

We make smoothies a lot, all year long.  I make them many different ways but here is the recipe for the smoothie shown.  Mango's are very inexpensive (around $1).  I love them in a smoothie.  This recipe makes two smoothies, one for me and one for my son.  To a blender, add 1 banana, 1 Mango, 5 Strawberries, 2 rings Fresh Pineapple, 1/2 Cup Milk, 1 Scoop Raspberry Sherbert, 15 Ice Cubes.  Blend until smooth and pour into glasses.

For non-dairy, use juice or a milk substitute.

Cutting a Mango

Mangos are tricky to cut.  Without this gadget, there is more waste than is necessary.  The pit is an odd shape and you have to know how it lays inside the fruit to know how to cut the fruit.  Using this handy gadget eliminates the mystery.




Set the Mango on one of the its ends.  Push down.  You will be left with 2 halves and what appears to be solid fruit but is actually the pit.  Discard the pit.




Using a sharp knife, score each half, making cuts spaced 1/2" apart, first in the lengthwise direction, then perpendicular to those cuts.  The skin has a concave shape.  Place your fingers on the outside of the skin and push upward to make a convex shape.  Run the knife along the inside of the skin releasing the cubes of fruit. Hopefully these pictures will help you.

Changed My Label System

You will notice a new look to the side bar labels.  My labels began to have too many cross references.  The labels are supposed to resemble an index in a cook book, however, there isn't a way to break down the labels to subsets.  For example, in a cook book you see 'Meat' broken down further into sub groups, for instance Chicken, Beef, Pork, Lamb, etc.  I like that system and am searching for a way to list my recipes in that fashion.  If it can't be done on this blog, I may move my blog to a location where that is an option.  Any feedback is welcomed!!  The comments section is open to all.

Bread Stuffing For Roast Cornish Game Hens

I am so ready for autumn.  Labor Day weekend marks the change from summer to autumn for most of the country... though not for SE Louisiana.  Being a New Yorker I still struggle with the extra month of summer.  Whenever we get a cloudy day during this time of year, I can't resist roasting something in the oven.   We have a tropical storm dropping rain on us so I decided to make a bread stuffing and roast Cornish Game Hens.

Here it is, Oct 2012, I noticed this post getting a considerable amount of hits in the past month or so.  I decided to re-read the recipe for exactness and found I never posted one!  I am sorry.  I know I have a few missing recipes, but I didn't know this was one of them.

As I mentioned, I am a Yankee, and if I am going to stuff a bird, these are the flavors I am craving.  Oh and we call it dressing, not stuffing.  Here in the south, you may be more apt to see a cornbread stuffing or even a rice of some sort served on the side that may have pulverized chicken and oysters or giblets.  I'll just leave it at that.  But if you come to my Thanksgiving table, you will see this.

My father is in charge of making the dressing at family gatherings.  He is an engineer and he has crafted multiples of the very old recipe (some 60+ years) to precise weighs and measurements.  I would be remiss if I didn't share that the recipe begins with the pouring of your favorite libation.  This task always begins following dinner on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Thursday.  I am a bit loser in my style except for the libations part. That is a strict ingredient. 

To some degree I tend to wing the ratios depending on what I am stuffing but in general I use the exact seasonings, just not in the exact quantities.   I save the heals of bread for either my own bread crumbs or for dressing.  Pull all of those bags out of the freezer.  Cube 12 Cups worth of Bread Cubes and place them flat on a sheet pan.  If more is needed, use fresh bread.  If this is done early in the day, they will get dry which is what you want.  Otherwise, this is done at night and allowed to dry out over night.

Clean, peel, and dice 2 Stalks of Celery.  Dice 1 Large Onion.  Melt 1 Stick of Butter over medium in a skillet.  Add vegetables and cook stirring often for about 10 minutes.  While they are cooking, measure out, 2 tsp Poultry Seasoning, 1/2 tsp Sage, 1 tsp Salt, 1/2 tsp White Pepper, 1/4 tsp Paprika, 1/4 Cup Freshly Chopped Parsley and add to the bread cubes.  In a small bowl, lightly beat 1 Egg.  Stir in 1/4 Cup Chicken Broth.  Add the cooked vegetables to the bread cubes and stir til combined.  Add the egg and broth and continue to stir.

Preheat oven to 350.  Fill the bird(s) with the dressing without packing it too tightly.  Coat the outside of the hens with 1 Tbl of Butter Each.  Salt and Pepper the outside.  As the butter melts, you will use this for basting.  If you plan to make gravy, Quarter a Small Onion and peel apart some of the layers and add to the roasting pan.  Roast for about 1 hour and 15 minutes basting every 15-20 minutes.

Let rest for 20 minutes before either carving or simply split down the middle in 2.  If there is any leftover dressing, foil line an oven safe dish and place the rest in there, then cover it by overlapping the foil.   This will bake for about 40 minutes in a 350 oven. 

So there you have it, pretty simple and a tradition that I plan to carry on. 
 

Wonderful Sabayon Recipe

I am not sure where this recipe came from but it is in my kitchen book and I have made it a half a dozen times over the years.  It traditionally uses Champagne but my sparking beverage hails from California so I'm going to call it Sabayon rather than Champagne Sabayon.  It is rich and filled with all of the worst things for you, however, it is incredibly delicious.  When serving, use the Sabayon sparingly and balance it with fresh fruit.  Here is the Sabayon recipe.
Create a double boiler fitting a thick bottomed pot and a bowl that when placed in the pot, doesn't allow for the steam to escape.  Remove bowl and heat the pot with 2" of water over medium heat.  To the bowl, add 1/3 Cup Sugar and 4 Egg Yolks.  Beat with a hand mixer until the mixture is thick, pale, and ribbons.  Place the bowl in the pot with the hot water and add to the mixture 1 1/2 Tbl Kirsch, 3 Tbl Sparkling Wine, 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice, 1 tsp Grated Lemon Zest.  (If you don't have Kirsch add 4 1/2 Tbl Sparkling Wine.)  Beat on high until the mixture is thick and fluffy.  Add the bowl to an even larger bowl filled with ice water.  Continue beating until the mixture is cool.  Transfer to a clean bowl.  This can be made in the morning and refrigerated until dessert time.  Cover with plastic wrap making sure the wrap actually touches the sabayon so a skin doesn't form.
When ready to serve, in a separate bowl, beat 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream until soft peaks and fold into the egg mixture.  Layer the Sabayon and Fresh Berries in a tall fluted glass.  Serve with the open bottle of Sparkling Wine!  Serves 6.

French Onion Soup

 From this.  Buy 6 Large Fresh Onions.






To this.  Slice thinly.  Preheat pot over medium heat and add 4 Tbl UnSalted Butter.  Add sliced onions increase to medium high and cook uncovered, stirring frequently.




To this.  After 10 minutes they begin to lose moisture and will reduce in volume.






To this.  Continue cooking and stirring often for an additional 50-60 minutes until onions begin to turn golden brown.  Reduce heat slightly to avoid burning if needed.

To this.  Measure 3/4 Cup Madeira and add it 2 Tbls at a time.  Continue to cook and stir until deep brown.  Start to finish, the onions cooked for 1 hour 10 minutes.  Add 2 Cups Chicken Broth and 3 Cups Beef Broth.




To this.  Ladle into bowls, top with Sliced French Bread (for gluten free use gluten free bread) and top with Grated Gruyere Cheese.






To this.  Broil until the cheese melts and is golden brown.  Serve at once.

Tarte Tatin

I love the foods of autumn!  Yesterday I noticed the light of the sun has changed providing longer afternoon shadows.  Maybe it's that school is back in session in the deep south or maybe I am ready for some football, or both.  None the less, I woke this morning craving this dessert and am going to make it later.
I see I have a fan from Ithaca and if you are in college and have access to an oven and a heavy oven proof skillet, you can make this!  In the next month or so, apples will be in full season so you should give this a try.  A bonus would be if you find an orchard where you can pick your own!  This goes fast, so you have to have your prep done first and your oven should be hot.
Defrost Puff Pastry.  (Puff Pastry can be found at most groceries in the frozen section.)  Preheat oven to 400 F.  Peel and core 2 Golden Delicious Apples. Cut each apple into 12 wedges.  I like to use the gadget that cores and sections the apples.  Roll thawed pastry til just big enough to fit in the pan keeping it as thick as possible. Using a knife, cut off the pointed corners of the pastry.

In a 10" oven proof skillet over moderate heat, melt 2 Tbl UnSalted Butter and add 6 Tbl Sugar. The old time iron skillets work well for this though I used my brand new Calphalon Unison 10" skillet.   Using a wire whip, stir continuously until the mixture looks like the color of toffee. If you are using a nonstick pan, use a coated whip so you don't scratch the surface.  This should take about 2 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add apples, curved side down or in a shingled arrangement. Drape with the pastry, tucking in the sides and lightly tucking the pastry around the apples and place the pan in the oven. 
Bake for about 20-25 minutes until pastry has risen and is golden brown. Remove from oven.
Immediately, place a plate upside down on top of the pan.  Carefully flip the pan over so the apples are now on top of the pastry.  Cut into 6 (or fewer) wedges and serve immediately.  Add vanilla ice cream or whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon or freshly ground nutmeg.  This does not store well in humid climates.  Plan on eating it all right away and rest assured, that isn't hard to do!

Sharping Your Knives

One of the most dangerous things in the kitchen besides broken or damaged tools are unsharpened knives.  As long as I don't fly to vacation, I always pack my own knives.  I traditionally bring a paring knife, a serrated tomato knife, and a 5" Santoku although in the past I used to bring my 6" Chef's knife.  I have mentioned this in previous posts but am reminded again, as I am on vacation, and once again I would have been subject to the wooden block with all of the cheap knives.  I drove here so I don't have to use these knives, but they are horrible.

When a knife is dull, instead of cutting through the food, the blade actually moves or rolls the food and causes your fingers to be under the blade.  A finger cut doesn't stop bleeding very quickly.  Keep your knives sharp by learning to use a steel.  Run the blade over it a dozen times or so before each use.  It takes a little extra time but it is worth it.  I finally bought a knife sharpener and use it every few months to get a good blade on all of my knives.  It cost about $80.  It has 3 wheels in different grades, course to fine, which spin.  There magnets set at a 45 degree angle to the wheel.  You pull the knives past the spinning wheel to sharpen both sides of the blade.  The sharp blade holds for a good month depending on how much use it gets.  Pull out your steels today and to remove the burrs and nicks and I guarantee you will feel the difference.

Goodchardonnay

Though my Blog title makes you think I am exclusively a wine blog, it's primarily food with some wine thrown in, here and there.  My husband stumbled upon Vine Talk on PBS.  It's hosted by Stanley Tucci, who is a delightful host.  The show moves along quickly enough to gain some knowledge and informative enough to whet your interest in a new wine.  With that I am back on a mission to discover new wines.  I have attended many pairing classes and I want to get better at it so that is another angle I am working on.  Things like, why this sparkling wine tastes so good with this sabayon.  Or why this Fume goes perfectly with this risotto.

We serve nice wines when we entertain and it's amazing how enjoyable it is when no one leaves the table and we just hang out and drink yummy wines.  My fondest memories are on a cold Christmas night, with our dining room fireplace lit, hanging around the table enjoying a red or sparkling wine with a leisurely dessert.  Ok, back to reality, it's 100 degrees and humid out there but you get the picture.

I am a wine lover and have had many opportunities to try more wines than the average bear.  My fist experience was when I was in my early 20's.  I was an assistant manager at a fine dining restaurant at the Tarrytown Hilton.  One of the assistant managers, Steve Lofredo, formerly the owner of Zoe in Soho, was attending the CIA.  I had recently graduated from IUP in Food Service Management and was hungry for information about food and wine and he provided it.  Our wine list contained over 150 selections.  On Friday and Saturday nights, we opened a white and red wine and sold the wines by the glass.  This allowed diners to each have the wine they liked with their meal or to taste a glass before purchasing a full bottle.  That was a rather new idea and it went over well.  The best part was at the end of the evening, the managers divided the open wines into glasses, if only a half of a sip, and we tasted everything we sold that night.  We began working through our wine list and I believe by the time I left there a year later, I tasted about 70 wines.

From there I moved to Atlanta where I continued drinking and recording my feelings on wine.  I ran a high volume breakfast and lunch restaurant in the Atlanta Hilton so wine was not featured and my budget was thin.  Needless to say, the wines I bought fell on the less expensive side of good.

Not to fear though, from there, I moved to SF and began making trips to Napa and Sonoma for tastings especially with out of town guests.  My perfect day began with a tour of a winery, lunch outside on the picnic tables at V. Sattui.  Then a random stop somewhere along the way to finishing up with an outdoor table at Domaine Chandon for some sparking wine.  Back then it was easy enough to learn what conditions produced good wines just by looking out your window.   When a year was good the locals knew it just as too much rain sometimes gave the pickers 24 hours to get the grapes off the vine.  These are the finer details you don't think of when you don't live there.

In recent years I haven't kept good records of what I like.  With the applications for phones available now, I am in the process of recording Vineyards, years, and prices, plus my rating of the wine and what i served it with. This brings me back to the reason I began this post.  The episode of Vine Talk I watched was on Chardonnay's.  My husbands birthday is today so I bought the wine the celebrities thought was the best of the 6 they tasted. Flowers priced at $34.99 at Acquistapace's, which by the way is the best place on the northshore to buy wines, followed by Rouse's down by the lake.  I'll let you know what we think!!!