This is one of the family classics, and never ceases to get rave reviews. Unfortunately it's so bad for you and chestnuts can be enough of a pain in the ass to find that I typically reserve making it for the holidays.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 C chopped celery
1/4 C chopped onion
4 C cooked chopped chestnuts (roasting chestnuts then peeling them is a major pain in the ass, but you can find them pre-roasted and peeled in some Asian grocery stores)
1 1/3 C melted butter
1/4 C parsley
1/2 C cream
3 t salt
1/4 t pepper
4 C soft bread crumbs (you can also use dried stuffing mix, though it'll need more broth)
2 t fresh sage
broth from turkey or chicken, preferably homemade
Mix ingredients and bake at 375 for 30 minutes, covered for half. The amount of broth takes some playing around, so you'll want low ball it and check occasionally to see if it's drying out. You'll want the end product to be light and moist without being soggy. You may also want to mix the dressing once or twice when you check it, but in the last stretch when it's uncovered you want to leave it without mixing so the top can crisp slightly.
Showing posts with label Special Occasion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Special Occasion. Show all posts
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Sunday, September 30, 2012
A Great Meal: Pork and Onion Confit on Polenta with Sides
This was a great meal, pork confit and onion confit on top of creamy polenta with glace de viande sauce, served with Spanish garlic soup and mushrooms in sherry and garlic sauce.
The downside? This takes a lot (A LOT) of prep before hand, and you have to manage your time and space using all four burners. In addition to the stuff made well ahead, make sure you have all the mise en place for the mushrooms ready.
So the first step is to make your glace de viande; it's a beast of a recipe and it'll take you a couple of days, but most of that time is just sitting around while things simmer. It also makes a lot and it freezes well.
Next, you'll need to make the pork confit and onion confit; both of these can be made ahead, keep well, and will make more than you need.
The next longest thing, and one you can't make ahead is the creamy polenta, which I'm just swiping from Emeril, but I halve the recipe, use sour cream instead of creme fraiche, and add a splash of cream. Once you get this started, start up your garlic soup; you'll want to get to the point where the broth is in and everything except the eggs and the toasted bread have been added to the broth. Now just cover it and keep it warm.
Eight to ten minutes before the polenta is done, start up the mushrooms.
In the last five minutes of making the polenta, bring the soup to a gentle simmer and crack the eggs in to gently poach (you may have to flip them toward the end of poaching - you want the whites cooked and the yolks runny). Immediately after that, melt just a little pork confit fat into a small skillet, add a small handful of the onion confit, followed shortly by a larger handful of the pork confit. You just want to get this warm, any more and you'll dry out the pork.
Plate the polenta, add the pork and onion on top, then toss 2T of glace de viande and a little over 1 T of butter into the skillet from the pork and combine it. Spoon the mushrooms out on to the plate, and drizzle the glace over the pork and onions. Ladle up the soup, making sure to get an egg, whole, in the bowl, and top with a piece of toasted bread.
The downside? This takes a lot (A LOT) of prep before hand, and you have to manage your time and space using all four burners. In addition to the stuff made well ahead, make sure you have all the mise en place for the mushrooms ready.
So the first step is to make your glace de viande; it's a beast of a recipe and it'll take you a couple of days, but most of that time is just sitting around while things simmer. It also makes a lot and it freezes well.
Next, you'll need to make the pork confit and onion confit; both of these can be made ahead, keep well, and will make more than you need.
The next longest thing, and one you can't make ahead is the creamy polenta, which I'm just swiping from Emeril, but I halve the recipe, use sour cream instead of creme fraiche, and add a splash of cream. Once you get this started, start up your garlic soup; you'll want to get to the point where the broth is in and everything except the eggs and the toasted bread have been added to the broth. Now just cover it and keep it warm.
Eight to ten minutes before the polenta is done, start up the mushrooms.
In the last five minutes of making the polenta, bring the soup to a gentle simmer and crack the eggs in to gently poach (you may have to flip them toward the end of poaching - you want the whites cooked and the yolks runny). Immediately after that, melt just a little pork confit fat into a small skillet, add a small handful of the onion confit, followed shortly by a larger handful of the pork confit. You just want to get this warm, any more and you'll dry out the pork.
Plate the polenta, add the pork and onion on top, then toss 2T of glace de viande and a little over 1 T of butter into the skillet from the pork and combine it. Spoon the mushrooms out on to the plate, and drizzle the glace over the pork and onions. Ladle up the soup, making sure to get an egg, whole, in the bowl, and top with a piece of toasted bread.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Lamb Chops with Balsamic Reduction
Lamb chops aren't exactly cheap, so this is the kind of thing that I save for a special occasion. I hate to admit that the first time I made this the special occasion backfired a bit; I'd made it for a girlfriend's birthday, but one who I was planning on breaking up with, just not on her day. I got called out that evening and ended up killing the relationship, but I hope the meal at least blunted the blow. I'd suggest serving it with rosemary and garlic roasted potatoes and some simple sauteed vegetables instead of a breakup.
Ingredients
a rack of lamb, about 2 lbs
4 T chopped garlic
4 T fresh rosemary, chopped
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1/4 c olive oil
1 c balsamic vinegar
2 T sugar
salt to taste
Instructions
Separate the racks of lamb into double chops, french them if desired.
Combine garlic, rosemary, 1 t salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar; pour over the lamb chops and marinate 2+ hours in the refrigerator.
Remove the chops from the marinade, reserving the marinade.
Grill or broil the chops for a few minutes on each side until medium rare; meanwhile, add the sugar to the marinade and boil until reduced by half (or more if you want it thicker and stronger). This sauce should be served with the lamb chops.
Ingredients
a rack of lamb, about 2 lbs
4 T chopped garlic
4 T fresh rosemary, chopped
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1/4 c olive oil
1 c balsamic vinegar
2 T sugar
salt to taste
Instructions
Separate the racks of lamb into double chops, french them if desired.
Combine garlic, rosemary, 1 t salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar; pour over the lamb chops and marinate 2+ hours in the refrigerator.
Remove the chops from the marinade, reserving the marinade.
Grill or broil the chops for a few minutes on each side until medium rare; meanwhile, add the sugar to the marinade and boil until reduced by half (or more if you want it thicker and stronger). This sauce should be served with the lamb chops.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Roast Leg of Lamb with Couscous
One of my classics for large groups and special occasions: leg of lamb cooked in the middle eastern style and served with couscous.
Leg of lamb, preferably bone in
A bottle of red wine (a good merlot or another fruity wine)
A large onion, quartered and slivered
4-5 cloves of garlic, chopped
several tablespoons dried mint
Salt and pepper to taste
Couscous
1. Rub the lamb down with the garlic, mint, and salt, and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
2. Place the lamb in a baking dish, add the onions, and pour the entire bottle of wine on the lamb.
3. Cover and marinate for at least a day, turning several times.
4. Preheat an oven to 350 F, and bake the lamb, covered, till medium rare; an internal temperature of 130-140 F depending on how you like it (I typically aim for 130-135 F assuming it'll end up medium rare after resting).
5. Remove the pan and allow to rest before removing the lamb from the pool of marinade and drippings.
6. Use the heated marinade and drippings (as well as the onions and miscellaneous meaty bits) as the liquid when making the couscous (add in some stock if you don't have quite enough liquid.
7. Serve the lamb on couscous with a side of labna (labneh, or however it's spelled in your local middle eastern market) or toum. If you can't find labna you can make it by tossing plain yogurt in a few layers of cheese cloth and hanging it until it reaches the consistency of cream cheese.
Leg of lamb, preferably bone in
A bottle of red wine (a good merlot or another fruity wine)
A large onion, quartered and slivered
4-5 cloves of garlic, chopped
several tablespoons dried mint
Salt and pepper to taste
Couscous
1. Rub the lamb down with the garlic, mint, and salt, and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
2. Place the lamb in a baking dish, add the onions, and pour the entire bottle of wine on the lamb.
3. Cover and marinate for at least a day, turning several times.
4. Preheat an oven to 350 F, and bake the lamb, covered, till medium rare; an internal temperature of 130-140 F depending on how you like it (I typically aim for 130-135 F assuming it'll end up medium rare after resting).
5. Remove the pan and allow to rest before removing the lamb from the pool of marinade and drippings.
6. Use the heated marinade and drippings (as well as the onions and miscellaneous meaty bits) as the liquid when making the couscous (add in some stock if you don't have quite enough liquid.
7. Serve the lamb on couscous with a side of labna (labneh, or however it's spelled in your local middle eastern market) or toum. If you can't find labna you can make it by tossing plain yogurt in a few layers of cheese cloth and hanging it until it reaches the consistency of cream cheese.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Beef Wellington
Now that the holidays are approaching, it's time for a nice impressive main course for a special occasion, which definitely calls for beef wellington.
1 beef tenderloin
1 sheet puff pastry
1/4-1/2 lb prosciutto (enough to wrap the tenderloin)
2 T oil
salt and pepper
1 egg beaten with a little water
marinade/sauce:
1/3 C olive oil
1/2 C chopped carrot
1/2 C chopped onion
1/2 C chopped celery
1/4 t thyme
1/4 t sage
1 bay leaf
3 cloves
6 peppercorns
1 t salt
1 C dry vermouth
1/3 C cognac
one can beef broth
corn starch
Duxelles:
1.5 lbs mushrooms, minced
4 T butter
4 T shallot, minced
1/2 C madeira wine
salt and pepper to taste
Saute the celery, onions, and carrot for the marinade with the herbs, then cool. Add the rest of the ingredients for the marinade except the beef broth and corn starch, cool, and add the beef. Marinate over night, reserving the marinade at the end.
Remove the beef from the marinade and dry. Season the beef tenderloin with salt and pepper; allow to sit at room temperature for an hour. Heat the oil in a steel skillet until extremely hot; sear the tenderloin on all sides then remove and allow to cool. Save any juices which run off the meat while cooling.
Use 2 T of the butter to saute the shallot and minced mushroom. When thoroughly cooked down add the wine, salt, and pepper. Remove from the heat, cool, then mix in the remaining 2 T butter. It should be noted that cooking the mushrooms should be done over medium to medium low heat, and will take some time.
Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap, and on that, lay out the prosciutto in an overlapping pattern such that every section ends up with two layers of prosciutto on it. Spread the mushroom mixture evenly over all of it. Put the beef tenderloin in it, folding the thin end back on the meat to achieve an even thickness of meat. Tightly roll it in the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes to set. Remove from the plastic wrap and wrap in the puff pastry (it may need to be rolled out to the length of the tenderloin).
Cut a few vent holes, and brush with egg wash. Bake 20 minutes in a 425 degree oven, then lower to 375 and bake an additional 20 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown.
While the beef is cooking, combine the marinade with the beef broth and simmer until a volume of 2 C is reached, adjusting seasoning. Strain and degrease, then thicken with cornstarch to desired consistency.
Serve the beef with the sauce on the side.
1 beef tenderloin
1 sheet puff pastry
1/4-1/2 lb prosciutto (enough to wrap the tenderloin)
2 T oil
salt and pepper
1 egg beaten with a little water
marinade/sauce:
1/3 C olive oil
1/2 C chopped carrot
1/2 C chopped onion
1/2 C chopped celery
1/4 t thyme
1/4 t sage
1 bay leaf
3 cloves
6 peppercorns
1 t salt
1 C dry vermouth
1/3 C cognac
one can beef broth
corn starch
Duxelles:
1.5 lbs mushrooms, minced
4 T butter
4 T shallot, minced
1/2 C madeira wine
salt and pepper to taste
Saute the celery, onions, and carrot for the marinade with the herbs, then cool. Add the rest of the ingredients for the marinade except the beef broth and corn starch, cool, and add the beef. Marinate over night, reserving the marinade at the end.
Remove the beef from the marinade and dry. Season the beef tenderloin with salt and pepper; allow to sit at room temperature for an hour. Heat the oil in a steel skillet until extremely hot; sear the tenderloin on all sides then remove and allow to cool. Save any juices which run off the meat while cooling.
Use 2 T of the butter to saute the shallot and minced mushroom. When thoroughly cooked down add the wine, salt, and pepper. Remove from the heat, cool, then mix in the remaining 2 T butter. It should be noted that cooking the mushrooms should be done over medium to medium low heat, and will take some time.
Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap, and on that, lay out the prosciutto in an overlapping pattern such that every section ends up with two layers of prosciutto on it. Spread the mushroom mixture evenly over all of it. Put the beef tenderloin in it, folding the thin end back on the meat to achieve an even thickness of meat. Tightly roll it in the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes to set. Remove from the plastic wrap and wrap in the puff pastry (it may need to be rolled out to the length of the tenderloin).
Cut a few vent holes, and brush with egg wash. Bake 20 minutes in a 425 degree oven, then lower to 375 and bake an additional 20 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown.
While the beef is cooking, combine the marinade with the beef broth and simmer until a volume of 2 C is reached, adjusting seasoning. Strain and degrease, then thicken with cornstarch to desired consistency.
Serve the beef with the sauce on the side.
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