In The Pommes of Your Hand

This quick and easy post is here because I promised a class today that I would post this immediately. It is quick and easy recipe for a quick and easy dinner. The only drawback is you need to deep-fry it. It can be baked but it is so much better in oil.

If you do not own a deep fryer, you can use a sauce pan to deep fry. The drawback is that is can be difficult controlling the heat of your oil without a thermometer. I have a deep fryer that I rarely use for a few reasons: very unhealthy way to eat, annoying to clean, wasteful on oil and it stink up your house and clothes. If you use a sauce pan to deep fry, you won't use so much oil and the clean up is considerably easier.

This basic of basic recipes can be fun and interesting to make. The cooked pastry is called Choux. This simplified version should turn anybody nervous in the kitchen turn into a confident chef. Choux can be made sweet or savoury. Here, it is savoury.

Be sure to dehydrate the potatoes after they have been cooked in a sauce pan. The less water the better.

Finally, for those who read my blog, you will know that I prefer to roast my potatoes for making mashed. This is no different, if you have the time. It takes ore than a hour to roast through a Yukon Gold Potato. If you boil them, drain well and dehydrate in the sauce pan.

Pommes de Terre Dauphine

250 ml 2% Milk
250 ml Water
1 Stick of Butter
500 g Flour
4 Eggs
5 Large Yukon Gold Potatoes
Seasoning to Taste

In a deep fryer, heat oil to 350 degrees.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cook potatoes in oven for at least one hour;longer if the potatoes are really large. After they are cooked, remove from oven and let cool. After the cooled, using a serrated knife slice potatoes in half. Scoop out innards into a bowl. If still wet, place in sauce pan over low heat to dehydrate further.

In a sauce pan, combine milk and water over medium high heat. Add butter.Once butter melts, remove from heat and add flour. Mix vigorously until dough comes off the side cleanly.

Fold potatoes into choux. Add seasonings. Shape and deep fry until golden; about 7 minutes.

Makes about 20 balls.

I Never Quiche And Tell

I apologize about the converter . . . working on it.

I did a class today and I told the class that I would post the recipe and so here it is. Apparently, I do quiche and tell, but only this once!

I was amazed by how many people why don't know how to make quiche. Well, actually, many simply haven't tried. It is a type of meal that we forget about. I'm not entirely sure who but I have some theories: fear of making the pastry (although, most cooks don't bother making the crust anymore, they purchase them), it takes a little bit of time to cook for breakfast, it's just as easy to make an omelette. However, as I talked about it to the class, it clicked in that quiche has all your basic food groups: protein in the eggs (or meat if ant), dairy in the milk (and cheese if any) and grain in the flour of the crust. It's very well rounded!

I think it's a perfect Sunday brunch item myself. It takes a little more time to cook than scrambled or over-easy eggs, but if you're not in a rush, then there's no problem.

Quiche is also great because it is so adaptable. You have leftover spinach? Heat it with some garlic and clove and poof! Quiche Florentine. Or, leftover roast beef? No problem: heat some chopped onions, mushrooms and a few drops of horseradish and . . . oh. My. God. Prime Rib Dinner Quiche complete with built-in Yorkshire Pudding.

Point is, it's great. You eat it.

Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche

2 Broccoli Crowns, washed and cut into florets
200 g Cheddar Cheese, grated
6 Eggs
250 ml 2% Milk
1 Large Pie Crust
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Ice for Ice Bath

Preheat oven to 328 exactly.

Just kidding. It's actually 329 exactly.

In a bowl, whip eggs with milk and seasonings and place into a picture. Well, that might be messy. Maybe try a pitcher. Let come to room temperature.

In a pot of salted water, cook broc in water for 1 minute and shock in ice bath.

Place the broc in the crust, cover with egg wash and top with cheese.

Cook in oven for 30 - 35 minutes.

Let rest for 5-6 minutes.

Serves 6ish.

Leek and Peameal Bacon Quiche

1 Leek, rinsed well and julienne
2 Pieces of Bacon, cut into squares
1 Garlic Clove, crushed
1 Small Red Onion, finely diced
150 g Oka, grated
6 Eggs
250 ml 2% Milk
Pinch of Dried Sage and Thyme
1 Large Pie Crust
Drizzle of Oil
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Preheat oven to hot.

In a bowl, whip eggs, milk and seasoning. Place in a jug and let come to room temperature.

In a saute pan, heat oil on high heat. Sweat leeks and onion for 1 minute. Add garlic and herbs. Add bacon until opaque.

Place filling in crust, top with egg wash and top with Oka. OK?

Cook in hot oven, preset at 325 for about 30 to 35 minutes.

Let rest for 5-6 minutes.

Serves around 6 Grandmothers.

A Humble Chef's Tip: make sure you dehydrate the filling as much as you can on the bacon recipe. Let it evaporate for a minute or two to dry out. It can get soggy if it's too wet.

Variation: are you kidding me? There are so many that there are some restaurants that have quiche of the day! Go nuts!

I'm A Convert

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Apple of My Eye

Number 50. So far, so good. I do hope you enjoy my writing and I truly wish that you have tried some of these recipes with success. It is an odd thing to follow a recipe: to trust some guy you have never met (or maybe you have) and spend the money on some method that may or may not out as well as you hope. I suppose such is the case for any cookbook. It is disappointing that the last comment made was October 20 but I suppose I can let that pass.

For a commemorative post, I have decided to offer a multitude of recipes. This was a menu I did for a cooking class recently. A local law firm decided to have a staff party at the cooking school and spend a couple of hours watching me cook up some food and anecdotes. It turned out well in the end.

The menu was titled "Apple of My Eye" and after reading the recipes, I hope you can locate the re-occurring theme.

I won't be offering any variations or helpful hints; since it was a paid class, it is possible that the class may feel ripped off if the chef went ahead and simply gave away all the hints and tricks. I suppose they could have paid to listen to my playful banter and witticisms. Yeah. Right.

Sweet Potato and Roasted Apple Soup

1 large Red Onion, cut in chunks
2 Cloves of Garlic, crushed
4 Macintosh Apples, cores removed
7 Sweet Potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
Pinch of Allspice
Pinch of Dried Ginger
Pinch of Clove
Pinch of Cinnamon
Drizzle Canola Oil
2l Chicken Stock
Salt & pepper, to taste

In a sauce pan, heat oil. Add onion and cook for two minutes. Add apples and garlic. Cook for two minutes. Add potatoes and spices and cook for two minutes or until potatoes are little brown.

Add stock and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

Using a blender, liquefy soup. Season to taste.

Serves 10 – 12.

Gorgonzola and Apple Rolls

450 g pecans, finely chopped and toasted
4 Golden Delicious Apples, grated (make sure they’re delicious!)
12 Sheets of Phyllo
400 ml Unsalted Butter, melted
400 ml Gorgonzola Cheese
1 Sprig of Rosemary, chopped

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.

In a bowl, combine apples and cheese.

Lay out pastry and lightly butter with pastry brush. Sprinkle rosemary. Lay another sheet and repeat. Sprinkle half the pecans and half of the apple mixture. Roll tightly and place onto baking sheet.

Repeat and use whatever remainder of the filling there is.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden.

Cut into medallions and serve with salad of your choice.

Serves 10 – 12.

Pork Tenderloin with Sour Dough Stuffing with Cranberry Leek Sauce

4 Pork Tenderloins, butterflied and flattened
1 Sprig of Fresh Sage, chiffonade
1 Large Loaf of Sour Dough Bread, cut into squares
100 g Dried Cranberries
4 Granny Smith Apples, grated
Splash of Rum
Dab of Butter
200ml White Wine
1 Small White Onion, finely diced
4 Cloves of Garlic, Crushed
1 Leek, julienne
500 ml Whipping Cream
50ml Maple Syrup
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Preheat oven to 350.

In a sauté pan, melt butter on medium heat. Add half the garlic onion and cook for 1 minute. Add apples and cranberries. Cook for 2 minutes. Add bread and half the wine. Remove from heat and soften bread. Season to taste. Let cool.

Lay out tenderloins flat with presentation side down. Distribute stuffing evenly in the tenderloins. Roll over tightly.

In a frying pan, sear pork in oil. 1 Minute each side. Place on a baking sheet and cook in oven for 15 minutes.

For the sauce, in a frying pan, melt remainder of butter until frothy. Add remainder of garlic and leek. Saute for 1 minute. Add remainder of wine and let reduce by half. Add whipping cream and reduce by one third. Season to taste.

Serves 10 to 12.

Hmmm. I think that's enough. The starch was Apple Potato Pancakes but maybe I'll save that for another day.

Whip It Up

When I started this blog, little did I realize that I was going to open each post with a brief intro and some chat relating to whatever recipe I write. I truly wonder if people actually read this. But, here I am 50 posts(!) later and now I must write about todays recipe: Zabglione with Berries. Ugh. Well, I suppose I have to think of something. Hold on. Let me think for a second. Wikipedia search maybe? Nah. I'll wing it.

I demonstrated this recipe earlier this week at a cooking class and I could tell the ladies watching me looked nervous as I whipped this dessert. They asked me, "Are you serious?"

It is true it takes a bit of work, however, if you have a hand mixer that you can use: this is the time. If you are brave enough to go for it with some gusto good for you. All I can offer to help is two words: figure eight (if you are unsure what this means, then use a hand mixer).

This morning on my way to work I listened to an interview with La Dolce Vita star David Rocco from the food network. Sounds like a nice guy who stumbled onto a great gig. Anyways, he went on about getting involved with your ingredients and some silly zen notion that food will taste better when you get your hands dirty. I guess there is some truth to this but some things you don't have to do by hand if you don't want to or if you are simply physically unable to. You want to make a glossy meringue by hand then be my guest. Are you comfortable enough rolling out pasta with a rolling pin or would you prefer sing a pasta roller? For this recipe, you are better off using a hand mixer unless you have been shown the best way of aerating egg yolks.

Trust me. You'll thank me later.

Zabaglione with Strawberries
4 Egg Yolks
200 ml White Wine or Sparkling White Wine
250 g Sugar
15-20 Strawberries, halved
Juice from 1 Lemon
200 ml Whipping Cream
Ice for Ice Bath
12 Biscotti
Mint for Garnish

Using an electric mixer, whip cream to stiff peaks. Reserve.

In a sauce pan, bring a little water to a simmer.

In a bowl, combine yolks, wine and sugar and lightly whisk.

On simmering water, whisk with a hand mixer the egg mixture until it triples in volume. After 10 minutes, place mixture into an ice bath and whisk for another 10 minutes.

Combine with cream by carefully folding into the mixtures.

Serve immediately with berries and biscotti. Garnish with mint.

Serves 6.

Variation: This is a base that you can expand on. Instead of wine, use Frangellico and garnish with hazelnuts or something like that.

A Humble Chef's tip: throw away your hand mixer and get your hands dirty! Food will taste so much better once you become one with your ingredients. Close your eyes and feel the gooey egg yolks coat your figures before you eat them. Trust me. You'll thank me later.

A Humble Chef's test: just checking to see if you actually read my intro.

Stir It Up

So far the winter is going well. I've recently discovered that I enjoy getting attention and teaching culinary skills is a great way to fill my void. Having said that, I truly relish the days where I get to go in front of a group of people I may or may not know and freely offer my knowledge (as little as it is for a humble chef) on cooking and entertaining.

Perhaps now I can let myself to lob my humility aside and finally admit that I do have a few useful things to offer: an essential skill (cooking), entertainment (my sense of humour) and the ability to create enthusiasm in people to try new things. On top of that, recipes. I do hope the readers of this blog try some the recipes I have offered (actually, a friend told me on Saturday that he has made some of the soup recipes and they were great for simplicity and effieciency, thanks!) and I reach out to people to offer comments, criticisms or praise.

Moving on, today's recipe is too easy. A classic variation of a dish I use to make everyday at a club I used to work at. Chicken Stir-Fry with Basic Rice Pilaf is so easy and quick, it may become a staple for you. The stir-fry sauce is a simple Teriyaki style sauce that I like because it uses common ingredients in peoples kitchens.

The key to stir-fry is allowing the oil to get hot. Very hot. Smoking hot. Piping hot. About to catch on fire hot. My wife hot. The heat speeds up the process and evaporates much of the water from the vegetables leaving a thick flavorful sauce.

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Chicken Stir Fry

1red pepper, julienne
1 green pepper, julienne
1 small red onion, julienne
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
Dried Ginger
Drizzle Sesame Oil
Drizzle Canola Oil
Pinch of Cumin
Pinch of Cajun spice
Stir Fry Sauce (see below)
Salt & pepper, to taste

In a hot stir fry pan, heat oils. Add chicken and let cook for 2 minute.

Add vegetables and spices and cook for 4 minutes. Add stir fry sauce. And bring to a boil.

Serve over rice pilaf.

Serves 6.

Stir Fry Sauce

250 g Brown Sugar
200 ml Water
200 ml Soy Sauce
200 ml Rice Wine Vinegar
Pinch of Ginger Powder
50 g Cornstarch

In a sauce pan, combine water, soy sauce, vinegar and ginger and bring to a boil. Dissolve cornstarch in some water and whisk into sauce pan. Bring to a boil and remove from heat.

Keep refrigerated until needed. Will keep for several months.

Variation: instead of chicken, try shrimp or beef or lamb or pork or mussels or . . . . you get the idea I think. One suggestion I heard today was pineapple which would be wonderful, or oranges, or passion fruit, or whatever.

A Humble Chef's Tip: if you make the rice ahead of time, you can nuke your rice in bowls, place the bowls into your serving dish upside down, let the rice set and remove the bowl. Nice presentation and easy to do.

Phyllo Up

It appears I haven't posted for a few weeks. Shame really. For those who have been reading more faithfully, you have my apologies. And for those about to rock, I salute you.

I had a comment/request from the last post about convection ovens and their uses. Simply put, all a convection oven is an regular oven with a fan. The fan circulates the heat more thoroughly and results in faster cooking times. It is important to note that when following a recipe, the temperature recommended in the method is for standard ovens. It will take a bit of time to adjust to the timing but a good rule of thumb is to reduce by ten to fifteen degrees Fahrenheit. Anything you can cook in a standard oven can be done in a convection. However, don't forget that this reduces the cooking time. This is especially important when cooking a large roast such as a prime rib or a striploin. In a convection, the circulation of heat will increase the amount of loss in the cooking. In other words, you will have less yield. Slow roasting is the key and with a convection, you have to be careful with your heat because you are cooking for a long period of time. I hope that helps dear reader and I also hope that doesn't confuse you more. Convection ovens are great and learning how to use it is worth your while.

I don't have many fish recipes and I should. It's so easy. I've recently did a class on phyllo pastry (big fan here! See previous post for another recipe) and the attendees were all struck on how easy it was.

What I like about this recipe is the ease of the method and the final presentation. Try it and you won't be disappointed I assure you .

If you're sick of salmon (it's everywhere eh?), feel free and change it for something else. All of my recipes with fish have regretably been all salmon but don't you worry. You can go with tuna, halibut, trout, whatever man. Just be sure to make the portion size of your fish big enough to cook in about 15 minutes. From there, go nuts!

Salmon Wrapped In Phyllo with a Peach Salsa

1 Side Salmon, cut into approx. 6 steaks
4 Sheets of Phyllo
5 Peaches, cut in small squares
Half of 1 Red Pepper, finely diced
Half of 1 Red Onion, finely diced
Half of 1 Green Pepper, finely diced
1 Bunch of Dill, finely chopped
2 Lime, juiced
1 Lemon, juiced
Dash of Paprika and Chili Powder
50 g Butter
Drizzle of Olive OIl
Salt and Pepper to taste

Season salmon with paprika, chilli and pinch of chopped dill.

In a frying pan, sear one side of the salmon. Let cool.

Combine peaches, onion, peppers and lime juice. Season to taste.

Lay down phyllo (about 2.5 inches wide. Butter one side and sprinkle with dill and pepper. Repeat. Place salmon in middle and wrap upwards.

Cook for 15 minutes. Garnish with Peach Salsa.

Serves 4 -6.

Variation: like I said, whatever fish you like. Also, if peaches aren't your thing, works great with strawberries, honeydew or cantaloupe.

A Humble Chef's tip: make the salsa in advance so you can drain some of the water out. To make it easy, add your desired amount of salt then place in a colander over a bowl and let osmosis and gravity work their magic.