Crab Cakes with Tomato Mustard Coulis

Crab Cakes

• 1¼ cup Tomato Mustard Coulis (see below)
• 1 pound (2 cups) lump crabmeat (carefully picked through for shells and cartilage)
• 6 Tbs olive oil
• ½ cup chopped onion
• ¼ cup chopped green pepper
• ¼ cup chopped green onion
• 1 Tbs minced garlic
• ¼ tsp white pepper
• 15 turns fresh ground black pepper
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 Tbs Essence of Emeril
• 2 tsp Creole or other whole grain mustard
• 6 Tbs coarsely grated parmesan cheese
• 3 eggs, in all
• 1¼ cups breadcrumbs, in all
• ¾ cup all purpose flour
• ¼ cup water

1. If you haven't already, prepare the Tomato Mustard Coulis and set aside. It can be served at room temperature.
2. In a large saucepan, heat 3 Tbs of the olive oil over high heat. Add the onions, green pepper, salt, white pepper, and black pepper and sauté for about 2 minutes. Add garlic, green onion and Essence and sauté another minute. Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl.
3. Wisk in 2 eggs. Stir in the parmesan cheese, ¼ cup of the breadcrumbs, and the Creole mustard. After well blended, fold in the crabmeat a little at a time, careful not to break up the lumps, until all mixed together.
4. Get out 3 bowls. In one mix 1 cup breadcrumbs and 1 tsp Essence. Mix the flour and 1 tsp Essence in another, and wisk together the last egg and the water in the last bowl for an egg wash.
5. Using your hands, divide the crab mixture into 8 clumps and form into little patty like cakes, so that they keep their shape, but not too dense.
6. Heat the remaining 3 Tbs of olive oil in a large saucepan. Dip the cakes in the flour, then the egg-wash, then the breadcrumbs, careful to shake off the excess after each step and careful not to let them break apart.
7. Cook the crab cakes in the olive oil, about 2 minutes per side and drain on paper towels.
8. To serve, place a tablespoon or so of the Tomato Mustard Coulis on a plate. Place one Crab Cake on the plate and drizzle with some more of the Coulis. Garnish with some chopped green onion.

Tomato Mustard Coulis

• ½ cup peeled, diced, seeded tomatoes.
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp minced shallot
• 3 Tbs Creole or other whole grain mustard
• ½ cup chicken broth
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp white pepper
• 8 turns fresh ground black pepper
• 1 egg
• ½ cup olive oil

1. In a non-reactive pan, combine the tomatoes, garlic, shallot, mustard, chicken broth, salt, white pepper and black pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, and cook about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let it cool, uncovered, for 15 minutes or so.
2. Pour contents into a food processor. Add the egg. Turn on processor and slowly pour the olive oil in the downspout and let it mix, about 45 seconds.
3. Serve per instructions below. Can be refrigerated up to 48 hours.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH ROASTED RED PEPPER PUREE

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/4 cups chopped onions
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 2 1/2-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 1-inch pieces
5 1/2 cups (or more) chicken stock

3 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions; sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add squash and 5 1/2 cups stock; bring to boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until squash is soft, about 40 minutes. Cool slightly.

Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return puree to pot. Add 1 teaspoon thyme. Thin soup with more stock if desired. Simmer 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Ladle soup into bowls. Swirl 1 tablespoon Roasted Red Pepper Puree into soup in each bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 2 teaspoons thyme and serve.

ROASTED RED PEPPER PUREE

1 cup coarsely chopped drained roasted red peppers from jar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

Puree all ingredients in processor until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to room temperature before using.)

Pork Medallions in Mushroom Marsala Sauce

2 Lbs pork tenderloin (2)
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
4 tbs butter
Salt/pepper
2 medium shallots
12 oz cremini or white mushrooms
1 tbs flour
½ cup dry marsala wine
1 cup chicken broth
3 tbs cream or whipping cream
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

Trim pork and cut into 2 inch thick medallions.

Lay pork flat and flatten with hand to ¾ inch thick.

Season with salt and pepper.

Add oil and ½ butter to hot sauté pan.

When butter is foaming, sauté meat 2-3 minutes per side until brown.

Do not crowd meat and cook in batches if necessary.

Transfer meat to plate and cover with foil or place in low oven.

Add remaining butter to pan and ad shallots, scraping bottom and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add chopped mushrooms and sauté 3 minutes.

Sprinkle with flour and add Marsala wine and sauté until Marsala is almost gone.

Add broth and reduce by ½ (3-4 minutes).

Add cream and parsley, add meat back in pan and heat for 2-4 minutes.

Serve.

Risotto Timballo with Sausage Stew

Stew;

1 oz dried porcini mushrooms soaked for 40 min in 2 cups water
1 lb Italian sausage (hot or mild)
Olive oil
½ cup minced onion
½ cup minced carrot
½ cup minced celery
1 garlic clove minced
1 can plum tomatoes
Salt/pepper

Risotto;

5 cups stock
4 tbsp butter
½ cup minced onion
2 ½ cups Arborio rice
½ cup white wine
½ cup grated fresh parmesan cheese

Put 1 cup water in skillet and boil sausages for 12-14 minutes,

Add oil, celery, carrot and onion cook 6 minutes,

Add porcini mushrooms (chopped), garlic and cook 1 minute,

Cut sausage into 1 inch chunks,

Add porcini water, tomatoes, salt/pepper and simmer 15-20 minutes,

Prepare risotto (see risotto recipe below)– place in buttered mold (small enough to fit on individual serving plate). Place in 400 degree oven for 10 min, cover with foil and leave 10 minutes more.

Un-mold risotto on plate and pour stew around and over.

Serves 3-4.

Porcini Mushroom and Barley Soup with Pancetta

4 ounces pancetta or thick bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups water
2 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
1 1/2 cups chicken stock or canned
low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup pearl barley
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms,* brushed clean of grit
Extra-virgin olive oil
Shaved Romano cheese
1 inch sliced French baguette

Cook pancetta in heavy large pot over medium-high heat until crisp, about 6 minutes (if using bacon, drain off excess drippings). Add shallots, carrots, celery and garlic to pancetta in pot; cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add 2 cups water, both stocks, barley and porcini and bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until barley is tender, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes.

Place one slice of baguette in bowl and ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle with oil. Top with cheese.

Chilean Sea Bass with Cannellini Beans

Sea bass:
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced
2-6 ounce filets of Chilean sea bass
2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

Combine the salt, pepper and thyme on a plate. Place the filets down on the mixture and coat completely. Heat a large skillet of high heat. Add the extra virgin olive oil and coat the pan. When the oil is hot, add the sea bass and sear. Turn over and cook through. Transfer the fish to a warm serving platter and place in pre-heated oven (250).

Cannellini beans:
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups cannellini beans (canned or dried and ready to eat)
1/2 cup mirepoix (carrots, celery, and onions; small dice)
1/4 cup pancetta, small dice
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup blanched fresh spinach
2 ounces butter, at room temperature

Using the same skillet, heat the extra-virgin olive oil. When hot, add the pancetta and cook for 2 minutes, add the cannellini beans, mirepoix, parsley, and garlic and saute for 3 to 4 minutes more. Add the stock and reduce by half. Add the spinach and butter. Stir.

Presentation:
Spoon the bean sauce onto the center of the plate. Place the sea bass on the sauce.
Serves 2

Porcini Mushroom Risotto

Serve this risotto as a first course or with an entree of veal or highly seasoned grilled scampi, or as a main course preceded by a salad of sliced tomatoes and mozzarella topped with fresh basil and extra-virgin olive oil.

1/3 oz dried porcini mushrooms (available at Italian grocery stores)
4 tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup light cream
salt/pepper
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp fresh parsley
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup porcini liquid, strained
½ cup dry white wine
1/3 cup finely minced onion
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ cups Arborio rice (available at Italian grocery stores)

Place the porcini in a small bowl with 1 cup of boiling or very hot water and let stand for 30 min. Strain and chop the porcini and add the liquid into a saucepan with the chicken stock. Heat 2 tbsp butter in a small skillet over moderate heat. When it begins to foam, add the porcini mushrooms and cook or 1 min. Add the cream and simmer until it is slightly reduced and thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Bring the stock, combined with the porcini liquid to a steady simmer in a saucepan on top of the stove.

Heat 2 tbsp butter along with olive oil in a heavy 4-quart casserole over moderate heat. Add the onion and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, until it begins to soften, being careful not to brown it.

Add the rice to the onion mixture and stir with a wooden spoon for 1 minute. Add the wine and stir until it is completely absorbed. Begin to add the simmering stock, ½ cup at a time, stirring frequently. Wait until each addition is almost completely absorbed before adding the next ½ cup, reserving about 14 cup to add at the end. Stir continuously to prevent sticking.

After approximately 20 minutes, when the rice is tender but still firm, add the reserved stock and the porcini/cream mixture, parmesan cheese and parsley. Stir vigorously to combine with the rice.

Serve immediately.

Mortadella-stuffed Pork Loin

Good-quality mortadella can be found at butcher shops, at Italian markets, and the deli section of many supermarkets.

2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
3 teaspoons kosher salt
5 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 (4-lb) center-cut boneless pork loin roast (4 to 5 inches in diameter), trimmed.
1/2 lb thinly sliced mortadella
1 tspn chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For sauce
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Coarsely crush peppercorns and 2 teaspoons kosher salt, then add garlic and mash until a paste forms. Stir in unsalted butter and rosemary.

If pork loin has been tied, discard strings. Put loin on a cutting board lined with plastic wrap. Butterfly pork in a spiral cut: Find beginning of a flap on 1 long side of loin.

Starting at inside edge of flap, make a long cut lengthwise down side of loin with a very sharp knife, stopping 1 inch from bottom (this is beginning of spiral). Turn knife parallel to bottom of loin and begin to cut your way inward (parallel to bottom), keeping thickness of meat as even as possible, using your other hand to gently lift and pull top portion of meat away from knife, until loin is 1 (or 2) long flat piece(s) of meat.

Cover pork with a sheet of plastic wrap and pound to 1/2 inch thick with a smooth rolling pin. Remove plastic wrap and spread 1 tablespoon butter over pork. Top with half of mortadella, slightly overlapping slices. Spread 1 tablespoon butter over mortadella, then top with remaining mortadella and spread with remaining tablespoon butter. Beginning with end that was interior of loin, roll up loin tightly and arrange, seam side down (fat side up), on cutting board. Tie with kitchen string at 1-inch intervals. Rub roast all over with peppercorn/rosemary butter.

Put pork on oiled rack in roasting pan and roast in middle of oven 20 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. and roast pork until thermometer inserted diagonally into meat registers 155°F, 65 to 85 minutes. Transfer pork to a platter and let stand 25 minutes.

Make sauce:
Skim as much fat as possible from pan juices. Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners, then add broth and deglaze pan by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 1 minute. Stir together water and cornstarch, then add to broth mixture and boil, whisking, 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in butter.

Discard string, then slice pork and serve with sauce and roast potatoes.

Deryl’s Caesar Salad

½ cup olive oil
¼ tsp dry mustard
1 lemon (juice)
10 splashes Worcestershire sauce
2 egg yokes
¾ cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp salt
2 garlic cloves
Romaine lettuce
2 anchovies

Break romaine leaves, wash and dry with towels and individually layer on plate with paper towels in between and place in fridge no longer than 1 hour to crisp up.

In a wooden bowl,

Sprinkle salt and pepper

Add garlic cloves and mash until a paste (use the back of a spoon)

Add anchovies and continue to mash into a paste

Add dry mustard and Worcestershire and continue to mash

Add egg yokes, mix well

Add olive oil, a little at a time to emulsify and blend creamy

Add in Parmesan cheese and blend well. Add lemon juice

Pour over ripped romaine leaves and mix well with hands or tongs.

Dressing does not keep long.

Asiago and Sage Scalloped Potatoes

2 tbsp butter
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 ½ tsp finely chopped garlic
2 bay leaves
¼ tsp nutmeg
Salt/pepper
1 ¼ cup heavy cream
¼ cup milk
1 cup grated Asiago cheese
1 c dry fine bread crumbs
2 tbsp olive oil
1 ½ tbsp finely shredded fresh sage leaves
1 ½ lbs Idaho potatoes peeled and sliced lengthwise 1/8 inch thick

Preheat oven to 400F. Melt the butter in a large heavy saucepan. Add the onions and cook over high heat, stirring, until dark golden brown, about 8-10min.
Addgarlic, bay leaves, nutmeg, 1 tbsp kosher salt, ¾ tsp pepper, and cook for 30 seconds. Add the heavy cream and milk and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for 5 min.
In a medium bowl, toss the cheese with the breadcrumbs, olive oil, ½ tbsp sage, ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper.
Remove the bay leaves from the onion mixture and stir in the remaining 2 tbsp sage. Put the sliced potatoes in a large bowl, add the onion mixture, and toss gently. Spread half of the potatoes and liquid in a 2-quart non-reactive baking dish and sprinkle 2/3 cup of the cheese mixture over the top. Cover with the remaining potatoes and pack down firmly. Spoon the remaining liquid over the potatoes and cover with the remaining crumbs.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 1 hour, or until the potatoes are tender and the top is dark golden brown. If they brown too quickly, loosely cover with foil.

Weber's Art of the Grill Salmon

Salmon with Brown Sugar and Mustard Glaze

1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp honey
2 tsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 whole salmon fillet, skin on, about 21/2 lbs and ¾ to 1 inch thick

In a small sauté pan, over medium heat, melt the brown sugar with the honey and butter

Remove from heat and whisk in the mustard, soy, olive oil and ginger, allow to cool

Place salmon, skin side down, on a large sheet of aluminum foil

Coat the salmon with the mixture

Grill the salmon indirectly over medium heat until the edges begin to brown (25-30 min)

Internal temperature should be 125

Serve.

Balthazar Braised Short Ribs

This is truly one of the best comfort foods in the world. You can serve this with a hearty round of garlic-mashed potatoes (in the French style). Take the time to make this and you will not be disappointed. I have made this several times and have adjusted the book recipe slightly to enhance the taste. This recipe will take you a good 5 hours to make and take the time.

I use 8 good sized beef short ribs that would weigh about 7 lbs. Do not use the Korean cut. Use the hearty “North American” cut. Also, you will need a heavy Dutch over…. maybe by Le Creuset (http://www.lecreuset.com/) or something as sturdy.

Ingredients (use only the best and the freshest-which means REAL):

8 beef short ribs
2 sprigs of rosemary
6 sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf
1 celery stalk, halved
3 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp fresh ground pepper
4 tbsp vegetable oil
3 medium carrots in 1 inch pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
6 large shallots, peeled and sleiced
6 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
5 tbsp tomato paste
¼ cup all purpose flour
4 cups full-bodied red wine
½ cup port
6 cups of beef stock

Bind each celery rib with kitchen twine and place rosemary, thyme and bay leaf between the two celery halves.

Bind each short rib with kitchen twine to hold together while cooking.

Season short ribs with salt and pepper

Heat oil in large Dutch oven over high heat. In batches, brown the short ribs on both sides (very brown) and remove when done.

Lower heat to medium and add carrots, onion, shallots and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes until soft and light brown.

Stir in tomato paste and cook 2 minutes, add flour and combine well.

Add port, red wine and the celery-herb bundle and raise heat to high for 20 minutes to reduce the liquid by 1/3.

Return ribs to pot and add stock and season with salt. Make sure the stock covers the ribs by about an inch or so. Bring all to a simmer on the stove, cover and place in a preheated over (350) for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Transfer ribs to a large platter and remove strings. Skim fat from surface of sauce and strain through sieve and discard solids.

Over medium heat, reduce the liquid to about 4 cups (one hour).

Return ribs to pot and simmer for 10 minutes to reheat.

Serve with lots of French bread and garlic mashed potatoes.

This is a recent picture of me and my awsome 10 year old daughter.