Gumbo (and the Night of the Crawling Crayfish)

So I made gumbo this weekend! It was a total experiment that turned out splendidly. I had never made anything like this before so I read up on a few recipes to get the general idea of what goes into making that wonderful spicy sauce and went from there. I generally noticed that the spice combo consisted of thyme, cayenne, and paprika.

My roommate and I went to the Main St. Fish Market in DC Saturday morning to pick up all the goodies for the gumbo. I knew I wanted crayfish, and since they were going to stew in the broth, I wanted them fresh. Yep, I got a heaping pile of live crayfish. I also picked up some clams. While we were at it, we had a breakfast of freshly shucked oysters with a little bit of lemon. Six for 10 dollars...excellent!

I made a broth of chicken stock, cheap white (dry) wine, butter, and water, seasoned with salt and pepper, and let it come to a boil. I threw in fresh cooked chorizo sausage with spring onions, one white onion, and chopped celery. I then scooped in a generous spoonful of Hungarian paprika, cayenne pepper and a handful of fresh thyme leaves.

I then attempted to dump in all the live crayfish when chaos ensued. Note to self: DO NOT PLACE PLASTIC BAG FULL OF LIVING CRAYFISH ON A HOT COOK TOP. This happened:

Those little feckers crawled all over my kitchen (almost three pounds worth of crayfish) and they sure wanted to fight. Once I got them all collected, I bid them adieu and dropped them into the boiling broth.

Once they had cooked for a while, I threw in the fresh clams (making sure that all the shells were closed. Open shells mean that they have died and should be thrown out).

Finally I threw in some fresh curly parsley.

I served the gumbo over coconut rice (rice cooked in half water half coconut milk).

Et voila! This jumbo was super spicy and delicous. A total win. Would love to make it with crab meat, monkfish and some crayfish meat (just to reduce the labor intensive mealtime).

Until next time!

Autumn Monkfish & Harissa Squid

Had a little dinner party on Wednesday night and decided to do a spread of seafood. I've been dying to make some monkfish for a while now and picked up the last fresh tail from Whole Foods (got off the job mid-day, early morning shopping is excellent by the way).

Have also been itching to make squid recently. I prefer the tentacles to the body, so I asked for a half pound (MORE THAN ENOUGH TO FEED A PARTY) of tentacles at the fish counter. I was inspired by a recipe I saw for them on Jamie Oliver's website where he paired calamari with harissa mayo. I made a sriracha mayo, spread it on toast, and laid them over a slate board. I dipped calamari in egg yolks and rolled in flower, and fried whole in butter in a large fry pan. I sprinkled the squid all over the toast on the platter, and garnished with fresh tomatos, lemon juice, juliened chili peppers and cilantro (coriander for my European counterparts). I also made up an essence of tomato (cooked fresh tomatoes, garlic, chillies, and herbs reduced and strained so that it is only juice) and drizzled that over the whole bit. It sounds like a lot of stuff, but it all paired really well and turned out deliciously. The mayo was craaazy spicy (the heat was REAL) but all the tomato garnish totally cooled its jets.

Oh and apparently that's my new favorite phrase, cool your jets. It may come up again.




For the fish, I prepped the sauce and the sweet potato puree in advance. For sauce, I wanted a real rich bit of something, so I settled on a simple, cold hazelnut sauce.

For the puree, which ended up being more of a mash, I roasted sweet potatoes and leeks with a little bit of olive oil. Once roasted, I mixed in with about one cup of coconut creamer and a dash of heavy whipping cream.

For the sauce, I took a generous handful of hazelnuts (raw) and toasted them briefly, about 10 minutes. I then took a wash cloth and rolled the hazelnuts so that the skins popped right off. I've never wanted a food processor more than this moment, where I diced each hazelnut individually. WHY DID I NOT THROW THEM IN A PLASTIC BAG AND STOMP ON THEM?! *Facepalm*

I combined about a cup of warm water, a dash of red wine vinegar, fresh cilantro leaves, a little bit diced garlic, and a fresh, diced cayenne pepper. I whisked this all together, but needs no cooking. I used a couple recipes, and loosely based this off the "Spicy Hazelnut Sauce" epicurious entry.





Now I got a whole tail of monkfish. I like it skin on, because the crispy skin gives great texture.

I took these filets and sliced them into smaller portions. I froze about 2/3 of it. Will probably use it for a savory fish soup or a saffron stew at some point.




I plated up with the sweet potato mash as a bed, followed by the monkfish that I poached in butter, spooning the butter over the fish constantly as it cooked.




Finally, the cold hazelnut cayenne sauce over the top. The monkfish is so meaty and delicious, almost reminiscent of the texture of swordfish in some ways. The sweet and spicy sauce mixed well with the buttery fish and sweet mash.

No dessert this night. We were all sufficiently stuffed at this point!

Until next time....

Lobster Stew!

So I am totally obsesssed with this food blog I found last night, Cannelle et Vanille (http://www.cannellevanille.com). The pictures are so drool-worthy and I love the recipes they have posted. I decided to give their lobster stew a try because it sounded super easy and comforting.

Well, it totally was.

I took two lobster shells and boiled them in two cups of water for 5 minutes, until partially cooked. I de-shelled the meat and cooked the shells with thyme sprigs and olive oil, adding the cooking liquid and white wine from the original lobster boil after they were fully red. Their recipe suggested whiskey, which I think would be excellent too, but I had white wine around the house and it was still delicious!

Once the broth is reduced. I drained all of the shells and herbs out of the broth. I sliced a small fennel bulb (or half of a large one) and a leek thinly and softened in a pot over medium heat with a generous dollop of salted butter. Once softened (but not browned), I added the broth, the lobster meat (diced), half cup of coconut milk and a half cup heavy whipping cream. Let it come to a simmer and stir briefly and voila! Done and deeeeeeelicious.


Although it sounds super heavy, it wasn't at all. The lobster broth totally cut through the cream so that you got all the wonderful flavor without any of the rich stomach regret. I made it with two lobster tails and easily finished the whole thing myself, but would be great for an appetizer for two. One lobster tail per stew as an appetizer, maybe two for a single full dinner serving. But then again, I love to indulge.

This was the most perfect "transition from bitter winter to cold spring" dish. Bravo Cannelle et Vanille, I salute your culinary prowess!

I finished off with a mozzarella rosette served with salted fresh tomatoes and a drizzle of balsalmic and my leftover calabrese salami.


Until next time, bon appetit!

Snacking

So unfortunately the whole gourmet-kitchen-four-times-a-week thing has taken a brief hiatus while I am trying to apply for new jobs. It's time to challenge the brain a little....

As I was finishing up a few applications yesterday, I did indulge in some serious snacks of the fromage and charcuterie variety.

Arrowine is pretty much the shop of the Gods (located in Arlington), where small wineries and delicious cheese meet in a stinky aroma that would melt my heart and have me asking for more anyday! I stopped in there yesterday to pick up dinner in the form of massive amounts of snack food. Picked up a goat milk blue cheese (forget anything you thought you knew about a strong, stinky blue!), a pecorino aged in clay pots with walnut leaves, and a Brique du Nord (my go-to favorite, super nutty and crunchy).




I put it on my new cheese-board toy, which spins on its base! Love the chalk pens to label all the cheeses!

In addition to my cheese board I made a fresh buffalo mozzarella rosette with proscuitto pronto, salt, pepper, and a drizzle of balsalmic.



Finally, I made a board of proscuitto and calabrese salame (talk about calabrese!) to satisfy my inner carnivore. I ate everything with a bottle of Les Maranges 1er Cru Burgundy. It was SUPER tasty and light, Burgundy makes 100 percent Pinot Noir (but we'll do a full post about burgundy wines some other time).



Until next time!

Not-So-Vegetarian Vegetable Soup

Made my stock, as promised, with all of my lamb bits from Whole Foods. I cooked them in water with a large bunch of rosemary and thyme, with a whole white onion (sliced in two), and two bay leaves for two and a half hours.

I then caramelized shallots, carrots, chopped asparagus, a leek, mushrooms and garlic in generous amounts of butter. Right before they finished cooking, I threw in a large bunch of chopped spinach in the pan to wilt, and then poured the whole mix into the (drained) stock. I let that simmer (after seasoning with salt and pepper) for about 30 minutes and voila!



The soup was so comforting, and rich without being heavy. I'm not going to lie, it was a total fridge dive-but a successful one! I made a TON of it, so I took the leftovers and poured them into a large ziploc freezer bag. Soups are great for freezing, and you can just take out and reheat in a pot over the stove!

Now I just need to buy myself a blender so I can make more soup!

Until next time!

For my fellow DC foodies....

Was reading this today in a lull at work and cannot wait to work my way through this list...think the sea snails (which I have not been able to find outside of France!) at Eat The Rich will be the first stop. Shellfish is my Kryptonite....


http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/40-dishes-every-washingtonian-must-try-in-2014/2014/03/05/d60dde2c-a1a3-11e3-a050-dc3322a94fa7_gallery.html#item37

Lessons learned from overkill: Veal, bacon, and the works!

So I was craving veal the other night, and when I ran into a wine distributor who was an avid veal cook, it was fate. Too bad veal wasn't the only thing I was craving.....oops. I also am totally guilty of Whole Foods carnage.

So I wanted to make a mushroom risotto with veal. Rather than using veal stew meat, I decided to cook a chop and serve it over the top. Unfortunately this resulted in me adding bacon to my risotto....well because everything is better with bacon, right?! Don't get me wrong, what follows is delicious...but a total overkill on richness and flavor. WHAT I SHOULD HAVE DONE was make a simple white wine and mushroom risotto with onion chicken stock and my big slab of veal on top.

Instead, I cooked the risotto in white wine, bacon fat, and chicken stock, adding spring onion, garlic, and lardons. I then placed a big honkin piece of veal that I pan roasted on top (rubbed in salt and pepper).

The veal was PERFECT at medium well, and I certainly finished the whole plate. But as far as overall quality of flavor...I should have scaled it back a bit. Until the second attempt...

Got off work early this Saturday so enjoying a dinner of mussels and escargot with a Bordeaux sauvignon blanc! Need to try this at home...

The Best Stock Ever

So you don't always need a ton of stuff in soup to make it super rich and flavorful, but the fewer things you include in a soup, the better your stock needs to be. If you make a lot of meat on bone, make sure to save the bones and leftover giblets or pieces of meat. After a big night of cooking, I usually have leftovers like this, and theres nothing nicer in the morning than throwing it all in a big pot (over coffee of course) and letting the smell fill the kitchen for the rest of the day.

I did this with the goat I made last Thursday. Saturday morning, I took all the bones and leftover meat (still on the bone) and threw it in a very large, stainless steel dutch oven filled 3/4 of the way up with water. I threw in an entire large white onion (sliced into two halves), a large bundle of rosemary and time (tie the sprigs whole and toss them in the pot), salt and pepper. I cooked this covered on medium-high heat for about 30 minutes and then turned it down to medium heat on the stove top to cook for a few hours. The broth turns a rich golden brown color, and when finished, you just throw out the bones, herbs, and onions. You can either freeze the broth in freezer bags (once cooled) or stick it in the fridge for immediate use. For the soup, my mom used the leftover duck from the birthday dinner the night before with caramelized onions, carrots, and mushrooms, throwing in a little wilted spinach right at the end. You could literally make all kinds of soup with this stock, and it would need very little seasoning due to the herb infusion.

Tonight I'll be making lamb stock with the two dollar lamb "leftovers" from Whole Foods. You can get the neck bones and leftover small pieces of meat from the Whole Foods butcher for two to three dollars a packet. This is great for seasoning stews, making gravy, or making stock! Since I don't plan on cooking that leg of lamb in my freezer in the next few days...this is a great way to provide an interesting stock for home-made soup tonight!

When Others Cook: Restaurant Review NYC

So for the final day of celebration my family and I headed out for a restaurant hop of West Village/Greenwich. As I couldn't get into my favorite, L'Artusi, for the main event, I did a little research and decided that Alta was a great second choice. We were only able to get a reservation at 5:30 for three people, so we got quite an early start.

1. ARIA WINE BAR, 117 PERRY ST




For a quick cocktail before the big meal, we stopped at one of my absolute favorite spots in all of NYC. Such delicious, suuuper fresh tasting hors d'ouevres and an excellent wine selection. We had a glass of sparkling rose from South Africa which was pretty delicious but a little tart (strong on the strawberry, raspberry flavor).



We couldn't not have the signature berrata as welll, so we grabbed a quick one with some white asparagus and a fried egg with proscuitto san daniele.






Everything, as usual, was super light and great for sharing. It was the perfect bite to wet the whistle before the feast that was next.

Service was outstanding, and they were great about getting us in and out quickly! The staff have these super cool uniforms, and the two sided bar is really unique.

The neighbourhood is just adorable too. The scaffolding outside is plastered with fairy lights which sets an outstanding mood, even at 4 in the afternoon!

2. ALTA, 64 W 10TH ST.

This place is so great. I am OVER THE MOON about it. You definitely have to be up for sharing though. The menu entirely is comprised of small plates, like tapas, and all is reasonably priced. The lamb meat balls, bacon infused roe, wild mushrooms, and octopus were just a few of our faves. You can order the whOle menu for $490 and I would totally do it. The wine list was FANTASTIC and again, reasonable. The Volnay Les Mitans 2010 was unbelievable but certainly a wine for a special occasion.

We had the butterscotch foam for dessert which came with a gold candle for the birthday occasion.  I loved every light and delicious moment of it!

The ambiance is so cool-you would never know this place was there if you weren't looking.  The entrance is tucked away in the basement entrance and the rustic decor with raging fire was so comfortable. Service was also excellent...and I am a harsh critic. 

Five huge stars!!! (Unfortunately due to the extreme dim light of the restaurant pictures were not top notch....)

3. MURRAY'S WINE AND CHEESE BAR, 264 BLEECKER ST 

As always, this place was great. They put together a cheese plate with a wine tasting for all three of us. We sat at a table, but I will admit I MUCH prefer sitting at the bar. The service is generally better at the bar because they have everything right in fron of them.

The cheeses are different every time I go and never cease to impress. I can't wait until the next time!

SIDE NOTE: We did stay in "The Lexington",  one of those Marriot Boutique Hotels, right down the block from Grand Central Station. Although the room was small, I was really impressed at the price of the room for the locatioin and quite nice decor. The beds were super comfy and I thought service was nice. Plus the little mini bath sets were super fancy!