Dinner 10-22-2011

After what feels like a long break (from the blog, not cooking), I'm back.  You might consider this a preview of the kind of thing I would try to do in the underground restaurant.  We had some people over for dinner last night.  For me this means an opportunity to put what I've been learning to good use.   Each dish really stood on its own.  I think each is visually attractive, and interesting to eat (like cracking through the prosciutto covering on the 1st dish).  That said, what I'm most proud of is that the overall progression of the menu felt coherent.





Poached egg, reduction of chicken stock, dijon mustard, roasted sunchokes, frisee, toasted sunflower seeds, dehydrated prosciutto di parma, cayenne pepper.

This is a fun one to eat. The diner has to crack through the crispy prosciutto to get to the dish, which is fun and dynamic. The crispness also adds a nice dynamic to what is a rich soupy dish with toasty notes, sweetness from the carmelization of the sunchokes, while still remaining earthy in nature. I only heard groans of pleasure from this one.

Pan-seared scallops with crushed fennel seeds, puree of peaches infused with cream, arugla leaf, and mint leaves.

I wanted something simple, not crowded with flavors because these scallops are fresh and cooked to a creamy medium-rare. The fennel really highlights the sweetness of the scallop here and the bitter arugala adds a nice contrast. The peach cream added a sweetly accented richness. A lesson in allowing the central ingredient to really shine.

Zucchini and yellow squash julienne, then tenderized for 20 minutes in salt. Accented with a lemon-lime soaked shallot (they turn a beautiful pink color in the presence of acid), and toasted almonds.

This dish served as a palate cleanser with earthy and sweet/sour notes. The texture of the zucchini and squash is like an al dente pasta. Crunch added with toasted almonds. A visually pleasing and tasty palate cleanser.

Candied roasted hazelnuts, smoked provolone, candied lemon zest, beer gel sheet, pink peppercorns.

The flavors stand individually and work in concert in this one. The beer I used was a Hoegaarden white ale, which has a subtle citrus note accented with the lemon zest. The candied hazelnuts had extra crunch due to their candy shell and were also salted, adding another nice contrast. Supported by smoky provolone. The pink peppercorns really did wonders to highlight the fruity aspects of this dish.

There's also the striking visual element here. I was happy with my efforts on this dish, but I see room for improvement.

Pan seared filet mignon, red wine reduction with reduction of beef stock, black mission figs, braised bok choy.

Tender beef, sweet tender fig = heaven. The bok choy was juicy and still had some crunch. The sauce is rich while retaining the nice subtleties of the bordeaux wine I used. Can't go wrong with this cut of meat, I think....unless you overcook it, which I didn't, so....there.

For dessert, I made eclairs, which I've attempted to make only once before. This was my best effort yet. The eclair shells were just about right hollow, dry, mostly crack-free, and relatively straight and even. The fondant was easy to make, but some practice is needed to get it to the right consistency with water/glucose when it is melted down. Also, the glazing needs more practice. Definitely a reject by professional standards, but I'm happy with it overall. A great achievement for at home, I think.

The eclairs are filled with an almond flavored pastry cream and a coffee flavored pastry cream. Choux and pastry cream recipes generously provided by Chef Francisco Migoya (www.thequenelle.com).

In search of inspiration

I haven't posted in a few days for a few reasons.  Prime among them is my recent struggles with macarons.  Tricky confections to make, indeed.  I've never experienced heartbreak like this in the kitchen before, or for that matter such a thrill from success.   I'll have a post on my efforts with these prized Parisian cookies soon (as well as a posts in the works on spherification, a meditation on variation and simplicity in cooking).

To be honest, I'm not sure where all my efforts will ultimately take me.  The constant questioning and self-criticism makes me wonder if I can really strive for what inspires me and succeed.  Do I have the energy and imagination for the kitchen?  Seems like a calling for the young.  34th birthday coming up.  Maybe subconsciously that's driving this self doubt.  I mean, I read about 24 year-olds working in Michelin starred restaurants and think...what the hell am I thinking?  Am I crazy for wanting to do a stage in a restaurant here?  At my age... 16 hour days of hard labor...yeah right.

Yet, there are small victories.  Silly thought it may sound, I derive great pleasure from handling my knife better and better day after day.  The ability to cut effortlessly, quickly, and unthinkingly is a manifestation, small though it is, of progress.  The tray full of macaron success was a high point.

And then there is the French Laundry.  Unlike others who are doing great work, I am inspired by what goes on there.  A lot of times I see what some people are doing with their art and think...fuck me, I could never do that.  But somehow, one of the greatest evokes the exact opposite.  The simplicity and flawless execution makes me think I can do it.   I guess that's what makes the French Laundry so great in my eyes.  They make it look easy, but the more I learn the more I know, this shit is hard.

Today is another day.  Time to push a little further.  Practice a little more.

Puff Paste wrapped banana, butterscotch sauce, fried apples, dried apricots, coconut ice cream, vanilla salt

The combination of hot/cold in your mouth is fantastic. Add to that the sweet/salty combo and it is already great. Never mind that the flavors work so well together.  Do not try this at home, you may go into convulsions

Dessert tonight. Used some of the remaining puff paste to wrap a banana. Baked @ 425 F. Made caramel sauce (melted sugar + cream). Fried apple slices with sugar and cinnamon. Dried apricots. Quenelles of coconut ice cream. Dash of vanilla salt. Sinful plate.

What is juicy and sweet and delicious?

Salt encrusted trout, for sure.  This was done up very simply since the flavors of the fish and herbs really shine. So, without much commentary:

Partially encrusted trout lying on a bed of salt with bay leaves and thyme. Stuffed with more bay leaves and thyme and apples.

Post cooking. 500 F oven for 10 minutes.

With some care, the filet can be take right off the skeleton. The fish was tender, juicy, and sweet

Yogurt, roasted garlic, cucumber, pomegranate

I used the homemade yogurt from a few days ago. Puree of half an english cucumber with seeds removed, a head of roasted garlic, dried mint leaves, meyer lemon juice, salt. Slices of cucumber. Pomegranate. Ta da:

Roasted garlic pureed in a with mortar and pestle, then mixed with cucumber puree and yogurt, mint leaves, and salt. Chilled.

Simple and delicious.

Should note this is not a traditional presentation and the traditional recipe modified somewhat.  I think the traditional way is more of a cucumber salad, with the yogurt/garlic mixture acting as a dressing.  The garlic doesn't seem to be typically roasted, and there are no pomegranates.    I made this on a half-remembered recollection of what khyar bi laban is and improvised.  This dish is interesting because it has elements of sweet and savory.  The roasted garlic and pomegranate has a natural sweetness that is balanced by the earthy cucumber and the slightly acidic yogurt.

Fish & Chips

Inspired by a blog all about Fish & Chips, I decided to make Heston Blumenthal's recipe for the "perfect" fish and chips.  I enjoyed it with a nice Dogfish head 60 minute IPA. Folks, this is once a year kind of stuff.  The taste and textures are so amazing, but my god...just look.

I purchased some cod for the fillets of fish.  The batter is amazingly crispy, unlike any I had used before.  This is owed to the alcohol content, which evaporates quickly.  Using beer and vodka instead of water.  On top of this, additional bubbles of carbon dioxide are added using an iSi siphon with a soda charge.  The fish itself is cooked perfectly to a moist and flaky texture.  The fish was seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne, then covered with a batter of  50/50 AP flour/Rice flour.  Fried at 425 F, the fillets only take a few minutes to cook through and brown.

The chips are crispy on the exterior, fluffy on the interior, and seasoned with salt and pepper.  Great with some mayo and malt vinegar.  The fries are first cut and boiled gently to cook through and rough up the edges.  Cooked to just before they fall apart, the cracks allow oil to crisp up the exterior.   Allowed to cool and dehydrate in the fridge for 30 minutes, they're cooked in relatively cool oil of 250-275 F until they take on a little bit of color.  Then, they are allowed to dry and cool in the fridge for 30 minutes again.   The final fry at 375 F gives them their golden color and crispy texture.

In More Depth

Batters and dough share much in common.  Both have the core ingredients of flour and water.  How are they different?  Clearly, batters have far more water than doughs. What effect does this have?  To understand this, we look at why we use flour in the first place.  As you might already know, most of the flours we use for bread and batters come from wheat, so I'll focus on that.

The principal chemicals in flour we take advantage of are starches (carbohydrates) and gluten (proteins).  When we make bread, we want the protein to develop a tight structure that traps the starch and water like a finely woven net.  This is why we knead the bread until it achieves an elastic texture and allow it to rest.  When yeast is added, this gluten structure traps the gas, which produces the bubbles that give some breads its airy texture.  When mixing batters, such as those to coat foods like the fish above, or for pound cake, we only mix to just incorporate the flour.  The gluten is secondary, helping to hold the mix together when it is cooked.  In batters, the starch plays the starring role.

Starch, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, comes from a 15th century Dutch word that means to stiffen (sterche).  Starch molecules come in a crystalline form, appearing as granules that absorb water, helping to thicken the liquid.  This is why we use flour to make slurries, roux, and to thicken sauces.  The starches swell up and stick to each other, creating the tender structure we like in batter cakes and coatings for fried foods.  So, in Heston's recipe, we use some all-purpose flour, which has some gluten, but we also use a starch flour without gluten, the rice flour.

So, why does Heston's recipe call for injecting more bubbles in addition to those given by the beer?  The answer lies in the leavening of the bubbles.  According to Harold McGee the bubbles, "...not only divides [the batter] into innumerable thin sheets surrounding the gas bubbles, it makes the batter more viscous." (more viscosity = thicker).  This does two things for our fried fish.  First, the additional viscosity helps the batter stick to the food.  Second, the layers allow the outside to cook quickly, releasing the water and browning. Since water boils at 212 F, we need to get rid of it to promote browning and crisping, which occurs at higher temperatures.

There is much more science going on here in this simple, but delicious dish.  This is one of the exciting things about cooking: endless variety and depth.  As we promote understanding, we enjoy cooking more, and can use the principles we learn to create new variation and improvements in existing foods.

Brunost/Gjetost Fail

I was searching for what to do with the whey left over from making yogurt and found a Norwegian & Swedish cheese and butter made from whey, called Brunost. It is simple to make (you just cook out the water from the sugars and protein in the whey). Well, even with this simple task:  Brunost fail :(

I cooked it ("whey") too long. The milk sugars carmelized very quickly while I was preparing a cooling bath for the cheese.  Part of the fail may be the fact that I had so little whey to start with.  Next time I make cheese, I'll use a gallon of milk and get more whey. It has an interesting flavor though. Sour-salty and a hint of sweetness. I like it and I think this could have interesting applications in a dish down the line.