New Orleans Inspired Dinner

Back in August, the spouse and I got a chance to take a mini-vacation in New Orleans. We ate some amazing food at some fantastic restaurants. A frequent customer asked me to make a meal inspired by our trip.

The menu I ended up doing was an appetizer of a savory asparagus cheesecake with jalapeño aioli, a shrimp bisque with a whole wheat cheddar Parmesan cracker, an entree of chicken en papillote with crab mushroom béchamel, braised chard, and green onion hush puppies, and vanilla bean ice cream with bananas Foster.

The appetizer was inspired by one we had at Dick and Jenny's. Mine was a cheesecake with ricotta, feta, and Parmesan cheese, and blanched asparagus. The recipe I started from is this one from Food.com. 

The crust is a cracker crust using whole grain club crackers. I blind baked the crust before hand, so that it would not be soggy.

It is garnished with a  jalapeño aioli, made from mayonnaise, roasted jalapeño, key lime juice, and sea salt.

I served the cheesecake warm. This resulted in a silky texture that was quite pleasant.The contrast with the crispy crust was spot on.

The soup is a shrimp bisque. The stock was made from about three pounds of crayfish shells, mostly heads, that I simmered for three hours, then ground up with an immersion blender and ran through my chinois.

This provided a solid base for the soup. I added green and red bell peppers, onion, and celery. It was seasoned with Old Bay seasoning, cumin, cayenne, and fresh ground black ground black pepper.

I pouched one whole shrimp per bowl in the stock for garnish,. The rest are cut up in small pieces, and added right before service, so that they were not overcooked.

To go with the soup, I made whole wheat cheddar Parmesan crackers. They had a robust texture that held up well to the soup.

For the entree, I made chicken en papillote with a crab mushroom bechemel. It's a fun way of cooking. En papillote is French for in paper. The food is wrapped in parchment paper, and  baked in a hot oven. It steams in the envelope.

To go with, I braised white chard with apple cider vinegar. That gave it a mild sweetness to counterbalance its natural mild bitterness.  It was cooked with bacon and onion. 

I also made green onion hush puppies, because, really, what is more quintessentially New Orleans than hush puppies. Crispy outside, light and fluffy in the middle, with a hint of heat from a little cayenne.







For dessert, I made bananas Foster over vanilla bean  ice cream. No pictures, my phone died before I could get any. Great flavors of rum, banana, brown sugar, and spices over a good quality ice cream. Didn't have time to make my own, unfortunately.

Recipes

Savory Asparagus Cheesecake

Crust:

5 1/2 oz. whole grain club crackers
2 1/2 oz. butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
spray canola oil

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

Use spay oil to generously grease six 4 1/2" ramekins.

In a food processor, grind crackers very fine. Add butter and eggs. Process until smooth. Press dough into ramekins. Bake for ten minutes. Remove from oven, let cool.

Custard:

1 bunch asparagus
1/2 medium white onion, fine diced
8 oz. ricotta
8 oz. feta
1 oz. grated Parmesan
3 1/2 oz.heavy cream
2 Tbsp. butter
2 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

Cut tips of asparagus 1" long. cut an additional 1" of stalks. Blanch asparagus pieces in lightly simmering salted water until al dente. Shock in ice water to stop cooking. Select twelve tips to leave whole. Set those aside, fine dice the rest of the asparagus pieces.

In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Saute onions until tender. Add diced asparagus, saute lightly. Add cream. and turn down to low.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, ricotta, and feta. Temper cream mixture, and whisk into cheese mixture. Season to taste.

Ladle custard into ramekins. Add two
asparagus tips to each ramekin. Sprinkle tops of custard with Parmesan.

Place full ramekins in a shallow baking dish. Add hot water to half way up the ramekins. Bake until custard is set, about 20 minutes.

Remove from oven. Let rest about 10 minutes. Gently run a knife between crust  Slide cheesecake from ramekin, plate and garnish with jalapeño aioli.

 Jalapeño Aioli

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 medium  jalapeño

1 tsp. key lime juice

salt to taste

Roast  jalapeño in 350 F oven until blackened. Shock in ice bath. Peel, de-stem, and de-seed. 

Blend together  jalapeño, juice, mayo, and salt until smooth.

Shrimp Bisque

Stock:

3 lbs. crayfish shells

5 quarts water

Simmer shells in water for three hours. Using an immersion blender, grind up shells. Filter through a chinois to remove shell bits.

Soup:

1 qt. crayfish stock

1 lb. shrimp tails without shells

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1/2 medium white onion, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

3 strips bacon, diced 

2 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning

1/2 tsp. cumin powder

1/4 tsp. cayenne powder

salt and pepper to taste

In a pan over medium heat, render fat out of bacon. Add vegetables, saute until tender. Add stock and spices, bring to a simmer.

Take six whole shrimp. Poach in soup until cooked, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Dice remainder of shrimp. Add to soup. Simmer until done, 

Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with whole shrimp and cheddar Parmesan cracker.

Whole Wheat Cheddar Parmesan Cracker

4 oz. grated sharp cheddar

2 oz. grated Parmesan

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 tsp. dry mustard powder

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/8 tsp. cayenne powder

2 oz. butter, softened

2 Tbsp. cold water, plus more if needed

Combine Cheese, flour, and seasonings in a food processor. Pulse a number of times to combine ingredients.

Add butter. Plus until dough resembles course crumbs. Add water, one tablespoon at a time, processing until dough just sticks together. If too dry, add additional water, 1/2 tsp. at a time.

Form dough into a ball and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for two hours.

Pre-heat oven to 375 F.

On a floured surface, roll out dough very thin. With a fork, poke holes in dough at regular intervals. Using a pizza cutter, cut into diamonds. Transfer to a silicon baking pad lined sheet pan. 

Bake ten minutes, or until crisp and lightly browned.

Transfer to parchment paper to cool.

Crab Mushroom Bechemel

3 oz. butter

1 oz. flour

8 oz. mushrooms, sliced thin

3 oz. canned crab meat with juice

3 cups cream

salt and pepper to taste

In a saute pan over medium high heat, melt 2 oz. butter. Saute mushrooms until tender. Set Aside.

In a sauce pan over medium heat, melt remaining ounce of butter. Add flour, cook until light brown.

Add cream, whisking in until well incorporated. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. when thickened, Add mushrooms and crab. Set aside.

Chicken en Papillote

3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts

crab mushroom bechemel

Pre-heat oven to 450 F.

Cut breasts in half lengthwise. Pound each half breast to 3/4" thick.

Cut six 10" hearts out of parchment paper.

Place each half breast on a parchment heart. Cover with bechemel. Crimp paper closed around breast. 

Put packages on baking sheets. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes.

Green Onion Hush Puppies

1 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup flour

1 egg

1 cup buttermilk

3 green onions, sliced thin

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. cayenne powder

canola oil for frying

Whisk together all ingredients.

Heat oil to 365 F. 

Drop batter by spoonfuls into hot oil. Fry until golden brown.

Happy Eating!

Healthy Lifestyles Class: Healthy Appetizers

Last week in my Healthy lifestyles class, we were to make a number of healthy appetizers/ hor d'oeuvres. We were given a number of recipes to work from. One of the interesting things about the way Chef Kim organizes his labs is that he doesn't micromanage us. He gives us recipes, but gives us leave to deviate from them in our own creative fashion. Also, he basically gives us a goal, gives us product to work with, then lets us work out how it gets done.

As a group, we were to make four appetizers, two hor d'oeuvres, and a salad. We had four recipes given us, and we were to adapt two of them to work as hor d'oeuvres. For the salad, we were on our own to create something. Presentation was to be a big part of things.

I made both an appetizer and an hor d'oeuvre from the recipe for Vietnamese style spring rolls. They were very similar to the ones I did for my Pan Asian dinner. The rolls have cooked shrimp, lettuce, rice noodles, julienned carrot and daikon radish, cilantro, and slivers of yellow bell pepper.

The dipping sauce is a mix of rice wine vinegar, fish sauce, lemon juice, sugar, garlic, and sriracha.

I garnished the plate with a little minced peanuts.

For the smaller version, I cut the rice paper wrappers in half, and  left out the shredded lettuce.

This is a great, refreshing appetizer. Very healthy, with no added fat.

For the salad, I collaborated with one of my teammates on a seafood salad, using some of my leftover shrimp, and some of the scallops from another appetizer made by a different teammate.

We included mixed greens, sauteed baby shitake mushrooms, tomato, and some sweet yellow and orange peppers. My teammate made a nice vinaigrette to go with it.

All and all, I'm happy with both the flavors and presentations we did. Chef had some minor critiques, some ideas for improvement, but there were no terrible missteps.

Pan Asian Dinner

I have a couple of dear friends that have been very enthusiastically supporting my decision to go pro as a cook. Back in September I had the opportunity to cook for them, and they wanted to have me cook for them again this spring.

Since I did Middle Eastern last time, I wanted to go in a different direction. I decided to go Asian. There is so much variety to Asian cuisines. I ended up going Pan-Asian, with a Vietnamese style appetizer, Chinese inspired main dish, and a combination Thai/Chinese dessert.

For the appetizer, I made Vietnamese style spring rolls. These are great, as they are not fried, and are all about fresh greens. There were two dipping sauces to go with the rolls. One was hoisin with peanuts, and the other was a complex combination of fish sauce, lime, garlic, and sweet chili sauce. I think these were a great appetizer. The wrappers were rice paper, and in them I put shrimp, rice vermicelli, butter lettuce, mint, and basil. I worked from this recipe at allrecipes.com.

For the main dish, I made a beef stir fry with carrots, crimini mushrooms, and red, yellow, and orange peppers. My stir fry sauce is not traditional, as far as I know. I make a sauce of date vinegar and sweet soy sauce, with a little ginger and black pepper. I use a little corn starch to help the sauce thicken.

Somehow rice got left off my packing list, and my friends didn't have rice, either. I ended up using some Israeli couscous. It worked just fine. Not surprising, as it was created as a rice substitute.

For dessert, I really wanted to make something special. I wanted to have lots of contrasts; taste, texture, and temperature. I made a cold Thai jelly, with layers of coconut and coffee flavors. The jelly is based on this recipe. The jellies use agar agar as the jelling agent. Agar agar is a derivative of red seaweed.

To contrast, I made a Chinese eight treasures rice pudding, served warm. It consists of glutinous rice, coated with a mix of chestnuts, almonds walnuts, dried pineapple, dried papaya, and dried mango There is a thin layer of sweet red bean paste in the middle. I adapted this recipe for my pudding. The original called for lard. I substituted vegetable shortening, which worked just fine.

To tie everything together, I made a mango - lime sauce.As it turned out, the dessert is vegan.

I don't think the photo does it justice. I think it came out really pretty. I was really proud of the whole thing.

Recipes

Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Rolls
6 6.25 inch rice wrappers
6 large cooked shrimp, halved lengthwise
2 oz. rice vermicelli
2 Tbsp. chiffonade of basil
2 Tbsp. chiffonade of mint
1/2 cup chopped butter lettuce

Dipping Sauces
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp. finely chopped peanuts

1 Tbsp. fish sauce
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. sweet chili sauce
2 tsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. minced garlic

Whisk together hoisin sauce and peanuts. Set aside. Whisk together fish sauce, lime juice, chili sauce, sugar, water, and garlic. Set aside.

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil, add rice noodles, turn down to a simmer. Cook until al dente, then drain and rinse.

To construct a roll, dip a wrapper in a bowl of warm water for about 1 second. Place a small bundle of vermicelli in the center of the wrapper. Place two halves of shrimp on top of noodles. Sprinkle liberally with mint and basil. Add shredded lettuce. Fold ends of wrapper in. Fold one side of wrapper over top of shrimp, then roll tightly over other side.

Serve with dipping sauces.

Beef, Mushroom, and Peppers Stir Fry

1 lb. London broil, sliced thin
1 1/2 cups diagonally sliced carrots
1 1/2 cups mixed pepper strips
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced crimini mushrooms
1/4 cup date vinegar
1/4 cup sweet soy sauce
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
2Tbsp. sesame oil

In a bowl, whisk together vinegar, soy, ginger, pepper, and cornstarch. Set aside.

Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil, swirl to coat. Add beef strips, stirring constantly. Cook until about 3/4 the way to medium rare. Remove beef. Add carrots. Cook, stirring rapidly, for about two minutes. Add peppers. Cook, stirring constantly, for another two minutes. Add mushrooms and return beef to pan. Cook until mushrooms are done. Add sauce, stirring to coat all other ingredients. Once sauce starts to thicken, remove from heat. Serve over rice or noodles.

Layered Coconut and Coffee Jellies

Coffee Jelly
1 Tbsp. instant espresso
2 Tbsp. warm water
2 Tbsp. agar agar powder
3 cups water
7 oz by wt.  sugar

Coconut Jelly
1 Tbsp. agar agar powder
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups coconut cream
2 oz by wt. sugar
1 tsp. salt

To make coffee jelly
In a small bowl, dissolve espresso powder in warm water. Set aside.

Place water and agar agar powder in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Heat until agar agar completely dissolves. Add sugar, cook until dissolved. Remove from heat, stir in coffee. Transfer to a metal bowl in a hot water bath to keep liquid while working.

To make coconut jelly
In a small saucepan over medium low heat, dissolve agar agar powder in water. Add coconut cream, sugar, and salt, cook until sugar is dissolved. Transfer to a metal bowl in a hot water bath to keep liquid while working.



To make jellies
Into silicon cupcake molds, place 2 tablespoons of coconut liquid in eight molds, and 2 tablespoons of coffee liquid into eight molds. Let cool and harden, about 5 minutes.

Alternate coffee and coconut layers, allowing to firm up after each new layer. Molds should hold about 6 tablespoons (3 layers).

Refrigerate until needed, unmold to serve.

Eight Treasures Pudding

8 oz by wt. glutinous rice
1 oz by wt. vegetable shortening
1 oz by wt. sugar
2 Tbsp. finely diced chestnuts
2 Tbsp. finely diced blanched almonds
2 Tbsp. finely diced walnuts
2 Tbsp. finely diced dried papaya
2 Tbsp. finely diced dried mango
2 Tbsp. finely diced dried pineapple
1/3 cup sweet red bean paste

In a small bowl, mix together fruits and nuts. Set aside.

Under running water, rinse rice. Place in a small saucepan, and add twice the volume of water. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook for twelve minutes. Rice will absorb the water, and become thick and sticky. Remove from heat, stir in 1/2 oz. shortening and sugar.

Take six ramekins. Using remaining shortening, apply a thick layer of shortening to the insides of the ramekins. Press fruit and nut mixture into the shortening, making sure inner surface is covered. Shake out any excess fruit and nut mixture.

Fill each ramekin half full with rice. Spread a thin layer of bean paste on top. If bean paste is too thick to spread easily, heat in microwave ten to twenty seconds.

Finish filling each ramekin. Cover ramekins with aluminum foil. Refrigerate until ready to steam.

To steam, place a couple of inches of water in the bottom of a steamer. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. place rack containing ramekins into steamer, cover. Let steam for thirty minutes.

Remove from steamer. Remove foil. Loosen puddings by running a butter knife or small spatula around inside of ramekin. Turn upside down onto plate to unmold.

Mango - Lime Sauce

1 ripe mango, peeled, seeded, and diced
juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. water
1 Tbsp. sugar
pinch kosher salt

In a small saucepan over medium heat, simmer diced mango and water until mango is tender. Using an immersion blender, puree mango. Stir in spices, sugar, and salt.  Cook until sugar is dissolved.

Happy Eating!

Shrimp and Bok Choy Stir Fry

As you may have guessed, I like versatile foods. Some foods just lend themselves to infinite variety and flexibility. Omelets, and quiche are two things that can be done with just about any combinations of flavors you like. Stir fry is something else that can be done any number of ways. Most vegetables are best lightly cooked, and lend themselves easily to stir frying. They remain crisp and brightly colored, and retain most of their nutrition. Meat can be added, or not, and there are all sorts of sauces you can do.

I've been meaning to stir fry this baby bok choy since I got it from my CSA. I had a bag of pre-cooked shrimp in the freezer, and thought that would work well with it. It was massively dirty, so I cleaned it the way I clean spinach. I cut off the root, the washed the leaves in a big bowl of cold water, agitating well. I then let it sit a couple of minutes, to let the sand settle. I then pull out the leaves, and drain them in a colander. Dump and rinse out the bowl, and repeat, until there is no sand in the bottom. It wasn't horrible, I only had to wash it twice.

I let the shrimp sit in a bowl of cold water a few minutes, until about 90% defrosted, then drained them.

I play around a lot with sauces. One of my favorite ingredients for stir fry sauce is date vinegar. Not remotely Asian, but it works wondrously well with soy sauce and honey, or sweet soy. I also used some of Auntie Arwen's Shy Panda Kosher Stir Fry Blend. It adds a nice zest.

I served it over jasmine rice. This rice is fragrant, with an almost floral scent. It matched well with the stir fry.

Shrimp and Bok Choy Stir Fry

12 oz. pre-cooked shrimp
3 small heads baby bok choy, cleaned, leaves split lengthwise
2 tbsp. sesame oil
3 tbsp. date vinegar
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. corn starch
1 tbsp. stir fry seasoning blend

In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, soy, and cornstarch until cornstarch is fully dissolved.

Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil, swirl around to coat. Add bok chow, stirring constantly until mostly tender. Add shrimp, mix in. Move bok choy and shrimp up the sides of the wok, out of the liquid. Cover, let cook for a minute, until shrimp are hot. Add soy mixture and seasoning blend. Stir until sauce thickens, and food is well coated.

Happy Eating!