Thanksgiving! Green Bean Casserole for the 21st Century

Ah the classic Green Bean Casserole. Guilty pleasure of creaminess. Well, I've come up with a highbrow version of this classic that is sure to wow.
No frozen or canned beans here. Start with 1 to 2 pounds of the real deal. Cook your green beans according to the directions here. Keep cool and to the side.
Mmmm , the Chanterelle. Don't be put off by it's price per pound, mushrooms are light and you're not going to use that much. I used 1/2 a pound but you could probably get away with as little as 1/4.
Chop the Chanterelles coarsely. Normally with mushrooms I will tell you to cook them quickly over high heat but Chanterelles are a little different. We're not trying to brown them, just to get any extra liquid out so cook them over medium heat until the pan is staying relatively dry. I cooked them in about 1 tablespoon of butter (hey, it's Thanksgiving, let's indulge a little). Don't forget to season along the way with salt and pepper.
Once the mushrooms are cooked through and relatively dry add 1 cup of heavy cream to the pan and reduce by at least half, until the sauce is pretty thick. Set aside.
Slice up several shallots thinly so as to make rings. Break up the slices a little so that they become individual rings and then toss in a little flour, salt and pepper. Coat a sheet pan very lightly with olive oil and spread shallot rings out in one layer on the pan. Place in a 350 degree oven and check frequently, stirring the rings around, until they are golden brown and crispy. Set pan aside and allow rings to cool.
To serve- smash one clove of garlic and place in a large saute pan with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. When hot, add in green beans and toss until just hot. Place on serving dish. Meanwhile, reheat cream and Chanterelle sauce, adding a little more cream if the sauce has become too thick, until bubbling and pour over the beans. Top with the crispy shallots.
Done!

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Apples and Onions

This is an excellent low calorie meal that still feels filling and satisfying. The key is layering flavors without adding fat. Pork tenderloin (not pork loin) is very low in fat.
Salt and pepper the tenderloin and rub with a little sage. Sear it in a cast iron skillet over high heat with just a little olive oil. Remove meat from the pan and pour in 1/4 of a cup of chicken stock and scrape up any browned bits. Remove from heat. Add to pan one coarsely chopped apple and 1/2 of an onion and place tenderloin on top. Place in a 350 degree oven. Start checking after 30 minutes with a meat thermometer. You want it to just hit 160 degrees internal temperature. Meanwhile, peel and slice 2-3 apples and one medium onion and spread them out on a sheet pan. Salt and pepper and add some sage and a couple teaspoons of olive oil and toss to coat. Place in oven with the tenderloin. After 15 minutes or so stir the apples and onions around and put them back in until they are browned.
I served this with sweet potato spears. Cut a sweet potato lenghtwise. Coat a sheet pan with a very thin layer of olive oil and arange sweet potatoes so a cut side is down on the pan and put in oven. After 30 minutes flip the potatoes over and put back in oven for approxamitely another 30 minutes.
When the tenderloin is finished cooking remove it from the pan. Discard the apples and onions from the tenderloin pan. Place pan over medium heat on stove and pour in two cups of low fat or no fat chicken broth and stir to lift any sticky bits from the bottom of the pan. Let this reduce until slightly sticky and thick and season to taste. Slice tenderloin on an angle. Arrange browned apple and onion slices over the top of the meat and pour a small amount of sauce over top.

Organic Banana Cupcake with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting

Topped with a dark chocolate dipped banana chip.

Easy Party Food

We recently hosted our daughter's fifth birthday party in our home. We have been very blessed in the fact that our daughter's friend's parents have become truly our friends too. A great group of people who are tons of fun. I wanted to create a party that catered to our childrens taste, particularly our childs favorite foods(they ate pasta, procuittto and chinese dumplings), while also providing a delicious and more "adult" meal for the parents. I knew that in order to do this with a house full of 10 five year olds the dishes for the parents would need to be able to be prepared before the party and relatively simple. Also, it should be easy for the guests to serve themselves.

First, as the main courses I prepared a seared skirt steak and a poached side of salmon.

To prepare the steak I rubbed the meat down with garlic, rosemary and a healthy dose of salt and pepper. I then seared it at high heat in a little olive oil. Be sure to let the meat rest, uncut, until you are ready to serve it. When you are ready to serve, cut the meat across the grain and on an angle into thin slices. As a condiment I made horseradish mayonaisse. Simply add horseradish to mayo with a little squeeze of lemon. Add salt and white pepper to taste. I garnished the plate with a few radishes.

For the poached salmon I salted and used white pepper on a large piece salmon. In a large saute pan I put two parts water to one part white wine and brought to a low simmer, then gently slid the fish in. Make sure the liquid only goes up to about 2/3 the depth of the fish. In other words, part of the top of the fish should not be submerged in liquid. Be very careful to not let the liquid go above a slow simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes then cover and continue cooking for 3-5 more minutes then turn the heat off and leave the lid on for 10 minutes. Take the fish out of the liquid and place on a plate in the refrigerator. As a condiment for this dish I chopped up fresh herbs (tarragon, chives) and combined with mayo. I used thin slices of cucumber and lemon as garnish over the top of the salmon.

As one of the side dishes I prepared a very simple potato salad. I wanted to make a salad that had a bite and no mayo so as to act as a counter part to the rich meat and fish dishes. This is truly such an easy recipe and was a huge hit.
Boil some Yukon Gold potatoes until tender. Add dijon mustard, a small amount of olive oil, and a small jar of capers to the potatoes. Toss gently (best to use your hands for this). Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Create a bed of watercress and pile the potato salad on top of the greens.











I served some very simple steamed asparagus with the meal.

Chocolate Cupcake with Vanilla Buttercream and a Fresh Strawberry

Blackberry Spice Cupcake with Caramel Frosting

Brand new flavor! A twist on a classic old family recipe. The cake has both spice (cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg ) and blackberry. The frosting is a rich caramel buttercream. Topped off with a fresh blackberry.

Smoked Salmon Salad "Nicoise"

This salad is big enough for a dinner and is just a spin on a classic Salade Nicoise. You could use any kind of smoked salmon, or any other smoked fish, but my favorite is this hot smoked salmon which results in a smoky roasted fish.

Simply put down a bed of lettuce, then layer on things like -

Hard Boiled egg

Tomato

Boiled Potato

Steamed Chilled Green Beans or Haricot Vert

Cucumber

Pieces of Fish

and I used a vegetable peeler to shave ribbons of radish for the top.

The dressing was -

2 tblsp of lemon juice

1 tbsp of dijon mustard

4 tbsp of Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

You can also add some capers.

Cupcakes! Yes, More Cupcakes.

Yeah, I know, cupcakes. They're everywhere. But, really, I think I've got something pretty good going on here. These are totally organic. I can do ones that are not, and charge less for them, and they're great (sorry to toot my own horn, but I've worked long and hard to get truly good at this and hone a recipe that is really good). But these pictured here are entirely organic from cake to frosting, except for baking powder.


These are Organic Vanilla Cake with an Organic Berry Butter Frosting. I use actual organic berries to flavor and color the frosting. It produces an amazingly beautiful shade of pink/lavender. The chocolate butterfly is an artisnal small batch chocolate from Spain. Alright, I'll fess up, I'm not sure this is "organic", but I certainly trust it to be pretty damn good and as close or better.















Here we have Organic Vanilla Cake with Organic Cocoa Choclate Frosting and Topped with an Organic Raspberry.
















I'm working on a creating a really good, super fudgy, chocolate cake recipe to use. I'll post them as soon as I have it down.

Summer Has Come To a Close

Have you tried Burata? If not, run, don't walk, and go get some. Heck, even if you ate some an hour ago, go get more! Any dairy lover is going to go head over heels for this one. Fresh mozzarella with an extra injection of cream. It makes for a spongy, cream, oozy fresh milk flavor that is fabulous. Obviously, this makes for a great Caprese salad, but you can throw it on some pasta or pizza, or with some grilled peaches, mmmmm, oh baby. By the way, I highly suggest getting your hands on some Maldon fleur de sel. You may be inclined to think salt is salt, and there is no difference, but even if you do not taste a difference you can't help but see the difference in Maldon. The salt comes in big, light, flakes, that do not dissolve immediately. They are an excellent addition to salads and other vegetables. Just be careful, a little goes a long way.

Food Delivery #12

Vegetarian, Low Fat, Low Calorie

Cherry Wood Smoked Roasted Salmon "Chef Salad" with Mustard Shallot Vinaigrette
Fingerling Potatoes, Green Beans, Hard Boiled Egg, Pear Tomatoes

Organic Omelet with Neufchatel Cheese, Asparagus and Pear Tomatoes

Roasted Portabello Mushroom with Balsamic Glaze, Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan and Organic Quinoa Pilaf

Stir fry Tofu "Chicken" with Napa Cabbage, Snow Pea, Carrot, Scallion, Mushroom served with Brown Rice. Soy and Rice Vinegar Sauce on the side.

Classic Ratatouille (all organic) with Organic Brown Rice
(recipe)
This week I made the old vegetarian stand by, ratatouille.

One medium eggplant
2 zucchini
2 yellow squash
one small yellow onion
1 bell pepper (I used yellow, but any will do)
2 cloves of garlic
two tablespoons of chopped fresh basil
one 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes
Olive Oil
Salt
Peel the eggplant. I like to leave some stripes of peel on. Chop into one inch cubes. Chop the zucchini and yellow squash into one inch (or so) chunks. Dice the onion and bell pepper into 1/2 inch dice. Crush the cloves of garlic.
Pour one tablespoon of olive oil into a large saute pan over high heat. When the pan is very hot put in the eggplant and saute over high heat until browned and then dump into a large pot like a Creuset or similar. Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the saute pan and when good and hot dump in the zucchini and yellow squash and saute until soft, then dump that in the pot with the eggplant. Next, saute the onion, bell pepper and garlic in a little oil until soft and put that in the pot with the squash too. Add the can of diced tomatoes, salt and the chopped basil to the pot with the eggplant and squash and simmer over medium to low heat for anywhere from 1/2 an hour to an hour. (I like it to cook for the longer time, but that's just me. Season to taste.

Meal Delivery #11

Lemon and Garlic Shrimp with Organic Jasmine Rice and steamed Asparagus and Oven Roasted Organic Tomatoes

Organic Eggplant Rollatini with Side Salad

Roasted Portobello Mushrooms and Fennel Bulb with Corn, Tomato and Olive Salsa served with Quinoa

Organic Egg Omelet with Steamed Asparagus, Neufachatel Cheese and Sundried Tomato

Lemon and Garlic Shrimp with Organic Jasmine Rice and steamed Asparagus and Oven Roasted Organic Tomatoes

First Sleep Over!

So our daughter hosted her first sleep over this past weekend and we all had such a good time. I bought some ready made pizza dough from our local Italian specialty shop, Russo's. The kids (both 4 years old) did a great job pushing and pounding out their dough balls into pizza shape discs.
I put out a "pallette" of ingredients for them to work with. Again, they did a wonderful job. I encouraged them to make faces.

For tomato sauce I cheated and used a simple small can of the stuff. I had polenta on hand which I used to coat the pans so the dough wouldn't stick. I turned the oven up as far as it goes and put the pizzas in, checking them often. I'd say it was about 10 minutes to done.

The next morning we made animal pancakes. I just made a simple buttermilk pancake recipe and used a regular spoon to spoon the batter into shapes. I used one of my favorite products, Cascadian Farms Organic Frozen Berries. We just sprinkle a little sugar over the top and microwave them for 30-60 seconds, then stir gently.

Bunny

Mickey Mouse

Bear

Video Juice Box

The cast and crew of Video Juke Box outside the Knitting Factory

In a little break from food posting, I thought I'd do some "mommy" posts. First up-

Video Juice Box and the Brooklyn Knitting Factory.

This event is super fun. Jeremy Pollet and gang host an afternoon of fun videos, games, prizes and other various acts around a central theme. (We've seen Circus and Dinosaurs) These guys are great fun for kids and their adults. Plus a killer happy hour deal goes on during the whole day (check the board in the photo).

You can find more info here- http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/group.php?gid=307476970853&ref=ts
or check out Kniting Factory's website. The shows happen on Sundays. They also host sing along movies for kids. The last one was Muppet Movie, the one coming up on April 18th is Nightmare Before Christmas!

Seared Salmon with Oven Roasted Fennel and Tomatoes

I know, another Salmon meal?! Well my client, who is mostly vegetarian, loves salmon, so I try to include it as much as possible. It works well since salmon, because of how moist it is naturally, keeps nicely.

For the side dish I cut wedges of plum tomatoes and slices of a fennel bulb. On two separate baking sheets I poured a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkled on a couple of big pinches of salt and a few twists of the pepper mill and then swirled that around together and added the fennel to one and the tomatoes to the other and then tossed the vegetables on the pan to coat lightly. Put them in a 400 degree oven and check on them after 10 minutes. The fennel will do well to be turned once. Don't move the tomatoes, they'll fall apart. The vegetable took about 20 minutes total and I placed them under the broiler after for a little additional browning.

Weekly Food Delivery Menu #10

Seared Organic Salmon Fillet with Oven Roasted Fennel and Tomatoes

Organic Chickpea and Mushroom Curry with Organic Basmati Rice and Cucumber Raita

Organic Egg and Egg White Omelet with Tofu Mozzarella, Sauteed Mushrooms and Spinach and a Red Onion Pickle

Organic Black Bean Cake with Oven Roasted Organic Garnet Sweet Potato "Fries", Fresh Salsa and Yogurt with a Red Cabbage and Apple Slaw

Low Fat, Low Sugar Chocolate Chip Muffins

Weekly Food Delivery: Menu # 9

Vegetarian, Low Fat, Low Calorie-

Poached Organic Salmon Filet with Tomato, Cucumber and Dill Salad

Organic Tofu with Mushroom, Scallion, Organic Buckwheat Soba and Organic Broccoli

Organic Egg and Egg White Omelet with Tofu Mozzarella and a Basil and Tomato Salsa

Vegetarian Zucchini Tamales with Organic Quinoa Pilaf

Sit Down Dinner Party for 12

These are photos from a dinner/birthday party for 12. I'll blog recipes later-
My mission- create a beautiful and luxurious dinner party for 12 on a budget (mostly solo with minimal help serving).

I used biodegradeable palm leaf plates to cut down on clean up.

Beautiful Stargazer Lilies from the deli. $28

Pomgranate martinis were the featured drink.

Meyer Lemon Lemonade.

Bar set up.

Cheese plate- Manchego, Triple Cream Brie, Artisinal Bleu. 5 olive mix.

Scottish Smoked Salmon on Baguette. Garnished with Plugra butter and Organic Dill.

Truffled Liver Mousse Pate on Baguette garnished with Cornichons.

Avocado and Pineapple Salsa served with Sweet Potato and Beet Chips.

1st course- Puff Pastry filled with Goat Cheese Mousse, Roasted Asparagus. Basalmic Glaze.

Entree for Vegetarian guests- Roasted Vegetables, and Herbed Tofu Napoleon. Roasted Red Pepper Sauce and Basil Pesto.

Entree for the carnivores- Braised Lamb Shank with Olives and Oranges served with a Parmesan Polenta.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting.