citrus zing!

The other night when P asked me to make something 'exotic and interesting' for dinner, I didn't immediately think to make seared scallops with citrus risotto. Frankly, I drew a blank. All I knew is that it was cold out and I wanted something warm and comforting for dinner. He suggested making something time intensive but for a late night dinner that was out of the question.

I went to my recipe collection looking for something quick and remembered this recipe from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook which I first saw from Adam's blog. Maybe this isn't the most exotic recipe ever but it struck me as very interesting and the citrus is wonderful this time of year! When I say the citrus is good, I mean wow, it's incredible. This recipe calls for limes, oranges, and grapefruit. All three were wonderfully sweet and tangy. You make this risotto like any other risotto but stir in the fruit segments at the end and you get all of these wonderful flecks of fruit mixed in.


Seared Scallops with Citrus Risotto
adapted from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook and seen on TAG

1 lb large scallops, ligament removed, cleaned and pat dry
salt and pepper
1 cup arborio rice
1 onion, diced
4 cups chicken stock (Adam says to use 5 cups but I used 4 and had some leftover)
1 lime and zest, segmented
1 orange, segmented
1 red grapefruit, segmented
1 tblsp mascarpone

First prepare the fruit. Zest the lime and set aside. Cut the top and bottom off the fruit and then carefully skin the sides removing the pith with the skin. This part is really simple. Next use a small knife and cut out each individual segment of fruit between the membrane. Collect all fruit slices with juice in a large bowl.

Heat the broth in a large pot and keep it at a simmer while you make the rice. In a large, hot non-stick skillet melt some butter and cook the onion until translucent. Add the rice and a little bit of oil if it is too dry, then toast the rice until it begins to get translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add about 3/4 cup of the hot broth to the pan and stir, stir, stir. Turn the heat down to medium at this point and keep stirring until the rice absorbs most of the broth. Keep adding amounts of broth and stirring until the rice is al dente. The only trick to risotto is don't cook it too fast (that is at a high heat) and stir as much as possible.

In between stirs prepare the scallops. Simply pat them dry and sprinkle them heavily with salt and pepper. In a super hot skillet sear each side of the scallop until they are nicely browned and just cooked through. This should only take a minute or two.

Keep stirring.

When the rice is nice and ooey-gooey and al dente (around 20 minutes later), stir in the fruit and juice. The segments will break up nicely if you keep stirring. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Once the rice has absorbed most of the juice, stir in a heaping tablespoon of mascarpone cheese and the lime zest. Scoop the risotto into a big bowl and serve the seared scallops on top. If you used really excellent citrus, you'll have a wonderfully balanced, creamy, perfect dish for a cold night that's a little more exciting than meat and potatoes.

Cantonese is such a strange language. I've been listening to it for nearly five years now and I think it sounds different every time I hear it. I may only know how to say a handful of words and phrases, but I never forget how to say this dessert. The "soup ball" (Tāngyuán) is perhaps my favorite thing on Earth. A glutinous rice ball stuffed with sweet black sesame paste boiled in a light syrup... I love it. And I'm sad this is a picture of my last package. Normally you can pick these up at a good Asian foods market but I have had trouble finding them. On the rare occasion that I spot them, I buy one of those big silver freezer bags and stock up. They may be easier to find it stores around Chinese New Year and the Lantern Festival.

40 ± 2 cloves of garlic

Ever since I can remember I've always wanted to make chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. It sounds so extreme doesn't it? It sounds like a dish that means business. As I was unwrapping all 40 or so cloves of garlic tonight, I was just thinking of how bad I would smell later. My fingers would reek (not good for my line of work), my breath would be killer, and my sweat would smell like sweet garlic. Well I have to say I was wrong on all counts. This may sound like a serious dish but the garlic really mellows out and what you're left with is sweet roasted cloves mixed in a rich sauce. It is heaven on earth. Plus I couldn't believe how easy it was to make. Perhaps we can have chicken with 40 cloves of garlic every week. However, the odor might kick in eventually.


Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
as seen on TAG and in Barefoot Contessa

4 lbs of chicken parts
40 cloves of garlic (about 3 heads)
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp cognac, divided (I used bourbon)
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 tbsp fresh thyme
2 tbsp AP flour
2 tbsp heavy cream

Don't bother peeling all of that garlic by hand. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and blanche the cloves for a couple minutes. Once you take them out of the water they are much easier to peel and you're fingers won't stink.

Pat chicken dry and coat with salt and pepper. Heat butter and oil in a large pot (preferably a dutch oven) until very hot. Place the chicken in the pot in small batches and brown all sides -- a couple minutes a side. Brown the chicken then place it on a separate plate. Once the chicken is all set, toss in the garlic and stir it around for a few minutes until it starts to brown nicely but not burn. Next deglaze the pan with the wine and 2 tbsp cognac and scrape the bits off the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil then return all of the chicken and cover, cooking on the lowest heat for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

After the chicken is done remove it from the pot and set it aside, covered with foil to keep it warm while you make the sauce. Turn the heat back up to medium and remove 1/2 cup of the wine/drippings/cognac mixture from the pot and whisk into it the flour to make a roux. Stir the roux into the main pot to thicken the whole thing. Stir in the cream, remaining cognac, and thyme and let the mixture come together for a minute or two. Season if need be then serve the chicken with the sauce poured over top.

Whoever said chicken was dull?

monkfish

How can something that looks like this


turn into a yummy dish they call "Poor Man's Lobster?"

Easing into Fall

One thing that is really funny about Floridians is that once the temperature dips into the 50s, people start wearing winter coats, boots, and sweaters. Then you have a good portion of tourists or whatnot who are still wearing shorts and flip-flops. It makes you double-take when you're out and about. I'm still not quite used to the weather. 60 degrees didn't used to feel cold to me, now I need slippers and blankets.

I'm still not quite ready to put my Le Creuset to good use with braises and stews. I'm not quite willing to roast a chicken just yet either. Until then I'm easing into fall like with this incredible pork recipe I saw today in my copy of Cuisine at Home. Cuisine at Home is really a underutilized magazine. I never hear anything about it at all! Yet, everything I've ever made from it has been fantastic. They must have some serious testers working for them. Just try this recipe and you might want a subscription yourself.


Sage Encrusted Pork Tenderloin
adapted from Cuisine at Home, December 2008

1 pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut in half
3/4 cup bread crumbs (I used wheat panko)
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh sage, minced (or 1 tsp dried sage)
salt and pepper

2 shallots, sliced
1 cup thinly sliced apples (I used one Jonagold)
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup thawed apple juice concentrate (I'd use slightly less next time so it's not so sweet)
2 tsp butter, divided
1 tsp flour
salt and pepper

Preheat the over to 425. Mix breadcrumbs, sage, salt and pepper, and oil together. I added a bit of water too in order to moisten the bread crumbs up. Rub the mustard all over the tenderloin pieces then roll in the breadcrumb mixture. Let the meat rest so the breadcrumbs adhere better. When you're ready to cook, heat some oil in a skillet and brown one side of the tenderloins for about 5 minutes. You may need to add more oil seeing as the breadcrumbs absorb most of it. Flip the meat then place it in the oven to cook through for another 15 minutes.

In another pan heat 1 tsp of butter with the shallots and cook until softened. Add the thyme and cook another minute. Finally add the apples and cook for another minute or two. Deglaze the pan with wine and cook until most of the liquid evaporates. Once evaporated add the broth and apple concentrate. Melt the remaining tsp of butter in a small dish and mix it with the flour. Add this mixture to the compote to thicken it and reduce the heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Your pork should be done when a thermometer reads 150-155. If you're good with meat you don't need a thermometer. I like my pork a little pink inside so I'm not sure what the temp would be. Slice the pork into medallions and serve with the compote.

What would Calvin Trillin Think

Calvin Trillin first tempted me with the salt and pepper shrimp in Alice Let's Eat. His description of the dish in Hong Kong and Flushing was so clear you could almost smell the fry oil. The most recent issue of Gourmet had a recipe that reminded me of them again. I had forgotten about it and then found myself with a pound of mutant prawns from Malaysia (a pound was a mere 6 shrimp have you!).

Now it wasn't until I had these salted, breaded, and ready to go that I realized that salt and pepper shrimp are supposed to be eaten shell and all. The shell on these prawns was thick and tough, and would in now way crisp up to an edible state. It was too late. But I did have the shell split and a large portion of exposed flesh was covered in batter. I went for it and I'm glad I did. Sure you had to peel the shell off before eating, but the little bits of batter were incredibly tasty. These prawns were so big, I think I'd call this dish salt and pepper lobster tails rather than shrimp. Heavenly. The deep fried cilantro and jalapeños didn't hurt either.

Salt and Pepper Shrimp
from Gourmet October 2008

1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, in shell, shell split and deveined ,legs removed
3 quarts oil (canola or smart balance with omega-3!)
3 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 cup cornstarch
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon freshly ground coarse black pepper
8 sliced jalapeños
2 big bunches of cilantro sprigs
2 teaspoons flaky sea salt to taste

Heat oil to 400°F in a heavy pot. Toss the shrimp with 1 tablespoon salt and let stand 5 minutes. Rinse with cold water, drain, and pat dry. Pulse egg whites in a food processor or blender until watery, then put in a bowl. Stir together cornstarch, 3 tablespoons pepper, and 2 tablespoons salt in another bowl.

Toss half of shrimp with 1/2 teaspoon each of kosher salt and pepper in a third bowl, dip in egg white, shake of excess, then lightly dredge in cornstarch mixture, shaking off excess. Make sure the coating is light. Fry until crisp and cooked through, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes (dependent on size). Transfer to paper towels to drain. Season, coat, and fry remaining shrimp. Reduce oil temperature to 375°F or therabouts and fry half of chiles with half of cilantro until cilantro just starts to turn dark green and chiles are wilted, only a couple seconds. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining chiles and cilantro. Serve shrimp topped with fried chiles and cilantro and sprinkled with sea salt. Serve immediately, shell and all.

Favorite drink of the moment

Have you heard of the French liqueur Domaine de Canton? The fresh baby ginger and cognac liqueur used to be hard to come by in the States but now it is readily available at specialty liquor stores. The design of the bottle is incredible and the contents even better. It is fine to sip over ice but can be mixed with a variety of other liquors. The bottle comes with a booklet of a handful of recipes (many more on the website), so I decided to try one mixed with Hendrick's gin. Hendrick's gin, if you're not familiar with it, is a gin infused with cucumber. Together this is a serious drink with serious flavor. Sweet juniper and cucumber and spicy, smooth ginger.


La Coloniale
2 parts Domaine de Canton Liqueur
3 parts Hendrick's Gin
cucumber slice to garnish