New Years Feast - Lobster Thermidor, Pasta with Monkfish and Zucchini

Well - the downscaling continued a bit at New Years. Well, at first it did. NY Eve dinner was somewhat straightforward, mostly by keeping the number of dishes small. Again, at first. Once we hit upon the Appetizer Throw Down, things started getting a bit more involved. More on the throwdown in the next post.


New Years Eve Dinner

• Lobster Thermidor and Lobster Tails, Gourmet May 1941 (that's not a typo - but it was reprinted in 2001)
  
• Radiatorre with Monkfish, Thyme and Zucchini, Batali Molto Italiano.
• Haricot Vert with Cirtus and Garlic, Batali Molto Italiano.
  
  

Lobster thermidor is a classic dish from another era, and as stated by the Gourmet editors, it's surprising how good it remains. Of course it follows the rule of excess butter and cream: how can it be bad with that much butter and cream? Actually, it's not even those ingredients that are the secret - nor is it even the lobster. An effective quantity of reduced sherry is what adds the intense flavor to this rich blend of lobster and dairy. Finished under a broiler to add slightly browned top and it can't fail.

Though the flavors can't fail, there are technique aspects that can. I wasn't pleased with the consistency of my butter/cream sauce, so turned up the heat to let it reduce a bit. Turning my back to work on other dishes, I let it simmer too long and the cream sauce broke. By that, I mean that it broke down from a creamy sauce to a buttery/oily sauce. Now this could be a disaster if the consistency of the dish were paramount - but fortunately this is not the case here. Simply filling the lobster shells with the resulting mixture still lead to a luxurious and still rich blend of lobster and sauce flavoring.

Given the richness of this dish, there was more than we could eat, and even the leftovers lasted for a while. Tossed over pasta or rice it was great. Also a little bit at room temp spread onto a cracker turned into a nice instant appetizer.

The pasta with monkfish, thyme and zuchhini turned out to be more than I had expected. More as in "more better", not more work. This recipe is now about the 5th or 6th straight hit dish from the Molto Italiano cookbook. It requires a tomato sauce to also be made, but that too was an outright success. Here's why:

When I started cooking seriously right after college, one of the things I was trying to grow past was "college student tomato sauce". By that I mean a simple saute of onion, cans of tomato sauce/paste/tomatoes with dried basil and oregano added. From there I graduated to sauces made with fresh herbs, whole peeled fresh tomatoes, some simmered for hours (the Italian-American kitchen stereotype). In fact, over 25 years I've made all manner of sauces. Rarely are the complex and long simmering ones really that much better than a sauce made simply with high quality ingredients. I know I've made several from Cooks Illustrated that were very good.

However, the Batali Basic Tomato Sauce was successful on all fronts. It had few ingredients, little technique, little babysitting, and MAXIMUM flavor. He calls for whole canned tomatoes. A well known fact is that canned tomatoes imported from San Marzano near Naples are generally a superior product for tomato sauces. In fact, they're close to the quality of fresh grocery store quality Roma tomatoes, without the hassle of peeling. I've been using this one, branded as San Marzano, for many years with good success. Sorry to see that an online specialty site is selling them at $5.50 for a 28 oz can, as I get them for about $2.75 in a local grocery store.

Back to the recipe. Simply saute onion, fresh thyme then two cans of tomatoes. Then simmer down to a thick sauce. I was sceptical that it would thicken appropriately without assistance. Not a problem. The thyme gave it all the flavor it needed.I broke the whole tomatoes in half while cooking so they would release their juices.

Added to the monkfish and zuchini the sauce was superb. Once spread through the whole pound of pasta, it was not the typical thick coating (picture jarred sauce - yuck) - but more a thin sheen of tomato everywhere, with large chunks of tomato halves interspersed throughout. Wonderful.

The simplicity of the sauce and the finished dish were impressive, as was the taste. Many layers of flavor from very few ingredients. I have to admit, I've become quite impressed with Mr. Food Network Star Batali, and look forward to cooking and eating my way through more of his creations.

2008 Christmas Menu

At the request of Ms. Finn, the Christmas menu was downscaled. Totally appropriate after the blowout Thanksgiving and lots of other great holiday meals. I did try a few new recipes, with a couple being keepers, and one not to bother with again.

• Parmesan Cheese Puffs, Gourmet December 2006
• Dinner Rolls, Cooks Illustrated #95, Nov/Dec 2008
• Crown Roast of Pork with Winter Fruits and Port Sauce, Gourmet December 2008
  
• Wild Rice with Wild Mushrooms
  
• Green Beans with fresh herbs and Lemon
• Brussels Sprouts with Fried Shallots and Wild Mushrooms, Gourmet November 2006
  

Let's start with the bad news. The dinner roll recipe is far too much labor for an adequate result. Since this menu was essentially pretty simple (I know, it doesn't look simple - but the quantities were small since it was just our family, and some things are easier than they look)....anyway, I was willing to invest some time in a pretty complex technique for dinner rolls. Not only were there multple kneading steps, but there were multiple cooking steps. The rolls were first baked in a cake pan, then broken apart and baked at a different temperature on a sheet pan. I was expecting something really sublime - like the crusty exterior and delicate interior promised in the recipe. But no luck. The rolls were ordinary and the preparation process was anything but. So no go on this one.

The Pork Roast is a variation of a Gourmet recipe from this December's issue. Instead of a straight roast, I use a crown cut, which really just means it was trimmed in order to be tied into a circle for impressive presentation. Here's picture prior to cooking.

This recipe is quite nice - a blend of apricots, prunes and granny smith apples is combined with shallot, onion and port, then stuffed into a cavity in the center of the roast. A port / shallot reduction becomes the sauce, which would be better thickened in another manner than cornstarch. But very nice nonetheless, and a GREAT presentation. In the first picture above, you'll see the circle of stuffed fruit in the middle of the chop.

The parmesan puff appetizer is totally simple and delicious. The only downside is the mess (and hassle) of deep frying. I used a very shallow depth of oil in a pretty small pan to reduce the amount of oil. The only way I committed to frying was that I used the same oil for frying shallots for the Brussels sprouts dish. Unless I kept a mini deep fryer around, I don't have much desire to fry. But if you've got oil going, this is a good recipe to add to a menu.

Wild rice and mushrooms were standard - roast mushrooms in high heat with garlic and oil, added them to wild rice cooked with sauteed onion, thyme and chicken stock. Solid complement to this menu, as were the simple green beans to please the kids (few sprouts eaten by the younger crown in this house). It's a risk to add herbs and lemon zest, but sometimes I can get away with it at a holiday meal.

The Brussels Sprouts and Wild Mushrooms recipe is totally awesome - and simple if you skip the fried shallots. I didn't think they were worth the extra effort, and will continue to simply roast shallot slices with the sprouts or mushrooms. Instead of sauteing the mushrooms separately, I also roast them in the oven, separately from the sprouts but same technique. Toss with thyme and finish with some butter. To match the recipe, a quick saute of shallot, reduced white wine and thyme could be tossed to finish this dish.

Quick Bread Recipe

This very simple bread making approach was published in the New York Times in November 2007, and I began making it about a month later. It was an instant hit as judged by the responses of others. Of course I like it a lot too. Click here to get access the recipe details at the Times. Or it can be found in a book titled Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking. I've not yet obtained or read this book, but if this recipe is an indication, it won't be long before there are more bread recommendations coming from it.

This recipe results in a dense, yeasty loaf that can have a strong crust, or a bit less if you reduce overall cooking time. I have primarily portioned it into 3 loaves, but have made a few smaller loaves with equal success.

Why is this recipe so good?

• Ease - after 5 minutes of preparation, there is only one additional step, which takes very little skill to master.
• No kneading - which means not only less work, but no variability based on kneading time, technique, etc.
• Taste, look and feel - as good as any of the highest quality artisan bread.

What you need:

• Ingredients: Bread flour (highly recommended, though all-purpose will suffice), Kosher salt, yeast, warm water. Cornmeal for dusting.  
• Equipment: a large bowl, a cutting board or pizza peel, a baking stone (a must) and a rimmed baking sheet / pan.

The approach:

1. Mixing: combine 3 cups warm water, 1.5 tablespoons yeast and1.5 tablespoons salt to dissolve. Stir in 6.5 cups of flour.  use a soft spatula, and fold the wet and dry ingredients gently. The dough will be pretty loose and pretty wet.
2. Rising: Set aside for 2 to 5 hours. Can be refrigerated overnight. If you leave uncovered overnight in a fridge, erratic crusty formations will harden on the top of the dough, which make a great "artisan" look and feel.  
3. Pre-heat: Heat your oven at 450 degrees, with baking stone(s) placed on a middle rack, and a rimmed baking pan on oven floor or lowest rack.  Preheat for at least 45 minutes.
4. Sprinkle a small handful of cornmeal over a baking peel or cutting board.   
5. Forming: While oven is heating, using well-floured hands, pull dough away from the sides of the bowl, and turn upside down onto a marble/stone or well floured surface. Cut ough into thirds. Dust "wet" edges of dough with flour, turn upside down, and form a loaf shape, keeping the hardened crusty top in a prominent and attractive position. Repeat to form three loaves. Place loaves onto a making peel or cutting board. After setting the loaf down, twist it in a circular motion to ensure it doesn't stick.
6. Let loaves rise an additional 20-40 minutes.
7. Slide loaves onto stones in hot oven. Pour 1 cup of cool water into the sheet pan and quickly shut the oven door. Cook approximately 20 minutes, checking color to determine final cooking time.

Final comments: There are only two really tricky parts of this recipe. Forming the loaves is first, as the dough is pretty sticky and hard to work with. The process of sliding the dough into the oven takes a little finesse, also because of the stickiness of the dough. Be sure to use plenty of cornmeal and spin it a little on the peel. Notice the amount of cornmeal in the picture below. But just a little practice and it will pay off for you.

Weekday Menu - Awesome Pasta with Mushrooms, Peppers and Kale

I had made a few Mario Batali appetizers for Thanksgiving from his cookbook Molto Italiano. One was his topping for Crostini using sauteed kale and pancetta. I also had roasted some mushrooms, red peppers, shallots and garlic. These two dishes were left over, and I had a pasta in mind. So here's what happened:

- Marinated Eggplant Appetizer
- Cavatappi in Mushroom, Kale and Pepper Sauce

The eggplant came from the same cookbook, with the secret ingredients being mint and orange zest. These two cut through the traditional viniagrette flavors and introduced a brightness. The citrus alone would have been OK, but the pairing of both citrus and mint is what made it stand out. Reminder - do NOT overcooked eggplant when grilling, roasting or broiling. I didn't this time, and was glad for it.

On to the pasta. I started with some onion and garlic sauteed in oil. Added in the leftover mushrooms and peppers. Put about 1/2 a cup of heavy cream, which would sauce over a pound of pasta (17.5 oz package of high-end Rao's cavatappi). I might have added a little white wine before the cream.....but as it's a week later I forget.

Oh yeah, I had more pancetta on hand. I diced it and included it in the saute with the onion.

OK - this is all sideways. Cream is not added yet. As the pasta finished, I introduced the kale, which had PLENTY of red pepper flakes to spice it up. Tossed in a handful of diced tomato, then quickly on to the small amount of cream.

Combined this with the pasta and added high quality parmesan.

Results? One of the best pastas I've ever made.

Why? While the kale and roasted mushrooms and peppers would have not been an enourmous investment of time at the front end of this recipe, it would have added considerably. In fact, since I did broil some eggplant, it wouldn't have been a big deal. But the flavors of each (the mushroom and kale dishes) were able to really combine in that they were made 2 days prior. Add the convenience factor and a small amount of cream and parmesan.....well, I won't get much of an argument, even from those that didn't get to enjoy this dish.

Thanksgiving Menu 2008 - updated

OK - it's excessive. It's somewhat traditional. This particular Thanksgiving preparation was the most enjoyable, stress free and timely one ever. Possible factors:

- I've made almost EVERY recipe at least once before
- The entire menu is REALLY close to last years menu
- We only had one guest - my father in law Pete
- Even the kids (and Pete) helped - including food preparation

Here's the menu:

Appetizers

• Focaccia with Parmesan and fresh herbs, Mario Batali's Molto Italiano
• Bacon and Roasted Corn Gougeres, Gourmet November 2007
• Kids Veggie Tray
• Four Crostinis - Mushroom and sage; leek and mint; Red pepper, onion and thyme; kale and pancetta (see next post for how the kale was re-used!!). Also from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano
  

Dinner

• Fresh Crusty Bread, see this post.
• Roasted Turkey with neck gravy from roasted turkey stock
  
• Scalloped Root Vegetables, Gourmet November 2006
  
• Mashed Potato and Root Vegetables
• Green Beans with garlic
• Roasted Garlic Brussels Sprouts with Wild Mushrooms, Gourmet November 2006
  
• Sausage Stuffing, Gourmet November 2007
  
• Sausage, Leek and Fennel Stuffing with Roasted Mushrooms, my own recipe
  

Dessert

• Pumpkin Pie, Family recipe
  
• Whiskey Apple Crumble Pie, New York Times 11/14/07

The Brussels Sprouts were one of the highlights, and we made them again at Christmas.

The turkey stock was made in advance, and is an important new step in Thanksgiving preparations. The idea is that a day or two before thanksgiving, you roast turkey wings and thighs and make a stock. From the roasted parts, and incredible stock is created, which can be used for gravy, stuffing and other dishes that require stock (like the scalloped root veggies above).

As with the advent of brining turkeys which took root in the 1990's, I think that the roasted turkey stock should become a standard step for any serious cook for a Thanksgiving meal.