shallots

Sautéed Veal Tips with Cremini, Cipolline and Port Wine Demi-Glace

/ Ren

Pastured veal sautéed with fresh crimini mushrooms and cipollini onions, simmered in a reduction of port wine, bone broth, shallots and demi-glace, flavored with fresh English thyme and cracked black pepper..

Sauté quartered brown mushrooms and small cipolline onions (about 1/4 pound of each) in a tablespoon of clarified butter in a heavy skillet until amazing-looking, about 5 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to transfer vegetables to a side dish.

Return skillet to temp, add a little more butter and quickly sear a pound 1-1/4-inch cubes until well browned on the edges, but still rare on the inside. Transfer to the side to keep company with the vegetables, leaving the skillet on the burner.

De-glaze the skillet with about 1/3 cup of a good quality port wine, scraping up all the fond (the brown bits on the bottom of the pan, i.e. the best part!) with a wooden utensil.

Add a cup and a half of good roasted bone stock,  1/2 tablespoon of minced shallots and a loose tablespoon of fresh thyme. Bring to a boil then lower to a fast simmer and cook until reduced in volume by half (patience shall reward).

Return the veal, mushroom and onions to the pan and add a tablespoon and a half of demi-glace.  Simmer slowly, stirring constantly until the sauce is thick and the veal is just heated through (still a little pink on the inside), maybe 5 minutes.

Off the heat, whisk a tablespoon of cold, cultured butter into the sauce, taste for salt and pepper and serve hot with a favorite side (French beans or asparagus, perhaps).

Black Pasta with Lump Crab and Artichokes in Asiago Cream

/ Ren

Jumbo lump crab, artichoke hearts and sweet peppers in a fish velouté with shallots, white wine, cream, Asiago and flat-leaf parsley.  Seasoned with sea salt, black pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes and served over a bed of squid ink pasta..

Black Pasta with Lump Crab and Artichokes in Asiago Cream

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Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Stinging Nettles and Parmesan Cream

/ Ren

Sweet and russet potatoes are boiled and mashed with sprouted wheat flour, pastured egg, sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper and served in a sauce of fried sage, shallots and garlic with fresh cream, steamed nettles and grated Parmesan.  Topped with toasted pine nuts and shaved Asiago..

Sweet

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Stinging Nettles and Parmesan Cream

For the Gnocchi

3/4 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/4 pound russet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 cup sprouted wheat flour
1 large, pastured egg
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
bowl of ice water
olive oil

Boil potatoes until soft then use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a cutting board (reserve cooking water). Mash the still-hot potatoes with ricer or a large fork until mostly smooth, then allow to cool 5-10 minutes.

Gather the potatoes into a mound and create a well in the center. Sprinkle the flour over the top, then crack an egg into the center.  Add salt and pepper and stir into the flour and potatoes as you would regular pasta. Knead gently until nearly dry, about 4 minutes.

Roll dough into 3/4″ diameter cylinders, then cut into 1″ lengths. Squish each gnocchi against the back of a fork then drop into boiling water and cook until they float, about 1 minute. Transfer to ice bath and allow to cool.  Drain, lightly coat with olive oil and hold until ready to use.

For the Cream Sauce

1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 clove garlic, slivered
8 fresh sage leaves, torn
1 tablespoon butter
1 oz white wine
1 cup fresh cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups fresh nettles, steamed, drained and chopped as you would for fresh spinach
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat until shimmering.  Add shallot, garlic and sage and fry until slightly crisp. Add wine and reduce until nearly dry. Reduce heat to medium low and slowly whisk in cream. Cook until reduced in volume by about 1/3, then stir in Parmesan and nettles.  Season to taste with salt and pepper, then add the gnocchi to the pan and heat through.

To serve, spoon gnocchi and cream sauce onto a plate or shallow bowl and garnish with toasted pine nuts and shaved asiago.

This post is part of Meatless Monday!

Pan-Fried Trout with Sesame, Lemon, Shallots, Enoki and Leek Flowers

/ Ren

Fresh Idaho trout fillets are seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, then seared over high heat in sweet butter and sesame oil until crisp around the edges.  The pan is then de-glazed with white wine and reduced with shallots, fresh lemon and chopped parsley.  Enoki mushrooms are sautéed with leek flowers, dried citrus peel, garlic, coriander and sesame seeds..

Pan-Fried Trout with Sesame, Lemon, Shallots, Enoki and Leek Flowers

Shrimp and Grits

/ Ren

Gigantic gulf shrimp are sautéed in sweet butter with fresh lemon, celery, tomatoes, white wine and parsley and served over stone-ground yellow grits with fresh thyme, shrimp stock, garlic and cream..

Shrimp and Grits

Adapted from recipes by Chef Chris Hastings, Coastal Living

For the Grits

1/2 cup stone-ground yellow grits
1 tablespoon cultured butter
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1/2 cup fresh cream
1/2 cup shrimp stock (substitute fish fumét or vegetable stock)
1/2 cup water
1 clove garlic, slivered
1 tablespoon shallot, diced
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Add thyme, garlic and shallots and sauté until soft and fragrant.  Whisk in broth and cream, reduce heat and cook until done, adding water as you go, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and keep warm.

For the Shrimp

4 very fresh jumbo Gulf shrimp, peeled, de-veined and patted dry
2 tablespoons sweet butter, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons red or green bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoon celery, diced
1 small plum tomato, chopped
2 green onions, slivered
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (substitute Old Bay)
1/4 dry white wine
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped

Heat half of the butter in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Add celery, bell pepper and shallots and cook 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook without moving until lightly browned on the outside and opaque on the inside, about 2-3 minutes per side.

Remove shrimp from pan and add wine, cook and reduce until only a little liquid remains, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, parsley, lemon juice and shrimp and heat through, about 2 minutes.

To serve, spoon grits into a bowl and arrange shrimp over the top.  Pour the remaining butter sauce over the top and serve with Tabasco if desired.