Fine Food, Fine Pork...That's All.

8.28.2008

Tomatoes Galore!!

Michael Ruhlman has a great post on what to do with the abundance of tomatoes this time of year.  Canning, freezing and otherwise preserving foods when they are fresh has become somewhat of a lost art with the rise of food technology.  Sadly, with convenience we must always give up certain degrees of quality.  

8.26.2008

Food Mills and Gnocchi

If you ask any chef for a good Potato Gnocchi recipe you are likely to get the same answer from all of them:  Gnocchi is a technique.  The best you could hope for is a vague ratio.  The first thing you will need, however, is a food mill of some sort.  

My wife and I recently visited our favorite antique mall.  I was especially pleased when I came across an old Foley food mill.  I am not sure what year it is from but it's durability tells me that it comes from another time.  I have wanted a food mill for some time but was not willing to pay the going rate of $40 and up that the newer (and less durable) models cost.  This one only set me back $10.  

To start off you will need to bake some russet potatoes and make sure they are completely done.  While they are still hot, peel them and cut them into manageable chunks.  I use a towel to hold them while I peel them with a pairing knife.  Run the potatoes through your food mill onto a clean counter top and form a small nest with the pureed potatoes.

Put one egg yolk for every potato used inside of the nest.  Add salt and any other seasoning you wish at this time.  Sprinkle a good sized handful of flour over the potato and eggs and use a bench scraper to "chop" everything together.  The reason for incorporating the flour in this way is that over mixing the potato will cause it to release too much starch and become gummy.  

Next, use your hand to extrude (squeeze) the mixture to further incorporate the flour.  Add more flour if it is too wet.  You want the final product to be slightly moist to the touch but dry enough that it holds itself together.  Gnocchi is considered a technique partly because it takes practice to know when you've added enough flour.  
Roll out a section of your gnocchi into a long snake and cut into 1" pieces using your bench scraper.  If you prefer, use the back of a fork to roll your gnocchi over to make those little lines that are so good for soaking up sauce.  
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a gentle boil and drop the little dumplings in.  When they float, they are done and ready to be added to whatever delicious sauce you have created.  
This time around I made a sauce of reduced cream and gorgonzola cheese and served them with grilled bison ribeye.  Cheers!

8.15.2008

Chicken Fat and Haricot Verts

The best green beans in the world...hands down.


Protein:  Flank steak marinated in a paste of shallots, garlic, rosemary and canola oil.  I used a mortar and pestle to make the marinade.  A food processor works as well.  The steak marinated for 3-4 hours though it would be ideal to marinate overnight.

Starch:  Shallot roasted potatoes.  I bought these beautiful red potatoes from a roadside vegetable stand not more than a mile from my house.  I par-cooked them in a pot of simmering water before slicing them into 1/2" coins.  As you can see in the picture, I preheated my cast iron in the grill and then sauteed the potatoes.  Once they have a nice sear on them you can throw in some butter and shallots, toss them a bit and then close the lid to roast them.  


Vegetable: Green Beans (also from the veggie stand) sauteed in chicken fat.  As delicious as the rest of this meal was, the green beans stole the show.  They were fantastic.  They were blanched and shocked beforehand.  Once the potatoes were done there was still enough fat and lots of flavor in the pan to saute the beans.  When they were almost done I dropped in the chicken fat from earlier in the week.  Once again, I cannot tell you enough how wonderful chicken fat is and the amazing depth of flavor that it adds to vegetables.  
Cheers.


8.14.2008

The Spy who Loved...Food?


MSNBC reports on the release of formerly classified documents confirming that Julia Child, prior to her career as a chef, worked for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner to the CIA during WWII.  I have always appreciated and admired Julia's impact on American culture and cuisine.  Now that I know she aided in the WWII fight against the Nazis, I can only admire her that much more.  What an amazing and intriguing woman!