The Houndstooth Gourmet

How great is Top Chef this year?!! There is a great mix of true talent, and the elimination challenges are bringing out the best (and worst) in the cheftestants. I am rooting for Stephanie to go all the way this year-it is about time a woman took the title of Top Chef. And well, if Richard wins, that would be great too. He’s got class, style and terrific instincts.

I was happy to see Restaurant Wars play out again with the remaining contestants. Antonia et al. were the designated dream team, and seemingly handled the challenge with aplomb. Let’s face it-they smoked their competition. I was especially impressed with Stephanie’s handling of the FOH, but what she did in the BOH was even better. Her pasta was singled out as terrific, and her dessert of agorgonzola cheesecake with a concord grape reduction sauce was tricky-but it worked. I was inspired.

Making a savory dessert can go wrong on so many levels. Making a souffle in itself can be daunting (remember TC’s Eric and his nacho souffle?). But Stephanie’s dessert scored big time, and made Richards banana scallops look trite and so yesterday. It was a bold move, and it worked.

So, that’s my inspiration to make a savory dessert with leftover Gorgonzola dolce I had on hand. With what was left from a bottle of pinot noir the prior evening, and some strawberries, I made a semi-sweet sauce that held over nicely for a few days in the refrigerator. I found the recipe for the souffle online from the San Fransisco Chronicle. The souffle was very easy to make. Basically you make a roux, a bechamel sauce, then a cheese sauce. The cheese sauce then gets the egg yolks tempered and added, followed by the whipped egg whites. Pour the batter into ramekins, make a bain marie and bake. While the souffle baked, I further reduced my pinot noir and strawberry sauce.

De-lish!

For the pinot noir and strawberry sauce, you’ll need 1 cup of pinot noir, 2 cups of sliced strawberries, and 2-3 tablespoons of sugar. Heat all of the ingredients in a sauce pan. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until it is reduced by 50%. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve, or chinois. Spoon sauce over the souffles prior to serving.

Tags: strawberries, dessert, Recipe by Ramona
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OK. Pretty soon I’m going to be covered in tiny seeds and have a green top sprouting out of my head. I’m alright with that, actually.

Strawberry season is going strong, and the prices at the Virginia farmers markets are very good, however, you need to use your fresh market berries quickly; they aren’t made to store long and can bruise easily.

Now, what’s more traditional and wonderful than strawberry shortcake? A delicious biscuit, split and filled with fresh whipped cream and macerated berries is just the way to end a meal at this time of year. This recipe makes biscuit baking easy work, and the strawberries can macerate while you bake.

Individual Strawberry Shortcake

makes 10 servings

Ingredients

• 1 lb. strawberries, washed and sliced
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (optional)
• 2 cups All Purpose flour, sifted
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) butter, well chilled and cut into 8 pieces
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup milk
• whipped cream, fresh or store bought

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, pour strawberries, add sugar and (optional) balsamic vinegar. Stir to coat fully. Cover with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator until ready to use. The maceration process will produce a syrup from the berry juice and vinegar.

Fit a stand mixer with flat beater. To the mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Turn mixer on low to just combine. Add chilled butter and slowly increase speed to medium-high for 2-3 minutes. The mixture should resemble coarse crumbs.

In a small bowl, pour milk and egg. Stir to whisk lightly. Add milk and egg to mixer. Mix on medium low until just combined. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough until it comes together.

Using a floured rolling pin, roll dough out to 1/2 inch thick. Using a floured 2 1/2 inch cutter, cut into approximately 10 biscuits. Transfer biscuits onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in oven for 10 minutes.

Allow to cool until you care able to handle the biscuits. Cut each biscuit in half with a serrated knife.

Open the biscuits up like a sandwich. On bottom piece, place a generous dollop of whipped cream, topped with macerated strawberries. Replace biscuit top.

Garnish with mint (optional).

Serve immediately.

Tags: strawberries, dessert, Recipe by Ramona
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Spoiler Alert! This salad is easy and delicious….and not one ingredient came from a farmers market! Gasp, I know. Me-Miss “eat and buy local”. I  know, I know.

Ahem. I can explain.

I have been buying quarts of strawberries at the markets, and honestly, they’ve been good, but not great. I’m not wowed and I really want to be. But, here’s the thing-we’ve had so much rain, and strawberries prefer dryer conditions. Dryer weather sweetens the berries and this area has seen over 9 inches of rain in the past month.

I’m contemplating building an arc-a small one-it only needs to fit 3 dogs.

Which is why I have been keeping an eye open for sales on strawberries at my local markets. Yesterday, I found them on sale at Whole Foods for $3.89 per pound. They are much sweeter than local berries at this time. I will be checking out the local farmers berries each weekend to see how the taste is coming along over the rest of the season.

This salad is a a perfect begining, or ending to a meal. The candied pecans will have you snacking on them again and again (the recipe makes 2 cups). The sweetness and crunch of the berries and nuts plays nicely off of the creamy, salty tang of the cheese and mild pepper taste of the watercress.

Salad of Watercress, Strawberries, Gorgonzola Dolce and Candied Pecans with Champagne Vinaigrette

serves 4

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 large bunch watercress-about 6 cups loosely packed, washed and dried (you can use arugula or escarole)
• 4 large or 8 small strawberries, washed and dried just before serving, quartered
• 1/2 cup candied pecans (see recipe below)
• 1/4 lb. gorgonzola dolce, crumbled (you can use any mild blue-veined cheese)

Champagne Vinaigrette

• 2 Tablespoons champagne vinegar
• 2 tablespoons spicy apricot mustard (you can use other mustards such as dijon, or cranberry, or any fruity mustard if you like)
• kosher salt, pinch
• pepper, 2-3 grinds freshly ground
• 6 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Candied Pecans

• 2 cups pecans, rough chopped
• 1 egg white, beaten
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• pinch kosher salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

In a bowl, combine pecans and egg white. Coat fully.

Turn coated pecans out onto a baking sheet which has been sprayed with a non-stick spray. Sprinkle sugar over pecans and turn to coat evenly. Sprinkle pinch of salt over the pecans and spread evenly on baking sheet.

Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes. Turn once during cooking. Allow to cool for 10 minutes. The nuts can be stored in an airtight container for 4 days, or in the freezer for 1 month.

In a small bowl, add champagne vinegar, mustard, salt and peppers. Whisk briskly to incorporate. Continue whisking and slowly stream in olive oil. Continue whisking until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Adjust seasoning to taste.

To compose the salad;

Arrange watercress, quartered strawberries, crumbled gorgonzola and candied pecans on 4 salad plates

Drizzle vinaigrette over composed salads and serve immediately.

Tags: strawberries, nuts, cheese, salad, Recipe by Ramona
5 Comments »