22 February 2015 – Oscar Sunday

It's been a hectic and snowy week, but tonight, I am snug as a bug in my pajamas and enjoying the Academy Awards after a fun and festive after Mardis Gras Low Country Boil at our friend, Jennifer Dunn's, home. I was feeling a bit under the weather, so I came home early to prepare a simple Sunday Supper and watch the red carpet.

I've been craving French Onion Soup, so tonight's dinner started there. After a rainy and cold week, it really hit the spot. Since the soup was sort of rich, I decided to lighten up the entree with an organic, free range chicken breast stuffed with asparagus, swiss cheese and ham. I served a simple arugula salad on the side.

For dessert, we celebrated John Clark's birthday a week late with one of his childhood favorites, a Texas Sheet Cake. It is a simple, thin chocolate cake with a warm chocolate icing. I hope I did his childhood memories proud, and since he ate three pieces, I assume I lived up to the task!

So now I have to lighten up Sunday Suppers even more the next two months since I have been enlisted as a celebrity dancer in the Service League's "Dancing for the Children" fundraiser on April 25! My dear friend and dance instructor, Christie Hinkley, it going to make sure I stay the course until the competition is over. As I've told many people, I would do anything for these ladies who work so hard to help our children in need. I've attached an image of the sponsor letter, and I would appreciate any and all support I could get in raising funds for our Cherokee County kids. Plus, I hope to see you all at the Ball on April 25! It's a great event and a great cause, and you will not want to miss Christie and me going for the mirror ball trophy!

Until then, stay warm, and dance like no one is looking.

The Menu:

- French Onion Soup

- Bacon Wrapped Chicken Stuffed with Asparagus,
Ham and Swiss Cheese

- Arugula Salad

- Texas Sheet Cake


The Recipe – French Onion Soup

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 fresh thyme sprigs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup red wine
3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 quarts beef broth (homemade is best)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, or to taste
1 baguette, sliced
1/2 pound grated Gruyere

Directions:

Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Add flour to the onions and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring often. Add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt, pepper and Worcestershire.

Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with grated cheese. Put the bowls into the oven on broil to toast the bread and melt the cheese. Serve immediately.

15 February 2015

I am on my way to Detroit tonight for a client meeting, so I want be able to prepare Sunday Supper. However, I am happy to blog about a wonderful experience I had last night serving as Guest Chef for the Les Marmitons' Valentines Gala last night in Soleil. A couple of months ago, the president of the Canton chapter of Les Marmitons, Ron Laird, approached me about being their guest "celebrity" chef for the event, and I was flattered to say the least. He explained my duties would include creating a four course menu for the event and working with their members to supervise the various cooking teams. After a lot of thought, I decided on a conceptual twist on "surf and turf" with a menu entitled, "A Story about Jacques and Diane" taken from the John Mellancamp song. The "Jack" in my version, was Coquilles St-Jacques, a classic gratineed scallop dish inspired by Julia Child's version. The role of Diane was played by Steak Diane for the main course. I incorporated other subtle valentines references, such as asparagus "coupled" in prosciutto, and of course, there had to be chocolate, molten chocolate in this case!

I arrived at the Soleil Club House around 4 PM to meet with the team captains, and the Marmitons were already hard at work in the kitchen. From the beginning, I knew these guys took food seriously, and they had studied my menu and recipes very diligently. They had thoughtful questions and great suggestions since I had to scale up my typical serving sizes of two or four to fifty people! That was the most intimidating part of the process; however, the Marmitons took it all in stride and made me feel right at home in their kitchen. They kept calling me "Chef," and it took me a while to realize they were referring to me. It was humbling, charming and totally fulfilling.

Let's get one thing straight; these guys can cook! I was so impressed with their technique, knowledge and passion for excellence. During the course of the evening, I heard some great stories from a lot of the Marmitons, some involved food and others did not. The wives arrived around 6 for cocktails and wine, and things got a lot more festive at that point. The tables were decorated with flair, and everyone was so warm and welcoming. Plus, these folks at Soleil know how to have a good time! The first course, cauliflower and parmesan soup, was served around 7:25 and dessert around 9:45. At the end of the evening, Ron and the Marmitons honored me with a very nice certificate, crystal paperweight and a secret Marmiton "shot" made of five different liqueurs. I was touched by Ron's kind words and the applause and comments from the crowd. It was a very special night and one I will
never forget.

So here's to the Les Marmitons and all of the men out there who love to cook, especially for those we love on special occasions.

The Menu:

This is a Story About Jacques and Diane

Course One – Love at First Sight

Cauliflower and Parmesan Soup with Herbed Parmesan Crisp

Course Two –Only Fish in the Sea

Coquilles St-Jacques (Gratineed Scallops)

Course Three – The Main Event

Classic Steak Diane with Duchess Potatoes and Asparagus Coupled in Prosciutto

Course Four – Love Overflows

Molten Chocolate Lava Cake with Espresso Ice Cream


The Recipe – Coquilles St-Jacques (Gratineed Scallops)

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons butter (divided)
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1 1/2 pounds bay scallops, patted dry
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
1/2 cup dry white wine, such as sauvignon blanc or pinot gris
1 small bay leaf
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
2/3 cup shredded Swiss cheese

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a large sauté pan, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-low heat. Add the shallot and sauté until translucent, 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 45 seconds; transfer mixture to a small bowl and set the pan aside.

Preheat broiler and adjust oven rack 4 inches below broiling element. Season the scallops with the salt and white pepper. Toss the scallops in the flour, shake off all the excess flour, and place the scallops on a clean plate.

Return the sauté pan to the stove, add half of the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and half of the oil, and heat over medium-high heat. When the butter has melted, add half of the scallops, and cook until lightly browned, stirring once, about 4 minutes. Repeat with the remaining butter, oil and scallops. Remove to a plate and keep warm.

Add the shallot-garlic mixture, white wine, bay leaf and thyme to the pan; cover and simmer until the sauce has thickened, 2 minutes. Discard the bay leaf, pour the sauce over the scallops and gently stir to combine.

Divide the scallops among four individual scallop serving shells or small gratin dishes. Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the scallops, place them on a rimmed baking sheet, and broil until the cheese is browned and bubbly, 1 1/2 minutes. Serve immediately.

01 February 2015

After an action packed celebration of my birthday in Atlanta last weekend, we slowed down a bit the past couple of days. On Friday night, we enjoyed a nice dinner at Union Hill Grill and were lucky enough to score a seat at the bar with one of our favorite bartenders and friend, Heidi Ready. Saturday was very low key, and we ventured over to Roswell for dinner and cocktails.

Today, we caught up on some chores around the house, and I went into the office for a while after starting a large pot of Asian chicken stock for some Vietnamese chicken soup, or Pho. The rainy day inspired me to cook something warm and comforting, but I also wanted to be a little healthier as well. Pho was the perfect solution. I had a local free range chicken in the freezer from Joyful Noise in Ball Ground, and we ventured over to Whole Foods at the new Avalon development for the other ingredients. Due to the Super Bowl, Whole Foods was packed, but we managed to find most of the things we needed, as well as a few items we didn't know we needed until we saw them. That's the way things usually go at that store! In addition to the Chicken Pho, I picked up some pork and vegetable pot stickers for an appetizer, and I decided to make some almond cookies for dessert.

The stock for the Pho was a long and tedious process, but it was well worth the effort. It was rich, hearty and very flavorful. All in all, it was a great success. We had Sunday Supper and enjoyed watching the Super Bowl. Instead of the obligatory chicken wings, I made crispy Chinese five spice chicken skins instead. It was my first attempt at cooking chicken skin, and it worked pretty well.

Now, the weekend is drawing to a close, and a cold, steady rain is falling in Canton. As always, there are ongoing debates about preserving our past and defining a vision for our future. I'm sure the dialog will continue to intensify in the week ahead, but I am happy that our friends and neighbors feel so passionate about the City of Canton. After all, there is nothing more dangerous than apathy and complacency. On this Super Sunday, however, I'm simply content to be warm, dry and filled with the comfort of a home cooked meal.

The Menu:

- Chicken Pho (Vietnamese Chicken Soup)

- Pork and Vegetable Pot Stickers

- Chinese Five Spice Crispy Chicken Skins

- Almond Cookies


The Recipe – Chicken Pho

(Adapted from Food and Wine Magazine)

Ingredients:

2 unpeeled yellow onions, quartered
Three 1/2-inch-thick slices of fresh ginger, smashed
4 quarts cold water
3 pounds chicken wings
One 3 1/2-pound chicken, quartered
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon Better than Bouillon, Beef paste (optional)
1/4 cup Asian fish sauce
1 pound dried rice noodles
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1 pound mung bean sprouts
1/2 cup torn basil leaves, preferably Thai basil
2 limes, cut into wedges
2 jalapeños, thinly sliced
Asian chili-garlic sauce and hoisin sauce, for serving

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400°. Put the onions and ginger on a baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes until softened and lightly browned.

Fill a large stockpot with the water and bring to a boil. Add the roasted vegetables, chicken wings, quartered chicken, salt, sugar, beef bouillon paste and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to moderate and simmer until the chicken is cooked, about 30 minutes.

Transfer the quartered chicken to a plate and let cool slightly. Remove the meat from the bones and refrigerate. Return the skin and bones to the stockpot and simmer for 2 hours longer.

Strain the chicken broth into a large soup pot, and cook over high heat until reduced to 12 cups, about 15 minutes. Stir in the fish sauce.

In a large bowl of warm water, soak the noodles until pliable, about 20 minutes.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Drain the noodles, then add them to the saucepan and boil over high heat until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain well. Transfer the noodles to 6 large bowls and sprinkle with the scallion. Add the reserved chicken to the broth and simmer until heated through.

Ladle the broth and chicken over the noodles. Serve with the bean sprouts, basil, lime wedges, jalapeños, chili-garlic sauce and hoisin sauce.