Poppy Seed Crusted Scallops… June 17, 2008

Poppy Seed Crusted Scallop, Avocado Puree, Pickled Cherries

I made two versions of poppy seed crusted scallops. Both were paired with an avocado puree and the first one was paired with pickled cherries, a French Laundry recipe that is an accompaniment to a slice of foie torchon. I thought the lightly pickled cherry would be good with a sweet succulent scallop. The creamy buttery avocado would be another layer of delicious flavor. This dish was tasty but it was missing an element. In retrospect I should have made a marinated red onion and herb salad to strew over the scallops and avocado puree.

Poppy Seed Crusted Scallops, Avocado Puree, Cherry Salsa

The second version of the poppy seed scallops was paired with a cherry salsa. The salsa was made with pitted bing cherries, onion, lemon juice and olive oil. So simple. This version of the scallops was the winner with the combination of the sweet scallops, creamy avocado and the sweet and tangy cherry salsa. The crunchy raw onion bits in the salsa made such a difference between the two versions. The first one just needs a lil tweeking. Perhaps it’ll make a comeback!

Buttermilk-Poppy Seed Biscuit, Duck Confit, Savory Cherry Compote, Creme Fraiche June 10, 2008

Biscuits - another way to use poppy seeds! Fresh from the oven the warm buttermilk biscuit was fluffy, buttery and now also pleasantly crunchy from the black seeds. I paired it with duck confit (also begging to be used up) for a little appetizer. I topped a biscuit half with shredded duck confit and savory cherry compote made with fresh cherries, red wine, orange juice, sugar and spices. The lovely duck confit and cherry compote pairing is straight out of Sunday Suppers at Lucques cookbook. I finished the dish with a quenelle of tangy creme fraiche to contrast with the earthy spices of the duck and compote. A few sprigs of microgreens later and the cute appetizer was ready to be consumed.

I saved the skin from the duck leg and made a cracklin out of it. Delicious!

*I forgot to mention that the original inspiration for this dish was the Thanksgiving-themed sandwiches of deli turkey, cranberry sauce and cream cheese that I used get at a sandwich shop all the time during the college days. Duck confit for turkey, cherry compote for cranberry sauce, and creme fraiche for cream cheese. And of course , the touch of poppy seeds.

Chickpea Curry & Rajasthani Potato Curry April 9, 2008

I was craving Indian food one day. I wasn’t sure what I’d make though since there are so many possibilities and exactly 1,000 recipes at least in my excellent Neelam Batra cookbook. One of my favorite dishes to get when I stop by Indian markets-slash-food posts is chickpea curry. In general I have an affinity for chickpeas. It’s not only good for you but quite tasty too. Since I am quite a beginner in Indian cookery I’ve been starting off with basic recipes if possible to build a foundation. So I made Chickpeas in Traditional Curry Sauce (Rassaedar Channae).

By “traditional curry sauce” Batra means onion, green chile peppers, garlic, ginger, tomato, cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric, paprika, lime juice, yogurt, and cilantro. I love all the spices in Indian food and the savoriness of it all. It’s very comforting. To make things easier for myself I used canned chickpeas. I should have peeled at least some of the chickpeas. Chickpea peels are quickly becoming a personal pet peeve. But the thought of peeling four cans of chickpea didn’t flash brilliantly through my mind though, probably for very good reasons having to do with convenience.

I wasn’t going to be satisfied with just one curry though. I perused through the thick book and came upon the Potato Curries section. Now I loooove potatoes and I loooove potato curry. I settled on the first curry of the lot, Rajasthani Potato Curry (Rajasthani Rassadar Aalu). As you can see the color was cheerfully golden from the turmeric and nicely spiced with green cardamom, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, and asafoetida. Asafoetida is an odd thing. It’s an herbaceous plant whose dried sap is used for culinary and medicinal purposes. It’s quite stinky but when cooked it mellows out and gives off leek and onion flavors. This curry was so delicious. I was actually craving it today. Must make soon again.

Now I got the curries, what else do I need? Chutney of course! My favorite is a really spicy green chutney. I can’t get enough of it when I get a freshly fried samosa from a local Indian market. This time I made Mint Chutney with Pomegranate Seeds (Pudina-Anardana Chutni). The dried pomegranate seeds, another addition to my spice pantry, added a nice tang to the chutney. The chutney was made in a blender from red onion, a few green chile peppers, lemon juice, water, cilantro, ground dried pomegranate seeds, and black pepper.

To cool off any crazy spice spike I might be hit with I made a simple raita with whole milk yogurt, ginger, garlic, paprika, cilantro, and cucumber. And I unsuccessfully made my first batch of chapati, also known as roti and phulka. I didn’t use durum whole-wheat flour like I was supposed to do since I had a nearly full bag of regular whole-wheat flour at home. That and my lack of experience making flatbreads resulted in the very thick chapatis. They were fine flatbreads but bad chapatis. Still, once I had them nicely reheated from the toaster oven at work the edges became nicely crisped and the inside warm and steaming. It made a perfect utensil for my vegetarian Indian spread.

Albacore, Black Rice, Pomegranate Salsa January 31, 2008

I was checking out AOC’s menu to what new delicious dishes climbed onto its seasonally driven menu. I spotted albacore, black rice and pomegranate salsa. Sounded like a great combo. I had already bought some pomegranate seeds (I was feeling lazy) to make the salsa for another dish and knowing there’d be some leftovers. The albacore dish seemed like a perfect way to promote some pomegranate salsa double duty. Since I’ve made the black rice and also the pomegranate salsa before from the Sunday Suppers at Lucques cookbook putting together a mock version at home was pretty easy.

Since I haven’t had this dish before at the restaurant I wasn’t quite sure how they cooked the albacore. I just seared mine in a pan after seasoning it with chopped parsley, chile de arbol, salt and pepper. I topped the delicious black rice with sliced albacore and generously spooned over the tart and sweet pomegranate salsa. In trying to follow up on my efforts to drink more wine I paired this dish with a glass of Basa Rueda Blanco 2005. It’s made from a blend of Verdejo, Sauvignon Blanc and Viura grapes and is soo good. It’s a really enjoyable wine a great bargain at $10! The tartness of the wine worked really well with not only the pomegranate salsa but the brininess of the black rice. The wine just tastes so clean and has a good mouthfeel to it. I found myself happily drinking two glasses of this during dinner.

Duck Confit, Spiced Kumquat Compote, Brown Rice with Kale & Walnuts January 22, 2008

I had picked up a basket of kumquats at the Santa Monica farmer’s market one weekend and didn’t really know what to do with it. It’s yummy to eat it raw but not so much that I can pop the whole basket in my mouth. So I thought and thought. A savory fruit sauce for duck confit! Yes, a big ol’ pan of duck confit came about because of a little basket of kumquats.

Once again I turned to Suzanne Goin’s duck confit recipe from the Sunday Suppers at Lucques cookbook. I marinated the duck legs overnight with sliced onion, sliced orange, star anise, peppercorn, bay leaves, chile de arbol, and thyme. The next day I scraped off the seasoning into a baking dish, salted and laid the duck legs on top, covered it with warm duck fat, and baked it off at 325 degrees for few hours. After the duck was done cooking I finished it by roasting it shortly in a 400 degree oven. This results in a super crispy browned skin - the best part! Besides the falling off the bone tender duck meat that is.

The kumquats got the same treatment as Goin’s savory cherry compote minus the port - thyme, bay leaves, chiles de arbol, star anise, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, fresh orange juice, sugar, and a little bit of water. I simmered this down until it thickened up and the kumquats cooked down. It smelled spicy and savory, reminding me of the time I was making the savory cherry compote in my kitchen.

For the base of the dish I made sauteed brown rice with kale and toasted walnuts. This paired really well with the earthy duck confit and the spiced kumquat compote. Something about the combination of the walnuts and kumquats made goodness in my mouth. The brown rice was hearty and had a really good bite to it. I added some kale to the dish cuz I gotta have some greens.

For the next round perhaps a duck confit salad with fresh kumquats, toasted walnuts, and arugula? Maybe duck confit with celeriac remoulade like Alice Waters likes it? Duck confit parmentier? Possibilities are endess. Good thing I have six legs stored away in the freezer.

Baked Scallops with Prosciutto & Meyer Lemon Relish January 15, 2008

I was wondering why the name of this Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook recipe is just Baked Scallops with Prosciutto with no mention of Meyer Lemon Relish. I see now that the scallops are a base dish that can be paired with a number of sauces “depending on the season and our mood,… such as green olive and almond tapenade, salsa verde, or roasted pepper relish.” The meyer lemon relish that was paired with the scallops in the book was stellar though. Meyer lemons are really a delicious winter treat. This citrus which came over from China tastes like a cross between a lemon and an orange and has a thin edible rind.

The meyer lemon relish was made with very thinly sliced meyer lemon, shallots, lemon juice, parsley, chervil, and olive oil. I seasoned the scallops with salt and pepper and placed them in a very hot cast iron pan with some olive oil. Then quickly turned them over to the 475 degree oven for a quick bake. After a few minutes when they were done I plated them with prosciutto slices draped around them and a spoonful of the relish over each scallop. The flavor contrast between the mildly sweet scallops, salty prosciutto, and bright meyer lemon relish worked really well together. I gobbled this up in no time. Another quick, simple and delicious recipe for a weeknight dinner.

Pan-Roasted Duck Breast with Fig Gastrique September 20, 2007

In pursuit of adventures with figs I decided to gastrique a go. Gastrique is “a reduced mixture of vinegar and sugar used in the preparation of hot sauces accompanying dishes made with fruit (such as duck with orange). Gastrique is prepared by heating the ingredients together (seasoning as necessary) until the liquid has almost entirely evaporated.” [Larousse Gastronomic]. What better to go with a figgy fruit sauce than duck?

I picked up two ducks breasts from Whole Foods and here is what I found when I got home: (1) it was double duck breast - that is, two duck breasts still attached; (2) one was soooo frickin tiny; (3) there was cartilage left on the meat; (4) the tiny set of duck breasts had lil hairs not all plucked out. If I’m paying Whole Foods prices for these I sure do not want to butcher my own meat or pluck out duck hairs with my fingers!

Anyhow, I only plucked a few then gave up since there were so many. I figured I would cook it with the skin on and later remove the offending hairy skin. But later when I was tasting the oh so delicious duck breast with the skin all browned and crispy I totally forgot about the hairs and honestly they were undetectable. All I did for the duck was to season it with salt and pepper, score the skin, brown it on the skin side to render the fat, flipped them over and finished them in the oven for a few minutes. They didn’t turn out as pink as I would have liked but my brain wasn’t processing smartly and didn’t think Hey these ducks breasts are really small. I should probably cook them a few minutes than most recipes say.

For the gastrique I looked up a bunch of recipes online and compared them to get an idea of what the vinegar and sugar proportions should be. There was a huge variation so I just went with more vinegar than sugar since I like less sweetness. The Top Chef fig gastrique recipe used port and cider vinegar so I went ahead and followed their lead. I have a really old bottle of port in my fridge. I know I’m not supposed to keep it this long but I couldn’t bear to throw it away being more than half-full. The gastrique tasted just fine, thank goodness.

Oh and the green stuff on the base is swiss chard, blanched then sauteed with garlic. Enjoy!

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Fig Gastrique
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/6 cup port
1 small shallot, minced
1/2 sprig of rosemary
4 figs, small diced

Heat sugar in a heavy bottomed saucepan until it dissolves and turns golden brown. Carefully pour in vinegar and port. It will bubble and hiss and be a lil scary of take caution and keep your face away from the pot. Add shallot, fig, rosemary, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Reduce until syrupy and break up the fruit a lil bit with a spoon or spatula.