Gourmet Meals in Crappy Little Kitchens (16 page)

My Personal Wellington

Serves 4

In a traditional beef Wellington the entire beef tenderloin is wrapped in puff pastry, but I like making beautiful packages that are individual servings. I use phyllo pastry instead of puff, because it's much more CLK friendly since it requires no rolling.

4 beef tenderloin steaks, 8 ounces each

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for pan

Sea salt, as needed

Black pepper, as needed

2 ounces foie gras, small cubes

3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, plus more for garnish

1 pound cremini mushrooms, finely chopped

8 ounces unsalted butter

1 shallot, sliced

1 box phyllo dough

1 cup Charred Tomato

Red Wine Demi

Sauce (p. 205)

1
Preheat oven to 350°. Place your 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat. Rub some olive oil over the steaks and season them heavily with salt and pepper. When the pan begins to smoke, carefully place each steak into the pan to brown for 2 minutes on one side, and then turn them to brown another 2 minutes on the other side. Repeat this until the tenderloins have become completely seared and crispy on all sides. Move them to a clean plate and refrigerate them.

2
Place your 12-inch sauté pan back over the heat (don't wash it out, those bits have a lot of flavor), and throw in the cubes of foie gras. They will immediately start rendering fat. Add the fresh thyme and mushrooms. Toss this all together and reduce the heat to medium while the mushrooms sweat. Place your 1-quart saucepot over low heat and add the butter and shallot to melt slowly together.

3
Place a small strainer over the saucepot of butter, and once the mushrooms are completely soft, pour them into the strainer to drain. Top your chilling steaks with the strained mushroom mixture and return them to the fridge. Remove the butter from the heat.

4
Open the phyllo dough and unroll it onto a cutting board, and cut it directly down the middle, making two even rectangles. Stack them together, and pull one sheet off the top. Cover the stack with a piece of plastic wrap to keep its moisture in and prevent it from drying out. Using a pastry brush, very lightly paint the piece of phyllo with melted butter. Take another piece of phyllo and place it directly on top of the buttered piece. Butter this layer and continue until you have six layers.

5
Place one-fourth of the mushrooms in a tight circle in the center of the pastry. Set a steak on top of that. Bring up all the sides of the pastry to completely enclose the steak into the pastry like a present, turn it over, and set it on a plate. Repeat steps 4 and 5 with the other three steaks and put the plate in the freezer for 10 minutes to set the phyllo dough and make sure it stays shut when baking.

6
Lightly grease a baking pan with olive oil, place each steak folded side down onto the pan, and place it in the oven for 12 minutes (once rested this should be a good medium rare/medium). Allow them to rest for 10 minutes before cutting a small wedge (or triangle) out of each Wellington. Place the large portions in the center of each dinner plate. Spoon a circle of the Charred Tomato Red Wine Demi off to one side and place the small wedge of Wellington in the center of that circle. Lightly sprinkle the plate with chopped thyme and serve immediately.

The Perfect Pot Roast

Serves 10

A Sunday favorite, this complete meal requires only one pot. Buying a roast with no bone means less cooking time and easy slicing.

3 tablespoons olive oil

Sea salt, as needed

Black pepper, as needed

3- to 4-pound boneless rump roast

¾ cup dry sherry

¼ cup Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme

2 cups beef stock

2 tablespoons

Worcestershire sauce

3 tablespoons cornstarch

¼ cup water

2 celery stalks, leaves attached

2 carrots, large

5 garlic cloves, smashed

1 pound new potatoes

12 ounces baby carrots

1 cup fresh pearl onions

1
Preheat oven to 350°. Place a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Heavily salt and pepper the roast on all sides. Once the pan has begun to smoke, carefully place the roast into the pan to brown for 5 minutes on one side. Then, turn it onto the next side for another 5 minutes. Repeat this for every side of the roast until it is completely browned, and then remove it from the pan. If your pan is too small to conveniently sear on all sides, use your torch to brown the sides with wonderful results. The idea is to brown the entire roast to seal in the juices.

2
Deglaze the pan by adding the dry sherry to the hot pan and stirring to loosen the tasty brown bits, and allow it to reduce. Use a pastry brush to lightly coat the roast with Dijon mustard, and then season it

3
When with the fresh herbs. the sherry has reduced by half, add the beef stock and Worcestershire, allowing it to come to a simmer. In a very small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and water together to make, what we call in chef circles, a slurry. Pour this into the stock and again allow it to all come to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat.

4
Place the celery stalks and large carrots in the slurry and crisscross them to make a platform for the roast. Add the smashed garlic, and lay the roast on top of the vegetables.

5
Arrange the potatoes, baby carrots, and onions around the roast, cover the pan, and put the entire thing in the oven for 1½ to 2 hours or until it reaches an internal temperature of 150°. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Serve the roast in the center of a large platter with the small vegetables surrounding it. Pour some of the sauce over the entire dish, and serve the rest on the side.

Snake-Charmin'
Moroccan Lamb Chops

Serves 8

By marinating the chops overnight, this dish requires only 2 minutes of total cooking time. Serve with sautéd diced eggplant and tomato (Sautéed Vegetables p. 170) tossed with the Saffron Couscous (p. 186), and you'll have an authentic gourmet Moroccan meal.

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 lamb racks, 5 to 6 bones each

Sea salt, as needed

Black pepper, as needed

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

2 tablespoons minced garlic cloves

1
Place your 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Season each whole rack heavily with salt and pepper. Once the pan has begun to smoke, carefully place one rack, fat side down, into the pan and allow it to brown on this side for 5 minutes or until extremely crispy. Then rotate it to the other side to brown. Remove it from the pan to cool and repeat this with the other 3 racks. Once they cool, cut down each bone making individual “chops.” Hold the rack by one of the bones allowing the bottom to rest on the cutting board. In short sawing motions, run your chef's knife along each bone while trying to cut each as evenly in size as you can. Place the lamb chops in plastic storage bags.

2
In a medium bowl, add the lemon juice and slowly whisk in the extra virgin olive oil. Whisk in the coriander, allspice, cumin, mint, ginger, and garlic. Pour this marinade all over the lamb chops, and place them in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours.

3
Preheat the oven to its lowest setting, set an oven-safe dish or sheet tray inside, and place your 12-inch sauté over medium-high heat. Shake off excess marinade from each chop, but allow most to remain. Once the pan is hot, carefully sear each lamb chop for 1 minute on each side, and then place them in the oven to stay warm while you repeat with remaining chops. When every lamb chop is crispy, they are ready to serve. For family-style presentation put a bowl of the Saffron Couscous (p. 186) topped with Sautéed Vegetables (p. 170) in a bowl and set it on the end of a platter. Cascade the lamb chops, slightly over lapping them as they build up toward the bowl of couscous and vegetables. Serve immediately.

Feta and Fennel Stuffed Leg of Lamb

Serves 10 to 12

Ask your butcher for a shortened leg of lamb (known as the shank half), with the shank end of the bone left in, and the hip end of the bone removed. The meat will come wrapped around the bone. With the hard work completed by the butcher, preparing the recipe is a snap. This meal comes out so juicy and colorful, your guests will be rendered speechless until the end of the meal. Make sure you only use this on big occasions, not crappy little ones, because it's tough to ever top the experience.

¼ cup olive oil

1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced, reserve green tops

1 red onion, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 cups chopped Swiss chard, tender greens

Sea salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

3½ to 4 pound shank half of a leg of lamb, bone left in

½ cup crumbled feta cheese

½ cup chopped kalamata olives

¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint

¼ cup finely chopped fresh oregano

½ cup red wine

1
Place your 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat and add half of the olive oil. When it begins to smoke add the fennel and red onion, sautéing until they become translucent. Toss the garlic through the mixture and then add the Swiss chard. Turn the heat down to medium while the Swiss chard wilts into the onions and fennel. Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat to cool.

2
Unroll the leg of lamb and evenly sprinkle the inside of the meat with the crumbled feta and olives. Spread a thick layer of the sautéed fennel and greens over the feta and olives. Roll the lamb closed, making sure all the stuffing stays in, and secure it with toothpicks. Season the outside of the lamb with salt, pepper, chopped mint, and oregano, wrap the whole thing with plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge overnight.

3
One hour or so before you want to serve, preheat the oven to 375°, place your roasting pan over medium-high heat, and add the second half of the olive oil. When it begins to smoke, carefully place the leg of lamb into the pan to brown on one side for 3 minutes. Once it is crispy, roll it over to brown on the next section for 3 minutes. Continue this way until you finally roll it onto that last side, pour in the red wine, and place the pan into the oven immediately. Roast the leg for 30 minutes or until the internal temperature is 135°.

4
Set the lamb aside to rest for 15 minutes, and place the pan of wine back on medium heat to reduce it into a thick sauce. This won't take very long, so watch it closely, and give it a stir occasionally to keep it from burning to the bottom. On your serving platter, make a bed of the reserved fennel greens, place the leg of lamb in the center, and pour the red wine sauce over the top. Serve immediately with Roasted Vegetables (p. 171). For presentation purposes, it's quite exciting to carve the meat at the table. Place the leg of lamb on its side on a cutting board. Starting on the outside, cut thin slices parallel to the bone until you reach the bone. Transfer the slices to a platter and start again on the opposite side,
continuing until the bone is naked!

Chiles Rellenos

Serves 6

The chile relleno, literally means “stuffed chile,” and is a dish of Mexican cuisine that originated in the city of Puebla. It consists of a roasted fresh poblano pepper (the poblano pepper is named after the city of Puebla) that is stuffed with cheese, rice, or meat. This recipe utilizes my special gourmet method for creating perfectly cooked rice every time.

¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil

6 poblano peppers

1 yellow onion, small dice

1 tablespoon smoked

Spanish paprika

1 cup long grain rice

½ cup golden raisins

¼ cup chopped pecans