recipe – Page 2 – Alice the Cook

September 16, 2013

Duck L’Orange with Potato Dauphenois

duck2 — Close up look of the duck breast

During Love and Romance weekend at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, we decided to make the most decadent (calorie laden) and romantic meal we could come up with. Duck L’Orange and Potato Dauphenois. The potato dish has been a long-standing favorite of Alice the Cook’s and it was nice to show it off again. Ideally, the potatoes and the duck should be nicely caramelized on the top for appearance and taste sake.

There were no leftovers with this dish.

Duck
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons Sherry
1 ½ cups orange juice
2 tablespoons shallots, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
4 oranges, sections cut from membranes
2 duck breast halves, seasoned with salt and pepper
¼ cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons orange zest

Preparation:

Boil the sugar and water for several minutes, until the syrup caramelizes and turns a golden brown color. Add the vinegar, juice, shallots, and chicken stock and simmer until the sauce is reduced to a little less than a cup. Add butter and 1 tablespoon of orange zest. Stir in orange sections.

Before cooking, score the duck fat with a knife so that the duck fat made render properly. In a hot skillet, sear the duck breasts, fat side down, over very high heat until caramelized (not burnt) for about 3-5 minutes. Turn the duck breasts over and continue cooking for about 5 more minutes. Pour the prepared sauce over the duck breasts and continue cooking with the duck fat and sauce together for 4 more minutes. Take the duck and let it set for 2 minutes outside of the pan and cut on a bias, garnish with the sauce and remaining orange zest.

Potato Dauphinoise
Preheat over to 350 degrees F
3 lbs of red potatoes, thinly sliced
6 large garlic cloves, minced
1 large garlic clove, halved
4 table spoons of butter
2 1/2 cups of heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the potato slices into a bowl of cold water to remove the excess starch. Drain and pat dry with paper or cloth towels. Take the halved garlic clove and rub the cut side around a wide, shallow, ovenproof dish or cast iron pot. Butter or spray oil the dish/pot generously and blend the cream and milk together.

Cover the bottom of the dish with a layer of the potatoes. Dot a bit of the butter and minced garlic over the potatoes and season with the salt and pepper. Pour a bit of the cream and milk mixture over the layer. Continue making layers until all of the ingredients have been used, ending with just a layer of cream.

Bake for about 1 1/4 hours. If the potatoes are browning too quickly, cover with a lid or a piece of aluminum foil. The dish is done when the potatoes are soft and tender and the top is golden brown.
Serves 8

September 13, 2013

Tabouli & Coucous

Although Tabouli and Couscous are delicious, the couscous is very tricky to make because if it is too humid, you end up with large clumbs than desired.

Tabouli:
1 cup water
1 cup fine cracked wheat
1 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup minced fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
3 tomatoes, diced
2 cucumbers, seeded and diced
3 tbsps olive oil
3 tbsps lemon juice, or to taste
1 tsps sea salt

In a large mixing bowl, pour the water over the cracked wheat and cover,
let stand about 20 minutes until wheat is tender and water is absorbed. Add the chopped herbs and vegetables and toss with the mix. Combine the oil, lemon juice, and salt in a separate bowl. Add to wheat mixture and mix well. Chill. Serve and enjoy.

Coucous:
1 quart semolina (chickpea flour may be used instead)
1 pint water
1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
Salt to season
Olive Oil

In a large bowl, add a cup of semolina, a pinch of salt and a few drops of water. Mix with fingertips in circular motion until small balls form. Drizzle more water as necessary.

Move the mixture to tamis (or drum sifter or similar fine mesh sifting device) to remove the fine semolina.

Reserve the larger couscous to another bowl.

Add the fine semolina dust back to the mixing bowl and repeat step 1 until there’s no semolina left.

Pick out the large pieces. In a couscousier (or steamer basket) fitted with cheesecloth, add 1 cinnamon stick, 2 bay leaves and 2 tbsp salt to the water. Bring to boil.

Steam couscous for 5 to 10 mins.

Season with olive oil and steam for 5 to 10 more minutes. Serve immediately.

September 11, 2013

English Fish and Chips

English Fish and Chips
4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into strips
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup of milk
1 egg
1 quart vegetable oil
1 ½ lbs cod

Place potatoes in a medium-size bowl of cold water. In a separate medium-size mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper. Stir in the milk and egg; stir until the mixture is smooth. Let mixture stand for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oil in a large pot or electric skillet to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Fry the potatoes in the hot oil until they are tender. Drain them on paper towels.

Dredge the fish in the batter, one piece at a time, and place them in the hot oil. Fry until the fish is golden brown. If necessary, increase the heat to maintain the 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) temperature. Drain well on paper towels.

Fry the potatoes again for 1 to 2 minutes for added crispness.

In the photo, I dusted the fish and chips with homemade curry powder and lemon zest. The photograph does not do it justice, it was very delicious.

**A gluten-free option uses potato flour instead of all-purpose flour.

September 10, 2013

Scones

Scones are delicious and fun to make. We had forgotten to add the fruit, so we just added cinnamon and sugar. If you do use fruit, use dried and berries and cherries work very well.

Ingredients
3 cups of flour
1/2 cup of white sugar
5 tbsp baking powder
3/4 cup of butter
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter. Mix the egg and milk in a small bowl, and stir into flour mixture until moistened.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead briefly. Roll dough out into a 1/2 inch thick round. Cut into 8 wedges, and place on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown

September 9, 2013September 9, 2013

Scotch Eggs Recipe

One of my favorite treats from the United Kingdom (UK) are Scotch Eggs. I have seen them served with mustard, gravy, and cheese, but my favorite way of eating them is with gravy and horseradish.

What is a Scotch Egg?
A Scotch egg consists of a shelled hard-boiled egg, wrapped in a sausage meat mixture, coated in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried. In the UK, Scotch eggs are commonly eaten cold, typically with salad and pickles. Scotch eggs were traditionally a picnic food and homemade. In the UK, pre-packed, plastic-wrapped Scotch eggs are commonly available in supermarkets, convenience stores and motorway service stations. Miniature versions of Scotch eggs are also widely available in British supermarkets, and are sold under the name ‘savoury eggs’, ‘picnic eggs’, ‘party eggs’, ‘snack eggs’ or similar. These contain a chopped, rather than whole, egg filling, sometimes combined with mayonnaise or chopped bacon.

Contrary to popular belief, Scotch Eggs were actually invented by the famous London department store, Fortnum & Mason in 1851. (http://www.en.wikipedia.org)

In the United States, many “English-style” pubs and eateries serve fresh-made Scotch eggs. These are usually served hot, with dipping sauces such as ranch dressing, hot sauce, or hot mustard sauce. Even the Minnesota State Fair, true to its fair tradition, Scotch eggs are served on a stick. Due to English influence, some fast-food restaurants in West Africa offer Scotch eggs alongside their other menu items. In Nigeria, Tantalizers and Mr. Biggs both prominently feature Scotch eggs. Some of Britain’s culinary favorites also crossed over to the Indian sub-continent and there is a popular Indian dish called nargisi kofta also known in English as Curried Scotch Eggs. The spices used suggest a Moghul influence.

When making Scotch eggs at home, cooks may fry and then bake or microwave the Scotch eggs to ensure that the sausage is cooked all the way through. Some recipes are more challenging than others, but my recipe below, I found, is one of the easier ones to follow.

Scotch Eggs Ingredients
6 hard-cooked eggs, well chilled
1 pound breakfast sausage (I recommend Woodsend or other Amish brand Sausage or vegetarian sausage paste may be used)
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup fine bread crumbs
Vegetable oil for frying

Peel eggs and set aside. Divide sausage into 6 portions. Roll each egg in flour and with hands press a portion of the sausage around each egg.

Dip sausage-wrapped eggs into beaten eggs and roll in bread crumbs. Heat vegetable oil to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cook each egg in oil about 4-5 minutes or until sausage is cooked and browned. Drain on paper toweling. Serve warm.

Horseradish Cream Sauce

This is a traditional sauce. Through the demonstration, we used real horseradish root, but you can buy prepared horseradish and follow the second steps of instructions.

Prepared horseradish
8/10″ horseradish root
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp white vinegar
pinch of salt

remove skin from horseradish root and mince. add water, vinegar, and salt and pulverize in mortar and pestle. do not breathe in mixture.

Cream Sauce
3 tbsp of the prepared horseradish mixture
1/4 cup of sour cream
1 tsp of dijon mustard
1 tsp mayonaise
1 tbsp of chopped green onion (greens only)