Cinnamon and Cardamom Knots (Kanelsnurrer)

Dough-

240 grams whole milk

10 grams dry yeast or 21 g fresh

1 egg

1 yolk

475 grams wheat flour

105 grams granulated sugar

3 grams ground cardamom

6 grams salt

84 grams unsalted butter

Heat milk to warm and add yeast.  105F/40C.  Let rest for 10 minutes.  Add the egg, egg yolk, flour, sugar, cardamom and salt.  Mix together until well combined then knead for 15 minutes.  Add butter a little at a time.  When all the butter is incorporated continue to knead until smooth and shiny (10-15 min).  Store dough in a buttered bowl with film and towel.  Let proof until doubled 1-1.5 hours.  Punch down, cover slightly and chill overnight.

Filling-

684 grams unsalted butter

24 grams ground cinnamon

150 grams brown sugar

Mix the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon in a mixing bowl until it is very smooth.

Syrup-

150 grams brown sugar

100 grams water

Heat the water in a small pot and when it starts to steam, add the sugar. Stir until dissolved, bring to a simmer then set aside to cool to room temperature.

Keep the dough chilled.  Turn out the dough on floured parchment.  Roll out into a ¼ inch thick rectangle.  Cover with plastic and chill for 60 minutes.  Spread butter/sugar mixture over ⅔s of the dough.  Fold the plain side over the middle.  Fold opposite ⅓ over that.  Roll out to a ½ inch thick rectangle.  Slice lengthwise into eight 1 inch thick strips.  Twist and fold strips to create a knot.  Place on sheet pan, in a baking dish or in a muffin pan and cover with film and proof until doubled in size.  Bake at 325°F/162°C for 25/30 minutes.  When finished baking, brush the dough with the syrup. Wait 5 minutes and brush again.  

 

Avocado Toast

We recently decided to restart breakfast service at the restaurant so we did a couple of tastings to see what exactly we would put on the menu.  Over the past few years we have seen the rise of the avocado toast everywhere from restaurants to hipster coffee shops.  The trick is to find your own unique version and run with it.  Because we are a California brasserie, I decided to use a kale pesto.  For the bread, we chose to use brioche toasted and seasoned with the pesto.  Then topped with a fresh ripe avocado, sliced and seasoned simply with sea salt, pepper and lime juice.  Next, a perfectly poached egg with a beautiful rich liquid gold center.  The whole thing is finished off with a roasted chili oil and pumpkin seeds.  The only challenge now is to go to work everyday and try not to make this my daily breakfast.  The avocado makes it healthy, right?

 

Mango Lassi Popsicles

My new favorite desserts this summer are popsicles.  They are so easy to make and there are no limits to the flavor combinations.  It seems that they are popping up everywhere this year, even the franprix across the street has their own line.

For this recipe I make a puree of mango and a little sugar if it is not sweeet enough. Then I mix equal parts of coconut milk and cream.  Layer these in a mold and place in the freezer for 1 hour.  After it has started to freeze, place the sticks in the middle of each popsicle then return to the freezer until completely frozen.

I serve mine with a spicy chocolate sauce and some fresh raspberries from the garden.

Take the time and experiment with your favorite summer flavors.

Have fun and enjoy taking a break from the heat of the summer!

 

The New Parmentier!

The newest creations in the kitchen have been some changes to classics. What better dish to start with than my favorite!  With the late fall and winter here, I decided to work with one of my favorite vegetables for the season which is the beautiful sunchoke (topinambour in  French).  This vegetable pureed and fried into chips have equally flavorful results.  Here I have combined this puree with a mix of sautéed mushroom and duck confit with a little teriyaki and jus.  One of my favorite spices right now is the togarashi spice, which works very well with the combination of all these flavors.  Give it a try, it is a pretty simple dish and will be a pleasant surprise. 

 

Blue Cheese Pear Gastrique

This sauce started with a simple gastrique sauce, simply caramelized sugar deglazed with vinegar.  For me, I prefer to use honey rather than sugar to make my caramel, it is much healthier and most important, more flavorful.  For a lot of my cooking I prefer to use cider vinegar, I feel it has the best flavor that pairs with most ingredients.

Begin the recipe with by peeling and removing the core and cutting it into large pieces.  Cook the pears in a pot on medium heat until the water comes out and the sugars start to caramelize.  Deglaze with a little water to remove the sugars beginning to caramelize on the bottom of the pot.  Once it is fully cooked, add the bleu cheese and stir until it is melted then puree.

Begin to cook the honey with the fennel seeds until it begins to smell a bit burnt and deglaze with the cider vinegar. Remove from the heat and carefully add the pear puree and stir until it is completely mixed.  Heat again and simmer for a few minutes to make sure the caramel has completely melted into the sauce.

You can base the recipe on your own tastes, whether you love the taste of blue cheese or pear more.

 

Poblano Mango Relish

Recently we received a case of Europa Chicken Mango Brats to use for a special.  We just happened to have a few pounds of poblano peppers left from a party, so I decided to put together a relish to go with the brat theme.  To play off of the mango flavor I added mango puree, micro cilantro and lime juice.  The dish really came together quickly with its simplicity.  The only thing left was to figure out what to serve it with…we needed a side dish to compliment the flavors.  For the side dish, I decided to make chips out of purple fingerling potatoes tossed with a squirt of lime juice and chili salt.

The relish would be good on any sweet brat or sausage.  You can also slap the spread on or in a burger.  I also took all of these ingredients and made a flatbread out of it with a little bacon jam and jack cheese. As for most spreads and sauces, they are much more versatile than people think.

Poblano Mango Relish Recipe

1 quart poblano peppers

2 quarts red onion, diced

¼ cup sugar

1 cup white balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

½ cup fresh lime juice

½ cup mango puree

Begin by roasting the peppers over an open fire or in the oven until the skin becomes black.

Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and steam for 10 minutes.  After the 10 minutes, take out the peppers and use a knife to remove the skin, seeds and stem.  Dice the peppers and sauté with the onions until tender.

 

Add the sugar and cook until caramelized, then deglaze with the vinegar and simmer for a couple minutes.  Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until a jam like consistency.

Remove from pan and cool.  Store the relish and use as a jam or jelly.  Enjoy!

 

Espresso Bourbon Pecan Pie Tart

As the holidays roll around each year, the obligation to keep with the long tradition of baking a pie arises.  One of my favorite pies has recently become pecan pie, of which I never liked when I was growing up.  In order to find my passion for this dish I added a couple of my favorite ingredients, bourbon and espresso!!!!

Espresso Bourbon Pecan Pie Tart Recipe

3 tablespoons butter

½ vanilla bean

½ cup brown sugar

¼ cup honey

3 tablespoons corn syrup

3 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon flour

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons bourbon

1 tablespoon espresso

1 cup toasted pecans

-In a pan, heat the butter until it begins to foam and become brown.  Remove from the heat and swirl in the seeds from the vanilla bean scraped out as well as the bean.  Let it cool for 5 minutes.

-Remove the pod and stir in the brown sugar, honey, corn syrup and eggs then transfer into a mixing bowl.

-Fold in the flour and salt then stir in the rum and espresso.

-Arrange the pecans in the pre-baked pie shell or tart shells however you would like.  For a more uniform look arrange side by side in 2 layers around the shell or just toss them in and level them our for a more rustic look.  Pour the filling over the pecans evenly.

-Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, rotate and continue until golden brown.

-Remove the pie/tarts from the oven and cool on a rack at room temperature.  Top with whip cream and serve.

However or whenever you celebrate the holidays, just think back to the first time you had a pecan pie and what it meant to you and how you felt.  Now you can feel that way whenever you want.  Have fun and enjoy!

 

Bhut Jolokia Chile Corn Ice Cream

As with the rest of the ice creams I make, I start out with an ingredient I love, and in this case admire.  The Bhut Jolokia Chile is known by a few different names, but one of the most publicized names is Ghost Chili.  This chili is an interspecific hybrid cultivated in the Indian states of Assam and Nagaland.  In 2007, the Bhut Jolokia was certified with the Guinness World Record for the World’s Hottest Chili Pepper.

Chili spices are rated on the Scoville Scale that measures them in SVU (Scoville Heat Units).  The SVU measures the capsaicin concentration of the spice.  Based on this scale, this chili has between 330,000 and 1,532,310 units, which make it approximately 400 times hotter than tabasco sauce.  In 2012, the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion Chili became the hottest chili in the world, of which I first used to make this ice cream.  Just last December they were both surpassed by the Carolina Reaper.

Another ingredient I love to use, and even just eat on its own, is Melissa’s Produce Dry Roasted Corn.  It is so sweet and delicious.  All of my fresh produce comes from Melissa’s Produce Company.

Ghost Corn Ice Cream:

*Yields 3 Quarts*

1 Quart Whole Milk

1 Quart Heavy Cream

16 Egg Yolks

1 Pound Sugar

1 Fresh Ghost Chili

2 Packs of Melissa’s Dry Roasted Corn

Begin by heating the milk and cream in a medium sized pot.  Add the chili with the stem removed and the 2 packs of corn.  Bring to a simmer, then remove from heat, cover and steep for 30 minutes.  Once the mixture is done steeping, combine the yolks and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk and cream them together on high speed until light and pale.

Blend the cream mixture carefully in a blender until smooth, then return to heat.  (Please note, when blending a liquid, you need to start out on a very low speed.  If you start high, the steam will build up and pop off the top and then you will be covered in hot cream and chili.)  Temper the cream mixture with the yolk mixture, and over low heat slowly cook the custard while continuously scraping the bottom of the pot with a rubber spatula until it coats the back of a spoon.

Transfer the mixture into a bowl set over an ice bath and stir until cooled.  Process the mixture using an ice cream machine (follow the instructions provided by the particular ice cream machine you are using).  Store in the freezer in an air tight container labeled and dated.

Just remember that any ice cream made with a chili or pepper can be hot!  You may be tempted or tricked to eat more of the ice cream to help cool your mouth.  However, doing so will only make it worse.  My wife found out the hard way (she loved the taste and kept eating it, but it was a little too spicy for her palate).  Only those with tolerance for heat need consume.  Now get out there and make some ice cream!

 

Heirloom Tomato Jam

Heirloom tomatoes have become increasingly popular and more readily available in recent years.  They are classified in four categories: family heirlooms, commercial heirlooms, mystery heirlooms and created heirlooms. These are grown for many reasons, such as historical interest, access to wider varieties, and by people who wish to save seeds from year to year.  Their taste is widely perceived to be better than modern tomatoes. Heirloom tomatoes have a shorter shelf life and are less disease resistant than most commercial tomatoes. They also lack a genetic mutation that gives tomatoes an appealing uniform red color which sacrifices the fruit’s sweet taste.

Within the last year I have taken a greater interest in pickling and canning, which has driven me to spend more time making jams and chutneys.  This recipe is one of my favorite jam recipes with a nice heat.

Start out by washing and removing the stems of the tomatoes.  If using large tomatoes, dice them roughly to the size of a garlic clove.  Place the tomatoes in the bottom of a medium sized pot and begin to heat up the pot to just below medium heat.

Layer the rest of your ingredients and begin to stir until they are all combined completely.  Let the ingredients simmer together.  Check and stir the jam every 10 minutes until it begins to thicken.  As the mixture gets thick you will need to stir more frequently so not to burn the bottom.

Once the jam is to the thickness you desire (depending on what you are planning on using it for), blend half of the jam either in a stationary blender or with a stick blender.  Remove the pot from the heat and taste.  Season with extra salt or vinegar to find the exact flavor you love.

      

Place the jam into pre-boiled glass canning jars and top with the lid.  Set jars in a pot of boiling water for 15 minutes then remove and let cool on counter.  After an hour, place in refrigerator and cool completely.  Check to make sure once it has cooled the top of the jar has suctioned down and canned properly.

Finally, serve on a burger, toast and cheese or however you would like.  Have fun and enjoy!

Heirloom Tomato Jam Recipe

5 pounds heirloom tomatoes (roughly chopped) – in my opinion, I believe that heirloom tomatoes have the best flavor when in season

2 small yellow onions, diced

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

2 lemons juiced

1 green apple, finely diced

2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

3/4 teaspoon cumin

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1 dried or fresh chilie of your choice (destemed and deseeded)

 

Honey-Thyme-Orange Ice Cream with Blackberry-Goat Cheese Swirl

It has been more than 6 months since our last ice cream entry so I believe it is time to fire up the ice cream machine again!  Today’s ice cream will be a bit more on the savory side, but still using blackberry for the swirl.

Thyme is sold both fresh and dried.  Fresh thyme is more flavorful, but less convenient (storage life is rarely more than a week).  Summer-seasonal, fresh greenhouse thyme is available year round.  A recipe may measure thyme by the bunch, by the sprig or by the tablespoon and teaspoon.  The leaves may be removed from the stems by scraping with the back of a knife, or by pulling through the fingers or tines of a fork.  For this recipe we will be using whole sprigs of thyme.

Honey-Thyme-Orange Ice Cream with Blackberry–Goat Cheese Swirl Recipe

2 cups whole milk

4 cups heavy cream

6 large sprigs fresh thyme

1 cinnamon stick

¼ cup orange flavor liquor

8 egg yolks

1 cup honey

2 pints of blackberries

3 cups of sugar

6 tbsp of creamy goat cheese

We are going to start this recipe by bringing the milk/cream to a simmer.  Once it starts to simmer, remove from the heat and add the thyme and cinnamon stick.  Cover the pot and steep for 30 minutes.

While that is steeping, combine the blackberries and 1 cup of sugar in a mixing bowl.  Set mixture over a pot of simmering water and let it cook for 15 minutes.  Once the time is up, puree the blackberry mixture and strain into a bowl with the goat cheese.  My preference on goat cheese to use is the Laura Chenel brand.  Mix them until they are completely combined, then cool in the refrigerator.

Next step is to combine the egg yolks, remaining sugar, orange liquor and honey in a mixer and whip until it becomes light and fluffy.  Slowly whisk a cup of the hot mixture (milk/cream, thyme, and cinnamon stick) into the yolk mixture, tempering, and bring the temperature of the yolk up without cooking it as you add it back into the remaining hot mixture.

On medium low heat, start to cook the custard while constantly scraping the bottom with a rubber spatula until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon evenly without immediately falling off.  Strain the custard through a strainer into a bowl set over an ice bath and stir until completely cooled.

Fire up the ice cream machine!  Process the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s directions.  As you are removing the finished ice cream from the machine, drizzle the blackberry goat cheese throughout and stir a few times to make swirls.

Hope you enjoy this delicious treat!