Episode 55: Casino
ATLANTIC LOBSTER AND SHRIMP WITH BABY ARUGULA AND BAY SPINACH IN A BUTTERNUT SQUASH EMULSION
½ teaspoon saffron
2 large shallots, finely diced
1 cup white wine
16 mussels, scrubbed and cleaned
4 tablespoons Whipping cream
4 tablespoons orange juice
1 ½ cup chopped butternut squash
2 cups baby spinach, washed and picked over
2 cups baby arugula, washed and picked over
1 tablespoon butter
1 lobster tail, cooked and cut in 8 slices
2 lobster claws, cooked and cut into 8 slices
8 jumbo shrimp, cooked and peeled
16 wontons (see recipe below)
Preparation time is 20 minutes.
Ease of preparation is difficult.
In a small saucepan, bring the saffron, shallots and white wine to gentle boil until reduced by 1/4 and add mussels. Cook for 4 minutes or until the shells have opened. Strain and set the mussels aside, discarding any that haven’t opened. Return the mussel liquid to the same saucepan with the cream and orange juice. Add the butternut squash and simmer until soft, about 8 minutes. Puree the squash mixture with a hand wand, every now and then bringing the blade of the wand to the surface, creating bubbly foam.
Wilt the spinach and arugula in a medium skillet over high heat with a tablespoon of butter, no more than a minute. Plate 1/8th of the arugula & spinach immediately and top with a slice of lobster tail, a slice of lobster claw, a shrimp, 2 mussels and 2 wontons.
Drizzle with the butternut squash foam and serve immediately
Lobster Wontons
If you can’t find lobster mousse, then an equal amount of soft cream cheese with a squirt of lemon juice is a good substitute. You can also use crab or shrimp if lobster meat isn’t your thing.
½ cup lobster mousse (store bought)
2 teaspoons flat leaf parsley, minced
½ cup cooked lobster meat, diced
16 each square wonton wrappers
2 eggs, whisked
In a bowl combine the lobster mousse, parsley and lobster meat and mix well. Lay out the wrapper on a flat work surface. Place 1 tablespoon of lobster mixture in centre of each wrapper, lightly brush the edges of the wrappers with whisked egg and fold diagonally to form a triangle enclosing the filling. Press the edges together to seal. Add the wontons to a large pot of boiling water over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and gently simmer for 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Yield: 8
CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA NUT TIMBALE WITH NOVA SCOTIA BERRIES AND LEMON VERBENA ICE CREAM
Chef makes his own ice cream at the restaurant. For this recipe we thought we’d save you the step and suggest a good store bought lemon (or any citrus flavour) ice cream.
Timbale
3 ounces macadamia nuts, toasted
¾ cup unsalted butter, soft
1 cup sugar
¼ cup flour
4 eggs
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
Ganche:
1 litre whipping cream
1 ¼ kilogram chocolate
1 splash of brandy, cognac or other liqueur of your choice
Berries:
½ cup each gooseberries, blackberries, raspberries, red currants, black grapes
Lemon Syrup:
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
1/3 cup lemon juice
citrus ice cream
mint sprigs & tuile for garnish
Preparation time is 30 minutes
Ease of preparation is moderate
Heat oven to 350ºF
Timbale:
Grind half of the nuts and coarsely chop the remaining half. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar, flour and ground nuts. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the cocoa and stir until fully incorporated. Place 6 buttered ring moulds on the sheet pan. Fill the moulds 2/3 full with the batter and sprinkle with the remaining nuts. Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Ganache:
Over a bain-marie, heat the cream and add chopped chocolate and whisk till incorporated. Add the liqueur and turn the heat off, leaving the mix in the cool.
Berries & Lemon syrup:
In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, water and lemon juice and bring to a gentle simmer over medium high heat until the sugar has dissolved. Turn the heat off and add the berries.
Assembly:
Place 1/6th of the berries the center of the plate. Place one of the macadamia nut timbales on top. Pour the ganache over top and add a scoop of ice cream
Garnish with a fresh mint sprig and a store bought tuile
Yield: 6 servings
GRILLED USDA PRIME BEEF TENDERLOIN WITH TRUFFLE, CHERVIL REDUCTION, CHANTERELLE AND MOREL RAGOUT AND YUKON GOLD POTATO ROSTIE
4 6ounce beef fillet
Freshly ground pepper
Chanterelle and Morel Ragout:
4 shallots, peeled, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 cups chanterelle and morel
¼ cup chicken or beef stock
¼ cup dry sherry or port
¼ cup fresh parsley
Salt and pepper
Rosti Potato:
4 large boiling Yukon gold potatoes
¼ teaspoon garlic
2 tablespoons shallots, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon whole butter
Truffle Chervil Reduction Sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup shallots
½ cup celery
4 cloves garlic
5 cups red wine
8 cups veal stock
1 tablespoon dried chervil
Truffle paste
Celeriac Puree:
2 tablespoons butter
1 piece cooked celeriac
Salt and pepper, to taste
Black truffles, shaved
Truffle oil
4 sweet potato crisps
Oil for deep-frying
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Ease of preparation is moderate
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Method:
Chanterelle and Morel Ragout: Heat up a non-stick pan. Sweat the shallots and garlic in butter until thoroughly softened. Cut any very large chanterelle and morels into smaller pieces. Stirring occasionally, carefully add these mushrooms to the sautéed shallots & garlic over medium heat. Add stock and cook until the liquid has evaporated. Deglaze with dry sherry or port and cook until it evaporates. Season with salt, pepper and parsley. Keep aside warm.
Rosti Potato:
Boil the Yukon gold potatoes until they are 80% cooked. Cool down and peel. Grate into a stainless steel bowl. Mix with garlic, chopped shallots and seasoning. Form into a hockey puck shape. Melt 1 tbsp of butter over medium heat and cook these potatoes until they have a golden brown color outside and are completely cooked. Keep warm for assembly later.
Truffle Chervil Reduction Sauce: Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add sliced shallots, celery, and chopped garlic. Sauté until shallots and celery become soft. Deglaze with red wine and cook until wine has evaporated. Veal stock is now added with the dry chervil. This sauce is then reduced until it has a creamy consistency. Finally truffle paste is added and finished with the rest of the cubes of butter (beurre monte)
Celeriac Puree: In a blender, add 2 tablespoons butter, boiled cooked cubed celeriac and salt and pepper. Blend until it becomes a smooth puree.
Sweet Potato Crisp: Peel and wash the sweet potato. Cut into 4 very thin slices. In a skillet heat up the oil to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and fry slices of sweet potato until they are crispy, 3-4 minutes. Take them out and place on paper towel to absorb the oil.
Assembly: Season beef tenderloin and grill them on a char broiler or non-stick frying pan on each side for about 2-3 minutes. Rest the tenderloin on the counter. Finally finish them in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for 3 minutes for medium rare and 4-5 minutes for medium.
Lay rosti potato in the middle of the plate; place the beef fillet on top. Spoon celeriac puree on beef followed by chanterelle morel ragout. Drizzle beef and around beef with the black truffle oil, shaved truffles and reduction sauce. Finally place the sweet potato crisp standing up out of the celeriac.
Yield: 4 servings
SMOKED SALMON WRAPPED DIGBY SCALLOPS WITH COCONUT, CILANTRO, LEMON GRASS AND SHALLOT MOUSSELINE
20 large scallops (10-16 count)
Rock salt crushed
Freshly ground pepper
¼ cup white wine
20 thin slices of smoked salmon
Coconut Dressing:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons shallots, chopped
2 large red chilies, finely sliced
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoon Malaysian curry blend (recipe below)
1 stalk lemon grass, minced
150 millilitres coconut cream
30 grams palm sugar, shaved
1 tablespoons coriander, chopped
2 tablespoons basil leaves shredded
lime zest minced
30 millilitres lime juice
½ cup hollandaise (recipe below)
Malaysian Curry Blend:
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
6 dry red chilies
½ teaspoon celery seeds
3 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger powder
Hollandaise Sauce:
3 medium shallots
¾ cup white wine
¾ cup white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
6 egg yolks
6 tablespoon cold water
2 cups clarified butter
¼ cup lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Paprika Oil:
1 litre olive oil
25 grams paprika
Curry Oil:
1 litre olive oil
25 grams curry powder
15 grams turmeric powder
3 lime, zested
4 cloves garlic, sliced
12 large dried chilies, broken into pieces
Garnishes:
16 small baby spinach leaves, deep-fried
16 Spanish onion rings deep-fried
5 tablespoons freshly shaved coconut
2 tablespoons garlic, sliced and deep-fried
Few drops curry oil as garnish (recipe below)
Few drops paprika oil as garnish (recipe below)
1 teaspoon chives, chopped
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Ease of preparation is moderate
Method:
Coconut dressing: Heat oil in a saucepan, fry shallot, chili for a minute or so over gentle heat. Add turmeric, Malaysian curry, lemon grass minced and fry for a minute, then stir in coconut cream, palm sugar, chopped coriander, shredded basil, lime zest and lime juice. Bring to a boil, then cook for 8-10 minutes over moderate heat. Take off the fire and completely cool down.
Malaysian Curry Blend: Dry roast whole spices over a gentle heat until just aromatic. Cool and grind to a fine powder then stir in remaining spices. Store in a sealed jar.
Hollandaise Sauce: Combine chopped shallots, white wine, vinegar, cracked black pepper in a small saucepan. Heat the mixture and bring to a boil and reduce until it is reduced to two thirds or about ½ cup (15 to 20 minutes). Strain the reduction through a fine chinois and reserve until needed. Combine egg yolks with cold water in saucepan with sloping sides. Whisk the mixture until it becomes light and frothy. Heat over a medium to high flame, whisking rapidly. The mixture will triple in volume, when mixture starts to stiffen, continue whisking as rapidly as possible to ensure it is completely cooked. Remove from heat and whisk for about 20 seconds to cool. Ladle the clarified butter into the mixture while gently stirring with the whisk. When all the butter has been added the sauce will have a very stiff mixture. Add the lime juice and reduction. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
Paprika Oil: Bring ingredients to a simmer in a saucepan – do not boil. Cook gently for 30 minutes, and then remove from heat. Set aside for 24 hours to infuse. Store in an airtight bottle.
Curry Oil: Bring all ingredients to a simmer in a large saucepan over low heat – do not boil. Cook gently for 15 minutes then remove from the heat. Cool completely. Strain through a fine meshed sieve. Store in a sterilized bottle and seal with a cork
Assembly: Season the scallop with rock salt and pepper. Heat up a frying pan to high temperature; sear the seasoned scallops from either side (no more than 1 minute on either side), flambé with white wine. Remove from heat and rest for 30 seconds. Wrap the scallops with salmon and arrange on the plate. Meanwhile take 4 tablespoons of the coconut dressing, mix with 8 tablespoons of hollandaise and spoon this mixture over each scallop, just enough to cover. Place plates of scallops under hot broiler and broil until golden brown in color (less than a minute). Pile fried crispy spinach, fried onion rings in the center of the plate. Spoon freshly shaved coconut on each scallop. Sprinkle fried garlic sliced, drizzle with curry oil, paprika oil and sprinkle with chopped chives.
Yield: 4
