Vitello Tonnato

Vitello Tonnato is a traditional Italian dish consisting of cold, sliced veal and a creamy tuna flavored sauce. The dish is served chilled  and is a perfect summer dish. The dish can be served as a main course, it's a perfect dish if you're serving a lot of people and the dish will work perfectly as a part of a buffet as well. The dish is preferably made well ahead of serving as it is supposed to be served chilled.

Ingredients;

Veal;

1 1/2 cup white wine
2 lb veal roast
1 sprig rosemary
 3 bay leaves
1 garlic clove
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 cup water
1 yellow onion
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
Salad
capers
olive oil
salt/pepper
lemon

Tuna-sauce;

2 cans white meat tuna in olive oil

2 boiled egg yolks

1/2 cup olive oil

10 capers

4 pieces italian anchovy

salt/pepper

1 tsp lemon juice

veal broth 

Start the night before you are making the veal by putting the roast in the white wine in a casserole with the bay leaves, bruised rosemary sprig, peppers and a smashed garlic clove. Leave in the refrigerator over night. 

Next morning you add the water and chopped vegetables to the brine, bring to a boil and simmer for about an hour or until the thermometer registers a temperature of 145 to 150F. This will take up to 2 hours if you double the size of the roast. 

Remove from heat and let the roast cool in the brine. When the veal is cool remove from brine, wrap tightly and refrigerate. Reduce brine until almost nothing, you can use that to add flavor to the tuna sauce or whip in some cold butter and serve as a sauce on the side. 

To make the tuna sauce blend the tuna, egg yolks, olive oil, capers, anchovy, salt/pepper and lemon juice in a food processor or blender ( I of course use my Vitamix blender!!) to a very smooth texture. If needed add some of the veal broth or water. If needed add more salt/pepper. 

Cut the chilled veal roast in thin slices, arrange on a platter with salad, capers, lemon and the tuna sauce. 

 

Let the fun begin!

Cucumber Soup with Scampi

As it's getting gradually hotter outside the urge for lighter meals tends to sneak up on you. Last night was hot and humid and I just didn't fancy a hot or heavy meal. This cold Cucumber soup with Scampi was the perfect solution. Can very well be served as a starter or  main course. If used as a starter just serve less, if used as a main course serve more and perhaps add some more scampi as well and perhaps some grissini. Can also be served as a shot if you're serving finger food.

Ingredients;

2 big cucumbers (I use english cucumbers) approx. 2 lb

2 cups water 

3 tbsp chicken fond

1/2 tbsp lemon juice

1 cup yoghurt (preferably greek)

1 garlic clove

1 ripe avocado

1/2 (or 1 if you like dill) cup coarsely chopped dill

tabasco 

sea-salt

Garnish;

3 scampi per person

olive oil

salt/pepper

dill

Peel the cucumbers, cut them in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Cut the cucumber in smaller pieces. Add them to the blender with the water, chicken fond, lemon juice, yoghurt, garlic and process until smooth. Add the avocado and dill (leaving some dill for the garnish) and process some more. Add water if needed then tabasco and salt (how much salt and tabasco is really a matter of preference). 

Put the soup in the refrigerator for a couple of hours so that it is could when served. 

Just before serving fry the scampi in a little bit of olive oil, add salt and pepper and put on skewers. 

Pour the chilled soup in soup bowls, glasses or whatever you prefer, add the scampi and some dill. Serve.

Hope you like it!!

Lemongrass Chicken

This chicken dish is a Vietnamese dish from an Asian recipe-book I've had for a long time. It's very tasty and you can make it as spicy as you like by adding or removing the red chili. Make sure you taste the chili before you add it to the dish or you might be in for a surprise. The chili can be very hot or not so hot, take a bite from the tip of the chili as that is supposed to be the most spicy part of the chili. Before using remove the seeds and finely chop. (from what I've heard the seeds if used will also take it up a notch spice-wise so if the chili is to mild you might want to add some)

Ingredients;

2 lb chickenfilet sliced thin
2 tbs corn oil for frying

Dry rub;

1 tsp ground pepper
2 inch lemongrass, chopped
3 red chili, chopped
2 scallions coarsely chopped
1 tsp "hot madras" curry powder
1 tsp salt
2 garlic cloves chopped
2 tbs dark brown sugar


1 tbs fishsauce
1/4 cup water

Garnish;

2 tbs cilantro chopped
2tbs scallions chopped

Add oil to a skillet and heat until it starts to smoke, then add the chicken (a little bit at a time)  and fry for 3 minutes. Remove when golden brown. Place the fried chicken in a bowl.

Add the dry rub ingredients to a food processor or a blender and blend on high until it makes a paste. Add the marinade to the fried chicken and toss to coat it all.

Let rest in the refrigerator for one hour then add to a pan and heat until warm. Add fish sauce and water and combine. Simmer until chicken is cooked all through.

Serve with rice, quinoa or just a green salad. Sprinkle with some chopped fresh cilantro and scallions.

Chevre Champignons

This is a great crowd pleaser. If served at a party as finger food use small mushrooms so that they will end up being finger size. If used as a dinner side use whatever size you fancy.

Ingredients;

1/2 lb bacon, chopped 

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

8 ounces chevre

2 tbs heavy cream

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 package fresh baby spinach ca 2.5 oz, chopped

36 white mushrooms if bite sized

Preheat oven to 350F

Chop the bacon and cook in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until cooked through, it should have a nice brown color without being burned. Remove bacon from skillet and put on a paper towel until ready to use. Add the onion to the pan with the bacon grease and season with some of the salt and pepper. Cook until onion is tender ca 5 minutes then remove from skillet and put on a paper towel to soak up excess fat. Add the spinach to the remaining fat (should not be much, just enough to cover the skillet) and cook until it collapses. Add the onion, bacon, the rest of the spices, the heavy cream and chèvre (crumbled) to the skillet and stir over medium heat until everything is well mixed and the chèvre is melted. 

Cook the mushrooms over medium heat, stems removed (I chop the stems, cook and add to the chèvre mixture but that is not necessary, I just don't like to waste good food) on both sides until golden brown and tender.
Put in an ovenproof shallow dish top side down and fill the mushrooms with the chèvre mixture.

Bake in the oven until the mixture starts to bubble and has a nice brownish color, 10 to 15 minutes or more.

Enjoy while warm!

Asian Style Chicken Wings on the grill

These chicken wings have a distinct Asian taste. They are rather sticky so make sure you have plenty of napkins at hand. Serve as part of a buffet or for dinner with a green salad on the side or perhaps a noodle dish.

Ingredients;

3 lb chicken drummettes

3/4 cup hoisin sauce

2 tbs Asian sesame oil

2 tbs rice vinegar

2 tbs soy sauce

2 tbs grated fresh ginger

1 1/2 tsp hot sauce

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

1/2 tsp ground cloves 

1 tbs toasted sesame seeds (toast in a dry frying pan over medium heat until they start to color making sure they don't get burned).

In a small bowl whisk all the ingredients except for the chicken drummettes and the sesame seeds. Pour 3/4 of the sauce into a ziploc bag and add the chicken. Toss the bag so that all the chicken drummettes are coated with the sauce. This can be done ahead but if you are not using the chicken right away put it in the refrigerator until ready to be used. 

Cook on the grill over medium-medium/high in a grill pan (I use the disposable ones because they tend to get rather messy) together with all the sauce for 20-25 minutes turning every five minutes or so to prevent burning. 

Transfer to a bowl, add the remaining sauce and sprinkle on the sesame seeds. 

Enjoy!

Breakfast Egg Muffins

For an easy breakfast make Egg Muffins. The Muffins can be made ahead and stored in your refrigerator and then in the morning just pop them in the microwave and Voila, ... your breakfast is ready.

Ingredients;

1 egg per muffin

Spice (salt/pepper/creole seasoning or any other seasoning you like)

Filling;

Chopped and blanched onion

Ham, chopped

Mushroom, chopped

Fresh baby spinach leaves

Grated Cheese

Etc.

Preheat oven to 375F.

To make the muffins spray a silicone muffin pan with non stick spray or line a regular muffin pan with muffin liners and spray. In the bottom of each muffin layer the fillings of your choice. You can use any or all of the fillings I have suggested or you can come up with your own. When done beat the eggs and divide among the muffins.

Do not fill more than 3/4 full. Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until a baking stick comes out clean. 

Cool and keep in refrigerator until ready to be used. Pop in microwave on high for ca. 1 minute. 

Meringue

This delicious and delicate dessert is a big winner if you eat it alone, together with fruits, ice cream, vanilla custard or whipped cream. It's a wonderful dessert any time of year. The best way to make sure you get a perfect result is to use room temperature egg whites and to start whipping your egg whites at a low speed then gradually increase speed until you get the right consistency.

Ingredients;

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla powder

2 tsp white wine vinegar 

1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch

1 1/2 cup granulated sugar

6 large egg whites (room temperature)

A pinch of Salt

Preheat oven to 275F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Pour vanilla extract and vinegar into a cup and mix sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. In the mixer bowl whip egg whites and salt using the whisk attachment. Remember for a good result to start at low speed. When soft peaks start to form increase speed to medium high and gradually add the sugar/cornstarch mixture. After a few minutes add the vanilla/vinegar mix. Increase speed further and whip until meringue is glossy and stiff, this takes 4 to 5 minutes. 

If you are using the meringue with fruits or ice cream or any other filling spoon it into large round mounds on the baking sheet and create an indentation in the middle for the filling. 

Place the baking sheet in the oven. Reduce oven temperature to 250F and bake for 50-60 minutes. The Meringues are supposed to be crisp on the outside but with a marshmallow-like inside. If the Meringues takes on color during baking reduce the oven temperature a bit.

 

When done cool the Meringues on a wire rack. Use immediately or store in a sealed container at room temperature for up to a week.