Let's Have a Three Way!

1. Seared duck breast with 3 citrus jam, frisee salad
2. Roasted 3 mushroom soup deconstructed: caramelized shallots, fried garlic, herbed-thyme dressing
3. Trio of beef over smashed Japanese sweet potatoes and green onion pesto:
Seared ribeye with horseradish sour cream, Grilled hanger steak with blue cheese-honey butter, BBQ pulled
4. Tres leches cake

So Cute I Could Pinch Your Cheeks

So thanks to the photography skills of a super loyal guest, who has a far better camera than me, I've been able to find some shots from older dinners and I'll start adding them. Here are a few from an all cheek menu titled, "So Cute I Could Pinch Your Cheeks". Menu is as follows:
1st: Ceviche of red snapper cheek with basil & mint slivers, chilled tomato jus
2nd: Locally sourced guiancale carbonara
3rd: Mexican Coca Cola braised beef cheeks with cinnamon-chili squash
4th: Vanilla bean flan

4 courses 1 oven

So in order from left to right here are some pics from the last MF Tasty dinner.

The first was the amuse of house made beet chips with spanish pickled peppers, and smoked sweet paprika aioli.

The second is tuna sashimi over sliced water melon, with black pepper, basil, mint, and a balsamic soy reduction.

The third is braised pork belly with a salad of dandelion greens, red onion, and a house made honey mustard.

Finally the dessert picture is warm chocolate cake with strawberry, caramel, and an espresso whipped cream.

Recession Foie (chicken liver-port mousse)

OK this recipe is not too time consuming, but nonetheless requires some technique. Units of measurement are ommitted because I just made this by feel. What's that mean? TASTE A LOT! And adjust as you see fit. The only garaunteed unit in this is there are roughly a pound of chicken livers.

Directions:

You will need chicken livers, minced garlic (as the pic shows, I totally cheated and used some pre-minced stuff in my fridge, SIN! It will taste better with freshly minced garlic, but I was working with what I had), and small diced onions. Firstly drain your chicken livers of all excess blood, and lightly sear in melted butter; season both sides with salt & pepper. Remove seared livers, set aside in blender.

In the same pan, to pick up any remenents of liver flavor (and to cut down on clean up), sautee the garlic and onion with a bit of bay leaf until translucent. Set aside in blender with livers. Deglaze the pan with a bit of port (1/2 cup) and reduce to a syrup. * Note: if you do not have port, use the red wine, but add one tablespoon sugar*

Add this reduction to the blender that contains your other ingredients and blend. Once pureed fold in a few "healthy" sized chunks of butter and blend until smooth.

At this point taste, adjust seasoning, and reblend if needed. Your flavor should be consistent at this point but the texture will not be 100% smooth. Strain the now pureed mix and set aside in a container. This will look like a smooth liquid, that after placing in the refridgerator for a few hours will have a velvety, mousse texture.

Serve on a toasted baguette, or gluttonly eat with a spoon straight from your container!

A few pics from an MF Tasty Dinner

NY Strip with peanut butter mashed potatoes, carmelized granny smith apples, bacon and an apple cider reduction

A lot of not licensed by Reese's peanut butter cups with vanilla bean milkshakes

Scallops over purple sticky rice with sriracha aioli and green onion puree

A really late conclusion to limoncello

OMG this was too delayed, but the final result of this quest is one thing: powerful limoncello! It worked...but I have one qualm with this experiment, I want more limoncello! It took a really long time, and yes you can wait far less. Hell, you can even infuse the simple syrup in right off the bat, and in 3 days you have some stuff you could be proud of. Bear in mind, this is a more time consuming recipe I gave, and the longer those flavors have to infuse, the more intense the flavor will be.

Adventures in Limoncello. pt1

So I have a lemon tree in my backyard that is sprouting some bountiful lemons.....hence I gotta use them. I thought: hey, I enjoy some refreshing limoncello, I have all the stuff needed, why the hell not? Bear with me, this is my first batch ever, so I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

Limoncello recipe:

1 750 mL bottle of clear grain alcohol (for this batch, I am trying a mid-grade vodka)

* side note, if you are flavoring a vodka or mixed drink, don't waste your money on top shelf liquor because you will be masking the flavor in the end

Zest of 12 lemons

- So you will be combining the alcohol and zest in a bottle, where the flavors will blend over time. And trust me, patience is a virtue when it comes to this beverage. Allow to sit in a place with minimal sunlight, such as your pantry or fridge for 45 days. I know (and this is only half the process). Occassionally shake the well sealed bottle to mix the zest up.

After 45 days, you will take about 1 c simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water reduced to a syrup), and add it to the blend. Reseal, shake thouroughly, and wait another 45 days! Filter and enjoy.

....so far I'm still in the first 45 days so updates will follow.