Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Tue, Apr 16 2013 20:42:59
A one-of-a-kind gourmet treat that makes weekends extra special, salmon with blueberry butter, adapted from Coasting and Cooking by Barbara Williams, is a delightful dish that is colorful, vibrant, succulent and unforgettable. In this cooking sander french fish recipe, salmon is pan-fried and flavored with shallots, Vermouth, and blueberry butter and garnished with walnuts and freshly chopped parsley. Blueberry butter is made with fresh blueberries, butter, thyme, lemon rind, onions, and freshly ground pepper. A wide spectrum of flavors and pleasant aromas will greet you as you make this dish and it is sure to impress guests.
Make the blueberry butter ahead of time, at least a night or a day before so that the flavors infuse and when you cook the salmon, it will melt and penetrate the succulent flesh of the fish. Before frying the salmon in the pan, rinse the fish quickly and pat it dry with a cloth. If the fish is frozen, it should be thawed in the refrigerator overnight. Make sure to get rid of any excess water so the skin crisps nicely and it will take on a nice golden brownish pink color. Do so gently, however, and don’t press out the natural moisture inside the fish.
After patting it dry, coat the fish lightly with flour so that it develops a delicious crisp skin when it is cooked. Before placing the fish in the pan, the oil should be hot to sear the skin of the salmon and seal in its juices, giving it succulence. The oil should not be smoking hot, however, or the fish will burn. The oil should be deep enough to cover half of the thickness of the salmon fillets. Three to five minutes on medium heat on each side should be enough to cook the salmon through. Cook the salmon fillets skin side first and turn it over once when half the flesh is cooked.
Make the blueberry butter a day ahead by beating the butter until creamy. Add the rind, blueberries, thyme, onion, and a little pepper and stir until blended. Chill.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the shallots and thyme and sauté for 2 minutes.
Lightly dust the salmon with flour. Add the fish to the skillet, flesh side facing up. Cook until colored then turn.
Add the Vermouth. Top each fish fillet with about ½ oz. of the blueberry butter. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer gently until fish is cooked through. Sprinkle the salmon with walnuts and parsley just before serving.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Tue, Apr 16 2013 20:26:20
Adapted from 365: No Repeats by Rachel Ray
The mixture of spices is what makes these lamb chops unique recipe chrust faworki. Try serving them with sautéed bell peppers and rice.
Lay the lamb chops on a piece of waxed paper. Cover with another piece of waxed paper and flatten each chop with a rolling pin. Season the lamb chops with salt and pepper.
In a small bowl, stir together the cumin, coriander, and paprika. Rub this mixture into the lamb chops. Let the meat sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
Pour the oil into a large skillet placed over medium high heat.Once heated, add the lamb chops and cook for 3 minutes on each side for medium rare or 4 minutes on each side for medium well.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Mon, Apr 15 2013 20:19:07
In this gourmet Michelin recipe, the notoriously decadent foie gras is wrapped in fresh and scrumptious ravioli, slathered with creamy fowl gravy and served with lemon sauce on the side. When making this recipe, it is best to use fresh ravioli dough, which you can buy from your local Italian grocer or you can make yourself. Making delicious fresh pasta, however, takes some practice. A lot of people who attempt it the first time are disappointed with the results. The type of flour used is one of the important considerations. The best kind to make tasty al dente pasta is 100% semolina flour, but some find that all-purpose flour works just fine.
A pasta maker makes homemade pasta a lot easier because it flattens out the dough into a consistently thin and even sheet. If you don’t have a pasta maker, you can still make delicious ravioli with the use of a rolling pin. They might not look perfect but that is part of the allure and charm of homemade pasta. The key is to get smooth and elastic dough that you can knead and work with ease. Kneading takes about ten minutes, or until the dough is firm and smooth, just a little sticky, and wonderfully stretchy.
On a wooden table or board, make a mound of three a cups semolina or unbleached all-purpose flour. Make a well in the middle and add five egg yolks and half a teaspoon of salt. Beat the eggs using a fork and incorporate the flour starting with the inner rim and working your way outwards. Knead the dough using the palms of your hands until it is elastic and a bit sticky. Add enough water as needed to make the dough smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes. With a rolling pin, flatten the dough as thin as you can and cut to make fresh ravioli.
Cut the foie gras into pieces of about 1 oz. each. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix a beaten egg with a little salt. Using a pastry brush, paint the outer sides of the ravioli with this mixture. Place the foie gras in the center, which has not been glazed with eggs. Fold the other sheet of ravioli on top of the foie gras. Pinch the ravioli edges by turning them between your fingers. Cut the ravioli with a punch so they are hermetically sealed. There must not be any air pockets inside.
Pour water and bouillon in a pot. When it boils, add the ravioli and cook for about 3-10 minutes depending on package instructions. Homemade pasta will cook fast.
Pour the other half of the fowl gravy into a saucepan. Boil down. Add 2 tablespoons of cream. Continue boiling down. Using a mixer, blend the fowl gravy.
In another saucepan, boil down the remaining cream with lemon juice.
Place 3 to 4 ravioli on each plate. Cover the ravioli with the fowl gravy. The lemon sauce, which is much clearer, should be served on a separate dish on the side.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Sun, Apr 14 2013 20:12:12
With only four ingredients, you can make a healthy chicken noodle casserole using a crock-pot or slow cooker. In this recipe adapted from the Dispatch cookbook, boneless and skinless chicken breasts are cooked in fat-free chicken broth and low-fat cream of chicken soup.Whole grain noodles are added to complete the meal, creating a healthy and satisfying dish for the whole family. This is a perfect meal for busy weekdays or lazy weekends.Flavorful and low in fat, this can be made a regular part of a healthy diet.
Crock pot recipe such as these are designed for the busy cooks. All the ingredients are cooked in one pot and you can leave it to cook on its own while you go about your day doing other tasks or chores. Instead of eating take-out or microwave-oven meals, slow cooker recipes let you enjoy a hearty and wholesome meal without the elaborate preparation and complicated techniques.
One of the most common problems with boneless and skinless chicken is that they can be dry and tasteless. This is because a lot of the flavor resides in the fat in the skin of the chicken. As the fat cooks, it penetrates the flesh of the chicken and gives it amazing flavor. Chicken fat, however, is high in cholesterol and is not the healthiest food around. Taking out the skin lessens considerable calories. To make the chicken moist and flavorful in this recipe, it is cooked in a flavorful chicken broth with the fat skimmed off. You can get fat-free chicken broth in can or cartons in grocery stores. Low-fat cream of chicken soup is also used in this recipe, tripling the flavor of the chicken. The meal is so flavorful you no longer need to add salt to it, although you can add a dash of pepper to give it a bit of spice and aroma.
Combine soup and broth in crockpot, stirring until well blended. Add chicken.
Cover and cook on high heat 6 for hours.
Uncover and remove chicken. Shred chicken and return to pot. Add noodles.
Cover and cook on high for an additional hour. Stir once after 30 minutes.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Fri, Apr 12 2013 20:57:52
Adapted from The Woman’s Day Cookbook by Kathy Farrel-Kingsley
This Michelin dessert recipe is great served warm or at room temperature. You may also substitute blackberries or raspberries for the blueberries.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Pour the blueberries, plums, sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, lemon juice, and cinnamon into a 9 in. pie plate. Stir and spread evenly.
In a mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, 2/3 cup flour, butter, and oats. Combine with your hands until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. None of the mixture should be dry. Spoon this topping evenly over the plum mixture. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the plums are tender.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Thu, Apr 11 2013 21:46:42
Cooked manicotto shells are stuffed with four kinds of cheese including ricotta, cottage, mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese and topped with a sumptuous sauce made of ground beef, butter, olive oil, garlic, onions, tomato paste, parsley, basil, and oregano, and baked in the oven to create an unforgettable and absolutely delicious Italian dish in this pleasantly simple gourmet recipe.
Manicotto are very large pasta shells that need to be boiled in water with some salt and olive oil before that are stuffed with the fillings. They are usually rigged so that the pasta sauce readily adheres to their surface. They are similar to cannelloni, in the sense that both are made from rolled pasta. Traditionally, manicotto is stuffed with ricotta cheese combined with spinach and ground meat and topped with Italian white béchamel or red sauce or both. This version is especially favorable for cheese lovers and makes a divine appetizer or main meal. It can be served with crusty bread or a side of salad greens.
This is also an ideal party food for serving to family, friends, and guests because it can be prepared ahead of time, stored in the fridge, and popped in the oven anytime you are ready to serve. You also don’t need to worry about leftovers as the flavors actually get better and develop after a day or two. This is a dish that almost anyone will love. A fancier alternative to lasagna, manicotti makes a beautiful presentation. Serve it at your next wine and cheese party with a bottle of Chianti, Zinfandel or Sangiovese for a delightful and unforgettable time.
For this recipe, it is better to use dried herbs, particularly dried basil and dried parsley for a subtler flavor that will not overpower the dish. Of course you can use fresh herbs if you want a livelier and robust herby flavor.
Measure water and salt into a large kettle. Heat to boiling. Add shells and oil and cook until shells are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Rinse shells in cold water and drain. Set aside.
Measure all filling ingredients into a medium mixing bowl, stirring to combine thoroughly. Stuff shells.
To make the sauce, brown meat in a large skillet. Add rest of sauce ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour enough sauce into a large casserole dish to cover the bottom. Place manicotti side by side in the dish. Cover with rest of sauce. Bake, uncovered, 40-45 minutes.
Storified by Lucette Delacroix· Wed, Apr 10 2013 20:40:57
Nice and creamy in the middle and crispy on the outside, Fougasse is a delicious flat bread stuffed with bacon, cheese or olives. It has many variations including ones stuffed with anchovies, dried fruits, nuts, or herbs. Every region in France has their version but it is typically associated with Provence. In this gourmet recipe, Chef Stephane Raimbault shows you how to make Fougasse the way it is traditionally done. He makes two types separately, one stuffed with black olives and olive paste, and the other stuffed with lard-on or thick bacon cubes and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. Before baking the bread, he slashes the stuffed dough to make a lattice pattern similar to an ear of wheat. This makes the bread all the more crunchy and scrumptious and also makes the bread easier to pull apart. It also makes it easier to determine which one is stuffed with bacon and which one is stuffed with olives. Other popular patterns resemble a leaf or a tree.
The preparation for this recipe can be broken down into three parts: making the dough, making the creamy stuffing, and spreading the black olives and bacon and folding the dough to seal the stuffing. While waiting for the dough to rise, which roughly takes about 20 minutes, the creamy stuffing is made. This is made of olive oil, milk, and flour, and seasoned with salt and pepper, and is what makes the fougasse soft in the middle.
Chef Rimbault uses a kneading machine to make the dough in this recipe to ensure an even, light and fine result. To get an exceptional crust, spray some water using the preheated oven to create some steam. A good fifteen to twenty squirts will do. You can also add five more squirts after loading the oven and immediately closing the door.
Mix the water and milk. Add the yeast then stir it well. Add the olive oil. Set aside.
Mix wheat flour and chick-pea flour. Pour the mixture into a kneading machine, add the butter, then start the machine. Pour the liquid mixture into it then wait for five minutes. Add the salt. Wait for another five minutes, then the dough is done. Turn the machine off, add a touch of flour, and then take the dough out. Lift the dough a little to smooth, set it aside then let the dough stand for 20 minutes.
While keeping the dough aside, prepare the stuffing. Mix together the milk, olive oil, and flour in a mixing bowl. Add ground pepper and stir it again. Then set aside.
After the dough has been rising for twenty minutes, cut it into 350g pieces for the Fougasse. Smooth each piece and fold it over on itself then let the balls of dough rise for another 5 minutes.
Roll the dough with a rolling pin into a rectangular shape. Cover some by spreading on it the stuffing made earlier. Make an olive garnish by mixing olives and olive paste then spread on the stuffing covered dough but don’t cover them fully. Fold them over by taking both ends to the middle while slightly overlapping each other. Dress other dough with bacon and then sprinkle with parmesan. Roll each dough a little.
On the dough stuffed with bacon, sprinkle with Swiss cheese then some flour on the olive filled Fougasse. Cut through it in six’s using a dough cutter then separate the pieces. Bake for 20 minutes.
