Cooking in the Key of B

Happy New Year to you all!  Today I'm cooking up a storm, with a gorgeous Boeuf Bourguignon in the slow cooker, and simmering Bacon jam on the stove top in a new Swiss Diamond pan that was a gift from a friend, and to get myself into more trouble I've made the dough for 'Bama Cheese Straws.

Before Christmas I had enough time to bake, and make some interesting meals, but today, with the temperatures lower than normal for San Diego, a rich wine soaked beef stew with Boursin mashed potatoes, and crisp green beans dressed with extra virgin olive oil just sounded right.
The Bacon jam is a result of lusting after the right recipe, and then tossing caution to the wind, and developing my own.  I've had friends who've made Bacon jam but I never had enough bacon in the house to make a batch---caution, it's addictive and doesn't make a whole heck of a lot!  After a trip to Siesels' meats last week, I bought a pound of Berkshire bacon and it was worth it!
Several months ago I had a grilled Brie and Granny Smith apple sandwich with bacon jam and it was sublime.  I think you could use this jam on anything!

Bacon Jam

Makes about 1 cup

One pound good quality bacon (I'd advise not using any flavored bacon, like Maple, or even apple wood smoked) cut into 1/2 inch pieces 

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup strong brewed coffee

3 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar *see note

3 tablespoons Sherry vinegar ** see note

1 bay leaf

freshly ground black pepper

In a large non-stick skillet, cook the bacon over medium high heat, until it is crisp. 

 Transfer the contents of the skillet to a colander set over a bowl to catch the bacon drippings.  
Return the drained bacon to the skillet (there will still be a bit of drippings clinging to the bacon)
Add the onion and garlic, an saute for 3 to 4 minutes, until the onion is translucent.
Add the sugar, maple syrup, coffee, vinegars, bay leaf and pepper.  

Cover and simmer for 1 hour over medium low heat (the liquid in the pan should bubble slowly), until the mixture is thickened.   
 Taste for seasoning during the cooking time and add additional sugar, or vinegar to achieve a good balance. 
Cool completely, remove the bay leaf  and process in the food processor until desired consistency.  The jam keeps refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. 

Note on Balsamic vinegar:  I used B.R. Cohn 25 year old Balsamic vinegar---use a good quality vinegar here---most supermarket Balsamic vinegars are red wine vinegar, caramel color and sugar, boiled down--these don't achieve that lovely balance that a more expensive vinegar will.

Note on Sherry vinegar:  Sherry vinegar adds zest, and flavor here, if you don't have it, use apple cider vinegar.      

 

Enjoy the rest of your week and Happy New Year!    
 

 

Where's The Beef?

On Monday night Dr. C. and I took at class at Great News here in San Diego given by Stan Glenn and Chris Brill the guys at Iowa Meat Farms/Siesels meats.  These two men teach you more about meats than you will ever learn in culinary school and the class is terrific; that said, I'm not sure I'll eat meat again until next week, I'm still on overload! 
Stan mentioned that the price of beef was going to sky-rocket, and if you've been to the store lately, you've seen the spike in price.  The cattle supply is dwindling due to lots of factors: droughts, pasture land lost in wild fires, and foreign demand.  Outbid by the Japanese, Koreans, Mexicans and Russians for beef, there is now less beef in your market than there was in the 50's.  

A spokesman for the livestock Marketing Information Center says that many supermarkets are cutting steaks thinner, and major steakhouses are serving dinners on smaller plates with more vegetables---charging higher prices. 

Experts say it may take up to three years for the beef supply to restore the herds to their pre-drought, wild fire levels.  That means your meat loaf will cost a bit more in the future.

OOOPS, I mean THIS meatloaf.

Sticking to cheaper cuts you can make some stunning dinners from chuck roast, and bottom round which are available everywhere.  My favorite way to use a chuck roast is for a riff on Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon.
Delicious the day it's made, it's actually better the next day.  Marinating it the night before gives the meat a special flavor and making it in your slow cooker will give you extra time during the day to soak in a hot tub, or do errands. 
 Ode To Julia Boeuf Bourguignon

Serves 8

4 tbsp (/60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

3 cups/ (7520 ml)   full full-bodied red wine, such as French Burgundy, or Merlot, Zinfandel, or Chianti (see Slow Cooker Savvy)

2 medium shallots, coarsely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp (4.8 g) dried thyme

2 bay leaves

1 1/2 tsp (7.2 g) salt

1/2 tsp (2.3 g) freshly ground black pepper

4 pounds lb (/1.80kg8 kg) beef chuck or shoulder roast into 2-inch pieces, trimming the fat

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

3 tbsp beef (45 ml) soup base, or demi-glace (see slow SlowCooker Savvy)

4 tbsp/55 g (45 g) unsalted butter, softened

1/4 pound lb (/115 g)   pearl onions, peeled

1 pound lb (/450 455 g) Cremini cremini mushrooms, cleaned and quartered

2 tbsp (15g) all-purpose flour (optional)

1.      In a large bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons of the oil, the wine, shallots, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper.

2.      Place the short ribs into in a 1-gallon zipper zipper-top plastic bag, and pour the marinade over the ribs. Seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or up to 24 hours.

3.      Strain the marinade into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil.

4.      Add the soup base or demi glace to the marinade and set aside.

5.      In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil, and brown the short ribs, a few at a time, transferring them to the insert of a 4 to 6-quart4- to 6-qt/3.5- to 5.5-l slow cooker when they are  done.

6.      Pour the marinade into the pan and bring to a boil, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Transfer the marinade, to the slow cooker insert.

7.      Cover and cook on low for 10 hours, or on high for 5 hours, until the meat is tender.

8.      Remove the meat to a platter, and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Strain the sauce juices into a fat separator, or skim the fat from the top of the sauce and set aside.

9.      In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium high medium-high heat, and cook the onions for 2 to 3 minutes, until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and sauté until the mushrooms have turned golden. Add the sauce to the onions and mushrooms and bring the sauce to a boil.

1   If you think the sauce is thick enough to your liking, return it to the slow cooker along with the beef.

11 Otherwise, in a small bowl, knead together the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the flour. Whisk in the butter mixture, add 1 teaspoon at a time, and continue whisking until the sauce returns to a boil and is thickened.

12  Return the sauce and the short ribs to the slow cooker and keep on the warm setting until you are ready to serve.This is delicious served with Boursin mashed potatoes!

 

Slow Cooker Savvy:

The Savvy: The type wine you use here makes all the difference in the world; use a full bodied red such as a French Burgundy, Chianti, Zinfandel or Merlot. Wine that has too much tannin, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, will give the stew a “wine-y” flavor. To counter act this I recommend that you stay away from Cabernet Sauvignon; although Cabernet blends will work.

More Savvy:  Use a soup base such as Superior Touch, Better than Bouillon or a demi-glace such as Provimi or More Than Gourmet, rather than stock or broth.  Cheaper cuts of meat like Chuck will render a lot of liquid, if you add still more, it will become watered down.

 

This recipe is from my upcoming book, Mediterranean Slow Cooker which will be out in October, 2012.  Take a look at this cover! 

The Best Stew Known to Man

As I said yesterday, today was a test day for my latest book, and I made what Julia Child once called the best stew known to man.  I took a few liberties with her original recipe here  and Dr. C gave it two thumbs up!  

Prime short ribs from Siesels' meats

Sauteed onions

Altogether now!

Rich wine and beef flavored sauce

Mushrooms and purple pearl onions

Voila!  The blue plate special at Chez Phillips

Since I can't give you this recipe until it's published, I thought it might be nice to give you a recipe for my favorite accompaniment for this dish:  Mashed Yukon gold potatoes with Boursin Cheese.  

Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes with Boursin Cheese

Serves 6  

8 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled, and cut into 1-inch chunks
One 5.2 ounce container Boursin cheese
1/4 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste

1. Place the potatoes in a 4-quart saucepan with water to cover.  
2. Bring to a boil, and boil until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. 
3. While the potatoes are cooking, heat the milk and Boursin, until they are warm. (see note) 
4. Drain the potatoes, and return them to the pan, and shake over the heat, to dry them out.  
5. Add some of the Boursin mixture, and mash the potatoes, adding more of the boursin/milk mixture until the potatoes are smooth and creamy.  
6. Taste for seasoning, and add salt or pepper to taste.  Serve immediately. 

Stay tuned for more side dishes this week; I'm thinking about spinach gnocchi tomorrow with braised chicken and leeks in the slow cooker. 

Red Rock Canyons

After a 7 hour drive from San Diego, we arrived at the Zion National Park visitor center.  Made a reservation for a ranger tour and hike tomorrow (didn't tell Dr. C. the hiking part :0) and settled in at the hotel. 

Gorgeous views everywhere you look! So, what's for dinner?--oops, don't ask---oh, OK, I'll tell you--we ate at the Spotted Dog Cafe next door to the hotel, and I'll just say that it wasn't my best meal.  Sometimes chefs try to be more than they are, and nothing really worked here. I ordered something that even the novice chef should be able to cook well ...... in a slow cooker.

Boeuf bourguignon--OK, so there is an ORCHID on my FRENCH stew---that should have been the tip off, but then I was trying to figure out if those were actually CANNED mushrooms, or just overcooked mushrooms---I think they were the latter (I kept telling myself that every time I picked one up on the fork) The potatoes were microwaved before they went in, so they didn't soak up much of the sauce--a good thing, because it was ghastly---someones idea of a bad joke--it had cloves and allspice in it---trust me it wasn't even the remote bit tasty, just something you would push around on your plate. 
I'm a polite guest, I go someplace, I'm not sending this back, because chances are whoever is out in the kitchen can't do much better with anything else on the menu and the special was seared Ahi tuna which was frightening to me, as I was trying to eat something any cook could put together.  If you want a great recipe for this dish, you can go here or here or here.  Since I'm on the road I won't be posting recipes, but when we return will try to document what goes into this dish that Julia Child once called the greatest stew known to mankind --it's certainly not in Springdale, Utah, that's for sure!