Tuesday, December 30th, 2008
When I can’t sleep I recall favorite meals rather than count sheep. High on the list are the dishes of red mullet I’ve eaten at Le Chaufourg-en-Perigord, my favorite inn in la belle France. So perfectly does the chef there cook this gorgeous little fish that often I’ll order it two evenings in a row.
But it’s not only the food that enchants at Le Chaufourg; the setting is sublime. Georges Dambier and his cousin Agnes have created an spot so enchanting that J and I have been there five times. On one anniversary J said he’d take me anywhere in the world to celebrate and I didn’t hesitate a moment. The photo of us at a table next to tall open doors leading to Le Chaufourg’s gardens remains one of my favorites.
But that photo is just an enlarged snapshot. The loveliest two photos in my home were taken by M. Dambier, one of France’s best and best-known fashion photographers of the 50s and 60s before he returned to the Dordogne valley of his youth to run an inn. One depicts a young Brigitte Bardot, the other the fashion idol of my teens; Suzy Parker. Copies of both appear — on side-by-side pages — in the luscious new book Paris Fifties: Regards de Mode.
If you love fashion and fashion photography, you should treat yourself to this book, available from Amazon.fr.
And if you live in a part of the world where you can buy fresh red mullet, don’t tell me how deliciously you prepare it. Envy is such an ugly emotion.
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
New cookie jar; no cookies.
This year I thought I’d try to stem my holiday avoirdupois accumulation by skipping cookie-baking, candy-making and plum-pudding-steaming. (OK, I haven’t steamed a pudding since 1964 and I can’t remember ever making candy, but I usually do fill numerous tins with homemade cookies.) This oven-avoiding sloth has had minimal effect on the scale, however, for while I am eschewing holiday baking, I am heartily embracing holiday eating.
Two weeks ago –at the Chronicle FOOD staff party– I sampled some absolutely sublime fare, including crisp little potato lakes, tangy miniature reuben sandwiches and chopped chicken liver that had me returning repeatedly to its little corner of the buffet.
Brought to the party by iconic Bay Area chef/author/teacher/restaurateur Joyce Goldstein, this was the best chopped chicken liver I’d ever tasted.
“Please tell me the recipe is in one of your cookbooks, ” I said to her. (She’s written over a dozen, including the recent Mediterranean Fresh)
“No, but I’m happy to share it with you,” she said.
And I share it here with you. Happy Holidays. Happy cooking. And feel free to send cookies.
Joyce’s Chopped Chicken Liver
8 tablespoons chicken fat or onion-flavored chicken fat from gribines ( see below)
1 pound chicken livers, well trimmed
2 to 3 yellow onions, chopped fine
3 to 4 hard boiled eggs
salt and pepper
Melt the chicken fat in two pans. In one, saute the onions until they are a dark golden brown. Reserve. In the other cook the livers until they are medium rare. There should still be quite a bit of pink but they should not be quivery. Coarsely chop the hard boiled eggs in the food processor. Transfer to a bowl.
You may chop the livers in the food processor. If you choose to chop these in the processor, just pulse them very quickly, and in very small batches. You do not want to lose the chunky texture. Add them to the eggs. Then add the browned onions. Add all of the pan juices. Do this while all the ingredients are warm. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the mixture seems a little dry, add more chicken fat. Serve with matzoh.
Gribines:
Cut pieces of chicken fat into smaller pieces with a scissors. Put them in a large saucepan over medium heat and start to render the fat.
Slice twice as many onions as you had fat.
When the cracklings start to turn grey and the fat develops small bubbles, add the sliced onions and stir well. Cook until the onions and cracklings are golden brown, stirring occasionally.
Remove with a slotted spoon and drain briefly. Sprinkle with salt.
Save the onion flavored fat for cooking.
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | No Comments »
Sunday, November 23rd, 2008
There was plenty of wonderful wine, women and song at Randall Graham’s recent two-day festivities known as Day of the Doon — a high-spirited party held this year at the newly-opened Bonny Doon tasting room in Santa Cruz.
Sean Baker, the much-praised chef at Gabriella Cafe, organized the food, including an absolutely fabulous sauce served atop wedges of pumpkin cake. Cornering one of the chefs I begged for the recipe. “It’s just raisins soaked in grappa and then whirred in the food processor with toasted pine nuts,” he said. I figured it couldn’t be that simple, but I didn’t want to harrass someone at the end of a cooking-for-hundreds stint with more questions.
This afternoon I phoned the kitchen at Gabriella’s and was told that it actually was just that simple: Raisins rehydrated in grappa processed with a roughly equal amount of well-toasted pine nuts. “Be sure to use high quality golden raisins or sultanas, ” the sous-chef said. “And add an extra glug of grappa at the end if you want more of a taste jolt.”
This sauce is going on slices of my beloved fresh ginger cake, to be savored as I give thanks for the generosity of chefs.
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
Monday, November 10th, 2008
From former-mayor Willie Brown’s column in yesterday’s San Francisco Chronicle:
“I went to two store openings last week - Gucci on Maiden Lane and Shreve & Co. jewelers down the street. Fifteen valet parkers, booze flowing, caviar - the whole nine yards.
Newsom and his wife, Billy and Vanessa Getty - the A-list of the young set were all at Gucci.”
I’m shattered that he didn’t mention that Randall Koll and I were there, too; in fact, we chatted briefly with the ever-dapper Mr. Brown (wearing a very Duke-of-Windsor plaid suit) as we waited for our cars. Willie apparently was heading to the Shreve party; Randall and I were off to dinner at Zuni — our appetites well-whetted by the terrific party fare from Taste caterers.
I’ve had mixed experiences at Zuni, but this evening the food — and service — were fully on-the-mark. For dessert, a light, tender ile flotante benefitted both visually and taste-wise from the addition of slivered pistachios and jewel-like pomegranate seeds.
Since pomegranate season is short, I decided to indulge again two nights later by making Nigella’s pomegranate ice cream. This recipe from Nigella Express is so simple, yet so delicious that if you haven’t tried it, I urge you to do so soonest.
No-Churn Pomegranate Ice Cream
Juice 2 pomegranates and 1 lime, straining the juices into a chilled bowl. You will have approximately 3/4 cup of juice. Reserve the pom seeds for garnish.
Add 1.5 cups powdered sugar and whisk to dissolve. Whisk in 2 cups heavy cream and keep whisking until soft peaks form.
Spoon and smooth the ice cream into a rigid plastic container with a tight-fitting lid and freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight. Scatter with pomegranate seeds just before serving. Serves 8.
To complete my mini-festival of pom pleasures, last evening at
Soif I ordered the salad of frisee, duck confit, Fuju persimmon, French feta and pomegranate seeds. Gorgeous and delicious. Today: off to research more uses for this wonderful autumn fruit. Pomegranate cosmo, Anyone?
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Friday, October 31st, 2008
photo.jpg, originally uploaded by caseyell.
Because it rained in Los Altos this morning, I wasn’t able to photograph food-themed Halloween tots as I did last year, but I can’t let the holiday go un-blogged upon.
Here’s a tale of bats and crazy people from 2001:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/10/26/CM173734.DTL&hw=casey+ellis&sn=011&sc=931
Happy Halloween.
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, October 21st, 2008
Sometimes you just have to bow to your betters and let them speak. Here’s what three of my cooking heroines say about the wonderful new baking book by Flo Braker:
***”I’ve been a Flo Braker fan for years and I think Baking for All Occasions may be her best book yet. The recipes are pure Flo–beautiful, imaginative and precisely explained–and the Primer, almost a book in itself, is bound to give new bakers courage and occasional bakers more confidence.” Dorie Greenspan, Author of Baking from My Home to Yours.
***”I love Flo’s recipes. Her sweets and treats are a cause for celebration themselves. She is indeed the Baking Queen.” Nigella Lawson, Food Network host and author of Nigella Bites and Nigella Express
***”A book of gems for everyone who loves to bake! Flo exceeds her own stellar reputation for irresistable desserts and meticulously crafted recipes. Her humor, generosity, and her gift for teaching show on every page. She guides you to success, whether you try a simple Braker Family favorite or a fabulous red-letter-day dessert. A lifetime of baking experience, experimentation , and wisdom is captured in this wonderful volume. I’ve been learning from Flo Braker since the beginning of my career.” Alice Medrich, Author of Bittersweet Recipes and Tales from a Life in Chocolate and Pure Dessert.
For all the people on my Christmas gift list who like to bake, my shopping problems are solved. For all the people who will be dining chez moi, the dessert course just got a lot more interesting.
By Casey Ellis, . Filed under Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, October 15th, 2008
[Photo from Citysearch]
Standard pan-fried pork chops bore me, but I adore all the funkier cuts, particularly the cheeks and belly. Here’s a recipe from Dennis Leary, chef/owner of the marvelous little San Francisco bistro Canteen as well as The Sentinel, an even smaller Financial District take-out spot, for a pork belly sandwich that’s been haunting my culinary dreams. While corn and green beans were in season he served it with
pickled vegetable melange, but I’m using a julienne of the peppers from our garden (roasted, covered in garlicy olive oil and stored in the fridge until needed) and onions pickled in red wine vinegar.
Dennis Leary’s Pork Belly for Sandwiches
Serves 4
12 oz pork belly or slab bacon
2 cups vegetable oil
(Note: this recipe requires a few days of advance preparation)
Take the pork belly and rub it liberally with salt and black pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, up to 12 hours. Place the pork belly in a pot or saucepan just large enough to accommodate it, cover with the vegetable oil, and cook at a low simmer until tender, about four hours. The pork is done when you can easily pierce it with a skewer or knife. Allow to cool in the pot for an hour, then remove the pork and oil to a container and refrigerate until completely cold.
When ready to serve, remove the pork belly from the oil and place it on a cutting board. Cut into even strips, like thick-cut bacon. Fry the strips in a heavy-gauge frying pan (you will not need to add any oil) until they are crispy and golden. Remove to a plate covered with a few sheets of paper towel and keep warm while you toast some great bread and spread it with mayonnaise. (At The Sentinel, it would, of course, be homemade) Devour the sandwich while it’s still warm.
Leary advises that if pork belly is unavailable, you can use pork shoulder, following the above method, or use a piece of slab bacon, uncut. If you do use the bacon, be sure to blanch it briefly in boiling water to remove any objectionable smoky taste.
.
Dennis Leary’s “The Sentinel”, originally uploaded by caseyell.
By Casey Ellis, tagged with: Canteen, Dennis Leary, pork belly, The Sentinel. Filed under Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 6th, 2008
Delivered to my mailbox late this afternoon. Joy to my world.
My Early Christmas Present from London, originally uploaded by caseyell.
By Casey Ellis, tagged with: Nigella Christmas, Nigella Lawson. Filed under Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Wednesday, October 1st, 2008
Too often I prepare for a picnic by dashing into a deli and grabbing a little salami and cheese, some breadsticks, a container of olives. Yet picnics pose many more interesting menu opportunities — so I queried some Bay Area takeout specialists for fresh ideas and wrote the following for the San Francisco Chronicle’s FOOD section:
And, as the weather gods laugh at that headline, the first rain of the season is forecast for this weekend.
Picnic Fare from Bay Area Chefs, originally uploaded by caseyell
By Casey Ellis, tagged with: Bi-Rite Market, Carried Away, Dennis Leary, farro, picnic, roast chicken, sandwich ideas, The Sentinel, vegetable relish. Filed under Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Monday, September 29th, 2008
The line for a table at
Demel snaked up two flights of stairs, past the glassed-in kitchen with its broad marble countertops, past scores of other escapees from the rain already enjoying pastries and coffee
mit schlag. I’d convinced new friends from the biking trip to join us, but the afternoon was growing later and I began to worry that this had not been a good idea.
I needn’t have worried. The hostess pushed two small tables together, the coffee and tea arrived quickly and the pastries were sublime. The best baker I know had told me that she’d heard Demel’s wasn’t as wonderful as it once had been, but it’s still pretty special. And the Anna Torte? Worth standing in line for any day.
The Anna Torte, originally uploaded by caseyell.
By Casey Ellis, tagged with: Demel, torte, Vienna. Filed under Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
« Previous Entries
