Couscous with wild mushrooms

This is more of a technique than a recipe.
I make a regular batch of couscous as per the instructions on the package, with these changes:
I soak about a 1/4 cup of wild mushrooms in hot water for at least half an hour. I drain them, reserving the soaking liquid and chopping the mushroom. Then, I use the soaking liquid to make the couscous. THe soaked mushrooms are sauteed with shallots and green onions and stirred into the cooked couscous.

Salmon with Tomato Caper Sauce

2 salmon fillets (about 6 oz)
1 can Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes (available at Dandi Pack Stores) or sub another tomato
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed
olive oil
salt and pepper
Fresh Basil

For the sauce, Saute garlic in olive oil for about one minute, then add canned tomates. Simmer for 15 minutes, (I used the hand blender to break the tomatoes up a bit). Stir in capers, basil and salt and pepper to taste.

For the salmon. season salmon with salt and pepper. Sear skin side down over medium high heat for 3 minutes, flip and cook 1 minute (this will yield medium rare. For more cooked salmon, continue cooking on second side for 3 more minutes, lowering heat slightly.

To serve, ladle sauce over salmon.

I have no idea how I stumbled across this on The Pearl Onion ~ I must have been doing a search for chicken recipes. And I am so glad I did; this is one of the most versatile sauces I have ever made!

I made a few changes to get the flavour I wanted last night, the sauce lends itself well to endless variations. I could picture this as a vegetarian gravy, a sauce for pork and so on. Here is my take on it.

Chicken

* Veg oil or clarified butter
* 2 boneless chicken breasts, skin on, wong joint on (supreme)
* Coarse salt and pepper

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place an oven safe fry pan over medium high heat and lightly coat the bottom with olive oil. Add chicken breasts to the pan, skin side down, and cook for 5-6 minutes until skin is lightly browned.
3. Flip chicken breasts over and move pan to oven. Cook chicken breasts through until juices run clear when pierced or youa re reasonably sure they are cooked. (My chicken breasts were normal size, free range. They were cooked in 15 minutes. My now expert touch determined they were done ~ I have cooked a million chicken breasts at Culinary Capers)

Roasted Sweet Potato Sauce

* 1 lb Sweet potato, skinned and cut into manageable pieces
* Olive oil for coating
* 1 tsp Thyme
* 2% milk (measurement will vary)
* ¼ tsp Freshly grated nutmeg
* Salt and pepper to taste
* 1 teaspoon adobo sauce
* 1/4 cup white wine
* 2 tbsp lemon juice

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Toss sweet potatoes with olive oil to coat, salt and pepper.
3. Roast potatoes until cooked through and a lovely brown on the outside.
4. Place cooked potatoes in the food processor with all the ingredients except milk. Gradually add milk (I also used a bit of water) until potatoes reach desired consistency.
7. Pour sauce into a small sauce pan over medium low heat. Stirring frequently, heat sauce thoroughly. Taste for seasoning.
Serve with food of choice...

Thank you Kristin, for the brilliant recipe!

Cilantro Mint Chutney

Cilantro Mint Chutney:
6 ounces coconut milk
3 cloves garlic
4 ounces yogurt
1 ounce honey
1 tablespoon Garam Masala
2 cups cilantro leaves
1 1/2 cups mint leaves
Salt
Black pepper
Sugar

In a blender, combine the coconut milk, garlic, yogurt, honey, and Garam Masala. Process until well blended. Add the cilantro and mint leaves and process to until herbs are pureed (mixture will turn to green color). Season with salt, pepper, and sugar. to taste. Keep refrigerated until needed.

Yield: 1 2/3 cups

Episode#: WP1C22
Copyright © 2006 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights R

Lamb Tandoori

Lamb Tandoori
Recipe courtesy Wolfgang Puck, 2002


Recipe Summary
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 12 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
User Rating: 5 Stars


Marinade:
2 cups yogurt
1/2 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted and cracked
1/2 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and cracked
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons Garam Masala, recipe follows
1/4 cup Green Aromatics, recipe follows
1/2 cup cilantro leaves

2 racks of lamb, trimmed, cut into chops (or 16 lamb chops)
Cilantro Mint Chutney, recipe follows

To prepare the marinade: in a food processor, using a metal blade, combine the yogurt, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, black pepper, salt, honey, Garam Masala, and Green Aromatics. Process until well blended. Add the cilantro leaves and continue to process until pureed and well blended.

Arrange the lamb chops in a non-reactive pan. Pour prepared marinade to coat both sides of the chops. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Season the lamb chops with salt and pepper. Cook over hot grill to desired doneness. Serve with Cilantro Mint Chutney.

Garam Masala:
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/2 tablespoon whole cloves
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon cardamom seeds
3 tablespoons cumin seeds
3 tablespoons coriander seeds
4 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks
1/4 cup dried red chiles
1/2 tablespoon freshly grated nutmeg

In a large saute pan, combine the black peppercorns, cloves, cardamom seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cinnamon sticks, and dried red chiles. Over medium heat, cook just until slightly toasted, stirring constantly. Turn off heat and stir in the grated nutmeg.

Transfer to a food processor and grind to a fine powder. Pass through a fine strainer. Allow to cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight jar. Use as needed.

Green aromatics:
1 cup chopped garlic
1/2 cup chopped ginger
1 teaspoon red chile flakes
1/4 cup peanut oil
1 cup chopped scallions

In a food processor, combine the garlic, ginger, and chile flakes and process to a fine mince. With the machine running, add peanut oil in a steady stream. Turn off the machine and scrape the sides with a rubber spatula. Add the scallions and process until well blended.

Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

Tamarind Date Chutney

Tamarind and Date Chutney:
14 ounces tamarind pulp
1 pound pitted dates
2 cups sugar, divided
6 cups water, plus 4 cups

In a large saucepan, combine the tamarind pulp, dates, 1 cup sugar, and 6 cups water. Bring to a boil, and then lower to a simmer. Cook mixture until tamarind paste has dissolved into the water, about 1 hour, stirring every now and then.

Pass mixture through a food mill. Discard the pulp. Pass the puree through a chinois or fine strainer. Return the puree to the saucepan. Add the remaining 1 cup sugar and 4 cups water. Stir and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Reduce until thickened. Transfer to a non-reactive container and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate until needed.

Yield: 4 cups

Episode#: WP1C22
Copyright © 2006 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved

Potato and Pea Samosas

Potato and Pea Samosa
Recipe courtesy Wolfgang Puck, 2002


Recipe Summary
Prep Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Yield: 2 to 3 dozen samosas
User Rating: 5 Stars


2 pounds baking potatoes, like russets
1/2 cup ghee or clarified butter
1/2 cup diced onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced jalapeno
1 cup fresh peas
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and crushed
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted, crushed
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Sugar
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, minced
1 package small square wonton wrappers
1 egg
1 tablespoon water or milk
Frying oil
Tamarind and Date Chutney, recipe follows

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Wash and dry the baking potatoes. Bake the potatoes in the oven until done, about 45 to 60 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then split in half lengthwise to release steam. When cool to the touch, use a fork to mash and fluff the potatoes. Place in a mixing bowl. Discard potato skins.

Preheat the deep-fryer to 350 degrees F.

In a large saute pan, heat the ghee. Sweat the onions, garlic, jalapeno, and peas for about 1 minute, or until glossy. Add the ginger, cumin, and coriander. Cook another 20 seconds. Pour over the mashed potato. Season with salt and pepper. Stir and taste to correct seasoning with salt, pepper, and sugar. Stir in cilantro. Allow to cool completely before shaping into samosas.

To form the samosas, take a generous tablespoon of the filling and with your hand form a cone shape. Place on top of the wonton wrapper, at an angle. Beat together the egg and water to make an eggwash.

Eggwash the edges of the wrapper and proceed to roll wrapper around the filling, making sure that the top flap is folded to secure filling. Repeat process until you have used up all the filling.

Deep-fry the samosas until done, golden and crisp. Serve with Tamarind and Date Chutney.

Bluberry Grape Relish

From Everyday Food



Makes 2 cups; Prep time: 10 minutes; Total time: 30 minutes


2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and dried (two 1/2-pint containers)

2 cups seedless red grapes, rinsed and dried

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger

1 teaspoon finely chopped, fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

coarse salt and ground pepper

1. In a large skillet, combine blueberries, grapes, sugar, ginger, rosemary, and vinegar. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer gently until grapes begin to break down, 15 to 20 minutes

2. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Let cool completely before using or storing.



Note: Spread on toasts topped with goat cheese or chicken, stir into yogurt or cottage cheese, spoon over roast chicken or pork, or layer on turkey sandwiches. Relish can be refrigerated, covered, up to 2 weeks.

Lemon-Raspberry Plate Trifle

This, as I’ve already buttonholed you about, is a deconstructed, pared-down version of the original: sliced
lemon-syrup cake sprinkled with raspberries, topped with syllabub and then scattered with almonds. It’s
simple, and it’s perfect.
For the lemon-syrup loaf itself, see ‘Cakes,’ p13, but double the amount of syrup stipulated: you want the
cake drenched, not merely doused. In fact, you need only half the cake, but as you can’t actually make half
a cake, there will be some left over -- hardly a problem. If you want to make enough for 10 or 12, simply
use the whole cake, and double the topping ingredients below.
2 tablespoons flaked almonds
8 tablespoons dry sherry
4 tablespoons caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon rosewater (optional)
juice and zest of one lemon
300ml double cream
1 lemon-syrup cake with double syrup (see page 13)
2 punnets raspberries
Put the flaked almonds into a dry frying pan and put over a medium heat to toast them. When they’re
golden and aromatic, remove to a plate and set aside to cool.
Mix the sherry, sugar, rosewater and lemon juice and zest in a bowl large enough to make the cream
when whipped. I find the best way to grate the lemon zest is by using a Microplane fine grater: this way
the peel’s tender and shredded enough not to need the straining later. Leave an hour if you’ve got it, or
else give it a good stir and make sure the sugar’s dissolved fully. Slowly, while whisking by hand, add the
double cream.Then -- for ease -- switch to an electric mixer and beat till airy and floppily bulky.
Slice half the cake onto a large oval plate, or one of whatever size and shape looks about right to you,
and then empty out the punnets of raspberries on top. Flop over the syllabub and scatter the toasted
almonds on top. Perfect for pudding outside on a summer’s evening.

Serves 4-6.
Variation
Make the syrup cake with lime instead of lemon and replace the raspberries with a pawpaw, deseeded,
peeled, sliced and spritzed with lime. Make the syllabub with white rum instead of the sherry and 2
passionfruit in place of the lemon, and instead of topping with flaked almonds, just scoop out the beady
pulp of 2 or 3 passionfruit.

Potato Salad

1lb nugget potatoes
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp prepared mustard
1 tbsp mayonaise
1 tbsp sour cream
1 tbsp buttermilk
1 tbsp dill
1 dill pickle, diced
1 boiled egg, diced
1/2 cup diced bell pepper
salt & pepper

Cook Potatoes till done. While still hot, toss with vinegar and allow to cool. Combine with remaining ingredients. Best made at least 4 hrs in advance.

Tomato Coriander Salad

Adapted From Fresh by Michele Cranston

4 small ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 tbsp balsamic
2 tbsp olive oil
salt

Combine all ingredients. Serve.
If you want to make an attractive platter, lay out tomato slices so taht they overlap and sprinkle or drizzle remaining ingredients over top. Serves Two