Sweet Basil Granita with Strawberries June 11, 2015 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Sweet Basil Granita with Strawberries 2015-06-11 07:35:00 Serves 8 Print Granita 3 cups water 2/3 cup sugar 1½ cups packed fresh basil leaves ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice Strawberries 1 pound ripe strawberries, quartered superfine sugar, if needed a few fresh mint leaves, cut chiffonade a few fresh basil leaves, cut chiffonade For the granita Combine the water and 2/3 cup sugar in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Pour into a metal bowl set over a larger bowl of ice until the syrup is cold. Puree the syrup with the basil and the lime juice until smooth. Pour the mixture into a glass baking dish, cover with foil and freeze until firm, at least 5-6 hours. To Assemble Arrange the berries in dessert dishes or large martini glasses and sprinkle with the superfine sugar, if needed. Scrape the granite with a fork to create icy crumbles and spoon then on top of the berries. Garnish with the mint and basil chiffonade and serve right away. By Robin Nathan Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Prepare to Wait: Making Vinegar at Home by Elliott N. Papineau June 9, 2015 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Editor’s Note: Enjoy this interesting guest blog post from Elliott Papineau, long time Marcel’s customer. Elliott lives in Glen Ellyn with his wife Kristen and children Landon (2 years) and Elise (4 months). He works in asset management as a Quantitative Research Analyst. Thanks to Elliott for sending this so we could share with everyone! You will wait. The process of making vinegar at home is long. Long in the sense that we are accustomed to instant gratification. Gather our ingredients, turn on the fire, chop some vegetables, sear a piece of meat, add some seasoning: done. Vinegar is a different ingredient. Making it at home will produce an elixir that is rewarding and, above all, yours. (See below for information on the science of vinegar.) Good vinegar comes from good ingredients. The first step in the process is to buy a good bottle of wine. I find my favorite bottle, and then buy two to make a double batch. This process takes time, and when you are finished and only have a few cups of vinegar you will want more. Probably a lot more. While you are out shopping the local market, pick up a bottle of unfiltered and unpasteurized apple vinegar. The most readily available is Bragg’s. This will increase your success rate. Back in your lab (aka home), divide one bottle of wine between two quart-size mason jars. This will yield 375mL of wine in each. Add 75mL (20% of the wine volume) of the unpasteurized apple vinegar to each jar. Cut a piece of cheese cloth to fit over the mouth of the jar, and secure it with the jar’s ring. Store the jars away from light in a cool place. Now wait. You will wait a day, then a week, then up to a month. Your vinegar will change over this time. The first week or two, nothing will happen. Then a translucent film will appear on the top of the mixture. This film will turn into a cellulose mat. Say hello to your vinegar mother. Over the next few weeks, the mother will transform the alcoholic liquid in the jar to some of the best vinegar you have ever tasted. After a month or so, taste your young vinegar. It should taste like wine, but with an acidic tang. Decant 80% of the vinegar, by volume, to a clean bottle and seal with a cap. The other 20%, with the mother, is now the base of your next vinegar (replacing the need for the apple vinegar). As you continue to produce vinegar at home, more of your old stock (the remaining 20% of each batch) will taste more of itself and less of the original apple vinegar stock. Your new bottle of vinegar can be used now, but aging mellows the tang and increases the deliciousness. I wait about 3 months before using. If you get started right now, your vinegar will be ready by the fall. You can also experiment with other alcoholic liquids such as beer. Stay away from varieties with bitter hop notes. This will produce off flavors as the oils in the hops degrade over time. Making vinegar is a long process, but minimal work is required to achieve success. In the meantime, buy some naturally produced vinegar. I like Tavern Vinegar Co. from Ohio. Taste your vinegar along side of another to compare its complexities and acidic bite. Use it as you would any other vinegar, or in place of lemon juice, and then marvel at your new creation. Below are some of my favorite seasonal ideas for using your homemade vinegar. Spring: Slice asparagus into half in pieces. Add to small sauce pan with butter and salt. Cook slowly until bright green and finish with rosé vinegar. Serve with freshly poached eggs. Summer: Sauté summer squash with young garlic and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Finish with red wine vinegar and fresh herbs. Fall: Slice fall harvested radishes into batons. Toss with white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Top with thinly sliced shallots and chopped hazelnuts. Winter: Roast quartered potatoes with salt and olive oil @ 400 degrees. Remove from oven and toss with beer vinegar. Vinegar basics: acetic acid + water. Alcohol (ethanol) is produced via anaerobic fermentation. Acetic acid is the secondary process to alcoholic fermentation. Acetic acid bacteria converts the alcohol into acetic acid via aerobic fermentation. The best place to find ethanol combined with other good flavors is wine.
Spring Vegetable Orecchiette with Chanterelles & Burrata June 3, 2015 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Spring Vegetable Orecchiette with Chanterelles & Burrata 2015-06-03 14:23:52 Serves 4 Print Ingredients 1/2 pound Orecchiette 1 cup fresh peas 1 cup sugar snap or snow peas, cut into pieces 1/2 bunch asparagus, ends snapped off and discarded and then cut into pieces 1/2 Vidalia onion, diced 4 oz. dried Chanterelle mushrooms, reconstituted in warm water for 30 minutes 1 handful of baby arugula Extra virgin olive oil Kosher salt Freshly ground pepper 1 egg 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated 4 oz. ball of Burrata cheese* Zest from 1 lemon 2 T. fresh mint, chiffonade Instructions Boil Orecchiette in well salted water. Add all peas and asparagus about 1 minute before pasta is al dente. Reserve a little pasta water and drain. Do not rinse. In a sauté pan, heat a touch of oil over medium high heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent. Add Chanterelle mushrooms and turn heat down to medium and sauté for a few minutes. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Add arugula and mix until wilted. Add pasta and vegetables. Whisk egg in a small bowl and then stir in a touch of the hot pasta water to temper the egg. Pour egg over the pasta and gently stir to coat the pasta. Stir in freshly grated Parmesan, cracked pepper and more reserved pasta water as need to loosen the pasta. Place in a large bowl and sprinkle with mint chiffonade, lemon zest and remaining Parmesan. Season with salt to taste. Dot with dollops of hand-torn Burrata cheese. Enjoy! Notes *At Marcel's, we stock DiStefano's fabulous Burrata alla panna. By Amy Patterson Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Stacks June 2, 2015 by Jill Foucre Leave a Comment Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Stacks 2015-06-02 11:03:41 Serves 4 Print Ingredients 4 Chicken breast filets, halved lengthwise 2 red bell peppers, quartered 1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise 2 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise 3 T. olive oil 2 T. lemon juice Sea salt Cracked black pepper 3oz arugula leaves 1 T. pesto (store-bought or homemade!) ½ cup mayonnaise Instructions Preheat a grill (broiler or grill pan) over high heat. Place the chicken, bell peppers, eggplant, zucchini, oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a bowl and toss to coat. Cook the chicken for 3-4 minutes on the grill before adding the bell peppers, eggplant and zucchini and cook until the chicken is golden and cooked through and the vegetables tender. While chicken and vegetables are cooking, mix together pesto and mayonnaise. To serve, place the chicken, vegetables and arugula in a stack on plates and serve topped with the pesto mayonnaise. By Diane Sibon Adapted from Donna Hay Adapted from Donna Hay Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/