Fast, Simple, Delicious Dinner: Beet & Goat Cheese Tart with Spring Onions, Thyme

Super easy and incredibly delicious quick, spring meal.

• Makes one 9-inch tart
• Start to Finish: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed overnight

1 leek or spring onions, halved and thinly sliced 

3 medium beets, peeled and thinly sliced. I use Love Beets which are pre-cooked
 - available at Costco, Whole Foods

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

⅓ cup crumbled goat cheese

4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed from the stem

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Unfold the puff pastry onto the prepared baking sheet. 
3. Place a cake pan or a plate that’s approximately 9 inches
   in diameter onto the pastry dough.
4. Use a paring knife to trace around it. Remove and discard the excess dough.
   Score the puff pastry all over with a fork.
5. Sprinkle the leek slices evenly over the round of puff pastry. 
6. Arrange the beets in circles on top of the leeks, then drizzle evenly with the olive oil.
   Season with salt and pepper.
7. Sprinkle the goat cheese and thyme on top of the beets. 
8. Bake the tart until the crust is golden and the beets are fork tender, 30 to 35 minutes. 

The tart can be eaten warm or at room temperature.
Take some liberties:

1. Add tomatoes
2. thinly spread a mixture of mustard and a bit of lemon on the pastry
   before the leeks and onions go in.

Inspired (mainly) by: Beet and Goat Cheese Tart | Recipes - PureWow 

voilà le mien!

Beet & Goat Cheese Tart with Spring Onions, Thyme Uploaded by atl10trader on April 19, 2015. Some rights reserved. Follow this link to see and comment on this photo: https://www.flickr.com/x/t/0097009/photos/davidmarcel/17019021749/

Atlanta Food & Wine Festival 2014 Inspires

Cooking is as much about food and technique as it is about experiences. Atlanta's Food & Wine Festival 2014 in Midtown provided memorable lessons that I had to apply quickly or risk forgetting.

Sous vide, pickled seaweed, escabeche, thin fillets of fish cured in a sugar/salt mixture . . . the topics intrigued and inspired immediate imitation.

Corvina Escabeche with Spring Vegetables, a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

Let's start with the escabeche, (es-kah-BECH-ay), a classic Spanish preparation often paired with oily fish such as mackerel, corvina, or bonito. Its Mediterranean at its essence. Add olive oil to a saucepan at medium heat and the following:

• 3 - 4 tomatoes, cored and sliced 1/5 inch thick 
• 1large onions, thinly sliced into half moons
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• bay leaf (remove when finished) 
• 2 Ts of combined basil, oregano, 
• 1 t. of cumin, coriander each 
• salt, pepper
• carrots or turnips (optional, cubed into bite sizes)
• 2 Ts of Espelette Basque Vinegar (or something unique from Whole Foods)

and cook very slowly (3 - 4 hours), covered, over lower heat (I use a 2 out of 10 setting on my induction range so that it cooks caramelized from the inside out vs. fried and charred from the outside in).  At the very end a splash of your best Spanish vinegar tops it off. This makes enough for 6 people.

Prep for fish:

• Portion the fish into 4 - 5oz pieces, 3/4 inch thick (no more) - ask fishmonger for 30oz if serving 6.
• Mix a 1/4 cup of equal parts salt and sugar. Use a tablespoon to spread the mix on a flat dish upon which you'll place the fish. This is now considered face down. If there is a skin on the fish, it is now facing you. Leave face down for 15 minutes.
• Either sous vide the fish at 53 degrees C for 20 minutes or you can prep a pan with medium-hot olive oil and sear with the skin side down for 3 minutes before completely removing from heat.
• If your fish has no skin, make your own! I use sheets of dried seaweed you can get at Trader Joe's and place 1 or 2 on what I designate the skin side. Continue as in the previous step. Delicious.

The whole thing, escabeche and fish, are served cold or at room temperature on a hot day.

It'd be a shame to not eat this al fresco.

This dish and the recipe is what I derived from notes taken during the Food & Wine demonstration and conversation with Asheville NC's Katie Button who is the talented Executive Chef of Cúrate, the authentic Spanish tapas restaurant continually earning rave reviews since its open in March 2011. Many thanks Katie!

Here is an image of the gazpacho I made to introduce the fish:

Tomato & Cantaloupe Gazpacho with Swiss Chard Dolma, Carrot Halva Over Avocado Aioli, a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

So long as they don't start patenting food recipes, imitation is the highest form of flattery. How else are you going to learn? Let me hear how you fare and what you choose to pair with the fish!

Communal Breakfast: Recipe for Taking Eggs and Any Relationship to the Next Level

Egg Breakfast with The Temple's Men's Club,
a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

Sunday morning I met with my Temple's Men's Club to share one of the best ways to make eggs for anyone they'd like to impress. Everyone brought their own saucepan and a spatula. The Men's Club President-elect brought the ingredients - who I thank for having traveled far and wide in search of the best. I think his effort showed!

This was the event headline:

Learn How to Make the Pen-Ultimate Egg Breakfast

Real Men Know, the Path to Forgiveness, Awesome Dad-ness or Extra Marital Credits Is Through the Stomach.

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients: per person

Ellis Vener Photography

• The best artisan loaf of bread you can find
• 1 Tbsp of the best french butter you can find, preferably unsalted
• Eggs. Organic. Fresh. Qty: 2 eggs per person
• 2 Tbsp Greek yogurt (low fat Ok but not fat free)
• 4 Small to medium tomatoes on their vine. In a pinch cherry tomatoes will also do. 
• 2 Medium, large mushrooms
• Chives
• Sea salt and pepper
• 1 Tbsp olive oil    

1. In a skillet or pan heat some olive oil over medium heat place the tomatoes and mushrooms in with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook until tomatoes spit and the eggs are done and you're ready to plate.
2. Toast the bread that's been sliced into 1/4 - 1/2" slices.
3. Over medium heat, place in a saucepan the eggs along with the butter (you can add a bit of olive oil before this step to prep the saucepan)(add salt at the end, not now)
4. Do not let the eggs overcook in the saucepan.  Depending on the heat on the pan, spend about 30 seconds on the heat constantly stirring the eggs with the spatula. Take the pan off the heat and continue stirring the eggs. Repeat until eggs begin to thicken and fluff.
5. Time's up when the steam comes off the eggs when off the heat and stirring. To stop the cooking process, add the Greek yogurt and incorporate into the eggs.
6. Add pinches of salt and pepper.
7. Add chives. Stir.
8. Plate like the picture above.
9. Don't forget a mimosa and strong coffee!
   
   

   

   Ellis Vener Photography

A variation on this recipe would be to add some smoked salmon at the end as well.  You could also sauté some kale to go along with the tomatoes and mushrooms.

Here's another example:

Breakfast with Eggs,
a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

Dinner Tonight: Super Bowl on the Plate

Lamb and Chicken with Red Onion, Zucchini confit over Quinoa and Tahini Brandade, a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

Dinner tonight.  The Denver Broncos are enduring a blow out on the largest sporting stage at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks.  It's a bit embarrassing. So we turn our attention to the table and what's being staged there.

Here's a brief recap of the preparations:


Salt and pepper chicken pieces and lamb chops. Pat dry before this step.  Sear meats in a pressure cooker with a bit of oil and high heat - no more than 4 minutes. Remove meat and add chopped onions, celery, and shallots or leeks. Stir around for 5 minutes then add back the meat, zucchini, and herbs (tarragon and sage in this case). Put on low heat for about 45 minutes.

Make quinoa. Add spinach leaves after quinoa is done and resting covered.

Brandade is made by taking 3 Tlbs of tahini sauce, juice of 1 lemon, olive oil, 3 tilapia or similar white flaky fish fillet, dash of ginger, lemongrass, garlic, and salt. Put into a VitaMix or high powered blender and adjust for thickness with water.  Note that there is no diary in this but the result will be quite smooth and creamy in texture!

Chicken White Chili: Terrific 3 Ways

Chicken White Chili, a photo by atl10trader on Flickr.

Lunch today was last night's dinner. Like any homemade soup, it tastes even better when the flavors rest overnight.  Muss & Turner's here in Atlanta actually lists their offerings on the menu under the header, "Yesterday's Soup".

Serve this as a game-day feast or a winter warming weeknight meal.  The key ingredient is actually a leftover item: a rotisserie chicken from your local grocery store or your own.  Eat what you like one night and save about 1 and 1/2 cups of meat for the soup.  It is the best use of what's left from a roasted chicken other than using the bones to make chicken stock.  Adding great chicken sausage from a local butcher like Atlanta's Spotted Trotter is a bonus.  It adds even more layers of flavor.

The first time I came across this recipe it had a Texas twist to it and called for a chopped jalapeno pepper to add some kick.  I modified the recipe by substituting butter and milk items for light coconut milk (though almond milk could also work).  Additionally I finish the soup with slices of avocado and widges of lime and lime zest to give the dish a Thai flavor profile (a dash of Sriracha at the finish would be great).  There's alot of ways to make this goodness all your own.

So the 3 ways are: as rotisserie chicken, as Chicken White Chili for dinner, and then as leftovers for lunch.  Each time it gets better.  I'd love to hear how you vary things.

Chicken White Chili

1 medium onion, chopped
1 large shallot, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup chopped kale or cilantro
1 tbsp margarine or canola oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 (15.5-ounce) cans Goya small white beans or cannellini beans (or consider 1 cup quinoa)
2 (4.5-ounce) cans chopped green chiles (use Hatch chiles if you can find them)
1 1/2 cups pre-cooked rotisserie chicken, chopped
3 links of chicken sausage, sliced or left whole
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup light coconut milk (Whole Foods or Trader Joes have it) or almond milk
2 tbsp cornstarch

Sliced avocado (slightly salted) and cilantro or spring onions for garnish before serving.


Combine onion, shallot, garlic, a pinch of salt, and canola oil in a large pot. Saute for several minutes until the onion starts to soften. Sprinkle cumin on top to release the flavor. Add beans, green chiles, chopped chicken, chicken sausage, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Once chili is heated through, bring back down to just above simmer, and stir in coconut milk and kale (if using cilantro - hold until serving as a garnish). Put cornstarch into a small bowl. Carefully ladle some liquid from the chili onto the cornstarch, and mix to form a thin paste. Pour the paste into the chili and allow several minutes to thicken slightly.  Salt and pepper to taste.

New Year Dinner Menu

Tonight's Menu featured a main dish inspired from the excellent foodie site, Food Republic: http://www.foodrepublic.com/2012/09/11/pomegranate-brisket-recipe.  I can't say enough good things about how well the dish turned out.  Very flavorful. 

Very unfortunate however that I did not get a good enough shot of the final dish to show you.  In the new year I will resolve to plate one dish of all the courses ahead of time and perform the shoot before the company arrives.

Instead I have a picture of the magnum of champagne we enjoyed.  And wow was it an experience:  a 1998 Piper Heidsieck 'Rare' cuvée Champagne.  Notes of buttered toast, caramel, citrus - a rare treat indeed.  Wish I had more.  Because it was a magnum shared among 8 of us, I did use some of this juice in the cocktail at the beginning.  Some would consider this wasteful to mix such a standalone gem with anything, but if you believe in using the best ingredients, this one took the cocktail to a whole new level.  Only one-half glass each was used before switching to the Champagne in its pure form!

Wishing everyone a healthy Shana Tova worthy of many bubbly celebrations.