Friday Chocolate

So to cap off a week of French eating I think it is only fitting we do a dessert. The French are famous for delicious pastries and other yummy desserts but my favorite by far is chocolate mousse sabayon. A sabayon is a dessert prepared with eggs instead of whipped cream.

When I was growing up my dad would make chocolate mousse for us by melting a Toblerone in the microwave and then mixing the melted chocolate with freshly whipped cream. Delicious, or course. It wasn’t until I was older that I learned another, more traditional way to prepare chocolate mousse. Once I tried chocolate mousse sabayon served in the traditional family style way I never went back to plain old melted chocolate and whipped cream.

The sabayon mousse is more intense and rich than a mousse prepared using whipped cream. But it is also lighter than a whipped cream mousse, and in my opinion the flavor of the chocolate comes to the forefront. Should you be reading this on Friday (the day I’m posting it) you won’t actually get to eat the mousse until Saturday. It needs a night in the fridge to set up. Also, skip the cheesy martini glasses filled with mousse and instead set and serve the mousse in your prettiest mixing bowl.

This recipe is technically not one I’ve developed; rather it is from one of my many cookbooks, though I have changed a couple of things. I’m not sure how to credit the cookbook, so I’ll tell you that it is Van Gogh’s Table at the Auberge Ravoux by Alexandra Leaf and Fred Leeman and was published in 2001 by Artisan. You can find it here. It is a great cookbook, especially for art history buffs. I don’t want to do a Jessica Seinfeld here; I just want to share a great recipe. By the way, I often cut the recipe in half because it makes so much and believe it or not but you can get sick of chocolate mousse.

So here’s the recipe:

Chocolate Mousse Sabayon

Serves 8 to 10
1 cup premium dark chocolate, chopped (you can use chocolate chips here too, but make sure the chocolate is of really good quality)
2 sticks cold unsalted butter
10 large eggs separated
1¼ cups icing (powdered) sugar
2 tsp instant espresso (I like this brand which I have seen in local grocery stores)
Chocolate curls to decorate the top

Combine the butter and the chocolate chips and melt them in the top of a double boiler. Stir in the instant espresso and set aside to cool slightly.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, mix the egg yolks and half of the sugar. Beat for several minutes until the yolks are a pale yellow color. Mix the egg yolk mixture in the bowl with the melted chocolate.

Clean the empty mixing bowl and now whisk the egg whites and sugar until soft peaks form.

Now fold in the egg whites into the yolk/chocolate mixture, being careful not to deflate them. Transfer the mousse to your pretty bowl and refrigerate for about 12 hours or overnight. Just before you serve it you can decorate it with the chocolate curls. Enjoy!

Ham and Cheese a la Francaise

To continue the week of French cooking I’m going to cook croque madame’s tonight. A croque madame is a ham and cheese sandwich that is topped with a fried egg. A croque mousier is the same thing sans the egg.

I had my first croque at a Belgium restaurant in New York called Petite Abeille. This mini restaurant chain is a fabulous spot for brunch, lunch or dinner. It was at brunch that I first discovered the magic that is a croque madame sandwich. It wasn’t until later at home when I was surfing the net that I discovered that there are two traditional ways to make a croque madame. The first way involved grilling the ham and cheese assembled sandwich in a frying pan before topping it with the fried egg. The second involves grilling the ham and cheese sandwich and then topping it with Béchamel sauce and placing it under a broiler, and only then topping it with the fried egg.

I was totally intrigued by the idea of adding to an already delicious sandwich with a dollop of the creamy, beautiful sauce that is Béchamel. Béchamel is one of the mother sauces of French cooking. The mother sauce term is used to describe sauces that make up the foundation of French cooking (which traditionally is a very sauce heavy food culture). The mother sauces include: Béchamel (flour and milk based), Espagnole (based on brown stock such as beef), Hollandaise (egg based emulsion), Tomato sauce and Velouté (based on light stock such as chicken or fish).

Béchamel is created by cooking melted butter and flour and then adding milk. To this sauce you can add many ingredients, including cheese and fresh herbs, and this makes it one of the most versatile recipes out there. It is the basic white sauce that is the foundation of many popular dishes including lasagna and macaroni and cheese. Don’t be daunted by all the fancy cooking terms though, a basic Béchamel is easy to master and a great cooking trick to have up your sleeve.

To assemble a great croque madame it is crucial to have great ingredients on hand. Cooking a great meal is so much easier when you have fresh, wonderful items to make it from. For a croque madame don’t skimp and get the best deli ham you can find and ensure that Gruyere cheese is the only cheese you use. For the bread I find really fresh white sandwich bread is the best, nothing too crusty though.

Anyway, here’s the recipe:

Croque Madame

Serves 4

8 slices white sandwich bread
8 thin slices of deli ham
8 slices of Gruyere cheese
Butter for frying
4 eggs
Salt and pepper

Béchamel Sauce
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

Make the Béchamel sauce first. In a small saucepan melt the butter until it is foamy. Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes. This cooks out the powdery taste of the flour. Slowly add the milk and stir constantly (I use a whisk at this point) until the mixture comes to a boil. Now, lower the temperature to low and cook the sauce (again stirring constantly) for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of the nutmeg. Put the sauce on the back of the stove and start making the sandwiches.

Preheat your broiler and then assemble the sandwiches with a couple of slices of ham and cheese in each. Melt a knob of butter in a frying pan over medium high heat and brown the sandwiches on each side one at a time (or if your frying pan is huge to two at a time).

Once the sandwiches are done place them on a cookie sheet lined with non-stick aluminum foil. Top each sandwich with enough Béchamel sauce to cover the top and maybe have a little bit dripping over the side. Place the sandwiches under the broiler for two minutes or so. As every broiler is different keep an eye on them. You want the tops of the sandwiches bubbling and golden brown, not burnt. While the sandwiches are broiling, cook the eggs to your liking in the frying pan, making sure to sprinkle the tops of the yolks with a little bit of salt and pepper. If the sandwiches finish before the eggs, just turn off the broiler and keep the sandwiches in the oven to keep warm. When all is ready remove the sandwiches from the oven and top each one with an egg. I serve a croque madame with a tossed green salad. Enjoy!

French Salad Night

I’m on kind of a French food bend this week; I guess it is in reaction to having lived through the king of American food holidays: Thanksgiving.

It is no secret that I love French food. I especially love the simple preparations of fantastic ingredients. Today’s recipe is not really classically French, in fact I can’t even remember where I got the original idea for it, but the vinaigrette comes from a memory of one of my mother’s cookbooks from the late 60s. I believe it was called Classic French Country Cooking and featured those 60s era cooking photographs that made the food look strangely unappealing and alien.

In the back of this cookbook was a section called Sauces and featured a vinaigrette recipe that for years now has been my standby (with a little tweaking). I make a big batch of the vinaigrette and keep it in my fridge in an old salad dressing bottle. The olive oil does solidify in the fridge, but a trip in the microwave for about 10 seconds before I shake the vinaigrette does the trick. It works well on salad greens and also as a marinade for chicken or pork.

For this recipe I use a cheese slicer that looks like a thin piece of wire to cut the goat cheese. If you do not have one you can use unwaxed dental floss (with no flavoring). I usually serve this salad with some warm bread, home-made if I’m feeling very ambitious. Herbes de Provence are a mixture of herbs, such as rosemary, marjoram, basil, bay leaf, thyme, and sometimes lavender flowers and other herbs. They are available in many specialty gourmet stores such as Williams Sonoma. If you do not have any you can use a mixture of your favorite dried herbs such as thyme, basil and rosemary.

So here is the recipe:

Goat Cheese Salad

Serves 2

6 cups of salad greens (I buy the pre-washed herb mixed greens)
1/2 cup grape tomatoes
8 oz goat cheese
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 tsp Herbes de Provence

Basic Vinaigrette:
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp crushed garlic
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil

To make the vinaigrette:

In a medium sized bowl (I use a 4 cup measuring cup) mix the Dijon mustard, sugar, garlic, salt and pepper into a paste. Whisk in the red wine vinegar, then slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream, whisking as you go. The Dijon mustard will help combine the oil and vinegar. Pour into a bottle and store the remaining vinaigrette in your fridge for your next salad.

To make the salad:

Place the breadcrumbs and the Herbes de Provence in a shallow bowl and mix. Place the flour in another shallow bowl. In the third shallow bowl place the beaten egg. Cut the goat cheese into slices, I usually get about 4 for an 8 oz log. Dredge the goat cheese buttons carefully in the flour, then the egg and finally in the breadcrumbs, pressing the breadcrumb mixture onto the cheese so it sticks.

Place the breaded goat cheese onto a plate and refrigerate for about 15 minutes.

When they have chilled preheat a small skillet on high heat. When it is ready drizzle it with olive oil and place the goat cheese buttons in the pan. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes per side until they are golden and crisp.

Toss the lettuce, tomatoes and about 2 to 4 Tbsp of the vinaigrette in a large salad bowl until well dressed. Serve the salad in a large plate and top with the warm goat cheese buttons. Serve with warm bread.

Back in Town

Well, I’m back in Hoboken after the Thanksgiving break. Not much of a break for me, between cooking a full turkey dinner with five sides and two desserts, as well as brunch the next day and fresh venison tenderloin, I’m cooked out.

What to do on days you really just don’t feel like cooking? I turn to the French. When it comes to restaurants you can’t go wrong with the brasserie. The food of the working class of France is where it is at in my opinion. The food that makes me imagine Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin ate the same thing many years ago at the Auberge Ravoux in the south of France.

And in my opinion the finest thing you can order at a brasserie is the onion soup. The steak frites comes a close second. But really is there is nothing more delicious than tucking into a cheesy, bubbly, steaming, bowl of French onion soup?

The key to this recipe today is as much technique as it is actual ingredients. Cooking the onions to a golden caramel color will ensure that your soup will have the depth of flavor that a great bowl of onion soup should have. Some of my secrets for ensuring a great soup are: a mix of onion types, a tiny bit of sugar on the onions at the beginning, a splash of a nice dark rich port to further sweeten the pot and a toast on the croutons (I just use leftover Balthazar baguette for this) before the broiler.

I recently read a recipe for this soup that included cooking it in the oven for over 3 hours. Now, I don’t know about you, but I don’t have time for this. The sugar sprinkled on the onions should help you achieve some of the flavor a long, slow cook in the oven does.

Essential to this dish is a trip under the broiler for the soup with its cheesy top. If you don’t have a proper French onion soup bowl you can just pass the croutons under the broiler sprinkled with cheese and then top the soup bowl with these, but it is not as satisfying as really digging into the soup through the molten cheese. You can pick up oven-safe soup bowls pretty much anywhere (such as Ikea or Target) but my favorite source is Fishes Eddy in Manhattan.

The original inspiration for this recipe comes not from a fancy French Cookbook, but one of my mother’s old cookbooks from the 70s.

French Onion Soup au Gratin

Serves 4

4 cups onions (about 4 onions, 3 Spanish and 1 red) thinly sliced
1/4 cup butter
2 tsp sugar
40 oz good quality beef stock
1/2 cup port or red wine if you have no port
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp fresh thyme
Pepper to taste
1/2 of a leftover baguette, sliced
1 cup grated emmental or gruyere cheese (or a mix)

In a large saucepan melt the butter and then add the onions. Sprinkle over the sugar and stir. Cook the onions over medium-high heat until they are tender and dark golden brown. This will take about 20 to 30 minutes.

When the onions are cooked add the port and deglaze the pan (scrape up the brown bits) then add the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, fresh thyme and pepper. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes reduce the heat to a simmer and taste the soup to see if it needs salt. Don’t add salt before this so you can taste how much salt the beef broth has.

While the soup is simmering place cut each slice of the baguette in half. Place the croutons under a preheated broiler until golden in color, about 1 to 2 minutes. Ladle the soup carefully into your oven-safe soup bowls and leave 1 inch of space at the top. Place the soup bowls on a cookie sheet and sprinkle the top of each bowl with the croutons and then with the grated cheese. Place the whole lot under the broiler until they are bubbling and brown.

Serve with a green salad.

Memories of Take-Out

Please be patient with me while I figure out how to write out these recipes in a format that is easy to use. Most of the things I cook originate from a recipe source, but then I change things and amounts, so at the moment I’m not sure of a great form to present them in , but you can be assured that every meal I present here has been served by me at least a dozen times.

So, we had a rough night last night. A sick baby, a late bath, and a midnight trip to the laundry room has made me feel very low energy today. On days like this I want to cook very little and think about it even less.

A few years ago we lived in Hell’s Kitchen and one of our favorite places for take-out was Island Burgers. They don’t serve fries, but their burgers and chicken sandwiches (which they call churascos) more than make up for the lack of fries. They feature a huge variety of toppings that make it entirely possible to eat there every day and still have something different. I am a predictable person though and usually ordered the same thing every time, the Marco burger.

So tonight I think I’m going to make something inspired by Island Burgers and the Marco and hopefully the day will be better than last night. A few notes about the recipe. I'm not sure what they use to marinate their chicken at Island Burgers so I just use extra pesto for my marinade. Also, I buy my baguettes at Kings. They sell the Balthazar bakery bread there and the baguette is delish. As for pesto sauce you can find it at every grocery store in Hoboken, usually near the fresh pasta. I use basil pesto, but any pesto type would work well in this recipe. Also, whatever you don't use can be frozen.

If you want to be super indulgent you can make a milkshake to go along with this sandwich. I don’t serve this with fries at home either, just to keep it authentic to the restaurant experience and the sandwich is usually filling enough.

Anyway, here’s the recipe. Enjoy!

Hell’s Kitchen Take-Out Chicken Sandwiches
Serves 2 hungry people and then some

1 large chicken breast
4 Tbsp pesto sauce
2 Tbsp ranch dressing
4 slices of bacon
4 slices of Swiss cheese (or whatever cheese you have on hand)
1 baguette
2 plum tomatoes
4 slices of red onion
Lettuce

First, take the chicken breast and place it between two slices of wax paper. With a meat pounder pound the chicken very flat, about a half an inch thick. Smear the chicken with 2 Tbsp of the pesto and place in a dish covered in your fridge for an hour.

Once the hour is up, take out the chicken and preheat a grill pan that has been drizzled with a little oil so the chicken doesn’t stick. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and place in the grill pan for about 5 minutes per side or until cooked all the way through.

While the chicken is cooking, cook the bacon. I cook mine in the microwave on paper towels, one minute a slice. Cut the tomatoes into slices. Cut the heels off of the baguette and cut it in half and then cut open each half. Smear one side with the remaining pesto and the other with the ranch dressing. On the ranch side place the lettuce, tomato and onion. On the pesto side place the cooked chicken, bacon and cheese. Close-up the sandwich and enjoy!

Oh and if you are ever on 9th Ave check out Island Burgers & Shakes in person.

Hungry in Hoboken

Living in Hoboken you have the opportunity for a variety of take-out and though it is lovely to tuck into some Thai food once in a while, it is also nice to sit down to a nice home cooked meal.

Welcome to Hungry in Hoboken a new website that will help those of us out there that need a little inspiration when it comes to making dinner. This website is for the stay-at-home-mom (sahm), the working mom (wohm) and the darling husbands (dh) out there who everyday contemplate that simple question: “what’s for dinner?”

I’m often asked by my friends how I stay organized and creative when it comes to putting daily meals on the table. Organization is the key, and here is where this website comes in. I’ll do the organizing for you; tell you what you need to buy and what you need to do in order to assemble dinner any night you want. And I’ll provide the creative aspect too, giving you access to my sources for great meals that are hearty, often kid-friendly (but a warning they may not always be) and tasty.

One of my true pleasures in life is to cook for other people, so on occasion I will also give you entire menus for dinner parties that I've had or will be having. You can be confident that everything I post here will be delicious, creative and wonderful.

So without further ado, let’s get started!

So tonight’s meal is actually inspired by the weather in Hoboken today. It is grey and wet and rainy today. The original idea for this recipe came to me from a magazine recipe many years ago. I think it was Real Simple magazine, which by the way I think should be named Real Redundant; they seem to have the same thing in there every month. Anyway, the original recipe featured eggs but I’ve cut them out completely. Here goes:

Twice-Baked Potatoes with Chicken Sausage

Serves 4
Baking Time: 1 hour (for potato) 20 mins (for stuffed potato)

2 Idaho baking potatoes cleaned and scrubbed

2 -3 chicken sausages (the pre-cooked variety that usually comes in flavors like sun-dried tomato, I like the artichoke flavor) My dh loves the chicken sausage so I usually use 3.

2 Tbsp sour cream

1 Tbsp butter

2 scallions cut into pieces

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Poke the potatoes with holes and set them in an oven set at 400 and let them bake until they yield to a knife, about an hour. You can hurry the potatoes along and microwave them for about 10 minutes to speed up this process, but I find the microwave makes the potato a bit mealy so I stick to the oven. I find it really isn't a hardship to chuck them in there around 5 pm and then forget about them until closer to 6.

When the potatoes are close to being done cut up the sausage into one-inch sized chunks and place them in a pre-heated skillet with a little dab of olive oil to brown them nicely. This should take about 5 minutes.

Take the potatoes out of the oven when they are ready and leave the oven turned on. Cut the potatoes in half length-wise and scoop out the steaming insides into a bowl. Place the shells on a cookie sheet and sprinkle the naked insides with a little salt and pepper. Into the bowl with the hot potato flesh add the sour cream and butter and mash away. Take a taste test at this point and add salt and pepper to your liking. At this point I use a hand held mixer and whip the potatoes up into a fluffy pile, but you don’t need to do this as really a fork or potato masher will do the job nicely.

After you have the mashed potatoes done add the scallions and the chicken sausage and about 4 Tbsp of the cheese. Mix all up and divide the mixture evenly between the four shells. Top the mounds with the rest of the cheese and place back in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cheese is golden.

I serve one half per person of this dish along with a tossed salad. Enjoy!