Humble Chef's On The Lamb

Yikes. Has it been a week since my last recipe? I'll keep them coming as much as I can. I realize some of these recipes are not for everyone so I'll keep the volume up to expand the variety. Most of what I've given have been fairly simple one-pot syle meals. Here's one that involves a little preperation but great pay off. It is one I'm planning for an upcoming dinner party so this is a good way to refresh myself. Also, if the guests enjoy the dinner, there is access to the recipe for them to make and enjoy.

Braising is simple yet time consuming technique. Braising refers to "cooking in liquid" for an extended amount of time. The idea behind braising is to take a tough, usually inexpensive cut of beef or poultry and slowly cook it to make the meat tender. Cooking is often a trade off; you can purchase expensive cuts of meat(steaks, chicken breasts, rack of lamb, salmon) that cook quickly, easily and make them taste pretty good. On the flip side, braising requires patience and planning but are usually pretty easy on the wallet.

This is not a new recipe. This is a classic, home style french cuisine. Yet can be flipped to something unique to you by adding little things you have at home. You can buy frozen lamb shanks at most major grocers, but fresh can be purchased at local butchers.

Braised Lamb Shanks

6 Lamb Shanks, dredge in flour
1 Carrot, roughly cut in cubes
1 Large White Onion, large dice
4 Stalk of Celery, large dice
2 Bay leaves
2 l stock (beef, chicken, veg, lamb, whatever)
500 ml Red Wine
10 g Seasoned Flour for Dredging
2 Sprigs of Rosemary, Thyme
50 ml maple syrup
15 ml vegetable oil
Salt and Peppet to Taste

Preheat oven at 375 Celsius.

In a large soup pot, on medium-high heat, preheat vegetable oil. Sear all sides of lamb and remove from pot. Reduce heat and throw in mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery, bay leaves) and cook until bottom of pan is golden brown. Add a little oil if needed. Deglaze the pan with red wine. Reduce by half. Add stock and lamb shanks. Stir pot until it comes to boil. Remove from heat. Add fresh herbs. Cover with a lid and place in the oven.

Cook for approximately 2 hours occasionally removing from oven and stirring.

To check for doneness, half the lamb should be a clean bone. Tear a piece of the lamb and it should tender and juicy. When braised through remove shanks and cover to keep hot. Strain the stock and discard leftover vegetables and herb sprigs. On the stove top, bring to a boil. The stock should coat the back of a spoon. Season with salt, pepper and maple syrup.

Serve shanks with jus, mashed potatoes and freshly steamed green vegetables.

Serves 5.

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Apple Glazed Braised Cabbage

Like the Maple Glazed Carrots, here is a recipe that entitles you to add anything you like. It is a variation of a recipe I learned from school that is a good recipe for any novice or prefessional to practice. It is cheap, tasty and easy. And it also allows you to practice your braising abilities.

Apple Glazed Braised Cabbage
1 Small Red Cabbage, fine jullienne
2 Granny Smith Apples, grated
1 Small Red Onion, fine brunoise (dice)
250 ml apple juice or cider
50 ml Maple Syrup
Dab of Butter for saute
1 Sprig Fresh Mint, chiffonade
1 Lemon, juiced
Salt and Pepper To Taste

Preheat oven at 350 Celsius. On medium heat in a soup pot, melt butter until frothy. Add onion until translucent. Add apple until slightly brown. Add cabbage and cook for about 2 minutes. The cabbage should deflate as you cook. Deglaze with juice and maple syrup. Bring to boil and cover. Place in oven and cook for 1 hour. Remove from oven and taste, the cabbage should be sweet and tender. Add lemon, mint and seasoning. On stove top, bring to boil and serve.

Serves 8.

Variations are plentiful once again. Whatever you think goes with apples might just work. You can omit mint and add sage and bacon, or remove maple syrup and use rum or you can add leek and raisins.

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When You Are In A Curry, Paste Yourself

I am no expert on using curry spices. I did not get formally trained with them nor did I ever work for an Indian or south Asian restaurant. I do know some basics having worked with the many Sri Lankans in Toronto. And so, I often experiment for myself and keep to what I know when serving.

Curry refers to a mixture of spices. We here in Canada have our own standard of what we think is curry; typically a blend of tumeric, cumin, coriander and a few others. Yet, abroad in countries like India and Bangladesh, this is not the case. Some chefs I've worked with make their own curry that often include spices like ginger, mace, cinnamon, clove and many others. It does take practice blending these spices to a desired taste. Which is why manufacturers have typically three types of curries at your disposal: mild, medium and hot.

For those unfamiliar to curry, stick to the mild for a while until comfortable. Then, experiment on your own.

This recipe uses a red curry paste which is more frequent in Vietnam and Thailand. The red paste is usually a blend of red chili peppers, onion (or shallots), lime zest, lemongrass, garlic and coriander. Though they range from manufacturer to manufacturer just like they would range from home to home. The green is virtually the same but uses green chilies instead.

Braised Root Vegetables in a Coconut Curry Sauce

4 Slices of Bacon, cubed
1 Garlic Clove, crushed
1 MacIntosh Apple, cored and grated
1 Red Onion, finely diced
1 Butternut Squash, cubed
1 Carrot, cubed
1 Sweet Potato, cubed
1 Parsnip, cubed
Pinch of Dried Ginger
Pinch of Tumeric
Dollop of Red Curry Paste
1 Green Onion, diced
2 Cans of Coconut Milk
Drizzle of Sesame Oil
Juice of Half a Lime (or lemon)
1 Sprig of Cilantro, chopped (optional)
Drizzle of Honey
Salt and Pepper to Taste

In a large saute pan, heat sesame oil. Add bacon until fat renders (about 2 minutes). Add ginger, onion and garlic. Cook for 1 minute stirring frequently. Add apples, tumeric and curry paste. Cook for 2 minutes stirring frequently. Add all root veggies and cook until all veggies are coated with fat and are slightly caramelized.

Add coconut milk and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 8-10 minutes. Uncover and check for doneness: the veggies should whole but tender when pricked with a fork. Add lime juice, honey and, if you want, cilantro.

Serves around 6 people.

Variation: you can keep this vegetarian and omit the bacon. If you don't like cilantro, and I know many of you do, use basil at the last minute.

A Humble Chef's tip: use a small amount of the paste at first. Especially if you are unsure of how spicy the paste is. If the amount you put doesn't cut it, in a separate pot, ladle some of the curry broth out and add extra. Whisk in until blended and then add to original dish.

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Copy and Pasty

I must start this new post by offering apologies to all readers of my blog for my long hiatus. Yeah, sorry about that. As my old Italian neighbour used to say, "Whatta goin to do?"

I have been very busy with cooking classes these passed few months and I would like to say thank you to all those who come to my classes and to the co-ordinators who book them. Very swell of you.

For me, what is more rewarding than anything else is when someone tells me about their successful attempts to use my recipes. Shucks. Truthfully, boosts to my fragile ego and an occasional pat on the back are always welcome in my books. Having said that, this is a recipe I recently did and even I was surprised on the positive outcome.

I've recently renewed my interest in pasty and it's origins. Not to be confused with pastry, pasty is when you take a pastry and fold over a filling and is then crimped. Very similar to empanadas. However, in the case of the empanada, the filling is usually cooked in advance. Pasties are often filled with root vegetables, onions, beef, whatever and then baked. I suppose if you put tomato sauce, mozzarella and maybe some pepperoni, you could pretty much call that pasty a calzone. Confusing. Yes the pastry is a little different, but essentially the same concept.

Not far from the pasty, is pot pie. However, many of you already know this, but the pot pie filling is cooked in advance and covered with pastry. There are different types of pastry you could use for pot pie (flaky, puff, choux, phyllo) but I like shortcrust. If you can remember 1:2 (1 part fat to 2 parts flour) you'll be fine. Not to be confused with my 1:1:4 recipe. 1 cup of flour, 1 cup of milk and 4 eggs. I wonder, can anyone guess what this ratio might be?

And to keep life easy, make the stew and put the pastry on top in the pot. I mean, if you want to make a pastry base and make an actual pie, be my guest. But I like to keep it simple silly.

Before I move on, I recently had a, um, discussion about the origin of the term Mulligatany. It means "Pepper Water" in Tamil. Millagu for Pepper and Thanni for water. It doesn't refer to some Irish town where it came from like someone in one of my classes argued. Sigh.

Christmas Leftover Mulligatawny Pot Pie

For the Pastry:

240 g A. P. Flour (2 ¼ Cups)
170 g Butter (¼ lb.)
125 ml Cold Water (½ Cup)
Pinch of Salt

For everything else:
170 g butter (¼ lb.)
100 g A.P. Flour (1 Cup)
1 Small Red Onion, finely diced
1/2 Celery Stalk, diced
1 Small Carrot, diced
1 Red Pepper, diced
1 Green Pepper, diced
1 Green or Yellow Zucchini, diced
3 Garlic Cloves, crushed
1 Whole Breast of Turkey or whatever leftovers you have
2 Bosc Pears, grated
2 Large Russet Potatoes, diced
3 l Chicken or Turkey Stock
1 Can of Cranberry Sauce
Drizzle of Oil
Pinches, of Tumeric, Cumin, Mild Curry Powder, Cayenne, Paprika, Thyme
2 Bay Leaves
2 Eggs, whipped
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Preheat oven to 400.

To make the pastry, combine the flour, salt and butter and crumble with your hands; the mixture should look dry. Add one third of the water and gently mix in. Add next third of water and continue. Add the remaining water and massage in; it should be just damp enough to mass together. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up 24 hours.

On a floured surface, roll out the dough into circle big enough to cover the top of your pot. Maybe make the crust about ¼ inch thick.

In a soup pot, heat oil on med-high heat. Add onion, celery and carrot and cook for one minute.Add blend of spices. Add peppers and garlic and cook for another. Add pears, zucchini and potatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add flour and cook for 5 minutes.

Whisk in chicken stock until blended. Add turkey and bay leaves. Bring to a boil and let simmer. Adjust to seasonings.

Brush the rim of the pot with cold water. Carefully lay the pastry round over the top and crimp the edges to seal. Brush the pastry with some of the egg mixture and bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. About 5 – 10 minutes resting time.

Serves 8 – 10.

A Humble Chef's tip: where to begin? How about, this? Be sure the chicken stock is cold when adding to the aromatic roux. Rememeber, cold liquids to a hot roux.

Variations: simple. Turkey Mulligatawny Empanadas.

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Underground Vegetable Resistance

Yes. Another soup. But where I live, it minus 20 degrees. And soup is what we're having.

It has taken a while but I've finally converted my mother-in-law to no longer be a parsnip hater. It wasn't easy but this recipe did the trick. She discovered that she liked parsnips.

Over the past few years, I have learned to value this lesser known root vegetable. It is far more versatile than people give this under-appreciated, underground veggie credit for. On top of this, parsnips are higher in minerals and vitamins than the famous cousin and bully, the carrot (which everybody eats). Parsnips have their own unique sweet taste and it is usually inexpensive. So why don't more people buy it? Carrots are to blame.

Parsnips apparently grow best in temperate regions because their sugar content increases after a little frost. Having said that, the taste of the parsnip, like the potato, is dramatically affected by the climate. So, don't buy them in the spring or summer when they're out of season.

Like the orange-coloured relative, parsnips can be cooked any number of ways: roasted, sauteed, deep-fried, boiled. It can be eaten raw but it is not entirely recommended. Unlike carrots which many people do eat raw. However, if you eat your carrots for the beta carotene, eating it raw is a waste of time.

Anyways, enough of that. All I'm trying to say is, parsnips taste good. And they're cheap. And they're healthy. And they're easy too cook. And anytime you see a carrot recipe, think about substituting it and see if it works. Which it won't all the time so you'll have to use your culinary judgment.

Parsnip and Ginger Soup

1 Large Cooking Onion, peeled and cut into chunks
2 Cloves of Garlic, crushed
Small Chunk of Fresh Ginger (how much is a small chunk? About a tablespoon size)
Pinch of Clove
8 - 10 Parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
Drizzle of Oil
Drizzle of Liquid Honey
2 L Vegetable Stock
250 ml Orange Juice
Salt and Pepper to Taste

In a soup pot, heat oil. Add onions and cook for 5 minutes. Add cloves and cloves of garlic (that's the spice and your two cloves of garlic, not a ton of garlic). Cook for 2 more minutes. Add parsnips and ginger and stir until parsnips are coated in fat. Add extra oil if necessary. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add vegetable stock and orange juice and bring to a boil. Liquify using an immersion blender. Season to taste with honey and salt and pepper.

Add desired garnish. Cream, thyme or even Candied Parsnips.

Serves 8.

A Humble Chef's tip: if the parsnips are really skinny, don't bother peeling them. Soak thoroughly and let air dry before using them.

Variation: this is already a variation on the classic Carrot Ginger Soup, which goes to show how easy it is to change it up.


This next recipe is very tricky. Be sure to measure accurately and follow the instructions carefully or the recipe won't work.

Candied Parsnips

Dab of Butter
Handful of Brown Sugar
Drizzle of Maple Syrup
Pinch of Salt
Splash of Rum
1 Large Parsnips, peeled and thinly sliced

Put everything in a pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cook until parsnips are cooked. About 8 minutes.

Serve.

A Humble Chef's tip: don't overcook the parsnips.

Variation: change up the quantities of ingredients.

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A Dessert to Mull Over

I haven't done a dessert in a while and so here we are. A cook's dessert that is easy to make, better when you let it set and fairly inexpensive.

Panna Cotta is a straight forward dessert that takes no time to make. The only catch is that you have to let it set in the fridge for a few hours before you serve. If you have the time to make it in advance for your party, it is well worth the patience.

Panna Cotta is strictly cream, milk, sugar and gelatin to let it set. An easy foundation that is highly adaptable.

Gelatin is available at all major grocers and is very inexpensive. If you are not aware, gelatin is a meat by-product that comes from the bone marrow. It can be purchased as a powder or as a clear, brittle sheet. It is usually found in, obviously, JELL-O, marshmallows, candies such as gummy bears and low-fat yogurt. When making a homemade chicken stock, if reduced too much, the stock becomes thick from the gelatin in the bone marrow. In fact, Demi Glace is a classic sauce, that essentially is a reduction of either beef or veal stock, that is so naturally thick from gelatin, that it is barely pourable. Very flavourful and usually very expensive.

Mulled cider has become a bit of a staple for me. Prior to working for a retailer that sampled Mulling Spices, I was not too familiar with the idea of spicing up cider or wine. And yet, I now appreciate the blend of spices for what they offer: a rich combination of flavours and an intoxicating aroma that spreads through the house. Mulling spices is basically a blend of whole cloves, cinammon sticks and allspice. However, that is strictly a base that you can expand from.

This recipe I recently taught in a cooking class and I was very happy with the final product. It had a nice appearance, vibrant flavours and a creamy texture that all came together.

Mulled Spice Panna Cotta

8 g Gelatin, powder (1 packet)
150 ml 2% Milk
350 ml 35% Cream
Mulling Spices (2 cinammon sticks, 4 whole cloves, pinch of ground allspice, zest of an orange)
Splash of Vanilla Extract
100 g Sugar
Drizzle of Maple Syrup
Berries and Mint for Garnish

In a stainless steel bowl, pour milk and sprinkle gelatin on top. Mix with a fork.

In a sauce pan, heat cream with spices and sugar. Bring to a scald and let her simmer for a minute. Strain spices. Add cream to milk. Add vanilla and stir. Pour cream into 4 ramekins (buttered is optional) and let set for at least 4 hrs.

Garnish with berries and mint.

Serves 4.

A Humble Chef's tip: it is easier to remove spices if you have a large infuser.

Variation: to keep it festive, try a Cranberry Orange Panna Cotta by subbing the milk with cranberry and orange juice.

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The Gospel According to Matthew, Mark, Luke and . . . Duck

When I first entered the industry, I was working at the busiest fine dining restaurant (so they thought) in Canada: the 360 in the CN Tower. It was great. A wonderful learning curve. A few weeks into my employment there I was entrusted with preparing the Duck Confit. It was something new alright. I had never cooked Duck before, let alone 500 portions at once at a fine dining restaurant.

Not the healthiest dish but I soon learned to appreciate the duke of death, I mean duck, when I consumed copious amounts at work. It is extremely fatty and delicious. It is fairly rare to find whole fresh duck ready to be cooked (well, maybe not if you live in Chinatown). Usually it is frozen with giblets roughly 8 to 10 bucks at your major grocer.

The issue I have with duck is that it has a poor yield (usable portion from the beginning to end of the cooking process) and so you usually only get 3 portions from one duck. An odd number so it makes it difficult at times to prevent waste.

One thing to remember: much of the fat will render so you will need a rack to roast the duck on or throw down leftover vegetables in the roasting pan and use the veg as your rack.

Roast Duck with Orange Lavender Glaze

1 Whole Duck, thawed with giblets removed
1 Large Onion, cut into chunks
1 Stalk of Celery, cut roughly
1 Large Carrot, cut roughly
1 Naval Orange, quartered
Dab of Butter
Pinch of Ginger and savory
1 Shallot, finely chopped
Splash of White Wine
500 ml Orange Juice, no pulp preferably
100ml beef broth
20ml Maple Syrup
Handful of Lavender Leaves
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven at 375 degrees.

Score the top of the duck (the breast side) two "X`s" on each breast. Stuff the duck with veg and oranges. Place into roasting pan and cook for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, in a frying pan on medium heat, melt a dab of butter and add shallots, ginger and savory. Cook for 1 minute. Add wine and reduce by half. Add OJ and lavender and reduce by half. Add beef broth and maple syrup and reduce to a glaze. Season at the end on this one.

Remove duck after 1 hour of roasting. Pour half of the glaze and broil for 5 minutes.

Remove from oven and let rest for 8-10 minutes. Cut off breast and legs and serve with remainder of the glaze.

Serves 3-4.

A Humble Chef's tip: if you have leftovers, cool and use for sandwiches or stir-fries. Brilliant.

Variation: You can add whatever you like on this one. It's very adaptable. I served Pancetta Quinoa and Asparagus with this dish.

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I'm Dangling Carrots Here

Another soup, I know. But having just finished my diploma in snow blowing, it's no wonder that I was inspired to write about the heartiest of all dishes.

I like purée soups because they are easy, require less prep time than chowders or broths. And once you've got some practice with purée soups, then making them will become second nature. I don't bother with recipes usually, but especially more so with soups because the technique is usually the same: onion, principal ingredient, stock, purée and season.

For purée soups, you can use frozen or fresh (or dried, but, egh). When you can, use fresh. Easier to control the water levels, usually better tasting and it leaves you the option of roasting your principal ingredient. However, sometimes you have to use frozen (ever try making Corn Chowder for Christmas?) and utilize what you have available to you. That is a staple of cooking that is truly learned to deal with as you gain experience.

Some chefs like adding an extra potato or two to help thicken the soup. This is to help reduce food cost and thicken their soup with a cheap vegetable. Well, that is something I might have done when I was going through college along with collecting all my coupons to save 5 bucks.

This recipe was kind of an accident and I probably wouldn't bother keeping record of it because at first glance it is not very unique. But then again, this is exactly the type of soup where I would say, "That's different. I should try and remember that one." And then I'll forget it.

Purée of Carrot Soup With Goat's Cheese (Potage Crecy au Chevre)

20g Unsalted Butter
800g Carrots, chopped
1 Small Onion, chopped
2 Cloves of Garlic, crushed
700ml Stock (chicken or veg)
200ml Orange Juice (no pulp if possible)
Pinch of Tumeric, Cayenne, Rosemary, Thyme, Clove
A Few Pinches of Dried Ginger (or fresh if you got it)
Salt and White Pepper to taste
40g Goat`s Cheese

In a medium size sauce pan on medium heat, melt a dab of butter and heat until frothy. Add onion and garlic and cook for one minute. Add dried spices and herbs and continue to cook. Add carrots. Add Orange Juice and reduce by half.

Add stock and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Add cheese. Purée soup with an immersion blender. Season properly and add stock for desired consistency.

Serves 6.

Variation: You can omit the OJ and use cranberry juice. It's a little bitter but that is easily solved with some sugar. However, the colour is truly unique.

Chef's Tip: If you aren't interested in peeling a whack of carrots then chopping them up, then don't do it. Go ahead and spend the extra 50 cents and buy ready baby carrots. When you're in a hurry, this is a major time saver.

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Made With Real Cocoa

So, you've tried my "Hunter-Style" braised chicken and you're ready for the next stage. Right? Yeah. So I like to think. Should I bother posting a Coq au Vin recipe that nobody will ever make? Well of course I should.

What's funny to me is how easy this dish is to make and the reluctance to make it. First you need to ask yourself one question? No, not "Do I feel lucky?" How about "Do I feel nervous about searing some chicken, adding some basic vegetables, adding wine and stock and slowly braising it"? If the answer is a "I dunno" or "What's braising?", well, then perhaps trying that french restaurant downtown might be next on your to-do list. Or maybe just getting the 14 pc. bucket of chicken instead.

It is a tasty little dish that can be made in advance and kept warm until you serve. The alcohol evaporates leaving you with the flavour of the wine so you can serve it to your kids or your pregnant sister-in-law.

There are no tricks. No secrets. No nifty techniques. You won't even need your crock pot that you never use. Just trust me.

Coq au Vin
2 Chicken Thighs
2 Chicken Drumsticks
2 Chicken Breasts, cut in half
2 Cloves of Garlic, crushed
1 White Onion, finely diced
250 g Mushrooms, sliced
200 ml Chicken Stock
50 g All Purpose Flour
400 ml Red Wine (not white! unless that's all you got)
2 Sprigs of Fresh Thyme, chopped
A Few Whole Black Peppercorns
2 Bay Leaves
50g Butter

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.

In a wide pot, on medium high heat, brown chicken in a bit of oil. Remove chicken and set aside. Add a little butter and add mushrooms, onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add flour and cook for one minute. Add chicken stock, bay leaves, peppercorns and wine and bring to a boil. Add chicken and cover.

Place pot into oven and cook for 30 - 40 minutes. Remove from oven, add thyme and remainder of the butter.

Reduce sauce for 10 minutes on stove top and serve.

Serves 4.


Variations: Classically, this dish might have been made with bacon (my God, bacon again) and pearl onions. Well, if you feel decadent this weekend then be my guest.

Chef's Common Sense Tip: Make sure the handle of your pot is not plastic and make sure it can withstand the heat of the oven. Sounds silly but I've had people ask me.

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Bacon. Tomato. Cream. Enough Said.

It has been a while since I last posted anything but here I am, back from the grave. On my other blog perhaps I will go into detail why I haven't posted anything for a while but here I will stick to recipes.

I am starting a catering company and I made a soup recently that I served to a group of ladies who raved over it. Actually, it was an ideal soup to bring and offer samples because it is a little different but not so different that it would detract people to try the damn thing.

It is winter so here is a winter recipe that is quick, cheap and easy (my favourite kind). Just like Butternut Squash, you can roast the principal ingredient of the soup (in this case, plum or roma tomatoes) to caramelize the sugars. This is extra work of course so you can decide whether you want to bother or not. Me? Glad you asked. Well, of course I would. I'm a chef and strive to intensify the flavours as much as possible. Well, at least I would at work; at home is a completely different story.

Puree of Tomato and Bacon
8 Fresh Plum Tomatoes, quatered
3 Strips of Bacon, diced
1 White Onion, medium dice
1 Clove of Garlic, crushed
2 Sprigs of Fresh Basil
100ml of White Wine
750ml of Chicken or Vegetable Stock
200 ml of Whipping Cream
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven on roast at 400. On a baking sheet, lay out tomatoes skin down. Drizzle some oil over top and sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 5-7 minutes or until golden crusted.

In a medium sauce pan on medium heat, cook bacon with touch of butter. Once fat is rendered (about 2 minutes) add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is translucent.

Add wine and reduce by half. Add tomatoes and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Add basil and cream.

Using a blender, puree the stock until desired consistency (how rustic are you?) then bring back to temp.

Season carefully to taste.

Remember: there is salt in the bacon, so taste the soup as you go.

Variation: Omit the cream, chop the tomatoes finer and leave as a broth. Then add some cooked pasta, then you have a version of Minestrone. A tasty version though. Unless you don't like bacon (ha!).

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"It Tastes Like Mushy Rice!"

Going with the theme of building flavours and recipes, the next stage is exploring different types of food to expirement with. For chefs, most (not all) dishes consists of a starch, veg, protein and sauce. Of course there are many exceptions but generally speaking this is usually the case. While proteins and veg are nearly limitless in possibilities starch often poses a problem: it can get very repetitive. Rice, potatoes, pasta. That's often it. Of course there are many alternatives like cous cous, quinoa, wild rice (which has no starch), yams (in the same family as potatoes) or whatever obsure shit you can find. Nevertheless, potatoes, pasta and rice are usualy the popular picks for chefs to have on their menu. It's being creative with those starches that can be challenging.

Risotto is a good alternative. This italian rice is relatively easy, cheap and most people like it - except my brother who always tells me "It tastes like mushy rice." There are different types of rice but arborio is usually the most common. There are some standards to making risotto and then after that, well there are whole cookbooks dedicated to risotto.

The three things critical to risotto are: the rice must be sauted, cooked slowly with a hot liquid, cheese must be added near the end to thicken the sauce and butter to taste for the glaze. The cooking liquid is often chicken broth but can be anything from veg. stock, cucumber juice, beet juice, duck stock, tomato broth, whatever. Parmaggiano cheese the preferred choice but not the required one: asaigo, grano padano, queso manchego to name a few alternatives.

My recipe spawned by accident (many of them do). I had leftover sage in my garden, leftover pears in my fridge, leftover turkey stock in my freezer. I can spend all day talking about risotto but that's enough chit chat. Here's my recipe.

Risotto with Rum Poached Pears and Prosciutto

150 g Arborio Rice
1 l Turkey or Chicken Stock, hot
1 Small Red Onion, fine brunoise
2 Ripe Pears, cut into 6 segments
6 Slices Prosciutto, jullienne
250 ml Rum
150 g Parmaggiano-Reggianno Cheese, grated
80 ml Butter, melted
5 Sprigs of Sage, chiffonade (save some for garnish)

In a small sauce pan, bring rum to a slight boil. Poach pears until cooked through, about three - four minutes. Remove pears from rum and keep warm.

In a large saute pan, melt 20 ml butter until frothy. Sweat onion until translucent. Add rice and stir constantly. Cook for about two minutes until rice becomes translucent. Deglaze with rum and stir until reduced by half. Add ladle of stock and stir until reduced by half. Repeat until stock has run out (approx. 20 minutes). If risotto is still hard, add boiling water and stir to cook through.

Add prosciutto and heat through. Add sage, cheese and 50ml butter and stir. The rice should be firm and sticky.

In a frying pan, use leftover butter to caramelize the pears and heat through. When serving, place pears on top for garnish with sprig of sage.

Serves 6.

Risotto itself can be simply a base that you can add anything to in the last minute to make your dish unique. Try mine as a variation with your turkey dinner.

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