Category: Puff pastry

Coco Questionnaire… Five Questions with Eugenia Cheng

Eugenias Bach sheet music

Above is a quick water color I did of some Bach sheet music my dear friend and todays subject Dr. Eugenia Cheng posted on her social media after her long awaited piano arrived from the UK. To see her joy reunited with it via Facebook was palpable.

I can imagine to be separated from it must feel like being separated from a loved one or even a limb.  It’s a part of Eugenia. The piano was a part of her, that was across the ocean, as she settled into her new role here in Chicago at The Art Institute of Chicago.I met  Dr. Eugenia Cheng a long time ago. I lost cost count of the years, it’s been over a decade. Eugenia was and is this brilliant mathematician, who loved to bake, listen to opera and classical music. We met when she became involved on an Opera board I was active in at Lyric Opera Chicago. One would normally feel intimidated by a Cambridge educated classically trained pianist and mathematician. But that’s the beauty of Eugenia, you don’t and that’s why book How to Bake Pi: An Edible Exploration of the Mathematics of Mathematics  is an  international best seller.

How to Bake Pi

I admire her dedication , passion and focus. You don’t see that passion exuded by anyone, as you will with Eugenia. She has weekly salon called Liederstube where other like minded souls can congregate and create more beauty through song.

Eugenia inspires you and makes terrifying subjects fun and interesting, whether it be baking or math. Did you catch her on Stephen Colbert breaking down Puff Pastry?

1) What food makes you happy?

Almost all food makes me happy! But especially chocolate, very dark chocolate that I make from unroasted ingredients.  I eat it first thing in the morning every single day – that’s my only food rule.

2) What food makes you cringe?

Tripe. I’m shuddering even just typing the word. Tripe is a specialty of the region my father is from, and when I went to visit as a child everyone kept giving me tripe to eat as a “special treat”. I discovered that if I held my breath while eating it then I wouldn’t taste anything, but that didn’t stop me from feeling the texture on my tongue…

3) What music do you like to listen to or hum when you cook or bake?

I don’t usually listen to music when I cook as I find it distracting, but if I need to do something for a certain number of minutes sometimes I’ll sing a particular song that I know takes that number of minutes. I went through a phase of singing Strauss’s “Befreit” while whisking egg whites, for example.  At Christmas when I’m roasting my goose I will put on Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. I’m liable to gesticulate to the music though, and this can scare my guests when I start gesticulating while wielding a cleaver.

4) Tell me about a culinary goal? A dish you want attempt, a book you want to write?

I still want to perfect the making of macarons! It is driving me slightly nutty that sometimes they come out perfectly and sometimes they don’t, know matter how carefully I control what I’m doing.

5) Where is your favorite place in the world to eat?

Paris. Paris is a magical place for me where I can eat whatever I want and not get fat. I think it’s because everything is so extremely delicious I don’t need to eat so much to be satisfied, and stuffing my face there would seem like a waste of that deliciousness.

 

Like I said , she’s an inspiration. I only wish I had a strong female influence like this in my life as I tackled the subject of math. Check out her You Tube Channel.

Thank you Eugenia,

Coco

 

 

 

 

Chicken Galettes With Broccoli Mustard Cream

Chicken galettes with brocoli mustard cream

Here is a quick and easy idea for a twist on the usual standard dinner fare. I’m not a big fan of skinless boneless chicken breasts, but utilize them occasionally in cooking. I always have some puff pastry in the freezer left over from catering. This particular evening I had some frozen béchamel sauce I had leftover from making lasagna. As a chef I save as much I can in the freezer to repurpose later in another dish. “Waste not , want not” especially with food costs soaring. Some frozen broccoli, béchamel, chicken breasts, Dijon mustard, and Gouda make for an easy elegant stunning meal. I called these galettes which we normally associate with a free from sweet pastry. Why not savory? The chicken breast stays tender as it cooks up in the creamy sauce and puff pastry.  Be sure to use a thermometer to check chickens doneness without compromising the presentation before serving. Poultry should reach an internal temperature of 165-175 F . Here is quick link for Béchamel , a mother sauce that should be in your repertoire.

Chicken Galettes With Broccoli Mustard Cream
 
Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Chicken Breasts in puff pastry.
Ingredients
  • Chicken breasts
  • Thawed frozen Puff pastry sheets to equal amount of chicken pieces
  • 2 cups Béchamel sauce ( see link in post)
  • 1 cup grated Gouda
  • 2 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
  • 1 cup frozen broccoli
  • ¼ cup chicken broth
  • 1 egg beaten for pastry wash
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Prepare you béchamel. Add grated gouda and broccoli. Let sit for 20 min until a little thickened and cooler before assembly.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 F
  3. Line a sheet pan with a silpat or parchment paper .
  4. Place a chicken breast atop a piece of puff pastry on the sheet pan.
  5. Add a few tablespoons of thickened cooled sauce and quickly wrap to seal. Brush with egg yolk.
  6. Reheat Béchamel with chicken stock.
  7. One galetttes are browned and chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165-175 F , remove from oven.
  8. Serve hot with more sauce ladled over the pastry.
Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Chicken Galettes

In other news this has been an amazing week as I go through some career transformations and validations. An illustration I did a while ago and forgot about for my former employers contest, was picked up and reposted on the Cosmetic Brands IG page! For me this is a  huge validation of my  creative talents and skills .

 

Smith and cult as seen in

Kumquat Confit and Kumquat Pistachio Palmiers

2 Comments

The other day I was in Stanley’s and saw a nice punnet of kumquat’s staring at me. Do you look at some foods and think back to your first taste, which may or may not have been pleasant? That’s how I felt with kumquat’s. I wanted to love the cute miniature citrus fruit , but a distant memory of just eating one raw off someones little tree, as child always held me back. Well I’m a big girl now, 43 years of age, to be exact and it was time to acquaint myself with Kumquats again. Surely if  I cooked them down to a confit , almost candy like, they will go down well? And yes they did. Talk about a burst of sunshine and citrus finished with a hint of bourbon and cinnamon. The kumquats picked me up and tickled my tongue, as I ate it on hot buttered bread and black coffee. Preserved kumquat’s are better than orange marmalade in my opinion.The flavor more pronounced, as it’s really all concentrated in the peel.

Certain Someone is not a big jam , preserve type. He loves his  charcuterie, black coffee , good bread and butter on lazy weekend mornings. So while I made a small batch, I wanted more applications for my confit. I had small sheets of commercial puff pastry in my freezer and nuts in the cupboard.

I took my kitchen shears and cut up a small amount of the candid kumquats  to smaller pieces, as the confit was made from kumquat halves. I spread them over the defrosted puff pastry, added a mixture of pistachios and  raw sugar which had been blended to a coarse crumb, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. I then carefully rolled them up on either end, to meet in the middle.  The rolls were sliced and dipped in more of the pistachio sugar crumb and baked on a parchment lined baking sheet at 375 degrees until golden. Careful not to burn the bottoms as the sugars from the confit and  sugar crumb will caramelize. Remove from oven and let cook. You will have a nice tea or coffee time snack.


Kumquat Confit
 
Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Candied preserved Kumquats
Author:
Recipe type: condiment, preserves
Ingredients
  • 1 lb of kumquats, washed, halved, and seeded.
  • 2 cups of sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon of Bourbon
  • * apple core
Instructions
  1. Halve and seed the kumquats.
  2. Place in a heavy bottomed pot with apple core.
  3. Add sugar.
  4. Slowly bring up the temp and stir and mash the fruit into the sugar until it starts to liquify slight. You don't want to burn the sugar or cook to fast.
  5. Stir in cinnamon.
  6. Cook on med heat until all the ingredients start to liquify and boil.
  7. Reduce heat until the boil is more like a simmer. Stir periodically and cook for several minutes until the fruit becomes more transparent and candied. This may take about 10 minutes more or less.
  8. The longer the cook time, the more candied the fruit. You want to make sure its spreadable and not to thick.
  9. Turn off the heat.
  10. Remove apple core.
  11. Stir in the Bourbon . The confit will sizzle a bit with the addition of the liquor.
  12. Place in clean jars.
  13. Let cool and cover
  14. Keep in the refrigerator for several weeks.
Notes
The apple core, loaded with natural pectin aides the thickening.
Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

 

Individual Apple Tarte Tatin

5 Comments

Last week on a rare day off I was watching the BBC America station. Gordon Ramsay’s The F Word was on and I perked up as he made these easy gorgeous individual Pear Tatins studded with Star Anise. I had a bunch of commercial supply puff pastry in my freezer, left over from a event and a few apples left from my solitary apple picking adventure the week before. I was determined to try this stunning simple dessert with what I had and it didn’t disappoint.

The recipe is simple and you just need some fresh hard fruit , peeled and cored, sugar, butter, cinnamon or star anise, and maybe a splash or rum or brandy. Be creative. And of course serve with ice cream or whipped cream to up the indulgence factor. Your guests will be amazed and it saves the terror of flipping over a whole Tarte Tatin.

Here is Gordon’s version

And here is my breakdown

Individual Apple Tarte Tatin
 
Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Individual Apple Tarte Tatins
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 2-3 tablespoons of butter
  • 2-3 large apples peeled, halved and cored
  • 4-6 squares of puff pastry
  • squeeze lemon juice
  • 1-2 tablespoons Brandy or rum
  • 4-6 whole pods of Star Anise
Instructions
  1. Prep your apples by peeling, halving, and removing the inner core and stem. Squeeze with lemon juice to prevent browning.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  3. In a heavy stainless steel skillet melt butter and sugar carefully and slowly until its starts to caramelize and brown. Be careful not to burn from sugar. You can add a splash or rum or brandy to the caramel.
  4. Quickly stud each apple halve with star anise . Wrap each piece individually with puff pastry leaving the flat half free and exposed.
  5. Place each pastry wrapped halve in the skillet with the caramelized sugar face down.
  6. Sprinkle with additional sugar is optional.
  7. Arrange in pan, and place in oven. Bake until golden .
  8. Serve face up and with ice cream or whipped cream.
Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

 

Homemade Duck Sausage Caramelized Onions Apples and Gruyere Tart


If you keep up with me via Twitter or Facebook, you know I am in the process of auditioning for the new American version of Master Chef with Gordon Ramsay on Fox. Things are going well so far and its been a crazy few days. Some people have been asking what I brought to my casting call. This post is going to be short and sweet, but I just wanted to share and thank everyone for their support.

Well here it is. I got high marks for this one. Enjoy.

Homemade Duck Sausage, Caramelized Onion, Apple and Gruyere Tart

With Frisee, Dried Cranberries and Pumpkin Oil Vinaigrette

By Courtney Nzeribe

Equipment Needed

4.5 inch tart forms

Kitchen Aid stand mixer, meat grinder and sausage stuffer

Homemade Duck Sausage

1 duckling de-boned with meat and skin from legs, breast, etc.

Natural casing (hog or lamb)

1 tbsp juniper berries

1 tbsp Garlic Powder

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp green peppercorns

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp mustard powder

½ tsp ground sage

A few sprigs of fresh rosemary, thyme, and marjoram

Soak casing in cold water for a few hours to remove any salt preservatives.

De bone a duck removing breast meat, skin, thigh/ leg meat. Reserve the carcass, wings, and extra fold of skin at cavity. Place the carcass, wings and skin, and bones in a roasting pan, season with salt and pepper and roast at 450 to render some fat. Roast until golden and crispy. Set aside and reserve fat for later.

Using the Kitchen Aid meat grinder, grind small pieces of the duck meat and skin, on coarse grind first. Once done add seasonings and grind once more on a finer grind. Chill meat until ready to stuff into casing.

Prepare Kitchen Aid with Sausage Stuffer attachments. Take the casing and attach the stuffer funnel to one end and run under cold water to flush insides. Add the sausage funnel to mixer and roll the casing onto the length of the funnel. Tie off the end of casing in a knot. Follow Kitchen Aid instructions to stuff sausage. Once all meat is stuffed, cover the sausage with plastic wrap and chill for a few hours or overnight to let seasonings blend.

Caramelized Onions and Apples

1 large onion

1 apple

* 2 tbsp of Duck Fat (see Homemade Duck Sausage recipe)

¼ cup Cognac

Sea salt & black pepper to taste

Fresh Thyme

Thinly slice the onions. Peel and chop the apple. In a large skillet, heat the duck fat. Add the onion , salt, pepper, and thyme and sauté on med low heat stirring occasionally until they start to sweat and become translucent. Add the apples. Every few minutes add some cognac to deglaze the pan and continue to sauté and stir on low heat until soft and slightly browned. Total cook time is about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

Tart Assembly

Puff pastry to line forms ( I made my own)

2 cups Farmers cheese

1 cup shredded Gruyere

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

Pinch of fresh grated nutmeg

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Baked Homemade Duck sausage

1 cup Caramelized Onions and Apples

Egg wash (1 egg beaten lightly)

Roll out puff pastry and cut and fit into tart form. Chill until ready to fill.

Bake the homemade duck sausage in a roasting pan with a little water at 450 F until golden and crispy. Set aside and let cool. Slice on diagonal.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a small bowl mix Farmers Cheese, Gruyere, eggs, milk, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add the caramelized onions. Fill chilled tart shells with mixture and add the slices of duck sausage. Brush edges with egg wash. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until golden.

Frisee, Dried Cranberries with Pumpkin Seed Vinaigrette

Wash and spin dry the Frisee. In a bowl mix ½ cup Pumpkin Oil , ½ cup Balsamic Vinegar, 2tbsp Peanut Oil, ½ tsp brown sugar. Add fresh ground Black Pepper and sea salt and beat until emulsified.. Toss the Frisee with some vinaigrette. Add dried Cranberries.

Plate the tarts with the dressed Frisee. Garnish tart with sprig of fresh Thyme or Rosemary and a few cranberries.