Earl Grey Tea and Mint Soup with Assorted Fruit

6 Servings

INGREDIENTS

1 lemon

2 oranges

2 cups water

1 cup sugar

1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

17 large mint leaves

2 T Earl Grey tea leaves

2 pink grapefruits

2 kiwis, peeled and halved lengthwise

6 strawberries, hulled

1 cup raspberries

DIRECTIONS

1.  Use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest (yellow part only) from the lemon in strips 2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide.  Save the lemon for another use.  Repeat with the oranges, setting the zest aside and reserving the oranges for later.

2.  Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Remove from the heat and add the vanilla bean, 5 mint leaves, the lemon zest, orange zest, and tea leaves. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 10 minutes.  Strain and refrigerate until very cold.  (The recipe can be make to this point up to 2 days ahead.)

3.  Use a paring knife to remove all peel and pith from the grapefruits.  Cut the sections out from between the membranes.  Repeat with the oranges.  You will need 4 grapefruit slices and 4 orange slices per serving.  Arrange the sections pinwheel fashion in 6 large, shallow soup bowls, alternating pieces of grapefruit and orange.  Cut the kiwi halves crosswise into thin slices and place them between the orange and grapefruit sections.

4.  Quarter and thinly slice the straweberries lengthwise.  Scatter the starwerries and raspberries over all.  (The fruit can be arraned several hours before serving; cover the plates with plastic and refrigerate.)

5.  To serve, cut the remaining mint leaves crosswise into very thin strips.  Scatter the mint over the fruit.  Pour 1/4 cup of the tea into each bowl and serve immdiately.

Recipe from Le Bernardin Cookbook, Eric Ripert and Maguy Le Coze

Rating (1 Low- 10 High)

Taste: 9.5

Ease: Intermediate

Note: instead of covering the infused tea liquid with plastic, we covered it with a lid.

Whole Roasted Red Snapper with Thai Spices and Coconut Rice

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
THE RED SNAPPER:
4 lb whole red snapper, head on, cleaned, scales removed
1/4 cup canola oil
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 T grated ginger
1 T ground coriander seeds
1 T grated palm sugar or brown sugar
1/2 tsp chili flakes
2 T coconut milk
juice and zest of 1 lime
1/4 cup basil chiffonade
1/4 cup cilantro chiffonade
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lime

COCONUT RICE
1 c Jasmine rice
1 3/4 c water
1/2 stalk lemongrass
1 c coconut milk
1 T cilantro, julienne
1 lime
fine sea salt and freshly ground white pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Generously season the belly and both sides of the fish with salt and pepper. Place the fish on a roasting pan.
3. Combine the canola oil with the garlic, ginger, coriander, palm sugar, chili flakes, coconut milk, juice and zest of lime in a mixing bowl and stir to combine.
4. Spoon the spice mixture over the snapper and bake for about 30-35 minutes, basting frequently. Bake the fish until a metal skewer can easily be inserted into the fish and, if left in for 5 seconds, feels warm.
5. While the fish is roasting, cook the rice. Bring the rice, water and lemongrass to a boil in a medium pot. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the rice from the heat, cover and let sit for another 10 minutes. When the rice is cooked, remove and discard lemongrass. Add the coconut milk and cilantro. Stir to incorporate and season to taste with lime juice, salt and pepper.
6. To serve, spoon the coconut rice on the middle of four plates. Filet the snapper; running a knife down the center of the fish and under the fillet to separate it from the bone. Place each serving on top of the coconut rice and spoon some of the sauce from the roasting pan over the snapper. When the top fillets have been served, lift off the fish b ones and cut the bottom in the same manner. Finish the dish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

WINE SUGGESTION: Pairs with Dr. Loosen Blue Slate Estate Kabinett Riesling, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer/Germany 2007 or Johann's Garden Henschke, Barossa/Australia 2006

Recipe from Perfect Pairings Wine Club, wine.com, AVEC ERIC



Rating: (1 Low-10 High)

Taste: 9
Ease of recipe: Intermediate

Just the pictures...for now

It's been a busy couple of weeks and we appologize that we haven't had a chance to post updates.  Do not fear, we have continued to enjoy wonderful meals, we just haven't had a chance to share them with you.  For now, we have posted some photos; reviews to follow shortly.  Enjoy.

Seared Ahi Tuna - Seasoned by the Guys at Pike Place Fish :: Peruvian Scallop Seviche (Le Bernardin Cookbook) :: Broiled Snapper with Chardonnay-Steamed Crabmeat and Spinach (Commander's Kitchen)

YUM!

Thank you Justin at Pike Place Fish for this delicious Ahi Tuna!  Rubbed in a combination of their NW Seafood Seasoning and Our Own Rub, this Ahi was succulent, tender and had a bit of a kick.  Dabbled in their World Famous Tartar Sauce, it was the perfect pairing to this dish; cool on the palate and then a bit of a bite at the end.  A perfect way to start our meal.

 

In addition to the tuna, we also enjoyed Peruvian Scallop Seviche with fresh crostini.  This dish contained beautiful fresh bay scallops from Pike Place Fish, red bell peppers, jalapeno, tomatoes, red onion, citrus juice, fresh mint and cilantro.

The flavor was bright and light, with a bit of heat from the jalapeno.  The recipe called for 2 cups of olive oil, we thought that was a bit much, and over powered the citrus flavor. In retrospect, we would have cut that back.

Flavor (1 poor - 10 great)

8

Ease (1 easy - 10 difficult)

5 (a bit of vegetable prep was time consuming; easy because you can make in advance)

For the main course, John created Broiled Snapper with Chardonnay-Steamed Crabmeat and Spinach.  Fresh snapper was lightly seasoned in garlic and lemon, broiled until just finished and set atop a bed of steamed spinach.  The fish was then topped with crabmeat that was steamed in chardonnay and sauteed green onions.

This was a light dish and simple to prepare.  The depth of flavor was not as apparent as some of the other dishes we have tried, that being said, it was still a lovely meal and left room for the creme brulee that John prepared for dessert. :-)

Flavor (1 poor - 10 delicious)

6
Ease (1 easy- 10 difficult)

4

Bon Appetit!

Le Bernardin - Eric Ripert and Maguy Le Coze - Grouper with Spicy Zucchini and Red Pepper Confit

This week was a bit different. I had been in California visiting family so I was not at all involved in the shopping and cooking process. My wonderful husband welcomed me home from my trip to this fabulous meal.

We started the meal with a bit of Asian Tuna Tartare (page 57) which was quite good. John had found some tortilla-potato chips at World Market that were really tasty and paired well with the tartare.

For the main course, John has substituted the grouper fillets for mahi mahi, as fresh grouper was not available. Visually, the dish was inviting as the bright green and red from the bell peppers were bold against the white plate.

The mahi mahi sat on top of vegetables, which provided a nice bed for the fish. The recipe calls for a thyme-infused olive oil. John had substituted fresh rosemary instead, and I have to say, surprisingly, it really was a great fit for the mahi mahi. I thought it would overpower the fish, but combined with the lemon, it was really nice. A suggestion would be to drizzle the herb-oil over the fish, rather than just serving it with the vegetables.

Ease: (1 easy - 10 hard)
3 (the infused oil process took some time but the dish was easy to make)

Flavor: (1 bad - 10 great)
7

Bon Appetit!

Le Bernardin - Eric Ripert and Maguy Le Coze- Yellowtail Snapper with Couscous and Spiced Vegetable Sauce

We headed off to the PPM this morning and much to our surprise, found it to be quite empty. First stop, we took a browse through Sur la Table to pick up a new meat mallet. I managed to knock a few creme brulee dishes on the floor...of course breaking them. For those of you who know me, you are chuckling to yourself right now as you know this is nothing new. :)

We found the best fish at Pike Place Fish, most famously known for it's "fish throwing". Scotty helped us to find really fresh snapper, some ahi tuna for another dish John was making from the cookbook (Carpaccio of Tuna with Chives) and some large shrimp. Apparently, Pike Place Fish is putting together a cookbook, compiled of recipes they receive from local chefs who shop at their store. Great idea!

One home, John got to work on preparing the meal. (I took the night off as I had a full week of cooking in my regular job as a Personal Chef. www.thekitchendoor.info) Overall, he was pleasantly surprised with the ease in preparation. He did mention however, that there were quite a few "steps".

The dish was lovely to look at and eat. The fish was cooked perfectly and the couscous had a nice flavor. We were both surprised at the bit of heat that came from the vegetable sauce. It was a nice balance to the light fish, rounding out the dish.

Bottom line: (1 low-10 high)

skill level- 6
flavor - 8.5

Commander's Kitchen - Shrimp and Tasso Henican/Five Pepper Jelly

After a trip to Pike Place Market, here in Seattle, WA, we rounded up the ingredients to prepare the recipes. (Side note, avoid PPM on the weekends if you are a local...)

Overall, we were very happy with this dish. The shrimp had a nice flavor (John created his own Cajun seasoning, which was delicious). The jelly had a nice balance of sweet and savory, and the over all dish was quite impressive. To balance out the dish, we served it with local farro tossed in mascarpone. It paired quite nicely.

Considering the variety of components going into this dish, we would give it a 8 in skill level (partly due to creating the seasoning, cleaning shrimp, and making beurre blanc.)

Flavor profile, we would give it an 8.5. It was quite delicious.

Note, if you plan to prepare this for a crowd, make the beurre blanc ahead and hold, skewer shrimp, dice vegetables and make jelly.