Mushrooms in Sage and Cider Cream with Potato Cakes

3 1/2 ounces basmati, brown basmati, or wild rice

1 pound Yukon gold potatoes or similar, peeled and quartered

7 ounces parsnips, peeled and grated

2 sprigs fresh thyme

2 tablespoons chopped parsley or chives

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper, to season

14 ounces mushrooms, sliced thickly

4 tablespoons butter

4 cloves garlic, chopped

8 sage leaves

3/4 cup cider

1 1/2 cups cream

Spinach

Cook the rice at a simmer in boiling water until it has softened, then drain.  Steam the potatoes until just done, then chop them with a knife into a coarse mash.  Add the parsnips to the potato with the rice, thyme, parsley or chives, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Stir gently to combine everything without breaking the potato any more.

Place four metal rings, 3 1/2 inches in diameter and an inch high, in a wide frying pan.  Brush them and the pan with oil and set the pan over a low heat.  Pack the rings with the potato mix to begin cooking gently.  After about five minutes, flip the cakes to cook on the other side.  You may need to flip them a few more times, and to shuffle the cakes around on the pan, to cook them evenly.  They should cook all the way through and become crisp and lightly browned on the outsides.

While the cakes are cooking, melt the butter in a wide pan, turn the heat to high, and toss in the mushrooms and garlic.  Cook, stirring over high heat, until the mushrooms begin to color, adding more butter if they seem too dry.  Add the sage leaves to the pan with the cider, and boil it on high for two minutes, then pour in the cream.  Bring it back to a boil and simmer for one minute.  Wilt the spinach, and serve in a little pile under the potato cake and mushroom cream.

Serves 4.

From Café Paradiso Seasons by Denis Cotter

Poached Chicken in Cream Sauce with Potato Crepes

For the chicken:

4 pound chicken

3 carrots, peeled and cut lengthwise

4 celery stalks, sliced into 3 pieces

3 leeks, trimmed and split lengthwise

1 onion, peeled and quartered

2 bay leaves, a few sprigs of thyme, and tarragon, peppercorns and salt

1/2 bottle of dry white wine

2 cups light cream

Juice of 1 lemon

For the crepes:

1 pound 2 ounces potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1/4 cup milk

2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 eggs

4 egg whites

2 1/2 tablespoons heavy cream

Salt and pepper

8 ounces unsalted butter, clarified

To cook the chicken, put it in a large, deep, flameproof casserole or large boiling pot with the vegetables, herbs, peppercorns, and 2 teaspoons salt.  Add the white wine and sufficient water just to cover.  Put on a high heat and bring to the boil, then skim the surface, which will have produced a gray scum.  Turn down the heat to a mere simmer.  More scum will appear from time to time, so skim the surface when necessary.  Do not cover, although you may like to turn the bird over from time to time if portions of it are not submerged.  Simmer for 1 hour.  (See recipe for crepes, below, while chicken is cooking.)

Carefully lift out the chicken and place it on a large plate.  Strain the cooking liquid into a clean saucepan and throw away the vegetables.  Put the chicken back in 1 cup of the strained stock, bring back to the boil, then remove from the heat and cover.  This is to keep the chicken warm and allow it to rest.

Reduce the rest of the stock until thick and syrupy, ending with about 1/2 cup.  Add the lemon juice and the cream and boil to reduce again, gently, until the sauce is unctuous and the consistency of thin custard.  Check the seasoning and keep the sauce warm. 

Meanwhile, to make the crepe batter, steam the potatoes until cooked through.  While still hot, put through the finest blade of a food mill into a bowl.  Leave to cool.  Mix together all the other ingredients, except the butter, in another bowl and add the potato.  Pass the whole mixture through a sieve and check the seasoning.

To cook the pancakes, heat 1 tablespoon of the clarified butter in a frying pan until hot but not smoking.  Use 1 tablespoon of the batter per pancake, and cook three pancakes at a time.  When the top of each pancake looks almost set, flip it over with a spatula, cook for a few seconds, then transfer to a warmed plate.  Continue in this fashion until all the batter is used.  Keep the crepes in a single layer on an ovenproof plate in a warm oven.

Place the whole chicken on a serving dish, arranging the crepes around the edge, and pouring the sauce over the whole bird.

From Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson

Cauliflower alla Parmigiana

Unsalted butter for the baking dish, plus 2 1/2 tablespoons

1 cauliflower, about 1 1/2 pounds, separated into large florets

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the oven to 425°F. Butter an 8-by-10-inch oval baking dish, or a baking dish of equivalent size.

Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil.  Add the florets and boil until they are slightly softened but still retain some crispness, about 4 minutes.  Drain well, then slice them lengthwise so the stems are about 1/4 inch thick.

Arrange the slices, overlapping them tightly, in the prepared baking dish.  Season with salt and black pepper, then dot with thin slices of butter, using the 2 1/2 tablespoons.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan.

Bake uncovered until lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes.  Serve hot.

Serves 4.

From Casual Cooking by Michael Chiarello

Chocolate-Cherry Brioche

Dough:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dry milk
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 large eggs and 1 large egg yolk (white reserved for topping)
1/4 cup lukewarm water
8 tablespoons butter

Filling 1:
2/3 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
2/3 cup dried sweet cherries

Filling 2:
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder, preferably Dutch-process

Topping:
1 large egg white (reserved from dough) lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
2 to 3 tablespoons Swedish pearl sugar or coarse white sparkling sugar

In a stand mixer or in a bread machine, mix together all of the ingredients to form a smooth, shiny dough. Don't worry; what starts out as a sticky mess becomes beautifully satiny as it kneads. If you use a stand mixer, this dough takes longer than most to develop, so be prepared to let it knead for up to 15 minutes. A bread machine will mix and knead this dough perfectly using the dough cycle. We don't recommend trying to knead brioche dough by hand; it's simply too sticky.

If you're using a bread machine, add the chocolate chunks and dried cherries about 1 minute before the end of the kneading cycle. Let it complete its entire dough cycle, then cover the bucket with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the dough for several hours, or overnight. If you've kneaded the dough in a stand mixer, add the cherries and chocolate at the end, form it into a ball (it'll be very soft), place it in a greased bowl, cover the bowl, and it let rise for 1 hour. Then refrigerate the dough for several hours, or overnight. Refrigeration will slow the fermentation and chill the butter, making the dough easier to shape.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator, and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Shape the dough into a 24" log. Flatten it out so it's about 6" to 7" wide. Don't try to make it perfectly even; it'll look ragged.

Make the filling by whisking together the confectioners' sugar and cocoa. Brush the dough with milk or water, and sprinkle the sugar/cocoa filling evenly over the dough. Starting with a long end, roll the dough into a long log. Lay the log in a lightly greased 9" round cake pan that's at least 2" tall. You can coil it into the pan, or simply make it into a circle. Pinch the dough together where the ends meet.

Cover the pan, and allow the brioche to rise for 2 to 3 hours, till it's quite puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Brush the risen brioche with the beaten egg white, and sprinkle with the pearl sugar or coarse white sugar. Bake the brioche for 20 minutes. Tent it with aluminum foil, and bake for an additional 30 to 35 minutes, until it's golden brown and its interior registers 190°F on an instant-read thermometer.

Remove the brioche from the oven and, after about 5 minutes, loosen the edges and carefully turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool.

Makes one 9-inch brioche.


From King Arthur Flour website

Spicy Beef and Beer Stew

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

5 pounds boneless beef chuck steak, cut into large chunks

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 large onions, diced

1 red or green bell pepper, diced

1 bottle dark beer

2 tomatoes, diced, or 3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

10 small new potatoes, halved

16 baby carrots

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour whisked with 2 tablespoons cold water, optional

In a large bowl, combine garlic, 1 tablespoon of sugar, cumin, salt, pepper, and cinnamon.  Add beef cubes and stir to coat.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

In a pressure cooker, heat oil over medium-high heat; brown meat, in batches.  Return browned meat to cooker.  Add onion and red or green pepper; sauté for 5 minutes.  In a bowl, combine beer, diced tomato, pepper flakes, and remaining brown sugar; pour into the cooker.  Stir in potatoes and carrots.

Lock the lid in place and bring the cooker up to full pressure over high heat.  Reduce the heat to medium-low, just to maintain even pressure, and cook for 35 minutes.  Remove from heat and release pressure quickly.

If desired, whisk in flour mixture and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes or until thickened.

Serves 8 to 10.

From 125 Best Pressure Cooker Recipes by Cinda Chavich

Aloo Gobhi

3 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds

1/2 onion, finely chopped

7 ounces potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala

4 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 large cauliflower, cut into florets

3/4 inch piece of ginger, grated

1 teaspoon sugar

Heat the oil in a karhai or deep, heavy-based frying pan over low heat.  Add the mustard seeds, cover the pan, and wait for the seeds to pop.  Add the onion and potato and fry until lightly browned.

Add the turmeric, cumin, coriander, and garam masala to the pan and fry for a couple of seconds.  Add the tomato and stir until the spices are well mixed.  Add the cauliflower florets and stir until well mixed.  Stir in the ginger, sugar, and 1/2 cup water, increase the heat to medium, and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.  Season with salt to taste.

Uncover the pan and, if the sauce is too runny, simmer for 1-2 minutes before serving.

Serves 4.

From A Little Taste of India by Priya Wickramasinghe and Carol Selva Rajah

Safed Gosht

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

12 fresh curry leaves or 3 bay leaves

2-inch stick cinnamon

6 cardamom pods

8 whole cloves

15 black peppercorns

About 1/3 cup (3 ounces) peeled and chopped onion

1 1/2 pounds boned shoulder of lamb, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks (or beef)

1 pound potatoes, peeled and cut into pieces the same size as the meat

2 medium-sized carrots, peeled and diced

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 tablespoon ground coriander

1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 to 2 fresh, hot green chilies

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

1 14-ounce can coconut milk, well-stirred

Put the oil in a pressure cooker and set over medium-high heat.  When the oil is hot, put in the curry leaves (if using), cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and peppercorns.  Stir once and put in the onion.  Sauté for 1 1/2 minutes or until the onion is soft, and put in the meat, potatoes, carrots, turmeric, coriander, cayenne, green chilies, salt, and 1 cup of the well-stirred coconut milk.  Cover securely with the lid and, on high heat, bring up to full pressure.  Turn the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes.  Lower the pressure with the help of cool water poured on the lid and remove the lid.  Cook, uncovered, over high heat for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring gently as you do this.  Add the remaining coconut milk and bring to a simmer.  Turn off the heat.

Serves 4.

From Quick and Easy Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey