The Recipes for Ms. Otis

Since Ms. Otis was unable to lunch on Tuesday, I am sharing the recipes from our glorious lunch with her and the rest of you. Please note, the recipes are more of an idea than exact instructions of how to create the dishes we enjoyed. Experiment happily, won't you?

Cream of Spinach and Watercress Soup with Garlic Croutons

1 Onion, diced
2 Tb Chopped Garlic
2 oz. Unsalted Butter
2 bunches Spinach, washed and de-stemmed
2 bunches Watercress
1/4 cup flour
1 quart Chicken Stock
6 oz. cream
Salt
White Pepper

In a preheated pot, melt butter and saute onions and garlic. Add watercress and spinach, allowing them to wilt. Dust with flour to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Pour chicken stock over the greens. Once the soup comes to a boil, add the cream. Bring it back to a boil. Puree the soup in a blender. Pass the soup through a fine mesh strainer. Adjust seasonings.

To prepare croutons, use a bread you like. Dice and add to lots of butter and garlic in a hot pan. Saute until brown and crisp and buttery.


Gnocchi with Garlic, Basil, and Tomato

Gnocchi:
3 large Russet potatoes
3/4 lb. all purpose flour
1/2 lb. grated Parmesan Cheese (Use the good stuff!)
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
Pinch of nutmeg
Salt
White Pepper

Bring whole potatoes with skins on to a boil in cold salted water. Once potatoes are tender, remove from water and peel. Pass hot potatoes through a ricer or food mill. Make three equal piles of potatoes, grated cheese, and flour. Knead the cheese into the potatoes, using the heat of the potatoes to melt the cheese. Add flour as necessary and use a pastry scraper to work the flour into the potato cheese mixture. Drizzle eggs over the mixture, add spices, and knead to combine. When the dough is soft and no longer sticky, cut it into fist-sized pieces and roll into long strips. Cut into small 1-inch pieces. To shape the gnocchi, gently press the pieces of dough onto a fork and let the pieces roll off onto the counter. They should have a thumb print on one side, and a fork mark on the other if done correctly. Cook the gnocchi in boiling water. When they float to the top, remove and shock them in ice water. Drain well and toss in a plain oil, such as corn or canola oil.

Sauce:
1 small shallot, diced
1 small clove garlic, diced
Olive oil
8 peeled and seeded roma tomatoes, rough cut into 1/8 pieces
Mixed herbs, rosemary, thyme, and parsley
Basil
10 oz. Jus de Poulet (You can use veal stock as well)
Butter (He put in a lot of butter, about 1 stick. Put in as much as you want, but it will taste better with more.)

Saute gnocchi in a pan with olive oil until they are golden brown on all sides. In a small saute pan, sweat the garlic and shallots in olive oil. Add the tomatoes and allow to simmer. Deglaze the pan with the Jus de Poulet. Add the browned gnocchi to the sauce. Finish with the mixed herbs, basil, and butter. Season with salt and pepper and grated parmesan cheese.


Poached Scottish Salmon with Tarragon Mustard Nage

2 1/2 pounds salmon fillet
1 pint fish stock
1 pint chicken stock
1 onion, rough cut
1 carrot, rough cut
2 stalks of celery, rough cut
1 cup white wine
2 oz vinegar
2 small sweet onions, sliced
2 Tb Dijon mustard
2 Tb whole grain mustard
1 Tb tarragon, chopped
1 tsp dill, chopped
1 tsp parsley, chopped
3 Tb butter
1 Tb tomatoes, diced
Lemon juice to taste

Combine fish stock, chicken stock, onion, celery, carrot, white wine and vinegar in a large pot. Bring to a simmer. Cut the fish fillet into 4 oz serving sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Add fish to the poaching stock and cook for 4 to 6 minutes.

For the sauce, put 8 oz of poaching broth into a small sauce pot. Reduce liquid by 1/3 and add sweet onions. Allow to come to a simmer and add both mustards. Whisk in the butter and finish the sauce with lemon juice, tarragon, and dill. Place a piece of fish over sauted fennel and swiss chard. Spoon the sauce over the fish and garnish with dill and tarragon sprigs.


Chocolate Lava Cake with Raspberry Coulis

Cake:
5 eggs + 4 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
8 oz butter (1 stick)
5 ounces semisweet chocolate
4 ounces flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter and chocolate together over a double boiler. Mix yolks, eggs, and sugar together. Combine the warm butter and chocolate mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Sift the flour into the mixture and fold to combine. Pour into greased ramekins. Bake for 10 minutes. They will be soft and melty in the middle, like lava. Garnish with whipped cream, raspberry coulis, and a mint sprig.

Sauce:
1 package raspberries
Sugar, to taste
2-3Tb water

Bring all ingredients to an active simmer until the sauce develops. Puree in a blender. Put into a squeeze bottle and use to decorate the plate for serving.

Recipes courtesy of Chef Mark Kropczynski and Pastry Chef Patrick Jozwicka.