Benny and the Jets: Eggs Benedict with Fresh English Muffins

Eggs Benny is one of my favourite brunch dishes. I'd never attempted to make it at home before but seeing as it isn't terribly tricky to prepare, this definitely goes in the "Make it Again" file. Actually, it would be even faster if I didn't make the English muffins as well. My previous Eggs Benedict encounters have shown that crab cakes and even pancakes make perfectly suitable bases.

Is it worth making the English muffins from scratch? If you have time, then go for it! I prefer the flavor of these (none of that slight tanginess in the packaged versions). That being said, there is a difference in texture. These are more uniformly crumbed and bread-like, rather than filled with the nooks and crannies characteristic of the store-bought ones. The dough is prepared like a normal yeast dough, but the muffins are baked on a griddle which browns them on the top and bottom. 

Of course, it wouldn't be Eggs Benedict without the velvety Hollandaise sauce draped on top. The sauce is made from very few ingredients: just lemon, egg yolks and butter. The mixture must be whisked constantly over a water bath to keep it from curdling and splitting. (If it does split, remove it from the heat and throw in a tablespoon of cold water, whisking quickly.) Since it was too early to do all that whisking by hand (...okay, okay, it was past noon), having a hand mixer came in... handy.

Oh, and rather than topping the English muffin with the usual Canadian bacon, I used some smoked Sockeye salmon for a little West Coastiness. :) 

Recipe after the jump!

I Spy a Pizza Pie

Okay, so after an inexcusably long break from this blogging business, I'm back! A couple of updates from the past few months:

-I graduated (yay!) and moved away from New York City (boo.)
-I had to fortune of dining at Per Se. A culinary dream come true. 

Behind the scenes. There's a live feed to the French Laundry on that TV screen.

-This post was Certified Yummly
-There's a new resident in my kitchen. It's pretty and shiny. Look! 

This has been on my wishlist for quite a long time but my trusty hand mixer has proven itself to be the little mixer that could so I never really needed a stand mixer. I still use it often since sometimes bigger is not necessarily better (like stove top mixing for hollandaise sauce? More on that in a later post...) However, its bigger, more powerful sibling makes baking as easy... as pizza pie. 

If you're a pizza aficionado, there are a few extra steps you can take to make a stellar pizza. The dough can be made with a special flour and the pizza can be baked on a pizza stone in a blistering hot oven. I don't make pizza often though, so bread flour and a plain ol' pizza pan on the bottom rack of my oven will do. I made half barbeque chicken (barbeque sauce+grilled chicken+caramelized onions+mozzarella) and half margherita (tomato sauce+fresh basil+mozzarella). 

Tips and recipe after the jump...

Toasty Cool: Toasted Almond Gelato

Next to pistachios, almonds are my favourite kind of nut. (I'm mildly obsessed with marzipan). They're delicious and nutritious to boot (since apparently, it's a superfood). They also make a great, delicately flavored gelato; like vanilla, but less...ordinary. This is extra rich and velvety since the base is made from eggs and heavy cream.

Of course, you can get top-quality gelato and ice cream from the store. But making it from scratch is not only fun, but nice to be able to adjust flavours and ingredients to suit your taste. Homemade gelato is also usually denser than store-bought ice creams because less air is incorporated during churning.

The gelato can be enjoyed straight from the ice cream maker for a soft-serve consistency or, if you think you have the self-control, can be frozen for something more scoop-able. 

Recipe after the jump

Pan-Seared Salmon with Dill Sauce

Pan-Seared Salmon with Dill Sauce, Garlic Roast Potatoes and Broccoli

Well surprise, surprise. Here's another fish post, which means yet another salmon post. This is a ridiculously simple dill sauce that you can whip up while the fish is in the pan. It's great for a quick mid-week dinner. 
The sauce is made with crème fraîche, which is like regular sour cream but has a higher butterfat content. It has a more delicate and rich flavor, as well as a silkier texture. It is often used to make French sauces because it does not curdle when heated. It can also be whipped like whipping cream, or added to regular whipping cream to improve its "whippability." It has a relatively long shelf life of several weeks.  
This dill sauce is a nice alternative to tartare sauce and a lot fresher tasting in my opinion. (Though the consistency is a little thin to serve with fried fish.) 
I've run out of things to say about salmon, so let's let the one line "recipe" speak for itself...


Recipe after the jump

Crème-y Goodness: Crème Caramel

Crème caramel is a great dessert for entertaining. It can be made ahead of time so you can effortlessly serve it to your guests in all its golden, syrupy glory whenever you need it. This classic dessert is not cloyingly sweet and the smokiness of the caramel gives some edge to the delicate vanilla scent. 
Since this particular recipe uses milk in the custard, it is on the leaner side. If you would like it to be extra velvety and rich, look for a version that uses cream and/or more egg yolks. 


Notes and recipe after the jump...

The French Laundry Cookbook-Yukon Gold Potato Blinis

If I ever find myself in a food rut, the French Laundry cookbook is a goldmine of inspiration. The photography is beautiful and the writing makes it clear that Thomas Keller is an incredibly skilled chef that strives for perfection in his creations. Some of the recipes are a little more involved than others--for example, the recipe for Baby Lamb-Five Cuts Served with Provençal Vegetables, Braised Cipollini Onions, and Thyme Oil involve breaking down an entire animal. I think I'll leave that one to the professionals. 


This is the first recipe I have tried from the book and it's a simple one: Yukon Gold Potato Blinis. Keller notes that this type of potato absorbs more cream and results in the best texture. The blinis are soft, a little dense, and taste faintly of the crème fraîche. The recipe instructs you to serve them as soon as possible. While they do taste best when warm, I served them as an hors d'oeuvre and found that they are fine at room temperature as well.

In the book, the suggested accompaniments are Bottarga di Muggine and Tomato Confit, or Roasted Sweet Peppers and Eggplant Caviar, but these make great bases for other toppings as well. Here, I've served them with smoked salmon, crème fraîche and dill.    


Recipe after the jump

Christmas Special: Whipped Shortbread Cookies

Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without holiday cookie baking. Rather than the icebox shortbread I usually make, I decided to try a whipped version instead this year. Filling the kitchen with the scent of buttery, rich shortbread baking always makes me feel festive. This recipe is unusual because it requires whipping the batter for 10 minutes. The light, fluffy batter can then be spooned or piped. The resulting cookie is delicate in texture and almost melts when you eat it.

Note: Having the cookie keep its ruffled, piped shape without melting into a blob while baking can be tricky. I tried refrigerating the piped batter before baking it, but had better results baking the cookies right after they were piped (at room temperature). 


Recipe after the jump!