Classic French Bistro
Salad Lyonnaise
Classic Ratatouille
Coq Au Vin with Steamed Rice
Chocolate pot de creme with Chocolate whipped cream
Salade Lyonnaise
Yield: 2
2 cups torn frisée or arugula, washed and dried
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
½ shallot, chopped, or 1 tablespoon chopped red onion
1 to 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Salt
2 eggs
Black pepper
Put frisée or other greens in large salad bowl. Put olive oil in skillet over medium heat. When hot, add bacon and cook slowly until crisp all over, about 10 minutes. Add shallot or onion and cook until softened, a minute or two. Add vinegar and mustard to the skillet and bring just to a boil, stirring, then turn off heat.
Meanwhile, bring about an inch of salted water to a boil in a small, deep skillet, then lower heat to barely bubbling. One at a time, break eggs into a shallow bowl and slip them into the bubbling water. Cook eggs for 3 to 5 minutes, just until the white is set and the yolk has filmed over. Remove each egg with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on paper towel.
If necessary, gently reheat dressing, then pour over greens (they should wilt just a bit), toss and season with salt and pepper to taste. Top each portion with an egg and serve immediately. (Each person gets to break the egg.)
Classic Ratatouille
Yield: 2
1 tablespoons oil
½ yellow onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 medium tomatoes, sliced
1 small to medium zucchini, sliced
½ medium eggplant, stemmed, sliced
1 medium green pepper, sliced
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush olive oil onto a baking pan, set aside.
Add tomato sauce to bottom of pan
Add the onion, garlic, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, and peppers to a bowl. Sprinkle seasoning and salt and freshly ground pepper over the vegetables and drizzle with the oil.
Layer the vegetables into the sauced pan; cover tightly with foil and bake for an hour, or until the veggies are bubbling and the eggplant is soft.
Remove from the oven; sprinkle with fresh herbs and serve immediately. It is excellent as a side dish tossed with pasta or served on toasted slices of french bread.
Coq Au Vin with Steamed Rice
Yield: 2
1 pound chicken legs and thighs
1 teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, more to taste
1 cups red wine
1 bay leaf ,1 teaspoon thyme leaves
2 ounces bacon, diced into 1/4-inch pieces ,1 tablespoons oil, more as needed
½ large onion, diced
½ large carrot, peeled and diced
4 ounces white or brown mushrooms, halved if large, and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons brandy or bourbon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces peeled pearl onions –optional-
Pinch sugar
Rice for serving
¼ cup chopped parsley, more for serving
Season chicken with 2 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. In a large bowl, combine chicken, wine, bay leaf and thyme. Set aside. in a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-low heat until fat has rendered, and bacon are golden and crisp, 10 to 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate, leaving rendered fat in pot. Remove chicken from wine, reserving the marinade. Pat chicken pieces with paper towels until very dry. Heat bacon fat over medium heat until it’s just about to smoke. Working in batches if necessary, add chicken in a single layer and cook until well browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side. (Add oil if the pot looks a little dry.) Transfer chicken to a plate as it browns. Add diced onion, carrot, half the mushrooms and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt to pot. Cook until vegetables are lightly browned, about 4 minutes, stirring up any brown bits from the pot, and adjusting heat if necessary to prevent burning. Stir in garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, then stir in flour and cook for another minute. Remove from heat, push vegetables to one side of pot, pour brandy into empty side, and ignite with a match. (If you’re too nervous to ignite it, just cook brandy down for 1 minute.) Once the flame dies down, add reserved marinade, bring to a boil, and reduce halfway (to 1 1/2 cups), about 12 minutes. Skim off any large pockets of foam that form on the surface. Add chicken, any accumulated juices and half the cooked lardons to the pot. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour, turning halfway through. Uncover pot and simmer for 15 minutes to thicken. Taste and add salt and pepper, if necessary. Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon butter and 2 tablespoons oil in a nonstick or other large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pearl onions, a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, shaking skillet often to move onions around. Uncover, push onions to one side of skillet, add remaining mushrooms, and raise heat to medium-high. Continue to cook until browned, stirring mushrooms frequently, and gently tossing onions occasionally, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove onions and mushrooms from skillet, and wipe it out. In same skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat until bubbling. Add bread and toast on all sides until golden, about 2 minutes per side. (Adjust heat if needed to prevent burning.) Remove from skillet and sprinkle with salt. To serve, dip croutons in wine sauce, then coat in parsley. Add pearl onions, mushrooms and remaining half of the cooked lardons to the pot. Baste with wine sauce, sprinkle with parsley and serve with rice
Chocolate pot de crème
yield: 8
3 cup heavy cream
2 cups semi sweet chocolate
4 egg yolks
3 tablespoon sugar
½ stick butter
¼ teaspoon salt
Whipped cream for serving
Pre heat oven to 300”F
Over a double boiler melt, heavy cream, chocolate, butter, sugar, and salt. Stir until fully melted and fully combined.
Pour evenly into ramekins and pour 1 inch of hot water into a sheet tray along with ramekins. Place in oven for 30-35 minutes.
Once finished chill for 3 hours before serving.
Chocolate Whipped Cream
Ingredients
▢1 ½ cups (335 ml) heavy cream very cold
▢⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar
▢¼ cup (25 g) cocoa powder
▢1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl (preferably a cold metal mixing bowl, but any bowl will work).
1 ½ cups (335 ml) heavy cream, ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar, ¼ cup (25 g) cocoa powder,1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
Use an electric mixer to combine ingredients on low speed. Once ingredients are combined, slowly increase mixer speed to high.
Beat mixture on high speed until just past soft peaks (for a creamier, looser whipped cream) or until you reach stiff peaks (for a thicker, fluffier frosting that will hold its shape better and is better for piping). This will take several minutes.
Use immediately. Leftover chocolate whipped cream may be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours but may lose some of its thickness as it sits.
