Fabulous French Escape
French onion soup
Steak au poivre with pommes frites
Bistro salad with ravigote champagne dressing
Chocolate pots de crème with whipped cream
Bistro salad with champagne dressing
yield: 2
2 cups romaine lettuce
2 strips of bacon
¼ red onion sliced
1 hard-boiled egg
10 green beans, trimmed and blanched
¼ cup croutons
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
¼ cup champagne vinegar
1 lime zested and juiced
1 tablespoon honey
1-2 dashes hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
In a small bowl, combine garlic, mustard, honey, and lime juice/zest. Mix together to bring out all the flavors. Add vinegar, and hot sauce. At the slowest possible speed drizzle the oil into the bowl while whisking as fast as possible. Season with salt and pepper.
Assemble salad onto chilled plate, drizzle dressing over top and serve.
CLASSIC RAVIGOTE DRESSING
INGREDIENTS
- 1 Tablespoon champagne vinegar
- salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 1teaspoon minced shallot
- 1teaspoon minced capers
- ¼ teaspoon dijon-style mustard
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
DIRECTIONS
- Whisk together the vinegar, salt, pepper, shallots, capers and mustard – whisking the mixture until the salt dissolves.
- Add the oil in a slow steady stream, whisking constantly. Don’t rush this – add the oil slowly.
- The dressing will keep, refrigerated in a covered container for 1 week. Pour over mixed greens.
Fennel French Onion Soup
yield: 2
¼ bulb fennel sliced
2 onions sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1 bay leaf
4 cups beef stock/broth
½ cup Swiss
2-4 pieces bread, toasted
Salt and pepper to taste
In a pot over medium heat add butter, onions and fennel. Cook until caramelized. Add garlic, bay leaf, and stock/broth. Bring to a boil and allow to cook for 5 minutes. Turn heat off, season with salt and pepper then divide between bowls and top with bread and cheese. Place under broiler until cheese is melted or torch cheese to melt.
Steak Au Poivre
2 thick-cut Steaks Beef Tenderloin or NY Strip steak, 6-8 ounces, about 1 1/2 – inches thick
Coarse salt
1 Tablespoon whole black peppercorns crushed
1 Tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 cup Cognac or brandy
½ cup heavy cream
Instructions:
- At least 30 minutes up to an hour before cooking remove the steaks from the fridge. Sprinkle all sides of steaks with salt.Just before cooking, pat steaks dry with paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Generously coat all sides of steaks with the fresh ground black pepper, pressing it into the steaks.
- Heat a large heavy cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add butter and olive oil. Just as butter begins to smoke, place steaks in pan for medium rare, cook for 4 minutes on each side. Adjust cook time for desired doneness, using a meat thermometer for doneness. Transfer to plate, cover loosely with foil.
- Turn burners off. Carefully pour Cognac into hot frying pan. Carefully light the alcohol with a lighter and swirl the pan around until the flame burns out. Turn heat back on to medium. Whisking until sauce lightly thickens, about 6-8 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste, pour sauce over steaks.
Steak temperature:
Rare 125F, Medium Rare 135F, Medium 145F, Medium well 150F Well done 160F
Pomme Frites with Truffle Ailoi
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
Vegetable oil, for frying2 large russet potatoes (about 1 ½ pounds) cleaned
Truffle Aioli
½ cup mayonnaise
½ crème fraiche or sour cream
1 Tablespoon of white truffle oil
1 large clove, diced
Zest of 1 lemon
Salt and pepper
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup finely chopped fresh rosemary
Mix all truffle Aioli ingredients together except herbs. Cover place in refrigerator.
1 Tablespoon white truffle oil, for drizzling
Directions:
- Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a heavy bottomed pot 350 degrees F.
- Carefully cut the potatoes into shoestring using a mandolin fitted with the narrowest julienne blade (about 1/8 inch wide). Rinse the cut potatoes thoroughly in a bowl of cold water to remove the surface starch. Keep to potatoes in bowl of cold water until ready to use.
- Transfer the potatoes to a paper towel lined sheet pan and pat them dry, as dry as possible.
- Fry the potatoes in batches until they are crisp and turn golden. 2-3 minutes per batch. As each batch of fries comes out, transfer to a large mixing bowl and toss with chopped herbs, drizzle with truffle oil and salt and pepper to taste serve with truffle aioli.
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. Temper the egg yolks slowly with the warm mixture. Once about 60% tempered then just combine all.
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.
