Valentines Midnight in Paris

Seared Scallops with Beurre Blanc and Pesto Pea

Parisian Chicken

Pomme Frites with Truffle Ailoi

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake with a Mocha Heart Shaped Cookie

Seared Scallops with Beurre Blanc and Pesto Pea

Serves 4

Ingredients

Beurre Blanc

1 shallot, minced

¼ cup white wine vinegar

¼ cup white wine

4 Tablespoon heavy cream

1 cup butter, cut into cubes

Salt and pepper

Pesto pea

1 bag frozen peas

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed

3 Tablespoons pesto

2 Tablespoon Parmesan

Salt and pepper

Seared Scallops

Scallops

Salt and pepper

1 Tablespoon

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1. To make the Beurre blanc, add the shallots, vinegar and wine to a saucepan. Simmer over medium heat until it is reduced by more than half. Add the cream. Add the butter chunks to the pan all at once. Turn the heat to high and whisk while moving the pan until it has completely melted. Season with salt and pepper.
2. To make the pea puree, boil 2 cups of water and garlic clove. Cook the peas until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove garlic cloves. Add to blender with pesto, and pepper. Pulse until you get consistency you like. Use a little of the cooking liquid to thin if necessary. Remove from blender and mix in Parmesan.
3. To sear scallops, pat scallops dry with paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a sauté pan over high heat. Add butter and oil. Place scallops in the pan. Leave them alone for about 3 minutes on the first side and 1 ½ minute on the second side, they will form a light crust.
4. To plate, add pea puree to a plate. Top with scallops and pour over beurre blanc.

Parisian Chicken

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless, chicken breast

2 Tablespoon whole milk

2 large eggs

¼ cup dry flour

6 Tablespoon unsalted butter

2 Tablespoon of olive oil

¼ cup dry vermouth

Juice of 1 lemon

1 Tablespoon chopped parsley

Directions

1. Lay the breasts down on a cutting board and use a sharp knife parallel to the cutting board to cut them (carefully) almost all the way in half, leaving about ½ inch attached. Open breasts like a book and cover with plastic wrap. Gently pound them with a meat mallet or heavy skillet to uniform, 1/4 –inch thickness. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
2. In a shallow bowl, whisk the milk and the eggs, and spread the flour on a plate. Heat 2 Tablespoons of butter and olive oil in a skillet until foam subsides. Dredge the chicken breast in flour, shaking off the excess, then dip them in the egg and transfer to the skillet. Cook until golden, 2-3 minutes per side, in batches as necessary (add extra butter as needed).
3. Transfer the chicken to a plate tented with foil. Then add the vermouth and lemon juice to the sauté pan. Increase the heat and scrape up any brown bits, then season to taste. Reduce for a minute or so (about half) then whisk in remaining butter in pieces. Add parsley. Serve the chicken with the sauce poured over it

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:

1. Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a heavy bottomed pot 350 degrees F.
2. 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.
3. Transfer the potatoes to a paper towel lined sheet pan and pat them dry, as dry as possible.
4. 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

The BEST Cheesecake Recipe

Ingredients

Chocolate cookie Crust¹

1 ½ cups ground oreo’s(170g)

2-3 oz  butter, melted

Cheesecake

32 oz cream cheese² softened to room temperature (910g)

1 cup sugar (200g)

⅔ cups sour cream (160g)

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

⅛ teaspoon salt

4 large eggs room temperature, lightly beaten

1 cup white chocolate chips melted

2 cup frozen raspberries tossed lightly in flour

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325F (160C).

Prepare crust first by combining oreo crumbs and  melted butter and use a fork to combine ingredients well.

Pour crumbs into a 9” Springform pan and press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of your pan. Set aside.

Cheesecake

In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl (using a hand mixer) add cream cheese and stir until smooth and creamy (don’t over-beat or you’ll incorporate too much air).

Add sugar and stir again until creamy.

Add sour cream, vanilla extract, and salt, and stir until well-combined. If using a stand mixer, make sure you pause periodically to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula so that all ingredients are evenly incorporated.

With mixer on low speed, gradually add lightly beaten eggs, one at a time, stirring just until each egg is just incorporated. Once all eggs have been added, use a spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl again and make sure all ingredients are well combined.  Mix in melted white chocolate and then fold in by hand the raspberries.

Pour cheesecake batter into prepared springform pan. To insure against leaks, place pan on a cookie sheet that’s been lined with foil.

Transfer to the center rack of your oven and bake on 325F (160C) for 50-60 minutes (or longer as needed, see note 3). Edges will likely have slightly puffed and may have just begun to turn a light golden brown and the center should spring back to the touch but will still be Jello-jiggly. Don’t over-bake or the texture will suffer, which means we all suffer.

Remove from oven and allow to cool on top of the oven⁴ for 10 minutes. Once 10 minutes has passed, use a knife to gently loosen the crust from the inside of the springform pan (this will help prevent cracks as your cheesecake cools and shrinks). Do not remove the ring of the springform pan.

Allow cheesecake to cool another 1-2 hours or until near room temperature before transferring to refrigerator and allowing to cool overnight or at least 6 hours. I remove the ring of the springform pan just before serving then return it to the pan to store. Enjoy!