Pesci e Patate al Forno (Oven Roasted Fish and Potatoes)

This is a recipe that I created myself, inspired by a Patate al Forno recipe, which is a dish of oven-roasted potatoes and tomatoes that is made in Abruzzo and Apulia.  The layers of potatoes and tomatoes, with a generous sprinkling of cheese is a great side dish.  However, I was trying to make a main dish.  So out with the tomato and in with the fish.  In this case, I bought some halibut, although any fish will do. 

This dish is fairly simply to make, requiring only fish, potatoes, sage, olive oil and a lot of grated cheese, along with salt and pepper.  The key is to slice the potatoes as thinly as possible, so that they cook fast.  Also, you should grate the cheese as finely as possible, so that it can brown faster.  And use a hard cheese, like Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano.

This dish is very "user-friendly," because you can tweak it any way you want.  You could add some diced garlic, shallots or onions.  You could also use other herbs, such as rosemary or basil.  You could even use different fish, although that will most likely change the cooking times. 

PESCI E PATATE AL FORNO (Oven Roasted Fish and Potatoes)

A Chef Bolek Original

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:
About 1 pound of fish, cut into even sized pieces
4 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly
1/4 pound of Pecorino Romano, grated finely (at least)
4-5 tablespoons of olive oil
Sage, chiffonade (cut into thin strips)
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste

Directions

1.  Prepare the baking dish. Spread the olive oil along the bottom and sides of a glass casserole dish.  Then lay the potato slices on the bottom of the dish, making sure that the entire bottom of the dish is covered.

2.  Assemble the fish and potatoes.  Place the fish on top of the potato slices.  Salt and pepper the fish generously.  Apply a liberal amount of Pecorino Romano and sage.  Cover the fish with the remaining potato slices.  Once again, apply a liberal amount of Pecorino Romano and Sage.

3.    Bake the fish.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place the casserole dish in the oven and cook for about 35 to 45 minutes.  When the cheese begins to brown and the fish begins to flake, it is done.

4.   Plate the dish. Plate each piece of fish with a good amount of the potatoes. Serve immediately.

This recipe is my quick and easy version of much more complicated recipes.  Overall, it turned out well.  Both Clare and I enjoyed this dish.  I'll be making it again, perhaps with some of the tweaks I mentioned above.

ENJOY!

Oysters with a Sun-Dried Tomato and Parsley Mignonette

Sweet Oysters -- or Choptank Sweets -- are "aqua-cultured" or farmed oysters from the Chesapeake Bay.  These oysters are not raised at the bottom of the bay or on reefs, but in floats just below the surface of the water where they feast on algae.  The oysters are also removed at various points in their development to remove barnacles, mussels and other organisms from their shelles.  The result is a meaty oyster that is low in salinity and briny taste.

However, unlike other oysters, like Chesapeake oysters, the shells of Sweet Oysters are more brittle, making them harder to shuck.  (I'm speaking from experience.)  Once they are shucked, you are greeted with a meaty oyster that is actually sweet in taste (hence, the "sweet" in the name).

When thinking of the mignonette for a sweet oyster, I tried to think of flavors or tastes that would provide a contrast.  The first things to come to mind were earthy flavors.  The sweetness of the oysters are subtle and, therefore, the earthiness of the contrasting flavors also have to be subtle.  So, I chose sun-dried tomatoes and flat-leaf parsley for the mignonette.  The result was very good.

OYSTERS WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATO AND PARSLEY MIGNONETTE

A Chef Bolek Original
Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

12 fresh oysters, shucked (I used Chesapeakes, but any will do)

4 tablespoons of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped finely

2 tablespoons of flat leaf parsley, chopped finely

1 shallot, diced

2-3 tablespoons of white vinegar

Directions:

 1.  In a non-reactive bowl, add the shallot, sun-dried tomatoes, parsley and vinegar. Mix all of the ingredients well. 

2.  Spoon the mignonette over the oysters.

ENJOY!

To learn more about Choptank Sweets, check out Sustained Seas.

Sam Adams & Weihenstephan Infinium Ale

It is not very often that one comes across an attempt by a brewery to create a new beer style.  And it is even less often to find that new beer bottled in a champagne bottle.  And it is truly a unique experience to have that new beer be a collaboration between Sam Adams and Weihenstephan.  

Everyone knows about Sam Adams, but not everyone knows about Weihenstephan.  About a thousand years ago, it was a brewery run by a Benedictine monastery.  The brewery then became the Bavarian royal brewery and, today, it is the Bavarian state brewery.  Although it is a state brewery, it operates like a private business, guided by the principle of "class not mass."

The Infinium is marketed as a beer that combines European brewing with American innovation.  Brewers of Sam Adams and Weihenstephan worked for two years on the recipe of this beer, which marks the first champagne beer (i.e., the new beer style).  To make this beer, the breweries followed the Reinheitsgebot, which is the law passed in 1516 to maintain the purity of beer by limiting its ingredients to malt, hops and water.  The law was later amended to add yeast.  Using these four ingredients, Sam Adams and Weihenstephan have created a beer that is a first.

When you pour the infinium, the carbonation is about the same as a champagne.  So you need to pour it carefully.  The brewers say that the beer should have a fruity, spicy aroma, which I think is what I could smell after pouring the beer.  The brewers say that the use of Noble hops should impart a a soft citrus and floral flavor.  The flavors that I tasted were not necessarily soft citrus and floral, they were a little more a combination of bitter and fruity.  That is not necessarily a bad thing, but I when I think of soft citrus and floral, I think of a beer like the Fleurette.  At least for me, this beer does not achieve that result, but it is still a very good beer.

The beer is sold in champagne beers for $18.99 a bottle, which is a little pricey for beer but actually cheap for good champagne.

ENJOY!

For more about the Infinium, check out the Sam Adams website.  For more about the Weihenstephan, check out its website.

Roasted Garlic Hake over Heirloom Tomato Parsley Salad

For those who read my blog on a regular basis, you know that every once in a while I will try to make a dish completely based on my creation without any recipes.  This time I took several elements to create what is, at least for me, a fairly complex dish.  And, while I still have to work on presentation, I think that I am on the right path.

This dish starts with large portobello mushroom caps, which serve as the "dish" for the Heirloom Parsley Salad.  The hake, which is a flaky fish similar to cod, is then laid over the top of the salad.  The dish is finished with some shaved Parmigiano Reggiano.  For a dish that I thought up as I walked through the produce and seafood sections of a Whole Foods, it turned out very good.

ROASTED GARLIC HAKE OVER TOMATO HEIRLOOM PARSLEY SALAD

A Chef Bolek Original
Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 large portobello mushroom caps

1 package of small heirloom tomatoes, deseeded and diced.

1 head of garlic

1/2 bunch of flat leaf parsley

1 scallion, diced

2/3 to 3/4 pounds of hake

Ground pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons of flat parsley leaves

Salt, to taste

2-3 tablespoons of olive oil

Directions:

1.  Prep the mushrooms and garlic.  Clean the portobello caps and remove the stem and remove the gills.  Cut the garlic head in half horizontally.  Place one half on each cap.  Wrap in foil and add to an oven preheated to 400 degrees.  Let cook for ten minutes and remove.  Remove the garlic and cover the caps.  Return the garlic to the oven, wrapped in in foil for at least another ten or fifteen minutes.

2.  Prepare the salad.  While the caps and garlic are in the stove, prepare the heirloom salad.  Add the diced heirloom tomatoes and diced scallions in a bowl and mix well.

3.  Prep the roasted garlic. Take the roasted garlic and remove about four or five cloves.  Dice and then mash the cloves.

4.  Cook the fish.  Heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the roasted garlic and saute for a couple of minutes.  Then add the hake.  Saute for about five minutes and flip. Saute for about three to four minutes more until the fish is opaque and begins to flake.

5.  Prepare the dish.  Start with the mushroom cap.  Place the flat parsley leaves on the mushroom cap.  Spoon the heirloom salad on top of the parsley.  Place a piece of the hake at a diagonal with the cap.  Then top the exposed heirloom salad with some Parmigiano Reggiano.

For something that I created on the spot in a store, this recipe turned out well.  Like I said above, I still have to work on the presentation, but both Clare and I enjoyed this dish.  Maybe my "Iron Chef" skills are improving.  Until next time ...

ENJOY!

Widmer Brothers Barrel Aged Brrrbon

Oregon is home to a lot of craft breweries.  And I mean, a lot.  Like the most craft breweries per capita of any state in the nation.  One of the more well known Oregonian craft brewers is Widmer Brothers.  The Widmer Brothers -- Kurt and Rob Widmer -- have been brewing beer since 1984.  Their claim to fame is that they pioneered the American-style Hefeweizen.  That beer is quite successful, because you can find it at a lot of restaurants and bars across the country, not to mention in six packs in beer and wine stores.

Yet, Widmer Brothers Brewing is about more than a Hefeweizen.  The two brothers have what they call their Brothers' Reserve, which is a series of one-time beers.  The first two beers were Cherry Oak Dopplebock and the Prickley Pear Braggot.  But, as the days get shorter and colder, fruity beers are no longer "in season."  Instead, winter brews are in, and the third Brothers Reserve is a winter brew called Barrel Aged Brrrbon.

As the name suggests, this beer is aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels. But before one gets to aging the beer, the brewery starts with 2-Row Pale, Carapils, Caramel 10-L, Caramel 80-L, and Dark Chocolate malts, as well as Alchemy Hops for bittering, along with Simcoe and Cascade hops for aroma.  Once the brewing is completed, the beer is aged for four months in the bourbon barrels.

According to Widmer, when you drink this beer, you should be able to smell caramel and vanilla and taste the soft oak flavors with a sweet but subtly dry finish.  When one takes a sniff of this beer, they are greeted with a subtle, boozy whiff of bourbon, with the vanilla aroma.  As you stare into the dark brown beer before you, the beer looks like it has been aged.  The brown color has a look that suggests something more like a hard liquor than a beer.  Despite the aroma and the look, the beer does not overwhelm you with a bourbon taste (unlike some other bourbon-barrel aged beers that I've tried).  The bourbon flavor is smooth and complements the flavors that are typically found in a beer.  I have to say this is one of the better barrel aged beers that I've ever had and I would recommend it to someone who has not tried this style of beer before. 

As one would expect, the Barrel Aged Brrrbon has an ABV of 9.4%.  It comes in a 22 ounce bottle for about $12.99.  I found this beer at Whole Foods Market.  Given it is a limited, one-time production, it will become harder to find as time goes by. 

For more information about this beer, check out Widmer Brothers.

ENJOY!

Oysters with a Lemon Basil Mignonette

A mignonette is a sauce with two principal components, namely vinegar and shallots.  Those two ingredients are just the beginning, because you can add a variety of ingredients to make different mignonettes to match or pair with different types of oysters.  I have previously made a Peach Champagne Mignonette and a Mango Habanero Mignonette.  Every once in a while, especially when I see oysters at a grocery store, my mind starts racing and I try to develop new mignonettes for the oysters.

Recently, I was standing at the seafood counter at the local Whole Foods when I saw an iced bin full of Chesapeake oysters. Just as their name suggests, these oysters are cultivated in the Chesapeake bay where they are second in the hierarchy of food in the Mid Atlantic region.  (Blue crabs are and will always be at the top of that hierarchy.)  Most Chesapeake oysters that you find in stores are farmed; very few are actually "fished" from the bay.  Chesapeake oysters are very delicious, being very meaty without being too briny.

This mignonette pairs two classic flavors ... lemon and basil.  The key is that you must have fresh basil, dried basil will not work.  You should also use the zest of the lemon, in addition to the juice, because the zest (which is edible) adds a nice visual element to the mignonette.

OYSTERS WITH A LEMON BASIL MIGNONETTE
A Chef Bolek Original

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

12 fresh oysters, shucked (I used Chesapeakes, but any will do)

1 lemon

1 shallot, diced

6 medium to large size basil leaves, chiffonade

Directions:

 1.  In a non-reactive bowl, add the shallot, basil leaves (to chiffonade, stack the basil leaves, roll them tightly and slice them.

2.  Zest the lemon and make sure the zest is strips, as opposed to grated.  Add the zest to the bowl.  Then add the juice of the lemon to the bowl.  Given the lemon juice is acidic, I have left out the vinegar because it would make the mignonette to tart and acidic.

3.  Mix all of the ingredients well and spoon over the shucked oysters.

ENJOY!

Sokol Blosser White Riesling (2007)

Back in 2009, when Clare and I were visiting Willamette Valley vineyards on our honeymoon, we had the pleasure of getting a behind the scenes tour of Sokol Blosser, which is a great vineyard and winery in Dundee, Oregon.  After the tour, we returned to the tasting room, where were had the opportunity to sample some great wines, such as Sokol Blosser's Pinot Noir.  After finishing our tasting and as we were buying a couple of bottles of wine to take with us, one of the tasting room employees pulled out a little bottle of "ice wine."  The wine was Sokol Blosser's 2007 White Riesling.  He poured a little sample for each of us and, after we sipped the wine, we added a bottle to our order.

White Riesling grapes -- or Johanissberg Riesling grapes -- generally produce dry wines that are sweeter than other white wines.  However, when the vineyard allows the grapes to continue to ripen on the vines after the harvest, the flavor of and the sugars in the grapes becomes more concentrated.  The result is a much sweeter wine, with a higher alcohol content, that usually makes a good, if not great, dessert wine. 

Rather than open any bottle of bubbly to celebrate the new year, Clare and I decided to open our bottle of Sokol Blosser's 2007 White Riesling.  The wine pours a beautiful, light gold color.  As you take in the aromatic elements of the wine, you get a sense of candied peaches and apricots.  These aromas are also very pronounced in the taste of the wine.  As you drink the wine, you get a smooth, sugary experience of tasting apples, peaches and apricots.  You also get an interesting contrast, as you can also taste pears hiding behind the other fruit. As you drink the wine your tongue and mouth get coated with a sugary feeling that does last for a while. 

This dessert wine is very good and I would highly recommend it.  The wine is generally available for order over the Internet at $40.00 per bottle.

ENJOY!

Insalata Caprese

The Insalata Caprese or Caprese Salad -- with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and fresh basil -- is perhaps one of the most well known "salads" to come out of the Campania region in Southern Italy.  It is not so much a salad as it is an appetizer.

The appetizer was created by a small restaurant on the island of Capri during the 1950s for customers who wanted a light lunch.  Those customers would ask for a tomato and some mozzarella cheese.  Later, the restaurant added arugula leaves (or basil leaves) on top of the tomato and cheese.  And, right before serving it, the restaurant would dress the "salad" with olive oil.

A great Insalata Caprese depends upon the freshness and quality of the ingredients. First, only vine-ripened, fresh tomatoes should be used.  Look for tomatoes that have a good red color, with no bruises.  Second, only fresh mozzarella should be used.  Never use cheese that has been processed in any way.  Third, look for fresh basil leaves, preferably large leaves with no black spots or other blemishes.

Ideally, the presentation should consist of one slice of tomato, one slice of mozzarella cheese and one big basil leaf.  However, in reality, it is hard to find a tomato that has the same diameter as a batch of Mozzarella cheese, let alone to find a basil leave that is large enough to cover the tomato and the cheese.  So, this is where a little creativity may be helpful, as is shown by the recipe below.

INSALATA CAPRESE

Serves 4

Ingredients:
4 medium sized, vine-ripened tomatoes
1 batch of Mozzarella cheese
1 package of fresh basil
2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

1.  Prepare the tomatoes.  Slice the tomatoes about one-quarter of an inch thick.  Try to ensure that all of the tomato slices are about the same size.  As for the slices that are too big or too small, just eat them as you prepare the dish.

2.  Prepare the cheese.  Slice the Mozzarella cheese into quarter of an inch slices.  Then cut each slice into halves or quarters depending upon the size of the cheese.  Place two to three slices of each cheese on the tomato, stacking them if necessary.

3.  Prepare the basil.  Chiffonade the basil leaves (i.e., cut them into long, thin strips).  To do a chiffonnade.  Take all of the basil leaves and stack them starting with the largest leaf on the bottom to the smallest leaf on top.  Roll the leaves tightly and then slice the leaves carefully, working from one end to the other.  Sprinkler the sliced basil leaves on top of the cheese.

4.  Finish the dish.  Grind pepper over the tomatoes, cheese and basil.  Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil over the tomatoes, cheese and basil.

Now, this is technically the end of the recipe; however, I usually add one more twist to the salad ... I add a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.  Traditionally, the addition of vinegar is frowned upon because of the effect that vinegar may have on the taste of the cheese.  However, I find that balsamic vinegar (as opposed to red wine vinegar or other types of vinegar) adds a sweetness to the salad that is very good.  And, I really love balsamic vinegar.  So, if you want, drizzle a little of some good balsamic vinegar over the tomatoes, cheese and basil.

ENJOY!

For more about the origins of the salad, check out Epicurious.

I'm Going to be a Guest Chef at a Restaurant!

Rags' Italian Bistro is a great little restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama.  The name "Rags" was the nickname of the father of the two brothers who own the restaurant, Johnny Lorino and Bobby Lorino, who are also Clare's cousins.  "Rags" was a food and beverage manager at several Birmingham area restaurants and even owned his own hot dog restaurant, where he served the dogs with his own secret sauce.  Honoring their father, the Lorino brothers have included the hot dog with the secret sauce on the menu of Rags, as well as other family recipes drawn from their Italian heritage.

On Monday nights, Rags has "Guest Chef Night."   The restaurant provides an ambitious cook or chef with access to the kitchen to prepare a special meal for at least fifteen guests  When I was in Birmingham last year, I went with Clare and her parents to Rags' on a Monday night when someone was being a guest chef.   While I don't remember her name, the guest chef prepared a delicious meal that included a salad, a salmon dish and two options for dessert.  

After that night, the thought of being a guest chef both intrigued me and intimidated me.  Back in college, I worked as a cook in a kitchen of a seafood restaurant, but, I never led a kitchen.  I have also never cooked at a level where I prepared entire meals for a sizable number of customers.   And, as my wife can attest, I get very nervous when I am cooking for large crowds.  So, quite frankly, I am not sure that I could do a "Guest Chef Night" on my own.  However, Clare's Dad, Frank, is an excellent cook who has made some incredible meals. 

So, together, Frank and I will be teaming up again as chefs for Rag's Guest Chef Night on Monday, February 21, 2011, which is President's Day.  We are planning for a multiple course dinner (appetizer or soup, followed by a main dish and concluded with a dessert) for our family and friends, as well as other customers who stop by the restaurant that night. 

Now, all we need is a menu, which is in the works.  More to come ...

Privé Vineyard Le Nord (2006)

I've written a few times about my honeymoon with my Angel in Oregon and Willamette Valley.  I planned the honeymoon to provide us both with an opportunity to not just taste wine, but to learn about the process of making wine.  Oregon's Willamette Valley provided an excellent backdrop for this adventure and we were fortunate enough to be led by a very knowledgeable and friendly guide, Mike Thomas of Wine Tours Northwest.

Mike took us to over a dozen vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms throughout the valley, but the one that he considered to be the "prize" was a visit to a very small, artisan winery called Privé Vineyards.  Privé is a family owned and operated winery located in the Chehalem Mountains, where there is the Ribbon Ridge American Viticultural Area ("AVA") and the Chehalem Mountains AVA.  An AVA is the American version of a wine appellation; however, unlike the European counterparts (like the Italian DOC or DOCG), an AVA simply defines the geographic area where eighty-five percent of the grapes must come from when making the wine.  An AVA does not limit the types of grapes grown or the making of the wine.

Privé Vineyard consists only of two and one-half acres, divided into two plots named Le Nord and Le Sud.  Le Nord is a plot of one and one-half acres, while Le Sud is a plot of one acre.  The winery plants Pommard (Burgundian) clones in both plots, which are on Jory (or red clay) soil. 

Privé Vineyard is not open to the public; there are no tour buses pulling up and unloading dozens of people trying to live the Sideways experience.  Instead, we were fortunate enough that Mike was able to arrange a wine tasting with the winemaker, Tina Hammond, at the vineyard, one that both Clare and I believe to be the best wine tasting of the entire trip.

One of the wines we tasted was the Le Nord, which is a Pinot Noir made exclusively from the grapes of the Le Nord plot.  We loved the wine so much we bought a bottle of the Le Nord (2006), as well as other bottles, to take home with us.  Well, on New Years Eve, 2010, we opened our bottle of Le Nord, and drinking the wine brought back many good memories for both of us. 

The wine pours a deep, ruby red, which is suggestive of the nose and taste to come.  The aromatic aspects of the wine are full of cinnamon, cherries and other, more earthy scents.  I could sit and take in the aroma of the wine all night.  As good as the aromatics of the Le Nord may be, they are surpassed by the taste of the wine.  When you taste the wine, you get a strong cherry and blackberry taste, with some hint of pepper and spice.  Moreover, the wine is very smooth to drink.  I keep catching myself while drinking it to make sure that I don't drink it too fast so that I can enjoy this wine properly. 

Le Nord is perhaps one of the best Pinot Noirs that I've had from Willamette Valley.  I strongly encourage people to try this wine if you have the chance.  The wine is not widely distributed, as there are only about two hundred cases produced for a given vintage.  However, if you find yourself in Oregon and/or are lucky enough to come across a bottle, my suggestion would be to buy it immediately.  Then, when you have a special occasion, open the bottle and enjoy it with someone special.

ENJOY!