Simple Classic Eggnog!

Tonight, after walking in the brisk night air and doing a little shopping.
I stopped by my favorite gourmet market and picked up fresh eggs, cream and milk.
The perfect night for homemade eggnog!

 

• 5 eggs, separated
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 1/4 cups Johnnie Walker Black
• 1/4 cup spiced rum, I used Cuban Rum
• 1 tsp  high quality vanilla
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg plus more for garnish

1. Whisk yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until creamy and sugar begins to dissolve.
2. Add cream, milk, whiskey and rum and stir to combine.
3. Stir in nutmeg and vanilla and chill well.
4. Whisk egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until stiff peaks form
5. Fold most of the stiffened whites to the cream and top with rest, sprinkle with nutmeg

Cold Winter Day Red Lentil Soup

I decided today that I would cook with red lentils, my first stop was Duel Specialty Store, the best Indian spice market around. They have everything. As I was checking out, I noticed fresh bags of Kaffir lime leaves. Perfect! Just what I needed to finish this soup. I roasted a young chicken with Smoked Spanish Paprika, Turmeric and Cumin and served as a second course with Saffron Rice.

6 cups chicken stock
1 pound red lentils, rinsed
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2" cubes
1 small can whole stewed tomatoes
4 carrots, peeled and diced
2 Kaffir lime leaves, torn in half

1. Saute onions, carrots and garlic in olive oil.  Add chicken stock, can of tomatoes, potatoes and lentils, bring to a boil in a large soup pot over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Stir and season with turmeric, cumin and cayenne , dash of black pepper. Continue simmering until the lentils are tender, about 10 minutes.Add lime leaves and cover, 10 more minutes.
3. Serve in bowls and garnish with Italian parsley, served with toasted bread

I Paint What I Eat

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How Wonderful To Come Across Husk Cherries

Husk Cherries are small orange fruit similar in size, shape and structure to a small tomato, but partly or fully enclosed in a large papery husk. Many Physalis species are called groundcherries. One name for Physalis peruviana is Cape Gooseberry.
I found this fabulous Gooseberry today at the Union Square Farmer's Market.  The taste is quite unusual, a cross between a tomato and a grape. An interesting acidity, followed by a smooth sweetness.
Great for salads. I just served in a beautiful bowl.
I love the yields of October!

Tri-Colored Carrot Soup: A Day In A Life

Wandering, looking for inspiration. With the days getting colder, soup has been on my mind. What better place to consider a recipe, but the Union Square Green Market. October, and root vegetables are in season!
I came across a Japanese vendor with wooden crates of three different carrots. A start!

 We then walked to the Madison Square Park Market, which will be open rain or shine until the 23rd. My favorite stall is Spices and Tease , with Francois' help, I purchased a small bag of his family's blend for soups, consisting of rose petals, spice, parsley, orange peel, and lemongrass*. Just what I needed. My final stop was Chinatown. I picked up fresh lemongrass, miniature brown Beech mushrooms, and cilantro.
Here is my recipe :
Tri-Colored Carrot Soup with Shredded Chicken
Ingredients
1 small whole kosher chicken, poached and shredded
A handful each of tri-colored small carrots, peeled and sliced
1 small onion
4 stalks of lemongrass, peeled to center and sliced lengthwise
1/2 package of Brown Beech Mushrooms from China.
2 tablespoons Spices and Tease spice soup blend *
sea salt and pepper
Garnish with cilantro leaves

Fill stock pot with water and bring to a boil, add dash of sea salt,  pepper, spice mixture , fresh lemongrass and 1/2 of onion . Add whole chicken and poach for about 40 min.
Remove chicken and shred.
Strain the stock.
Return stock to pot, add cup more water if needed, bring back to low simmer.
Add sliced carrots, mushrooms and remaining 1/2 of sliced (thin) onion, cook for another 10 min, until carrots are tender.
Place shredded chicken in bowls, pour hot soup over and garnish with cilantro.
The purple carrots give the broth a lovely deep color, with a  softening sweet note from the rose petals and lemongrass.
Enjoy!

I followed up the evening with Roasted Chestnuts, which are just now coming into season.
Make "X" cuts into the chestnuts and wrap with foil and roast in oven at 400 degrees  for about 15 min or so.
I have purchased some really bad ones lately, this woman in Chinatown, hands down, had the freshest yet! She peeled some to show you.

Piment d'Espelette

I just had to!
I was picking up ingredients, that I needed, in one of my stops in NYC, when again,
a small bottle of this "chef's secret weapon" caught my eye, at $110 a pound, I purchased only 20 grams!
Piment d'Espelette, a sweet-hot pepper, produced in only ten small villages in France.
During the last weekend in October, thousands of people will crowd into the town of Espelette, in the Basque region of southwest France, for The Celebration of Peppers, honoring the area's most famous agricultural product: Piment d'Espelette.  

I decided tonight to try my hand at this Basque-Region Recipe:

CHICKEN BASQUAISE WITH ESPELETTE PIPERADE 

1/2 cup olive oil
4 medium onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced

2 green bell peppers, seeds and stems removed, chopped
2 red bell peppers, seeds and stems removed, chopped
4 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or can of whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
3 Tbsp piment d'Espelette, or more to taste (substitute hot paprika)
Pinch of thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 chicken, cut up, or equivalent chicken parts (2 breasts, cut in half; 4 thighs; 2 legs), skin on, bone in

(I have been purchasing Kosher chicken from a butcher, much better !!)

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large sauté pan and cook the onions and garlic for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the bell peppers and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and Espelette powder and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the thyme, salt, and pepper and transfer to a bowl.
Wipe out the pan and heat the remaining 1/4 cup of oil. Brown the chicken in the oil until golden, turning often. Pour the pepper mixture over the chicken, reduce the heat, cover and simmer until tender, about 30-40 minutes. No need to add more salt to already salted Kosher chicken.
I am serving over Basmati Rice. Serves 6

I wish you could smell this dish simmering on my stove as I write this!!!!!!
Sipping on a glass of 2006 Clos Du Pape, Graves

 

Fall Is In the Air

As I turned down the drive, in the distance I could see all the ducks and chickens waiting for me, a feeling of revisiting my childhood every time I visit Stokes Creek Farm. The warmth coming from proprietor, Deborah, reinforces that nostalgia. This particular visit, Deb presented me with a braided basket filled with organic apples and her homemade Capt Morgans Spiced Rum Apple Butter. She told me this year has produced the best yield of apples. She attributes this to her ducks naturally fertilizing her tree. I bit right into one and I have to concur.  I loved tasting her apple butter spread on toasted challah bread!

What many of her customers know, from visiting her table at the Saturday Hampstead Farmers Market, is that Deb not only sells the freshest duck and chicken eggs, she makes her own body care products. Her goat milk oatmeal soap glides on like butter, perfect for dry skin. Just ask her about her goats!
You have to try her whole range of soaps,  her recipe for "elbow grease", lip balm and lavender base note perfume. She prides her products on simple healthy ingredients.

You can visit Deb at  Stokes Creek Farm and on Saturdays at Town of Hampstead Farmer's Market