Bring in the Fall....

My friends are on the ‘LA diet’ which means no pork, red meat, low on carbs, pretty much just veggies, chicken, and occasional fish, even my cooking has been influenced from this. I must admit, I now eat like this except when dining out. But after a summer of traveling and eating almost anything, I have decided to start this Fall season with vengeance! On the first fall weekend of the year, I cook what I want to eat, darn it! Okay, so Friday, I relent for the LA crowd, and cook Braised Tofu with Mixed Vegetables and Jasmine Brown Rice. BUT, Saturday, I I venture to the new local Italian store, Porta Via, and taste Smoked Proscuitto (Speck) and Bresola which is $48.00 per lb! I stick with Speck and add on green olives, Castelvetrano! DE-LI-SI-O-SO!

I couldn’t decide on which meat, so I purchase Oxtail, Beef shanks, and a piece of Beef top round for good measure and no fat. The meal, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants: Speck with truffled mustard on toast sticks and ‘Mélange of Beef’ Ragout with Swiss Chard over Gnocchi shaped shells. Perfect meal for an ex East Coaster who loves to eat, cousin Caroline. She travels to one of our favorite Wine shops, Silver Lake Wine and brings over a fantastic bottle of Pinot from McManis Vineyards and cookies based in Hermosa Beach, Isabella's cookies. Afterwards, we celebrate the survival of the Harvest moon week and DANCE.

Sunday, I find some leftover veggies and such and use all to make another dish. I call it Lazy Sunday Pasta. Here are the recipes of both.

“Melange of Beef” Ragout with Swiss Chard over Pasta

1 lb Oxtail
1 lb Beef Shank
1 lb Beef top round or other preferably not too fatty, cubed 1”
½ Onion, diced
1 Leek, ½” diced
3 Celery stalks, ½” diced
1 can of diced Tomatoes, 16 oz
2 Roma Tomatoes, diced ½”
A Few Sprigs of Parsley
A Few sprigs of Basil or pinches of Dried
One sprig of Oregano or pinches of Dried
8 – 10 cups of Water or Beef/Chicken/Vegetable broth for enhanced flavor
Bunch of Swiss Chard, cleaned, 1” torn/cut pieces
Pasta, a kind that will absorb ragout, not a big fan of any long noodles for this dish

1. Trim off as much fat as you want on the meat. Remember, Oxtail has lot of natural fat on the bones that will provide you with copious fat! Salt meat as needed.
2. On extremely high heat, with oil, sear meats on both side, about 30 seconds on each side, (used Le Creuset pot, if you like to make dishes like this, buy one!), nice caramelization!!!
3. Take beef out, add onions, leeks and sweat or until they are translucent, then add celery, use your sense of smell, whiff aromatics, about 3-5 minutes.
4. Add tomato paste, cook for 1 minute, then add water, tomatoes, herbs, pepper, and salt.
5. As the pot is coming up to a boil, add back beef, then simmer on medium low for up to 2 hours, ragout should be ready when reduced half way.
6. Check pot every half an hour, giving it a stir, in the last half hour, add swiss chard and season more if needed.
7. Over pasta*, serve beef ragout** immediately or within 2-3 hours, if you decide to serve the next day, gelatin from the bones will form and it will need adjusting with more water/stock.

*As the ragout is cooking prepare you pasta, al dente, please
**Beef should be very tender, serve guests whole bones with meat or shred the meat off bones.


Lazy Sunday Pasta

2 stalks of Celery, leaves too, 1/2” dice (leftover from ragout)
½ Onion, sliced (leftover from ragout)
1 cup Snap peas, halved lengthwise (leftover from my weekly snacks)
¼ cup Olives, ¼” diced (leftover from my snacks)
1 cup Beef Ragout
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Pecorino Romano cheese or aged cheese
Pasta

1. Caramelize onions or cook slow on low heat for 15 minutes until even browning not burning!
2. Adjust to medium high heat and add celery and sweat for 3 minutes.
3. Add snap peas, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, cook 2 minutes.
4. Add all vegetables to al dente pasta along with beef ragout.
5. Grate cheese, YUM.

Surgeon caps, Speeches, La Dolce Vita, T vs. Taxi, and Boston Baked Beans

H, D, MOH, BMan, BM1, BM2, please remember these acronyms respectively, they stand for Hien, Dylan, Maid of Honor, Best Man, Bridesmaid 1, Bridesmaid 2, in this little story. I am BM1, while H’s older sister, Cook is MOH and younger sister, Olivia BM2. This story starts off with H and D, both doctors who met in Richmond and were married this past weekend in Cambridge, Massachussetts.

I arrived 2 days before the wedding to H & D’s sweat shop (home) with the last remnants of putting together Martha Stewart-esque table tents, wedding programs, name cards, ribbons, all handmade by H, H’s mom, and MOH. Luckily, my only job was to prepare a few dishes for dinner. We were joined by BMan and guest who arrived from Connecticut. To make a long story short, all the hard work paid off, as we polished off numerous bottles of wine, played Pictionary and modeled surgeon caps all night. H & D definitely let go of all stresses!

Next day, H, MOH, and BM1 went to La Dolce Vita, this would only be day 1 of 2 days in the lovely salon located in Boston, off of Newberry Street. Right across the street was a bountiful and gorgeous farmer’s market. We spent 4 hours there enough for lunch and the arrival of BM2! After the mani’s and pedi’s, off to the Charles hotel for a quick change before the rehearsal dinner at B&G Oysters, H & D’s favorite restaurant. Picture this: an outdoor patio, crisp New England air, Johnny Coltrane in the background, and close friends and family. The food highlights were the hors d’ouerves, fried Gougeres, Arancini, Clam rolls, Watermelon skewers, Salmon tartare and fried Oysters! Let's not fail to mention the fabulous 3 course meal that followed along with endless glasses of Pinot from Williamette County, Oregon. H&D are sure loved, 2 hours of speeches including one from yours truly! After, onward to drinks at Grafton Grill and bed, but not before a little hazing from MOH, BM1, BM2, and H’s two BFs (Best friends), SET and Meg, oops forgot that acronym. We had to keep H up with few more fond memories.

The wedding morning started off hectic, confusion....should we take the 'T' or Taxi to the La Dolce Vita? The rain helped the decision since hair was getting done. The highlight of the morning was being poked and prodded by the local Bostonian with accent, ‘does that hurrrrrt, you hair just won’t hold.” I came out of the ordeal with over 500 million bobby pins and 1 maybe 2 inserted in my skull. I had to breathe and count to 10 a few times so I wouldn’t collapse and ruin H’s wedding day. Am convinced this is why my head looks so big in all the pictures. Anyways, yes, La Dolce Vita, good times, we ate Starbucks sandwiches the previous day and Burger King today, kudos to H for fitting into your wedding dress! 4 hours at ‘the good life’ salon and we finally left, frenzying to get dressed, resulting in H looking STUNNING. And the rain cleared up, just in time for H&D’s walk to be wed. The ceremony was beyond words, amazing. Atter a few pictures of the wedding party in the Arboretum, finally to the Limo for Veuve Cliquot. The reception was complete chaos with my cousins heading up, 'Dance Party USA.' Overall, the entire day was elegant and classy, from H&D, to the Arboretum, the Charles hotel, the limo, of course the wedding parties’ dress, and finally, the surf and turf of Filet Mignon and Seafood Kabobs for dinner.

Sunday brunch was bustling with the announcement of H&D’s honeymoon to the South coast of England (D left this a surprise). Sadly, everyone parted ways as H&D sped off to the airport for the next chapter of their lives.

I am honored to have been apart of the weekend and to be telling this story of H&D and how they got married. As for the Boston Baked Beans, placed in our gift bags, along with Menthos, just fitting enough, after a memorable weekend in Massachusetts.

Pierre Gagnaire Restaurant

Food is involving incredibly as we see more restaurants and chefs using classical methods but turning them into a style of their own. It’s not about generous portions of hearty fare, modernism has taken over the way we eat. Food has taken on new meaning, art in a rare form while meshing science and chemistry. Take Arian Ferran, El Bullli, (the hardest reservation to get in the world) in Spain and in Paris, Pierre Gagnaire.

We ate at the Pierre Gagnaire restaurant, met the chef first hand and toured his kitchen. The experience was about incredible service and textures and juxtaposition of food. We had dishes that were uncommon to any expert palette. “Jello” or citrus aspic with goat cheese hidden underneath; edible leaves that resembled lily pads from Monet’s Giverny; what looked like cherries instead were bursts of cherry liquor embedded in dark chocolate, most favorite dish, an eclectic mix of chickpea mash, diced mussels, Indian spices, watermelon cubes finished with parsley oil. Every dish and its component where thought out meticulousy, garnish for the garnish, sauce for the main sauce, three desserts subconsiouly leading up to the grand finale dessert. The plate presentation could even make Van Gough jealous, colors of all sorts that married each ingredient perfectly like sweet kisses, taking food to a greater appreciation. After the meal, I felt I had taken a visit to the Musee D’Orsay which we did afterwards too! I was exhausted, a day filled with inspiration and understanding of ones’ search for passion. Clearly Monsier Gagnaire found his; he has received 3 Michelin stars in 2007. I only hope to inspire like he does one day.

Art and Culture: Paris

5 years before when I visited Paris, I am not so sure I completely understood the city. Living in a place, immersing yourself changes your perspective immensely. My favorite thing to do is to walk miles and miles throughout the city, weaving in and out of arrondisments. I saw much history, art, and beauty. Over 2500 years old, it truly makes America feel young and naïve. To think I was roaming the same streets as Napoleon and Josephine, not to mention Hemingway, Picasso, Monet, Matisse, who found refuge here. The Louvre, the D’Orsay, Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, the Seine river, all influential, as well, as the 39 bridges that run around the city, all with it’s own story. I was most fascinated with the architecture of the buildings old and modern. For instance, we visited Versailles and 3 chateaus in the Loire Valley, what an architect’s dream! Over 1000 years old, these places stood tall, built over moats, tucked away in seclusion, they all have a story. Marie Anoionette, the many King Loueys, Francois 1st, the French revolution, the rein of Napoleon, all have a place in French history. Kings, Queens....to be royalty, filled my dreams for weeks. These pictures speak a thousand words.

Food: Paris

The best food I had were not meals in restaurants but food in the little local shops, Boulangeries, Frommageries, Boucheries or Chacuteries, and Patisseries. I also LOVED the grocery stores, Bon Marche was my favorite. To best describe the place, it was like a Whole Foods times 5, selling everything; specialty goods from US to China. They also sold dishes extremely hard to make like terrines and the classic, pate en croute which is quite foreign to the American palette (see picture 3rd above).

I found French restaurant food to be hearty, rich with good deals of 3 course prix fix menus from 20-35 euros. We dined at a Basque place, a region near the Pyrenees which borders Spain. This food was rich with spices, such as cloves and all-spice, the specialty dish is Boudin Noir (blood sausage). For bistro fare, the best dishes I had, always consisted of fish, Mediterranean seabass, seabream, and skate or ‘ray” as they call it. The raw fish was always extremely fresh and delicate with no such odors of fish innards which can be typical in poor quality sushi restaurants back home. Americans are scared of seeing skins and bones as Parisians are not, the fish is always is served whole, tail, head, eyes, all if fair game. Poultry was amazing, not a big fan of chicken but in Paris, I thought it was delectable, melt in the mouth fare. One time for lunch we decided to buy a chicken from the region of Bresse, famous for it’s techniques in raising chickens. Clean flavor and non-adulterated flavor, I enjoyed it much.

Never have I been a big fan of cheese for dessert but this trip to Paris has changed all this. The French taught me that cheese is a delicate, subtle way to end a filling meal. My favorite thing dates and cheese. The salads were always wonderful, mixed greens or bibb lettuce, with a simple dressing of oil, good mustard, vinegar, and herbs. Contrary to belief, I never found any good ‘frites’ in Paris. I loved the french macaroons, many flavors to choose from, I felt ones from Pierre Herme were the best. Bread, I coud not get enough of 'Pain aux cereales' from Boulangerie, Eric Kaiser. Crossiants almost everywhere were awesome.

Quite honestly, the ingredients are superb in Europe, it is indeed different soil and terrain. It’s difficult to be a bad cook in Paris, all you have to do is buy the right products and use common knowledge and viola!

Le Cordon Bleu, Paris

With graduates such as Julia Childs, Giada De Laurentiis, Ming Tsai, and LA’s very own Nancy Silverton, one would think, Le Cordon Bleu would be housed in a beautiful, huge, building on the Champs d’Elysee. Instead, it sits on rue Leon Delhomme, a small street on the Left bank, standing 2 stories high in an unassuming neighborhood in Paris.

I arrived on the first day greeted by 14 other students, more than half Americans, a few Australians, others from Denmark, Japan, and Switzerland. I was one of the younger students, as many were older, established, vacationing and taking this cooking class for fun. There was only one other cook/chef from the Bronx while the others I befriended held jobs as a teacher, lawyer, engineer, and dietician.

The French are gentile, professional with a dry but charming sense of humor, at least this is what I gather from my chef instructors. Effortless, relaxed, and to the point, their methods are based on traditions from hundreds of years. The class was set up with demos by the chef in the morning, always consisting of a 3 course meal followed by a tasting with wine. In the afternoon, we’d have to replicate the main dish or ‘plat’ as the say in France. Dishes we made Rack of Lamb, Mediterranean Sea bass, Veal Rib Roast, and Mediterranean Scorpion fish. All phenomenal in their own right and IMHO, the best meals I had in Paris over the 2 weeks.

Overall, I learned quite a bit from the course which refreshed my techniques from culinary school while bringing the French perfection of cutting vegetables precisely and preparing classical sauces. I finally understood the meaning of terms and their orgins like ‘sable’ and ‘mille feuille.’ I noticed the preparation of ‘confiting’ to be a common theme. Although the class was French Provencal, much butter is used WITH hearty doses of Olive oil.

I took pleasure engaging with genuine classmates, taking the course as a hobby in Paris, trying to bring new tastes to family and friends at home. For anyone who loves to cook, I highly recommend doing this, an adventure of food in its truest form!