Tag Archive for 'cream'

Creamy Maple Polenta Succotash

Published
by
marc
on September 7, 2008
in Side, Summer, Vegetable and Vegetarian
. 11 Comments

The photo doesn’t look like much and the name might remind you of Sylvester from Looney Toons, but if creamed corn is your thing, this is your Holy Grail.

Succotash is truly an American dish if there ever was one. Its roots go back to a time before the Pilgrims had the first Thanksgiving. Beans and Maize (corn) were popular crops for Native Americans because together they are a rich source of both protein and carbohydrates. It was common for the two to be cooked together and the term succotash was derived from the Narraganset term: msikwatas.

Since then a lot of other ingredients such as cured meats and cream have been introduced and the name refers to just about anything that has corn and beans in it. My version uses milk along with polenta to make a satisfyingly thick (though not overly cloying) “pudding” in which kernels of crisp sweet corn and fresh fava beans are suspended. The maple syrup brings out the natural sweetness in the corn and with a bit of cream added at the end it makes for a symphony of harmonious textures and flavours. It’s a balanced meal by itself but also works great as a side for meats and poultry.

If fresh fava beans aren’t available, fresh lima beans or fresh peas would work as well. In the dead of winter, this would also taste great with canned corn and cannellini beans. Additions such as bacon and cheese (pecorino or gruyere are two possibilities) would certainly make this richer and I can even imagine turning this into a gratin by putting it in a casserole dish, topping with cheese and breadcrumbs and baking.

2 1/2 cups milk
1 1/4 Tsp kosher salt (or 1/2 tsp regular salt)
1 Tbs maple syrup
1/8 tsp sage
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 C polenta
2 ears corn removed from the cob along with any “milk” from the corn (about 2 cups)
1 cup shelled fresh fava beans
2 Tbs cream

Add the milk, salt, maple syrup, sage and pepper to a sauce pan and heat over medium heat until simmering. Add the polenta and stir continuously until it starts to thicken, about 10 minutes.

Turn down the heat to medium low and add the corn. Cook stirring regularly until the polenta is no longer soupy but not too firm about 10-15 minutes. Add the beans and cook for a few more minutes until the beans are bright green.

Remove from heat and taste, adjusting salt and pepper as needed then stir in the cream. Serve while hot.

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Honey yogurt panna cotta with white peach puree

Published
by
marc
on August 17, 2008
in Dessert, Fruit and Italian
. 11 Comments

Feeling a bit uninspired, I scanned some of my favourite blogs for something that could coerce me back into the kitchen. Helen’s Roasted Apricot and Lavender Panna Cottas had me salivating (surely a good sign), so I hit up the farmer’s market looking for some fresh fruit. I found some white peaches that literally lured me to their bin by their sweet smell wafting through the throngs of shoppers.

I’ve been on a bit of a health kick after my recent health issues, so I wanted to see if I could make this dessert a bit healthier without loosing the satiny creaminess that’s the hallmark of good panna cotta. Using yogurt and honey and replacing some of the cream with skim milk, I came up with a concoction that’s no-less decadent yet considerably healthier.

Panna Cotta’s are usually topped with a tart fruit sauce of some sort to offset the intense creaminess, but since the yogurt in this Panna Cotta provided the requisite tartness, I went for a sweeter fruit puree that complimented the honey wonderfully with its sweet floral aroma.

for the Panna Cotta
1/2 C cream
1/2 C skim milk
3 Tbs sugar
3 Tbs honey
1 1/2 tsp gelatin bloomed in 2 Tbs water
1tsp vanilla
1 C plain yogurt

for white peach puree
3 small white peaches peeled
1 Tbs lemon juice
honey to taste

Heat cream, milk, honey, sugar until hot but not boiling. Add the bloomed gelatin and vanilla stirring until the gelatin is completely dissolved.

Take it off the heat and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. Add the yogurt and whisk to combine.

Pour the mixture into 4 ramekins and refrigerate for 4 hours.

For the puree, just add the peaches and lemon juice to a blender or food processor and puree. You may need to add some water if it’s too thick and honey if it’s not sweet enough.

To serve, put the ramekins in a pan of hot water for a minute then unmold them onto plates then top with the puree. If you’re serving them in a glass (above photo) just top with the puree and serve with a spoon.

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Bay scallops in basil cream sauce

Published
by
marc
on June 18, 2008
in Dinner, Pasta and Seafood
. 17 Comments

I’m back from Oregon! During my short trip to attend my step-fathers graduation, I picked up 6 bottles of Willamette Valley wine (mostly Pinot Noirs) and a sunburn (I didn’t get the memo about the 4 hour ceremony being outdoors).

I actually got back on Monday, but the past 2 nights have been occupied working out the details of the Tastespotting replacement project I’ve started with a friend. It’s not quite done yet, but if you want to check it out, leave a comment and I’ll invite you as we need beta testers.

I honestly haven’t been in the mood to cook but this is a simple classic no-brainer for bay scallops. The tartness of the wine and lemon offset the cream and the caramelized onions and scallops add an enormous amount of umami it’s by no means a light dish, but it’s also not too heavy or cloying.

For those of you that know me, you know I’ll eat almost anything, but licorice flavored things are a rare exception. That said, I enjoy challenging myself to take food I don’t like and turn it into something I like so I’ve found uses for anise flavored things. Pernod in particular goes pretty well with seafood and I’ve even found myself craving the combo sometimes. I still won’t touch those black tar sticks though.

The basil in this dish goes well with Pernod and if you have a fennel bulb sitting around, add it in with the spring onions. Tarragon would work too. If you want to do something different, try replacing the basil and Pernod with saffron and ginger.

1/2 lbs dry bay scallops (see footnote here for info about dry scallops)
1 Tbs butter
1 tsp olive oil
1 spring onion chopped small
1/2 C white wine
1 Tbs lemon juice
1/2 C heavy cream
1 tsp Pernod (or other anise flavoured liqueur)
1/4 C basil chiffonade
salt and pepper to taste
8oz pasta (I used homemade pappardelle)

The trick with this recipe is to make the sauce ahead, then time the pasta and scallops so they are done at the same time. Depending on the type of pasta you’re using it will take different amounts of time, so I’ll leave it to your discretion as to when to start the pasta.

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in a pan. Saute the onions until soft and starting to caramelize. Add the wine and lemon juice and reduce until thick and gluggy. Add the cream and Pernod and turn down the heat to keep it warm.

Clean and dry the scallops. Heat a non-teflon pan over high heat until hot. Lightly salt and pepper the scallops. Add the butter to the pan and swirl to melt. When the bubbling subsides add the scallops in a single layer without overcrowding the pan. Sear undisturbed until brown then flip with tongs. Cook until the top 1/3 and bottom 1/3 of the scallop is opaque and the middle 1/3 is still translucent.

Transfer the scallops to a plate then add the cream sauce to the pan that the scallops came out of and deglaze. All that brown fond on the pan adds umami to the sauce. Add the basil to the sauce then put the drained pasta in the sauce and stir to coat.

Plate the pasta then top with the scallops and drizzle any remaining sauce on top.

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