I have been practicing making smoked trout mousse for a dinner we are planning two weeks from now (more about this later). The smoked trout mousse is to be an amuse-bouche. I have decided to serve it with a couple of slices of apple braised in Reisling wine.
My first attempt at the mousse was based on a recipe from a food blog (which in turn was based on an old recipe from The Silver Palate).
I soaked a sheet of gelatin in cold water and then pored hot water over it to dissolve it. To this I added a quarter cup of mayonnaise, the juice of half a lemon, a teaspoon or so of finely chopped shallot, a pinch of smoked paprika, a drop of Choluca (hot sauce), a pinch of fresh dill and salt and pepper. I then chilled it for half an hour while I whipped a cup of whipping cream.
Once the mayo mixture had set slightly I folded in a cup of flaked smoked trout and the whipped cream and scooped the mousse into a bunch of different sized ramekins, covered them in plastic wrap and put them in the fridge for a few hours.
For dinner I braised some apple slices in sparkling wine (we had no Reisling on hand). To braise the apple slices you simply saute them for a few minutes in butter, sprinkle them with sugar and then pour some wine in the pan and braise for a few minutes until the wine has become a syrup.
I plated the smoked trout mousse(s) and draped a couple of apple slices over them.
The verdict: the apples slices were delicious and a perfect accompaniment. The mousse however was a bit overly creamy and not quite set enough (not enough gelatin?). It was tasty, although the smoked paprika and hot sauce really didn't come through.
so.. not quite perfect. I guess I'll try another batch before the dinner party to see if I can get it right.
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Monday, November 15, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Making Duck Procuitto
Every restaurant I go to now is doing charcuterie! so...I decided I had to do it too. I bought Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn. Great book, well laid out with easy to understand recipes. The problem is, of course, for some of this stuff you need a lot of special equipment and ingredients. There were, however, a couple of things that seemed pretty easy to do - duck prosciutto and duck confit.
I bought a duck breast, two duck legs and a tub of duck fat from a meat place in St Lawrence Market and set to work. Simple! I packed the duck breast in kosher salt in a baking dish, covered it with plastic wrap and left in in the fridge for a couple of days. When I took it out it seemed denser, heavier and slightly shrunken. I rinsed it off, wrapped it in cheese cloth and hung it in the fridge for 10 days. That was it.
It was fabulous! sliced thin, we used it in salads (baby frisee), on toast with mustard or just ate it on its own. It is even better when briefly sauteed - delicious with brussel sprouts. The other night I sauteed some chopped pieces and added them as a garnish to a cauliflower soup - marvelous!
Duck confit is a little more work but still really easy. Rub the legs with salt (unlike the procuitto you don't have to completely cover it) and leave it in the fridge, again covered in plastic wrap, for 24 hours. Take it out, rinse it off and poach it slowly in the duck fat for 10 hours at a very low temperature (190-200 degrees). It must be completely covered by the duck fat. Take it out, let it cool in the fat and store it in the fridge in the pot you cooked it in, still covered in the fat.
When you are ready to eat it - remove it from the fat and put it in a hot oven (425 degrees) for 15-20 or until the skin crisps. Strain the fat - it can be re-used.
I bought a duck breast, two duck legs and a tub of duck fat from a meat place in St Lawrence Market and set to work. Simple! I packed the duck breast in kosher salt in a baking dish, covered it with plastic wrap and left in in the fridge for a couple of days. When I took it out it seemed denser, heavier and slightly shrunken. I rinsed it off, wrapped it in cheese cloth and hung it in the fridge for 10 days. That was it.
It was fabulous! sliced thin, we used it in salads (baby frisee), on toast with mustard or just ate it on its own. It is even better when briefly sauteed - delicious with brussel sprouts. The other night I sauteed some chopped pieces and added them as a garnish to a cauliflower soup - marvelous!
Duck confit is a little more work but still really easy. Rub the legs with salt (unlike the procuitto you don't have to completely cover it) and leave it in the fridge, again covered in plastic wrap, for 24 hours. Take it out, rinse it off and poach it slowly in the duck fat for 10 hours at a very low temperature (190-200 degrees). It must be completely covered by the duck fat. Take it out, let it cool in the fat and store it in the fridge in the pot you cooked it in, still covered in the fat.
When you are ready to eat it - remove it from the fat and put it in a hot oven (425 degrees) for 15-20 or until the skin crisps. Strain the fat - it can be re-used.
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