Cook Like Mad

Scallop Ceviche

Now that D and I are back from our trip down south, we are taking a break from heavy foods by dining on salads, soups, and sandwiches for dinner. We had our fill of yeast rolls and sweet potatoes at Mary Mac’s in Atlanta, cheddar biscuits and fried chicken at The Lady & Sons in Savannah, and whole hog pork barbecue and banana pudding at Sweatman’s, about a hour north of Charleston. Most of the food we had was incredible, but also incredibly heavy. All I wanted once we got back to D.C. was a big salad and some broiled fish. While a lot of the food we had down south was simple, country food, it didn’t feel pure, if you know what I mean. Sure the green beans, butter beans, black eyed peas, and sweet potatoes were cooked with few ingredients, but food that’s cooked for hours on the stove rarely tastes as fresh and healthy as it does in its raw state. Not to mention it all looks brown to me after a while, which is less than appetizing.

So since our meals have been “pure” (read: less than exciting) the past few days (for example, nicoise salads are the most complicated thing I have made since coming home), I am sharing some of my catering recipes I promised not too long ago, instead. The blue cheese and pecan crackers have a delicate, shortbread biscuit-like texture and are wonderful eaten on their own. The scallop ceviche in cucumber cups is always chic, impressive, and easy to make ahead. Both of these recipes will be among your new favorites in your entertaining arsenal. Enjoy!

Blue Cheese and Pecan Crackers (from Garde Manger, by the Culinary Institute of America)

Makes 3 dozen

1/2 cup butter, diced, cold

8 oz crumbled blue cheese (or block blue cheese, like Valdeon)

1 cup flour, plus more for dusting

1 tsp salt

2 oz pecans, finely chopped

Method

1. Add salt to flour. Cut butter into flour with your hands or a pastry cutter, then incorporate blue cheese. Stir in pecans. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and set in fridge for 30 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with silpats or parchment paper. Roll chilled dough out on a lightly floured surface to no more than 1/4 inch, and no less than 1/8 inch, thickness. Cut with a 2 inch round cookie cutter, or in another desired small shape and place shapes an inch apart on the lined baking sheets. Re-roll scraps from cutting and cut out more shapes. Repeat until dough is used up. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until lightly golden and slightly firm. Remove from baking sheets and cool on parchment paper. Store in a tightly-sealed container for up to 1 month. Enjoy!

Scallop Ceviche in Cucumber Cups

Makes about 60 pieces

4 large english cucumbers, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch slices, crosswise

10 large scallops

1 large firm tomato, seeded and diced finely

2 bell peppers, in different colors, diced finely (I like orange and red, since the cucumbers are green)

2 jalapenos, seeds removed, diced finely

3 limes, juiced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped finely

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt, to taste (you can add pepper, but I just don’t like to see the black specs in my ceviche)

Method

1. Remove tough muscle on the side of the scallops. Slice scallops across so you get three discs each, then slice into strips. Cut strips into small dice so pieces are about 1/4 inch x 1/4 inch. Place diced scallops into a large bowl and add lime juice, tomatoes, peppers, jalapenos, cilantro, olive oil, and salt. Mix well, cover bowl with lid or plastic wrap and set in the fridge overnight.

2. The next day, before serving, use a small melon baller to make the “cup” in one side of the cucumber slices. Make sure not to punch all the way through! When it’s time to serve, spoon 1/2 tsp of ceviche into each cup. Enjoy!

-M : )

I used to work at this company where a few of my friends who like to cook would get together every Wednesday and one person would make lunch for the rest of the group. People in the group called it the “lunch club”, while people who wished they were in the group called it the “finer things club” because it reminded them of the club by the same name in The Office. While we didn’t sit around reading poetry and sipping tea from fine china the way they do in The Office, we were very lucky to have incredibly good food one day a week. Needless to say, while they were excited to have a culinary school grad a part of their club, I felt honored to be included. To shake things up for the holidays, we decided to have a potluck last week instead of burdening one person with cooking an entire holiday meal.

Now I choose to bring dessert for one reason and one reason only- it was an excuse to make my mom’s chocolate bourbon walnut pie. Now I know what you’re thinking- that’s not the title of the post! You promised Chocolate Pecan Pie and who said anything about Bourbon?? Well, us girls on a budget can’t buy bourbon just to add 1/4 cup in a pie, and we also can’t go searching around town for walnuts when there aren’t any at the supermarket. Thankfully, pecans are a great subsitute, and despite being non-alcoholic, its still going to be your new favorite Chocolate Pecan Pie. And if you don’t have an old favorite, you’re really in for a treat!

Now before I go into the recipe, I’ve got to say, corn syrup is not my favorite ingredient. It has no nutritional value, it spikes your blood sugar, and it can be substituted with honey when an invert sugar is called for in a recipe (such as in fudge making). However, I have found that in pecan pie, corn syrup lends the perfect texture to the finished product; the pie remains moist, the nuts distribute evenly, and there’s never a grainy feel in your mouth from crystallized sugar. So if you’re opposed to nutritionally devoid ingredients like corn syrup, feel free to substitute honey here, but if you’re willing to loosen the reigns this once, use corn syrup.

Mmm..don’t you love it when the top gets golden and caramelized?

Your New Favorite Chocolate Pecan Pie

Serves 8

• 1 (9 inch) pie shell
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup dark corn syrup
• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. In a bowl over simmering water, combine sugar, corn syrup, and butter. Stir over medium-low heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Take off the heat and cool slightly.

3. While the sugar mixture cools, sprinkle chocolate chips over the pie shell.

4. In a large bowl combine eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Whisking constantly, slowly pour sugar mixture into egg mixture. Stir in pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell, over the chocolate chips.

5. Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the center is just set and the top is golden. The pie is great warm, but I prefer it at room temperature, once the texture has fully set. Serve with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or even creme fraiche, which counters its sweetness. Enjoy!

-M : )