Aviator
A stylish mix of old and new, celebrating a perfect union in an airplane hangar. What could be more cool?
Cream of Mushroom Soup using Chicken Velouté
Turning these gorgeous shiitakes, picked fresh the morning I purchased them, into a silky mushroom soup may have been the highlight of my week. We are working through the mother sauces in Culinary 101 right now, so I'm becoming well-versed in the six fundamental sauces and their derivatives. Have you ever made a mac-and-cheese? You've made a béchamel first and turned into a delicious cheese sauce based on a mornay. Ever had turkey or roast beef with gravy? That's a velouté in its most basic iteration. Enjoyed Eggs Benedict one weekend? That's topped almost always with a hollandaise, a lemony buttery bit of heaven brought together by egg yolks and the magic of emulsification.
Cream of Mushroom Soup
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
Makes 1 quart (approximately 4 servings)
1 ½ tablespoon of whole butter
3 ounces of onion, medium dice
1 ounce of celery, medium dice
½ pound of mushrooms, sliced, a few reserved for garnish
1 cup of chicken stock (if needed)
1 quart of chicken velouté (recipe follows)
2 tablespoons of heavy cream
1 fresh thyme stem
salt, to taste
white pepper, to taste
dried shallots, for garnish
Sweat the onions, celery, and mushrooms in 1 tablespoon of the butter and add the thyme stem. Add the velouté and bring to a simmer. Cook until the vegetables are tender, approximately 15 minutes and remove the thyme stem. Purée the soup. Return the soup to a simmer and thin if necessary with the chicken stock. While the soup is coming up to temperature, sauté the remaining mushroom slices in the remaining butter, adding a splash of stock if necessary. Season the soup with salt and white pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and garnish with a few mushroom slices and the dried shallots.
Chicken Velouté
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
Makes 1 quart
1.25 quarts of chicken stock
2 ounces of butter
2 ounces of flour
Heat butter in heavy saucepan. Add the flour to make a blond roux. Gradually add stock to the roux, whisking constantly. Bring to a boil. Reduce the sauce to a simmer and continue cooking for thirty minutes. Sauce should reduce a bit. Cool and refrigerate or use in your cream of mushroom soup.
Vegetable Soup with Homemade Vegetable Stock
I love vegetable soup, especially in the Fall. There's really something special about assembling a set of ingredients that are some of the healthiest things on the planet into a thoroughly satisfying meal. Making your own veggie stock is equally as satisfying and so very easy. You can even use the scraps from putting together your mise en place for the soup to flavor your stock--and it only needs to simmer for thirty minutes before its ready to be used.
Vegetable Soup
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
Makes 1 quart (approximately 4 servings)
1 ounce of butter
1 ounce of carrot, small dice
1 ounce of celery, small dice
2 ounces of onion, small dice
1 garlic clove, finely minced
3 ounces of tomato concassée
3 ounces of corn kernels
2 ounces of turnip, small dice
2 ounces of leek, white part only, small dice
1 quart of vegetable stock (recipe follows)
4 ounces of stew beef, small dice
1 bay leaf
1 stem of fresh thyme
freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
beets, thinly sliced for garnish
parsley, finely chopped for garnish
In a soup pot, brown the beef in the butter. Remove and drain carefully. Sweat the mirepoix (carrots, onion, celery), leeks, and turnip until tender in the fond left behind. Add the garlic and sauté lightly. Add the broth and the diced beef and bring to a simmer. Add the bay leaf, thyme and keep simmering for around 20-30 minutes. Add the tomato concassée, corn for an additional ten minutes of cooking. Remove the thyme stem and the bay leaf and season to taste. Garnish with the sliced beets and parsley for color and flavor.
Vegetable Broth
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
Makes 2 quarts
1 pound of Mirepoix, chopped
1 Leek, green part, chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 ounces of fennel, chopped
4 ounces of white wine
1 ounce of turnip, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
2 quarts of water
1 bay leaf
4 parsley stems
1 teaspoon of black peppercorns, smashed
1 thyme stem
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Add oil to a stockpot and sweat the vegetables for 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer—keep at a simmer for 30 minutes and then strain, cool, and refrigerate or use in your vegetable soup.
Greek Salad
This is a particular favorite salad in our family. My oldest two kids have always been obsessed with kalamata olives and feta so it's always been a very natural fit in our dinner rotation. I love it with some amazing dolmas from Dean's Mediterranean Foods for a light lunch or with a nice piece of fish for a more substantial meal.
Greek Salad
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
Serves 2
1 ounce of extra virgin olive oil
½ ounce of lemon juice
½ ounce of red wine vinegar
¼ tsp of garlic, minced
1 tsp of Mediterranean seasoning (recipe below)
½ of a large cucumber, sliced
3 ounces of feta
2 ounces of Kalamata olives
parsley, finely chopped, to taste
green onions, finely chopped, to taste
tomato, wedged
salt and pepper
¼ head of Bibb lettuce
Radish sprouts (for garnish)
Ground sumac (for garnish)
First, make the vinaigrette by adding the lemon juice, red wine vinegar, garlic, Mediterranean seasoning, and green onions together in a bowl and whisking in the olive oil. Then, add the cucumber (here I made cucumber ribbons but slices will work fine) and olives and allow it to marinate for a few minutes. The cucumbers and olives will give off liquid and salt, so check your dressing for seasoning and adjust with the salt and pepper. Arrange the Bibb lettuce on a plate. Add your cucumbers and olives mixture on top, top with your feta (either crumbled or in a block for presentation) and garnish with parsley, sprouts, and tomato wedges. Add a little extra sumac, lemon juice, Mediterranean seasoning, or whatever you want to your liking. Enjoy.
Mediterranean Seasoning
This stores beautifully and is wonderful in salad, on omelets and eggs, or on chicken or fish.
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of ground sumac
½ teaspoon of onion powder
½ teaspoon of dried rosemary
½ teaspoon of dried basil
½ teaspoon of dried parsley
½ teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper
Mix together and store in an airtight container.
Cheeseburger with Grilled Onions
Cheeseburger with Grilled Onions
Adapted from On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals
4-5 ounces of ground beef (this is 93% lean but anything above 80% lean will be tasty)
1 yellow onion, sliced thin
Butter, as needed
1 slice of cheese (this is provolone)
1 potato bun or other soft bun
Bibb lettuce
Sliced tomato
1 tablespoon of mayo (I like homemade)
1/2 tablespoon of Montreal-style steak seasoning
2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Preheat a large cast iron skillet on a stove or a grill for medium heat. Add butter and sauté onions until translucent. You can add several teaspoons of water to the onions if they look dry but aren't yet golden. Add a teaspoon of Worcestershire to deglaze the pan. Remove to a warm plate. Turn up the heat slightly. Form your burger by adding the Montreal steak seasoning and the the remaining teaspoon of Worcestershire to the meat and creating a loosely packed patty. Do not overwork! Indent the center so the edges are slightly more thick and add to the pan. It should sizzle and start browning immediately. Wait at least 2 minutes before checking for a good crust. If it's there, flip and rotate the burger. If not, give it a little bit more time. Meanwhile, butter your potato bun and slip underneath your broiler for around 30 seconds. Cook the meat to almost your preferred doneness and then add the cheese. Add one teaspoon of water to the pan and cover with a lid to melt the cheese quickly. Place your finished burger on the bottom half of your potato roll. Add mayo to the top of the bun, then add lettuce and tomato (sometimes i like to add the mayo to the top and bottom. Your choice!) Salt and pepper the tomato vigorously. Layer the grilled onions on top of the cheese and finish with cracked black pepper. Enjoy with homemade pickles or pickled jalapeños and a nice sparkling water.