Duluth Superior Magazine / August 2011 / Recipes! Small Plates, Appetizers, and Cocktails Part 1

 Email  Print

Recipes! Small Plates, Appetizers, and Cocktails Part 1

Summertime recipes should be light, flavorful and fresh. It’s about seasonal fruits and veggies, fish and seafood, and zesty herbs picked right out of the garden. We asked this region’s superstar chefs who appeared at our annual Taste of Duluth~Superior to give us a sneak peek at the types of small plates and appetizers they’ll be featuring at this fabulous event, and for fun, we asked them for some suggested cocktail recipes as well.

Ryan Zander
JJ Astor

Grilled Lamb Chops with Cucumber and Mint Salad

For lamb chops
One lamb rack
Salt
Thyme
Rosemary
Olive oil

Cut the lamb rack down to individual pieces so you have one bone with the meat on the end like a lollipop. Then pound the meat down a bit and season with salt, thyme, rosemary, olive oil and marinate for at least one hour. Turn your grill or sauté pan on high and throw the chops on. As they cook mix your salad.

For Cucumber and Mint Salad

Frisee
Quartered cherry tomatoes or marinated tomatoes (see following recipe) quartered
Cucumbers, shaved thin
Fresh mint
Salt
Soy lime dressing

For Soy Lime Dressing
Mix together:

3 minced Serrano chilies
3 minced shallots
juice of 6 limes
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 TB soy sauce
3 TB ginger juice

Put lamb on salad and enjoy.

Panzanella With Marinated Tomatoes and Ginger Oil

For the Marinated Tomatoes
4 pints of baby heirloom tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes if the heirloom are unavailable) cut in half
1/2 cup ginger oil
1/2 cup pique (NOTE: Pique must be started one week ahead of time!)

2 tsp fresh ground coriander
Fresh ground fennel seed to taste
2 cups chopped basil
2 shallots, minced
salt to taste

For Ginger Oil
Mince some fresh ginger, cover with grapeseed or canola oil, and refrigerate overnight.

For Pique
5 cups water
Skin from one pineapple
8 Serrano chilies
4 Fresno chilies
1 garlic clove
1 marjoram sprig
1 tsp peppercorns
1/2 tsp sugar
Pinch of sea salt
extra virgin olive oil

Combine the pineapple skin and water, bring to a boil, remove from heat and let steep for 10 minutes. Drain and discard the skin. Halve the Fresnos and make small slits in the Serranos. Combine all ingredients in a clear sterilized bottle and cover with pineapple water, then add extra virgin olive oil to cover the top and let stand in the sun for one week. A clear wine bottle works well for this.

For the Salad Itself
1 cup marinated tomatoes
1 cup yesterday's bread (baguette works well)
6 small balls of fresh mozzarella

Combine the tomatoes, bread, and fresh mozzarella. Salt to taste and enjoy.

Suggested Cocktails

Mamie Taylor
1 ½ oz scotch
¾ oz lime juice
Ginger ale

In a highball glass, pour scotch and lime juice. Top with ginger ale. Garnish with lemon twist.

Brain Duster
1½ oz absinthe
¾ oz Caprano sweet vermouth
¾ oz rye whiskey

Use martini glass. Shake and strain. Garnish with lemon twist.

Michael Schueller
Northland Country Club

Porcini-Crusted Scallop with Roasted Carrot Pesto, Wild Mushrooms, and Arugula Vinaigrette

For Roasted Carrot Pesto

3 carrots, diced small
1 shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ cup roasted pine nuts
1 bunch tarragon, minced
Olive oil
Shredded Parmesan cheese

Toss carrots, shallot, and garlic with salt, pepper, and olive oil. Place carrot mixture on a sheet pan and roast in oven at 350 degrees until carrots have softened and taken on a golden brown color. Place the carrot mixture in a food processor with pine nuts and tarragon, turn on and stream olive oil into mixture until it becomes thick and paste-like. Add Parmesan cheese to carrots and pulse food processor a few times to incorporate. Remove, set aside.

For Arugula Vinaigrette

1–2 bunches arugula (approximately 1 cup)
Lemon vinegar
Olive oil
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper

Blanch arugula in boiling water and immediately immerse in ice water. Roughly chop blanched arugula and place in blender with 1 oz lemon vinegar, and blend on medium-low speed for a few seconds. Increase speed to medium and stream in olive oil until vinaigrette thickens and comes together. Season with salt and pepper; add lemon vinegar to taste until desired flavor is achieved.

For Scallops
4 large dry pack scallops (U10 per pound)
Dried porcini mushrooms
Grapeseed oil (or any high smoke point vegetable oil) for searing

Place dried porcinis in spice/coffee grinder or food processor and grind finely until there are very few large chunks of mushroom. Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper, and dredge in ground porcinis. Place heavy sauté pan over high heat and add small amount of grapeseed oil. Heat oil until it simmers, and place scallops in pan. When scallops have browned and developed a crust, flip over and finish on other side. Remove scallops and place on folded paper towel to catch any oil remaining.

For Pan-Roasted Mushrooms

3 cups wild or domestic mushrooms, sliced
1 TB diced shallot
1 TB diced garlic
1 bunch fresh thyme
2 oz chicken or veal stock
1 oz white wine
1 oz cold butter
Olive oil

Place a sauté pan over medium-high heat and add a small amount of olive oil. When olive oil is hot add shallots, garlic, thyme, and mushrooms to pan, and sauté until mushrooms have cooked and released their juices. Add 1 oz white wine and 2 ounces chicken stock and cook mushrooms until juices have reduced. Add 1 oz of cold butter and toss pan until butter melts and emulsifies. Set aside and keep warm.

Briefly warm pesto, and place on plate as a bed with scallop atop it. Top with a small amount of mushrooms, and drizzle with arugula vinaigrette.

Cornmeal-fried Green and Heirloom Tomatoes with Black Pepper Tomato Jam, Black Garlic Aioli, Summer Garden Greens

For Black Pepper Tomato Jam
6 roma tomatoes, halved
2 TB dried herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, etc)
Olive oil
1 cup white sugar
½ cup water
1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
Salt and pepper

Place halved roma tomatoes on a wire rack and drizzle with olive oil. Season tomatoes with salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil and roast at low heat until tomatoes have softened. When tomatoes have cooked completely combine sugar and water in a heavy bottomed pan and bring to a simmer to melt sugar (This is known as simple syrup). Wrap one tablespoon whole black peppercorns in moistened cheesecloth and tie with butcher’s twine. Add tomatoes and black peppercorn sachet to simmering simple syrup and simmer approximately 1 hour until jam has reduced and thickened. Place warm mixture in a food processor and (very carefully) pulse a few times to break down tomatoes.

For Black Garlic Aioli
5 cloves aged black garlic
1 cup mayonnaise

To prepare black garlic aioli, begin by mashing in a bowl the black garlic cloves with a pinch of kosher salt using the back of a spoon. Season mashed garlic with a little lemon juice and add mayonnaise. Whisk mayonnaise and garlic together, season with salt, pepper, and lemon juice.

Additional ingredients:

2 heirloom tomatoes, sliced
2 green tomatoes, sliced
Corn meal
Extra virgin olive oil

Fresh squeezed lemon juice
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Whole black peppercorns
Cheesecloth
Butcher’s twine

To cook tomatoes, season slices with salt and pepper, and dredge in cornmeal. Bring a skillet with olive oil to medium-high heat and place seasoned tomato slices in pan. Cook until cornmeal browns and develops a crust, and tomatoes have softened.

Dress seasonal garden greens with olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

To assemble, smear green and heirloom tomatoes with Black Pepper Tomato Jam and Black Garlic Aioli, layer with garden greens, drizzle with olive oil and enjoy.

Suggested Cocktail
Jen Paro
Northland Country Club

NCC Little Red Dress

Raspberry Stoli
Chambord
Cranberry juice
Lime juice

Shake and serve.

Sean Lewis
Nokomis Restaurant and Bar

Proscuitto-wrapped Figs with Curry Mascarpone and Balsamic Syrup (serves 4)

3 TB mascarpone cheese
1 pinch curry powder
1 tsp honey
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
4 ripe figs cut in half
1/3 cup toasted almonds, chopped
8 slices prosciutto ham sliced thin

Reduce the balsamic vinegar until a syrup consistency. Then take off heat immediately and reserve. Combine the mascarpone cheese, honey, and curry in a small bowl. Take a small teaspoon of the mascarpone mixture and spread on top of each fig. Take some of the toasted almonds and sprinkle on top of each fig. Wrap each fig with a small piece of prosciutto and make sure that you overlap it so it sticks. Drizzle with balsamic syrup.

Grilled Shrimp and Scallop with Peppered Pineapple Salsa and Macadamia Nut Coulis (serves 4)

For Peppered Pineapple salsa
1 large pineapple
1 minced shallot
1 Tbsp minced ginger root
1 minced red chili pepper
2 Tbsp cilantro
1 Tbsp mint
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp honey
olive oil
Salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Slice, peel, and dice the pineapple. In a large cast iron skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot, ginger, and the chili pepper. Sauté for one minute, then add the cilantro and the mint and sauté for two minutes. Remove from heat and add the lime juice, honey, salt and cracked pepper. Transfer to a small bowl and refrigerate.

For the Shrimp and Scallop
½ pound large shrimp
½ pound large diver scallop
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground mustard seed
olive oil

Skewer the shrimp and scallop and drizzle with olive oil and the ground spices. Have your cast iron skillet on high heat. Place seafood on the skillet and turn quickly so product does not char too heavily.

For Macadamia Nut Coulis
¼ pound macadamia nuts, roasted
4 Tbsp olive oil
¼ tsp salt

Place the macadamia nuts in a food processor and puree until the blend is the consistency of a vinaigrette. Season with salt.

Assembly
Place the skewered shrimp and scallops on a small plate. Take some of the salsa and spoon it over the skewers. Reserve the rest and place in a small dish on the side. Spoon some of the Macadamia Nut Coulis on and around the skewers. Garnish with small sprigs of micro mint.