A Caesar to remember…

by Lynette LA mere

This should be a scratch and sniff recipe! If you were to you walk into Pure Joy Catering you would smell my croutons made from my grandfather’s recipe. Toasty cubed fresh French bread, fruity olive oil and butter, fresh local oregano and garlic meld with Parmesan cheese, and damn, it’s good. Caesar Salad is a classic recipe that has been butchered and stretched to oblivion. I keep two quote posted over my desk in my Pure Joy Catering offices. One, from Leonardo Da Vinci, reads: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. The other, from from my son (a Stanford product designer & engineer) is “Don’t try to be original, just try to be good”. A cook can scrunch Russian black kale and make delicious gluten free croutons with vegan cheese and leave out the anchovies to make a really wonderful Caesar Dressing – and I do so—but, sometimes just really nailing the original can be simply glorious.

If you have tired of mediocre Caesar salads, here’s a keeper for the new year from my genius grandfather, who raised me to love simply, well-prepared, good food that we now share with thousands of our very special event guests.

GRANDPA’S CAESAR SALAD DRESSING

If you think you don’t like anchovies, just me and try this! I PROMISE everyone will love it.

Place ingredients in the blender:

1.5 cloves garlic

½ can of good anchovies with the oil

Half a lemon’s juice

Give it a whirl, scraping down the sides then add;

.25 cup red vinegar half of a beaten good fresh egg

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. dry mustard

.4 tsp. salt

.4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper drizzle into the hole of the blender lid you’re while blending;

.5 a cup of good olive oil

One large head of good fresh romaine or the equivalent of baby romaine washed, chopped & spun dry then chilled. Additional shredded Parmesan cheese for garnish, & your guests will say bravo!

GRANDPA’S CROUTONS

1 lb. baguette or pain rustique

4 oz. butter

2 Tbl. olive oil

2 cloves fresh garlic, ground

1.5 tsp. crumbled dried oregano, or 2.5 chopped fresh

.5 cup shredded good parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cube the bread into uniform 3/4th inch squares, leaving the crust on, & place into a large bowl. Drizzle with the remainder of the ingredients & toss to coat. Spray two, half cookie sheet type pans with olive oil or vegetable oil. Spread the croutons out in a single layer & bake 10 minutes. Remove from the oven & flip and bake an additional 5-10 minutes, until golden brown. —Lynette La Mere is the Executive Chef for Pure Joy Catering

BAKED SHRIMP WITH FETA (Serves

12)

This elegantly flavored, saucy, fragrant dish is simple to prepare and can be assembled early in the day and baked just before serving.

Three (28 oz.) cans diced tomatoes

One 8 oz. can tomato paste

1/2 cup olive oil

3 onions, finely chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

1 tsp. sugar

6 Tb. butter

5 lbs. de-veined medium to large shrimp

1/2 cup Ouzo

(a Greek anise-flavored liquor)

1/2 cup cognac

1 lb feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley salt and pepper to taste

Additional basil and Italian parsley for garnish

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a sauté pan. Lightly sauté the onion. Add garlic when onion is golden. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, sugar, salt and pepper. Cook, uncovered until sauce is thickened.

Heat butter and 1/4 cup olive oil in a large, heavy skillet. Sauté shrimp over high heat until pink. Add the Ouzo and cognac. Ignite with a match and let the alcohol burn off. Place in a gratin dish, lovely enough to bring to the table or buffet when finished. Pour the tomato sauce over the shrimp. Sprinkle with the feta and fresh parsley. (This much can be prepared ahead of time. Refrigerate until ready to bake.) Bake at 425 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes until heated through, and feta has melted. Just before serving give it a generous sprinkling of fresh parsley and basil, the aroma will be heavenly.

Giddy Berries

(8 glasses of dessert)

For these we use Cosmo or martini glasses, old fashioned champagne glasses or sherbet glasses. The Limoncello is a common lemon liquor in Italy widely available here.

1 basket of strawberries

4 baskets other berries, a variety if possible

1/4 cup Limoncello

1 cup crème fraîche, sweetened with a spoon of sugar

8 shortbread cookies

1 bunch of mint siMPle syruP

1/2 cup sugar & 1/2 cup water, heated to dissolve the sugar completely then cooled

Hull and slice the strawberries and put together with the other berries in a bowl. Once the simple syrup has come to room temperature you can add in the Limoncello. Pour this mixture over your berries and (continued) toss very gently. Let sit for an hour if possible. To serve simply spoon into the glasses, top with a dollop of crème fraîche, a shortbread cookie and a sprig of perky mint.

Thai Beef Salad

This Thai Beef Salad is quick and easy to prepare and you can make the whole thing ahead of time, as long as the dressing is added right before serving.

(Yield: 4 servings)

2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves

1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)

2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce

1 tablespoon honey

2 teaspoons grated orange rind

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 small Serrano Chile

2 teaspoons olive oil

4 (4ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, trimmed

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 cups shredded Napa cabbage

1 cup grated, seeded, peeled cucumber

1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1 (12ounce) package broccoli coleslaw

1 (11ounce) can mandarin oranges in light syrup, drained

Preparation

Combine first 8 ingredients in a food processor & process until smooth. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium/high heat. Sprinkle steak evenly on both sides with pepper and salt. Add steak to pan & cook 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove steak from pan & let stand 5 minutes. Thinly slice steak.

Combine cabbage and the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle slaw mixture with cilantro mixture & toss. Arrange 2 cups slaw mixture on each of 4 plates & top each serving with 3 ounces beef. –Recipe and photo by James Stefiuk

CHAMPAGNE BERRY GELÉE (Makes

8 flutes)

I like to use the biggest variety of berries I can find for these, and (once made) they’re very happy waiting for your guests in the refrigerator, even overnight.

1 bottle champagne, dry

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

1 and a generous half envelope of powdered gelatin

2 baskets of fresh berries

1 tsp. powdered sugar

Pour the champagne out into a bowl, add the sugar & stir occasionally to dissolve completely (it will no longer feel/sound granular when stirred.)

Pour the cold water into a sauce pan off the heat and sprinkle gelatin over the water slowly so it will absorb & wont clump. (Clumps are the devil!) Let it sit there for 5 minutes.

Warm the gelatin mixture over low heat just until you melt the gelatin.

Slowly pour that into the champagne stirring constantly. Cover with plastic & refrigerate overnight.

Stir the gelée once totally solidified and spoon into the flutes half full, then a couple berries, then more champagne gelée, few berries on top with the finished glass just two-thirds full. Store in the refrigerator till needed.

Sprinkle with a pinch of powdered sugar just before serving.

Snow Balls

(Makes about 40 cookies)

Okay, the rest of the year we call these Mexican Wedding Cookies. We don’t know why, as every one of my Hispanic friends says they’ve never seen one at a wedding. But, for the holidays they are wonderful and we call them Snow Balls.

8 oz. butter

1/2 an egg yolk

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup cake flour

1 T. flour

1-1/2 cup pecans, coarse ground

1/4 tsp. salt

More powdered sugar to toss them in

Beat and soften the butter, add the yolk and the rest of the ingredients and cream together. Chill the dough till firm. Spoon balls onto a greased cookie sheet (use a small scoop if you have one, that makes them nice and round). Bake at 350 degrees till just coloring, about 12-14 minutes.

Roasted Chestnut Soup

(Recipe serves 6 to 8)

Since chestnuts are another traditional American crop that is endangered, this is a perfect soup to serve with heritage turkey. It is an easy to make, elegant, velvety soup that is surprisingly low in fat. The chestnuts can be roasted and the soup made in advance, then carefully reheated. If you make stock from the trimmings and giblets, it will taste a lot better than store-bought stock.

1 T. duck fat or unsalted butter

20 oz. peeled roasted chestnuts

1 bouquet garni (parsley, thyme and 1 bay leaf tied together)

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 onion, peeled and diced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 garlic clove, peeled and minced

8 cups turkey or chicken stock

Scant 1/2 cup crème fraîche

Minced fresh chervil or parsley for garnish

To roasT The chesTnuTs:

Preheat oven to 450 F. Cut an x on the round side of each chestnut. Spread the chestnuts in shallow baking dish, cut side up. Add about 1/4” of water and bake the chestnuts in the oven for 10 minutes or until the shells open. Cool until the chestnuts can be handled before shelling and peeling. (Peeled shelled chestnuts can be frozen for several months.)

Making The soup:

Sauté the onion in butter until translucent. Add the chestnuts and vegetables. Sauté for 2 more minutes, then add the stock, bouquet garni, and garlic. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 20 minutes, until chestnuts and vegetables are tender. Remove the bouquet garni. Blend the soup, and strain through a fine sieve. Taste and add pepper or salt if needed. Serve hot with a bit of crème fraîche swirled at the center of each bowl and a pinch of minced chervil.

THAI CARROT, GINGER, & LEMONGRASS SOUP

This soup is a great appetizer, or make it a main course by adding a crusty loaf of French bread .

1 small cooking onion

3 cloves garlic

1-2 thumb-size pieces galangal OR ginger

4 cups chicken broth OR vegetable broth if vegetarian

1 fresh red chili, minced (omit if you prefer a milder soup) OR 1-2 tsp. chili sauce

1/4 cup Thai jasmine rice (or any type of white or brown rice - note that brown will take longer to cook)

1 Tbsp. ground cumin

1 + 1/2 tsp. cardamom

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 stalk lemongrass, finely sliced OR 2 Tbsp. frozen prepared lemongrass

7 medium carrots, sliced (they can be thick slices, as the soup will be pureed later)

1 can coconut milk

1-3 Tbsp. fish or vegetarian fish sauce (start with 1 and add more if needed, depending on how salty your broth is)

1 Tbsp. soy sauce handful fresh coriander handful fresh basil juice of 1/2 lime oil for stir-frying

Pour 2 Tbsp. oil into the bottom of a large soup pot. Add onion, garlic, galangal or ginger, lemongrass, and fresh chili (or chili sauce). Stir-fry until fragrant (about 1 minute).

Add the broth and rice. Bring to a boil.

Add the carrots plus the spices (cumin, cardamom, nutmeg). Reduce heat to medium, cover, and continue cooking for another 15 minutes, or until carrots and rice are soft (brown rice will take longer to cook, and will absorb more liquid, so you may need to add a little more broth).

Add the coconut milk and stir. Puree the soup in batches in your blender. Return soup to the soup pot.

Re-warm soup over medium heat. Add the fish sauce, soy sauce, and lime juice. Taste-test for salt, adding more fish sauce (or vegetarian fish sauce) instead of salt, as needed. (If your soup turns out too salty, add more lime juice.) Add more fresh chili or chili sauce if not spicy enough.

Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with fresh coriander and basil. Enjoy! –Recipe and photo by James

Stefiuk

CRAB, SPINACH, & STRAWBERRY SALAD

10 cups fresh Baby Spinach (washed, dried and stems removed, or use as much as desired)

5 cups sliced fresh strawberries

2 avocados, sliced

1⁄4 cup toasted sliced almonds

12 oz fresh lump crab meat (can use more or less)

1⁄2 cup crumbled feta cheese (can use more or less)

DRESSING

1⁄2 cup vegetable oil

1⁄4 cup balsamic vinegar (or use raspberry wine vinegar or white wine vinegar)

1⁄4 cup white sugar

1/4 tsp paprika

1 -2 tablespoon poppy seed

In a large bowl toss the spinach with the strawberries, avocados, toasted almonds & crab meat.

In another small bowl whisk together all dressing ingredients, starting with 1/4 cup sugar and adding in more to taste, then pour over the spinach; toss to combine.

Sprinkle the feta over the top of salad. –Recipe and photo by James Stefiuk

HERBED WHITE CORN BREAD WITH PECANS & CRANBERRIES

(Serves 6 to 8 people)

White corn was a staple of the Iroquois tribes who helped the New England pilgrims survive. Roasted Iroquois white corn flour can be ordered online at: www.prophecyandsurvival. com/food-order.htm The corn is grown and processed by a cooperative of native people, so by purchasing it you are in a small way returning a long-owed debt. Plus, it is delicious. Sift together:

2 cups roasted white corn flour

1 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

Blend together:

1/2 cup honey

1-1/2 cup buttermilk

1 egg

6 T. melted butter

Measure:

2/3 cup chopped pecans

2/3 cup dried cranberries

To Press or Plane?

Press whole, unpeeled garlic cloves with the stainless steel, dishwasher safe Rosle garlic press, which comes with a lifetime warrantee ($49) at Sur La Table, 821 State St. Santa Barbara (805) 963-9669. www.surlatable.com. Some savvy chefs prefer a micro planer, which also handles the job nicely.

Vegetable Pasta

With the popularity of gluten free and vegetarian diets, the Paderno Spiralizer ($49.95) with four blades turns squash, carrots, beets and fruits into ribbons of varying thickness from angel hair to fettuccini widths. Available at Williams Sonoma, La Cumbre Plaza, 121 S. Hope, Santa Barbara (805) 569-6913. www.williamssonoma.com