Birthday Girl (with bulldog)
A decadent dinner party on the occasion of Kay Gallop’s Seventy-Seventh Birthday.
Six at Table
Topics of conversation included:
Facebook becoming passe
Dirty food confessions – (Pam has a passion for raw hotdogs, Patrick can’t eat a tuna salad or egg salad sandwich without putting potato chips on it, and Sarah has a fondness for crusty old pub-style pavlova.)
How to fix a failed lobster bisque
Pre-Dinner
Pre-dinner island
le Cru Du Clocher – Whole milk cheddar from Quebec
Roaring Forties Blue – A delicious, creamy blue from Tasmania
Roaring Forties Blue
Served with Bottega Vino dei Poeti Prosecco
First Course
Steamed Jumbo Shrimp served with…
Readhead Pantry Hot & Honey Ginger Garlic Sauce
and Reif Winery 2008 Gamay Rose
DINNER IS SERVED
Cassoulet nude
Cassoulet dressed
Birthday Place Setting
Seafood Cassoulet (Patrick)
Watermelon, Feta & Black Olive Salad (Sarah)
Cucumber Salad (Kay)
Dinner Plate
Served with
Louis Jadot Macon Villages 2007 Chardonnay
Secco-Bertani Valpolicella Valpantena Ripasso 2007
Table Talk
DESSERT
Pavlova w/ rhubarb-orange zest compote and whipped cream (Michael)
Served with
Maleta First-Frost-Last-Grape Vidal Icewine 2003
Whip it
pavlova
Mmmm...
SEAFOOD CASSOULET
This is a lighter version of the traditional, meat-laden cassoulet which is usually made with duck and/or pork and sausage. There are many different recipes on the internet but this one is from the LCBO Magazine. We made a few adjustments.
2 tbsp olive oil or duck fat (If you have it, duck fat, always duck fat)
1 chorizo sausage sliced (live a little…use 2)
1 medium organic onion, chopped
1 or 2 chopped organic garlic cloves
3 large squid, cut in 1/2 inch thick rings (We didn’t want to use squid that wasn’t absolutely fresh because it can be so rubbery. We substituted a big piece of fresh salmon which was cubed. We also tossed in a can of tiny cocktail shrimp.)
2 cans organic chopped tomatoes, and juice
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp chopped thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cans white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup fish or chicken stock
Salt & freshly ground pepper
…………………………………..
Heat tbsp duck fat (or olive oil) in skillet over medium heat.
Add chorizo and saute for 1 minute
Add onions and garlic and saute until soft
Add squid and saute for 1 minute (If substituting fish/canned shrimp, omit this step)
Add tomatoes, parsley, thyme and bay leaf and simmer gently for about 10 minutes to combine flavours.
Add beans and stock and cook another 10 minutes or until mixture is no longer runny. (You’re looking for a stew-like consistency here)
Once desired consistency is achieved, remove from heat. (If substituting fish, canned shrimp, add them to the mixture at this point)
Transfer mixture to into a 9 x 13 baking dish or casserole
Pre-heat oven to 350
Heat more duck fat (olive oil) in skillet over medium heat. Add bread crumbs and stir together for a few minutes, until crumbs are crisp. Add parsley and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Turn up heat on skillet to medium-high and and more fat or olive oil. Sear scallops until lightly golden on each side. Set aside
Place bean mixture into pre-heated 350 oven and bake for 10 minutes, then nestle scallops into mixture, top with bread crumb mixture and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until beans are bubbling and scallops are cooked.
WATERMELON, FETA & BLACK OLIVE SALAD
This is so easy and so delicious. It’s possibly the most refreshing summer salad EVER! There are many versions of it around, this one is from Nigella Lawson.
1 small red onion
2–4 limes, depending on juiciness
1.5 kg sweet, ripe watermelon
250g feta cheese
bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
bunch fresh mint, chopped
3–4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
100g pitted black olives
black pepper
1. Peel and halve the red onion and cut into very fine half-moons and put in a small bowl to steep with the lime juice, to bring out the transparent pinkness in the onions and diminish their rasp. Two limes’ worth should do it, but you can find the fruits disappointingly dried up and barren when you cut them in half, in which case add more.
2. Remove the rind and pips from the watermelon, and cut into approximately 4cm triangular chunks, if that makes sense (maths is not my strong point). Cut the feta into similar sized pieces and put them both into a large, wide shallow bowl. Tear off sprigs of parsley so that it is used like a salad leaf, rather than a garnish, and add to the bowl along with the chopped mint.
3. Tip the now glowingly puce onions, along with their pink juices over the salad in the bowl, add the oil and olives, then using your hands toss the salad very gently so that the feta and melon don’t lose their shape. Add a good grinding of black pepper and taste to see whether the dressing needs more lime.
PAVLOVA
This is a somewhat old fashioned dessert that was very stylish at one time, sort of like Baked Alaska or Cherries Jubilee. Apparently it’s still very popular in Australia & New Zealand. If you’ve never had it, you don’t know what you’re missing. There couldn’t possibly be a better way to show off the fruits of the season, and it’s light enough that you can always have a second helping without exploding. Though we had a home-made rhubarb/orange zest compote on ours, you can top a pavlova with any kind of fruit, fresh or cooked.
When preparing a Pavlova recipe, the most important thing is to have scrupulously clean utensils, free of grease or egg shell. The success of the meringue depends on it. It is also important that the egg whites are at room temperature before beating them. If you have a copper bowl, you’ll get much better volume from your egg whites, but it isn’t a must.
Pavlovas have a habit of deflating and forming cracks when you open the oven. Don’t be disheartened, just make some extra whipped cream to fill in the hole if this happens. It will still be a spectacular dessert.
4 large egg whites at room temperature (or 6 small/med eggs)
1 cup of Castor sugar, also known as “Berry sugar”
1 tsp of white vinegar
1/2 tbsp of cornstarch
1/2 tsp of pure vanilla extract
small container of whipping cream
Fresh fruit or fruit topping
(If using any fruit that browns with oxidization, like apples or bananas, dress the fruit with 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice once it is sliced)
1. Preheat the oven to 275F (140C) and place the rack in middle of the oven. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and draw a 7 inch circle. A dinner plate works well. Turn the paper over so you don’t get ink or pencil lead transferred onto the pavlova. Set aside.
2. Break eggs into a small bowl, one at a time, to avoid getting any yolk or shell in them. Transfer the whites, one by one, to your mixing bowl. Beat the egg whites with a clean electric mixer on medium speed. Beat until the whites form soft peaks.
3. Gently sprinkle the sugar into the egg whites, one tablespoon at a time. Don’t just lump the sugar in the bowl. Never stop beating the eggs until you finish the sugar. Your egg whites should now be glossy stiff peaks.
4. Sprinkle the cornstarch and vinegar on the meringue and fold in gently with a plastic spatula. Add the vanilla and gently fold the mixture again.
5. Now gently spread the meringue in the circle on the parchment to make a circular base. Make sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher then the center so you have a very slight well in the middle.
6. Bake the meringue for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the outside turns slightly pinkish, creamy or the tiniest bit beige. Start checking the meringue around the 90 minute mark but try to not to open the oven door too many times.
7. Turn the oven off and leave the door slightly ajar to let the meringue cool completely. As the meringue cools, it will crack slightly. Meringue must cool slowly. If you make it early in the morning or at night before bed, all the better. A cooked meringue will keep in an airtight container for 2 days, but not much beyond that, and they HATE humidity!
8. Just before serving, place on a serving plate.
9. Whip the cream with the vanilla extract until it forms peaks.
10. Gently spread the cream to the top of the meringue with a spatula and sprinkle or drizzle the fresh or cooked fruit on top.
11. Eat it all. You can’t save it once it’s been dressed.
Supper at Summerfield 