Ad Hoc

FINALLY after seven months of patience my library hold of Thomas Keller's ad hoc at home finally came to fruition.  After flipping through the whole book I have to admit it's probably not something I will add to my permanent cookbook shelf, but I'm looking forward to making as many of the recipes as I can over the next several weeks.


Tonight:

Sauteed chicken breasts with tarragon

Essentially chicken breasts dusted with sweet paprika & curry powder then pan-seared.  Sauce is shallots cooked in butter deglazed with wine and chicken broth with more butter & tarragon stirred in at the end.  Tarragon is one of those flavors that I like only occasionally, since I feel lukewarm about licorice-type flavors.  I was a little skeptical of what sounded like a very French sauce in combination with paprika & curry powder, but the more I ate of this the more I loved it.  This had spectacular layers of flavor for the time it took - will definitely add this to the weeknight rotation.

Summer vegetable gratin 

Deceptively simply.  Layers of thinly cut (~1/4") squash, zucchini, Roma tomatoes, and Japanese eggplant, all layered with breadcrumbs and Asiago cheese and plenty of salt, on a bed of sauteed onions and garlic.  All roasted for fifty minutes at 350 degrees.  Probably some of the best vegetables I've ever had.  This will definitely be a repeater.

Other recipes I'm looking forward to trying out: 

• Buttermilk fried chicken
• Braised beef short ribs
• Meatballs with pappardalle
• Crispy fried fish
• Heirloom bean and escarole soup
• Leek bread pudding
• Scallion potato cakes
• Brioche

Rotier's

Google Rotier's and the whole first page is praise for their cheeseburger on french bread.  It's lauded as the best burger in Tennessee by the Food network.   Patrick had been wanting to go for a while and I am generally not one to turn down a good hamburger, so we checked out Rotier's last night now that the Vandy students aren't spilling out the doors.  Rotier's is a total hole in the wall on Elliston Place, right down the street from the Elliston Place Soda Shop, which we have also been wanting to try  

Plus #1: Shiner Bock on tap -delicious.  Some idiot next to me was drinking it out of the bottle.

Downer #1: not so stellar service.  We waited quite a while before the busboy finally asked us if anyone had put us on the list to be seated.

Plus #2: sweet potato fries like they used to have at Southern Culture in Richmond (those were $1.50 for a platter?!?).  Fried perfectly, not over-seasoned, and gone in about 60 seconds.  

Downer #2: they were out of hash-brown casserole.   Patrick almost cried a little.

Plus #3: generous servings of crispy poppy-seed French bread wrapped around...

Downer #3:  ...mediocre burgers.  Maybe it's a little harsh to call them mediocre, but I have high burger standards and these were just ... OK.   Minimally seasoned and almost a little too greasy and bland for my tastes.  

Bonus downer #4: by the time we left Rotier's, the soda shop was closed and we had to settle for Maggie Moo's for dessert.  

The burgers certainly weren't bad, but they were nothing to write home about.  Upon walking into Rotier's, my favorite burger in Nashville was from Fat Mo's.  It still is.   I'm not saying it's not worth a visit - the ambiance is unique and the sweet potato fries & the french bread were very tasty, but the burgers were not memorable.  

Rotier's Restaurant

2413 Elliston Place

M - Sat, 9AM to 10:30PM

Curried couscous and chickpea salad with dried cranberries

Curried couscous and chickpea salad with dried cranberries

(adapted from Cooking Light, July 2001)

1 1/2  cups  uncooked couscous (about 1 [10-ounce] box)

1  cup  dried cranberries (about 4 ounces)

1  cup  frozen green peas, thawed

1 1/2  teaspoon  curry powder

1/4  cup  thinly sliced green onions

1/3  cup  finely chopped fresh basil

15.5 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained 

1/3  cup  fresh lemon juice

1  tablespoon  grated orange rind

2 tablespoons water

1 1/2  tablespoons  olive oil

1  tablespoon  thawed orange juice concentrate

4  garlic cloves, crushed

To prepare salad, combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Pour 2 cups boiling water over the couscous mixture; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork; cool. Stir in onions, basil, and chickpeas.  To prepare dressing, combine lemon juice and the remaining ingredients in a jar; cover tightly, and shake vigorously.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  Pour over couscous mixture, and toss well to combine. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.

I intended this to be a meatless entree, but the garlic herb rotisserie chicken smelled so good at the Teeter that I couldn't not buy it.  I added about 1.5 cups of shredded chicken to flesh this out a bit.  

Corn, green onion, and bacon tart

Since I overcame my fear of my tart pan, my production of tart-like dishes has increased exponentially.  They have all involved bacon.  The most recent endeavor from last night was no exception.  Because of this, I have to cook two to three times as much bacon as I actually need to end up in the recipe, since I am physically incapable of refraining from eating delicious crispy bacon.

Corn, Bacon, and Green Onion Tart 
(adapted from Cooking Light, May 2003)

4 slices applewood-smoked bacon
2 cups fresh corn kernels
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
1 (10-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough


Preheat oven to 375°.  Cook bacon slices in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 3 minutes or until bacon is beautiful and crispy.  Promptly eat at least 50% of bacon.  Remove and chop any remaining bacon.  Add corn, onions, and chopped bacon to bacon fat remaining in pain.  Salt and pepper to season and sauté 3 minutes. Place the corn mixture in a large bowl. Add the milk, 2 tablespoons cheese, salt, pepper, egg whites, and egg; stir until well blended.


Coat a 10 1/2-inch round removable-bottom tart pan lightly with cooking spray. Unroll dough onto lightly floured surface, and let rest 5 minutes. Pat dough into bottom and up sides of prepared pan.  Add pie weights and pre-back for 4-5 minutes or until lightly browned.  Remove tart pan from oven and place on a baking sheet. Pour bacon mixture into the dough, and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons cheese. Bake at 375° for 25 minutes or until set. Cool tart in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Makes four generous servings.  Does NOT reheat particularly well.



When I make it again:
I would use a real tart or pie crust, not refrigerated pizza dough.  It worked surprisingly well for a time-efficient recipe, but real crust is so delicious it would be a mistake not to include it.  I also thought the filling was a bit too much for the tart pan, and I would probably use a pie dish next time.

Fido Beer Tasting

Last night we attended what I believe was the first beer class & tasting held by local restaurant Fido.   Beth over at Eat.Drink.Smile had tipped me off, and I'm glad she did.  The organizers said they plan to make this a quarterly event, and I can assure you we'll be going back.

For $20, we got to taste seven beers and eat an outstanding four-course local meal.  And, as a bonus, we got to sit with one of Fido's bakers [Kevin] and pick his brain about all things baking (Patrick was particularly interested in how one starts a career in baking...)

The food:

Homemade pretzel with parmesan, lemon, and honey mustard

Lemon garlic chicken skewer with toasted coconut and parsley 

(and with what tasted like a sate sauce)

Handmade pizza topped with pesto and heirloom tomato

Local mini burger of lamb and beef topped with feta and crispy onion strings

The burger was the shining star of the evening - too bad I was so full by that point I didn't even make it through half of mine.  

The beers:

Vieille Provision Saison DuPont (Belgium) - farmhouse ale, a little yeasty, fairly light, very drinkable.  Our instructor said that more craft breweries are getting into saison brewing, and indeed our local favorite brewery Yazoo has rereleased their Rye Saison in the last few months (also delicious, now available in Nashville grocery stores)

Czechvar Lager (Czech Republic) - good for a lager, not as hoppy as the Pilsner Urquell, nothing to write home about but a good solid beer

Weihenstephaner Hefeweizen (Germany) - Patrick could probably drink this every day for the rest of his life and be happy.  Hefeweizens aren't my favorite beers (at least not his favorite, the Franziskaner), but this one was pretty darn good.  Beautifully cloudy (see below), very filling, not too hoppy for me, and pleasantly complex flavors.  We learned that the US custom of adding a citrus wedge only diminishes the intended flavor.  

(picture courtesy of The Captains Chair )

Fuller's ESB (UK) - one of the favorites of the women in the room (I was surprised by this).  Not my favorite, but I was too busy looking forward to the Paulaner.

Paulaner Oktoberfest Marzen (Germany) - the only beer that caused people to boo.  Not sure what they are thinking, because Oktoberfests are my favorite beers.   Maybe because there is just a special place in my heart for all things Oktoberfest and maybe because I prefer to drink mine out of (one of) my Paulaner steins, but I think it's a freaking delicious beer. 

Chouffe Dobbelen IPA Tripel (Belgium) - the best surprise of the evening.  One of the best IPAs I think I've ever had.   Very complex flavors, hoppier than I generally like but very enjoyable.  We'll be looking for this one to bring home in the future.

O'hara's Irish Stout (Ireland) - the surprising lesson was that stouts are fairly low in alcohol content.  The O'hara was a good solid stout and a nice way to close out the evening, but this is not my favorite style of beer.

Unfortunately, I took zero of my own pictures because I was too busy shoving food and beer into my mouth (and I was post-call).  Next time - because there will be a next time.  I think we'll also be checking out some of the Wine 101 classes.