Raclette - The Pleasures of Melted Cheese

Raclette Plate, Alpage de la Peule, Tour du Mont Blanc, Switzerland (Photos: RLW)

Raclette comes from Valais. Based on a variety of regional cheeses, it was a meal for farmers and alpine herdsmen. In the distant past someone put a cheese wheel too close to the fire and the Swiss discovered that melted cheese was delicious. Raclette was born. The term Raclette derives from the French 'racler', meaning "to scrape."

Traditionally the dish is composed of melted cheese, jacket potatoes (Bintje, Charlotte or Raclette varieties) and pickles. On our 2008 Tour du Mont Blanc a host of savories were offered including cured meats, pickled onions, sliced peppers, tomato, mushrooms, and pears. The plate is then dusted with paprika and fresh-ground black pepper.

Gomser or Bagnes are the cheeses of choice today. They have a creamy consistency and do not run when heated. The Raclette oven or grill is the tool of choice. Large Raclette cheese rounds are cut in half and three are mounted cut-side up. Two are under the heating elements, while the third is presented to be scraped onto diners' plates.

Richard Wottrich

Tokyo crowned new gourmet capital by Michelin

By TOMOKO A. HOSAKA (AP)

TOKYO — The Epicurean king who oversees the Michelin Guide fears he may be banished from France. His shocking crime?

Awarding Tokyo more three-star restaurant ratings than Paris, thereby crowning the Japanese metropolis the new gastronomic capital of the world. "Trust me, they'll wait for me at customs there," Jean-Luc Naret, director general of the famed guide to exceptional eateries, joked Thursday at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan. "Because they'll say how dare could you have more three-stars in Tokyo than in Paris?"

Michelin's latest Tokyo edition goes on sale in Japan on Friday, and Naret has been in town this week promoting what many consider to be the bible of culinary skill. This time, Michelin's undercover team of inspectors has bestowed its highest three-star rating to 11 restaurants in Tokyo, one more than in Paris.

Tokyo also beats Paris in the total number of stars received — 261 awarded to 197 establishments. That's 34 more than when the venerable guide made its Asian debut in Japan in 2007.

Michelin's ranking system considers the quality, consistency and value of a restaurant's food, with three stars designating "exceptional cuisine, and worth the journey," without taking into account the service or ambiance, according to the guide.

The first Tokyo edition sold 300,000 copies — 150,000 of which were snapped up in the first 24 hours. Since then, Michelin has released guides for Hong Kong and Macau, as well as Osaka and Kyoto in western Japan.

Not everyone in Japan was pleased that Michelin had landed in Tokyo. Critics attacked its culinary selections. Some chefs said they didn't want to be in the book. Others questioned how a group of foreigners could judge Japanese food.

To mollify naysayers, the company used only Japanese inspectors for the 2010 Tokyo edition, Naret said. placating his fellow Frenchman may be another matter.

"Forget everything that you know about Japanese food," Naret said he would like to tell Parisians. "Just go to the other side of the world, and you will understand what Japanese food is all about."

Naret added that statistically speaking, it's not really a fair contest. Tokyo is home to 160,000 restaurants, compared to 60,000 in Paris. And France still wins the country count with 25 three-star establishments nationwide to Japan's 18.

Butternut Squash & Pine Nuts Seven-Minute Risotto


Risotto is perhaps as sublime an Italian dish as exists. Classic risotto is the result of a single immutable technique that requires 25-35 minutes of preparation to achieve its unique consistency, or so I thought. I have always made risotto in a classic heavy cast iron frying pan, but I did not prepare it often because of the time commitment involved.

In mentioning this to my sister Sandy a few years ago, she casually remarked that she made her risotto in a pressure cooker in seven minutes! Seven minutes! “It couldn’t be the same,” I protested. “You can’t tell the difference” she replied with smug assuredness. Because Sandy is my younger sister, I of course ignored her tip for several months until I saw reference to it in a cooking magazine.

The foundation to creating the layers of flavor in a risotto is in what the Italians call the soffritto: onion and sometimes garlic sautéed in either butter or olive oil (or try shallots and fennel). This classic risotto starts from the soffritto and adds the subtle flavors of Butternut squash and pine nuts; a wonderful comfort food risotto that will surprise you.

3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 ounce butter
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups Italian Arborio long grain rice
1 cup white wine
2+ cups chicken stock (or veal stock)
1 Butternut squash, peeled, cored and cubed into bite sized squares
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese
cracked pepper and salt to taste
chopped herbs as you wish (lemon thyme is great)

Preparation: 1. Heat the olive oil in your pressure cooker pot and sauté the garlic and onions evenly until just translucent (about 3 minutes). 2. Put the rice into the pot and sauté it briefly until the oil has coated all the grains. 3. Add the chicken stock, wine and the cubed Butternut squash, lock the top on the pressure cooker (follow its instructions carefully). 4. Bring to high heat until the steam begins to vent, reduce the heat to gain steady venting and cook for seven minutes. 5. When the seven minutes are up, carefully run cold water on the pressure cooker until no steam vents. 6. Open the pot and put the rice into a large mixing bowl. 7. Add the butter, cheese, herbs, toasted pine nuts, salt and pepper (to your taste) into the rice and toss gently. Add more warm chicken stock if the risotto is too thick – it should slowly “pool” on a plate when served. 8. Let the risotto stand for about three minutes and then serve.

Notes: The wonder of risotto is that you can experiment with any ingredients you like. Some believe that chicken stock produces a little too sharp of a broth. Many great risotto dishes use veal broth instead. When adding more delicate meats, as with shrimp or fish, it is better to prepare them separately and add them to the risotto at the end. Hardy pre-cooked meats, as with sausage, ham or pancetta, may be added up front with the other ingredients. Clams or mussels can be added afterwards, but they should be cooked ahead of the risotto so that their juices can be added to the risotto stock in order to impart their delicate flavors. The grated cheese is always added at the last, and if one were to blanket the dish with shaved white truffles, the angels themselves will join you at the table.

The Wottrich's 27th Anniversary Dinner

November 14, 2009

An Ode to Mario Batali

Amuse-bouche

Organic Chicken Liver Pate with Lemon Thyme, Pomegranate Molasses & Fresh Cranberries

1999 Veuve Clicquet Ponsardin Champagne

First Course

Grilled Shrimp, Corona White Beans, Rosemary, Arugula & Mint Oil (Gamberoni alla Toscana)

2007 La Lcianna GAVI

Second Course – German Time Out

Richard’s Steak Tartare with Pickled Onions & Cornichons

Third Course

Papaya, Pineapple & Lemon Grass Sherbet

2007 George Gustav HUFF Riesling

Fourth Course

Braised Pork “Black Rooster” (Brasato di Maiale Nero) with Butternut Squash Risotto

2007 Bacca Rossa Sicilia

Fifth Course

Shaved Fennel, Red Grapefruit, Pecorino & Pomegranate Salad (Finocchi e Tarocchi)

2007 PISATO Montepulciano

Desert Course

Sharon’s Biscotti, Sugar-Coated Red Grapes & Italian Cheeses

2005 Malaga, Jorge Ordonez & Co.

Royal Son-in-Law Eggs

This is an adaptation of Travels with Thai Food's

Peanut Oil for saute & deep fry

8 oz minced deboned chicken thighs

1 Cup Tamarind Water (Soak the insides scrapings of a few Tamarind Pods in hot water & strain)

1/2 cup palm or raw cane sugar

4 Tbsp fish sauce

2 Tbsp shrimp paste

2 chopped green onions

10 cloves slice garlic

1/2 Cup shallots chopped

8 hard boiled eggs, peeled

dried bird chillies soaked in water until re hydrated

1 Serrano Chile seeded & chopped finely

Cilantro chopped roughly

This dish smells AWFUL when you cook it but is one of my favorite dishes. Hodges Soiliel's puffed up chicken says it all...it is hot but oh so good!

Heat oil in large pan or wok, add chicken, cook until firm. Add tamarind water, palm sugar, fish sauce and stir in shrimp paste (this is the awful smelly part) simmer until shrimp paste dissolved, mixture reduces. Add green onion & set aside. Place enough oil to cover eggs (you can do them one at a time) heat oil to at least 350 place bird's eye chilies in oil (pat dry first) and deep fry garlic w/ chillies until golden, remove. Deep fry shallots & Serrano chilies until golden, remove. Place garlic & onions in sauce. Add eggs and fry until golden (about 5 minutes, turning frequently) . Quarter eggs, add chillies, onions, garlic to chicken sauce.

Place eggs on a platter, cover w/sauce & sprinkle chopped cilantro over all. Great as a first course with a little Basmati rice.

CoolCooksShare Factoid - Irrorateur (The Original Glade)

Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1 April 1755, Belley, Ain – 2 February 1826, Paris) was a French lawyer and politician, and gained fame as an epicure and gastronome: "Grimod and Brillat-Savarin. Between them, two writers effectively founded the whole genre of the gastronomic essay."

Irrorateur - A type of spray gun, invented by Brillat-Savarin, which was used to perfume rooms, especially the dining room. Brillat-Savarin wrote in the preface to La Physiologie du gout, "I submitted to the council of the Society for the Encouragement of National Industries my irrorateur, a piece of apparatus invented by me, which is none other than a compressor spray that can fill a room with perfume. I had brought the spray with me, in my pocket. It was well-filled. I turned on the tap and, with a hissing sound, out came the sweet-smelling vapour which rose right up to the ceiling and then fell in tiny drops on the people present and on their papers. It was then that I witnessed, with indescribable pleasure, the heads of the wisest men in the capital bending under my irrorateur. I was enraptured to note that the wettest among them were also the happiest."

The pedantic name of the device comes from the Latin verb irrorare, meaning to sprinkle or to bedew.

The Spice House - Best in Class

Spices, St. Jean-Pier-du-Port, France (Photo: RLW)

Shop for Spices and Seasonings at the best in class emporium located in Evanston, Illinois USA (five stores in all). The Spice House is a merchant of the highest quality, hand-selected and hand-prepared spices and herbs. Their high turnover insures freshness - I have been shopping there for years and have always been very pleased - especially by the amazing variety they offer. Just as importantly you can purchase very small quantities, lowering your opportunity cost when small amounts of a spice are required for an unusual recipe.

From their web site: "Our philosophy has always been to make you the freshest product by small, weekly batch grinding to ensure you the highest quality spices for your cooking needs. We import spices from countries of origin which have the highest recommendations for premium quality. Often, we offer several selections of origin so that you can sample the subtle variations and decide upon your own personal preference. The tools of our trade are a series of large stainless-steel scoops, mixing bowls, sifting screens of various mesh sizes, a small vibrating sifter, a collection of old-style stone and shearing mills, and most importantly, our human senses."

Second generation owners Tom and Patty Erd are knowledgeable merchants dedicated to their trade.

Richard Wottrich, Blog Editor

Simple Veal Escalopes

4 Veal Escalopes pounded thin

1/2 C flour

Salt & Pepper

1/2 C Parmesan cheese grated thinly

Juice of 1 lemon

Assortment of wild mushrooms (Hen of the Woods or Boletus are especially nice in this)

Flat leaf parsley chopped finely

Butter

1/2 - 1/4 C Veal stock (enough to moisten)

1/2 C Marsala

Nutmeg

Salt & pepper

Dredge the veal. Saute lightly & quickly until golden crisp on high heat, add the mushrooms for another 2 minutes at most, sprinkle the cheese, add the Marsala, stock, & the cream allow flavors to meld with the heat reduced for another 5 minutes at most. Sprinkle with parsley & grate a little nutmeg to finish. Great over toast or egg noodles...a simplest of fall suppers. This is an adaptation of one of my favorite Elizabeth David standards of a classic Bolognese dish. Sadie Valeri's lovely silver cream pitcher, plate & wax paper hanging at http://www.mgalleryoffineart.com/ somehow evokes the same simplicity and completeness for me.