Crispy Farm Raised Poussin With Foie Gras Armagnac Sauce Asparagus And Morels Recipes

MOREL FOIE GRAS

Steps:

• Presoak the morels in the port wine. Once the mushrooms are reconstituted, strain and reserve the wine. Next, chop the morels into a small dice. In a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, render the foie gras. Once rendered, add the glace de viande and reserved wine to the foie gras and reduce by half. Add the morels and heavy cream to the port reduction. Continue cooking until reduced by one-third. Once reduced, cool and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for no more than 1 week.

PRUNES IN ARMAGNAC

Steps:

• Place 3 cups of water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat, add the tea bags, and steep for 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags, add the prunes and honey, turn the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 3 minutes to plump the prunes.
• Pour the prunes and all the liquid into a medium bowl and stir in the Armagnac, vanilla, orange juice, vanilla bean, and cinnamon sticks. With a vegetable peeler, cut 4 large strips of zest from 1 lemon and add to the mixture. Cut the lemon in half, cut 4 (1/2-inch-thick) slices, and add to the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 6 to 12 hours. (If you're not serving the prunes that day, refrigerate them in their liquid.)
• To serve, place the prunes in shallow dessert bowls and serve cold, at room temperature, or slightly warmed, spooning the macerating liquid over them. Add a scoop of ice cream, a drizzle of Armagnac, a drizzle of honey, and a sprinkling of grated lemon zest. (You'll be surprised how much flavor this adds!) Serve immediately.

ROAST QUAIL STUFFED WITH FOIE GRAS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Season quail, stuff with foie gras and wrap with bacon. In oven proof saute pan heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over moderate heat until hot. Add quail and cook until golden on all sides. Transfer to oven and roast 15 minutes. Transfer quail to a serving dish.
• Discard all but 2 tablespoons fat from pan. Add shallot and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Deglaze pan with Armagnac, scraping up brown bits clinging to bottom of pan. Add veal stock and reduce to 1 cup. Add enough arrowroot to lightly thicken sauce. Whisk in remaining butter.
• Pour juices from platter containing quail into sauce and stir to combine. Coat quail with sauce and garnish with chervil.
• Recommended Wine: 1983 Gevrey-Chambertin, Clos Prieur, Domaine Rene Le clerc

CAST IRON BLACKENED GROUPER WITH GRILLED SEASONAL ASPARAGUS, MORELS, ROASTEDFINGERLINGS AND WATERCRESS CREAM

Steps:

• Prepare the blackening spice. Put all listed ingredients into a coffee grinder and grind for approximately 1 minute. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Portion the grouper fillet into 4 equal portions, leaving the skin on. Place the fillet skin-side down on a plate and generously rub the blackening spice onto the flesh. Set aside.
• Roast the fingerling potatoes in oven for 15 minutes or until they are fork tender. Peel and blanch the asparagus in salted boiling water until al dente. Saute the morels with the spring peas and butter until tender. Blanch, shock and puree the watercress in a blender with the cream and 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil for a fine puree.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil until it smokes and carefully place the grouper flesh side down and blacken the fish. Finish in the oven for 10 minutes.
• To finish the dish, reheat the asparagus on the grill. Bring the watercress cream to a simmer. Reheat the morels and peas. Reheat the fingerling potatoes. Place the asparagus on the plate, place the morels and peas on top of the asparagus. Place the fingerlings next to the vegetables. Place the grouper on the side of the vegetables and sauce. Garnish with a few watercress leaves.

SAUTé OF WHITE ASPARAGUS, MORELS, AND RAMPS OVER POLENTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
• Snap off the ends of the asparagus (they will break naturally where their toughness begins), and peel the stalks.
• Clean the ramps and prepare the ramps according to the method described on page 33.
• Blanch the asparagus in heavily salted boiling water about 5 minutes, until tender. To test for doneness, take a spear out of the water, cut a small piece off the end, and taste it. (Remember, the spears will continue to cook a little as they cool.) Carefully remove the asparagus to a baking sheet to cool.
• If the morels are large, cut them in half.
• Heat a large sauté pan over high heat for 2 minutes. (If you don't have a pan that's large enough to hold all of the vegetables, heat two pans and divide ingredients accordingly.) Add 4 tablespoons butter to the pan, and when it foams, scatter the morels into the pan, being careful not to overcrowd them. Sauté the mushrooms 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often. Turn down the heat to medium, and add the thyme, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and a few grindings of pepper. Let the mushrooms cook another 6 to 8 minutes. They should be crispy on the outside, yet still tender. (The amount of cooking time really depends on the mushrooms; sometimes they give off water, which will require a longer cooking time, to allow the water to evaporate and the morels to crisp.)
• Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter to the mushrooms, and place the blanched asparagus carefully in the pan. Toss to coat the asparagus in all the mushroomy brown butter, and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add the ramps to the pan, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook another 2 minutes, tossing often so all the flavors meld and everything is coated in the butter. Taste for seasoning.
• Spoon the polenta onto a large warm platter. Using tongs, arrange the asparagus and ramps, randomly overlapping them over the polenta. Spoon the morels and all the butter over the top, and scatter the parsley over everything.
• In a heavy-bottomed pot, bring 5 1/2 cups water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil over high heat. Add the polenta slowly, whisking continuously. Turn the heat down to low, and continue cooking for another 20 minutes, whisking often. Add another 1/2 cup water and cook 1 more hour, whisking often and adding 1/2 cup water as needed, about every 20 minutes. The flame should be low, so that the polenta is barely simmering. As you whisk, make sure that you reach the bottom of the pan to prevent the polenta from scorching. I like to use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the pot.
• Whisk in the butter, and taste for seasoning. Even when the polenta is finished, you might sense it thickening up a little. If so, add a little more water and whisk to get the right consistency. If you're not serving right away, cover the pan with plastic wrap to keep the polenta from thickening or losing moisture. If necessary, rewarm over low heat before serving.
• You can blanch the asparagus and ramps a few hours ahead.

PAN-SEARED ASPARAGUS WITH CRISPY GARLIC

Steps:

• Place a paper towel-lined plate next to the stove. In a medium or large skillet, combine the garlic and olive oil over medium-low heat. Cook, shaking the skillet often, until the garlic is very light golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, tilt it, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the garlic to the towel-lined plate, leaving the remaining oil in the skillet. Season the crispy garlic with salt.
• Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add the asparagus, season with salt and pepper, and cook, shaking often, until bright green, crisp-tender and browned in spots, 4 to 5 minutes. Slide onto a platter, including any oil in the skillet. Top with the garlic chips and season again with salt and pepper.

ROASTED ASPARAGUS WITH CRISPY LEEKS AND CAPERS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Put asparagus on a rimmed sheet pan and toss with 1 tablespoon oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt until well coated.
• In a small bowl, stir together leeks, remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Sprinkle leeks on top of asparagus, then sprinkle with capers. Roast until asparagus are tender and golden brown, about 12 to 18 minutes.
• While the asparagus stalks roast, make the mustard sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, capers and garlic. Slowly whisk in olive oil a few drops at a time to create a thick, emulsified dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Once asparagus stalks are out of the oven, squeeze a lemon wedge over it and sprinkle parsley on top. Serve with mustard sauce and more lemon wedges on the side.