Mrs John F Kennedys Baba Aux Fraises Recipes

CLASSIC FRENCH STRAWBERRY TART (TARTE AUX FRAISES)

Steps:

• Make sure you read the cooking notes before you start.
• Step 1 -To make the crust, whisk together in a mixing bowl the flour, sugar and salt. Add the cubed butter and mix with your fingers (or pulse in a food processor), until you get a crumbly consistency and pea-size bits of butter are still visible. Add the egg and mix until the dough roughly comes together into a ball; do not overmix. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Pre-heat your oven to 350F (180C) with a rack in the middle.
• Grease and flour a 9-inch (23 cm) tart pan. Transfer the dough onto a floured working surface and roll it out to a 12-inch (31cm) circle. Transfer the crust to the pan. Cut any excess crust that hangs over the edge, and poke the bottom of the crust all over with a fork. Line the top of the crust with foil or parchment paper and place pie weights or dried beans to keep the pie crust from puffing when baking.
• Bake the crust for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper filled with weights and bake for 10 more minutes, until the edges of the crust are slightly golden. Set aside to cool completely.
• Step 2 - To make the crème pâtissière, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm up the milk and vanilla. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk and sugar until lighter in color and fluffy. Whisk in the flour and cornstarch. When the milk is just simmering, pour it into the egg mixture, and whisk until just incorporated.
• Transfer back into the saucepan, whisk occasionally and remove from the heat as soon as it begins to thicken and bubble. Pour into a clean bowl, and cover the crème with plastic wrap; the wrap should touch the whole surface of the crème to prevent a skin from forming. Set aside to cool completely.
• Step 3 - To assemble the tart, place the crust onto a serving plate. Spread the crème pâtissière over the bottom of the crust. Wash, drain, de-stem and halve the strawberries. Gently place them on top of the crème in a circular pattern (bottom side down).
• Warm up the apricot jam in a microwave for 15 seconds and pass it through a fine mesh strainer if needed (to discard of fruit chunks). Gently brush the jam over the strawberries. Chill the tart for at least one hour before serving.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S FILET DE BOEUF WITH SAUTEED VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Peel potatoes and cut into balls with a melon ball cutter. Melt butter in a large skillet over moderate heat. Add potato balls; cook and stir about 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Add mushrooms and cook over low heat 5 minutes. Add salt, pepper, and sherry. Keep hot over very low heat. Place filets on broiler rack in preheated broiler 3 inches from heat. Broil 4 to 5 minutes on each side for rare; 6 to 7 minutes on each side for medium well done. Serve filets with the sautéed potatoes and mushrooms.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S HOT FRUIT DESSERT

Steps:

• Grate the rind from the orange and lemon; add to brown sugar with nutmeg. Cut orange and lemon into very thin slices. Drain and combine fruits. Butter a 1-quart casserole and arrange fruits in layers, sprinkling each layer with some of the brown sugar mixture. Bake 30 minutes at 350°F. Serve warm with a spoonful of sour cream on top. Author's note: It's always best to use fresh fruit when in season.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S BABA AUX FRAISES

Steps:

• Sprinkle yeast over water, stir until dissolved. Add 1/2 cup of the flour and 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Beat until smooth. Cover and let rise in warm place about 45 minutes until double in volume. Put butter in large bowl. Add rest of the 1/2 cup sugar gradually. Beat until fluffy. Add salt and eggs, rest of flour, currants, and yeast mixture and beat 5 minutes. Pour mixture into a well-greased 3-quart ring mold. Cover, let rise in warm place about 1 hour, until double in size. Heat oven to 350°F. Bake 40 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Invert cake on serving plate. Combine 1 cup sugar and water in a saucepan. Boil 5 minutes over moderate heat. Cool and stir in rum. Spoon sauce over cooled cake. Slice the berries, reserving a few whole berries for garnish. Add 1/3 cup sugar. Place strawberries in center of cake and garnish with whole berries.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S SALAD MIMOSA

Steps:

• Combine oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and garlic in a jar with tight lid. Shake vigorously. Arrange greens in salad bowl, add dressing, and toss thoroughly. Sprinkle with chopped egg.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S CONSOMME JULIENNE

Steps:

• Cut carrots, leek, celery, and turnip into very thin strips about 2 inches long. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add carrots, leek, celery, turnip, cabbage, onion, salt, pepper, and sugar. Cover and cook about 5 minutes until vegetables are tender. Combine with chicken bouillon, simmer 5 minutes. Serve with garnish of chopped parsley.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S POMMES DE TERRE CHATOUILLARD

Steps:

• Peel potatoes and trim so that all surfaces are regular. Cut lengthwise into long, narrow, very even slices about 1/8-inch thick. Dry slices between pieces of paper toweling. Heat enough oil in a deep saucepan to fill pan half full. Heat oil to 350°F (use a deep-fat thermometer). Drop a handful of potato slices, one at a time, into the oil. Remove pan from heat and shake it to keep pieces moving constantly. When temperature reads 250°F, return pan to heat and shake it until slices begin to swell. Do not let the temperature of oil rise above 300? F Puffing will take about 8 minutes. Skim off potatoes and drain on a tray covered with paper toweling. Just before serving, heat the oil to 400°F. Drop the partially cooked slices into the hot oil. They will puff and rise to the surface. Turn constantly until browned. Drain. Sprinkle with salt. Serve hot.

TARTE AUX FRAISES

Steps:

• In a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan, scald the milk with half the vanilla bean over medium-high heat. Remove from heat, cover the pan and let infuse 10 to 15 minutes.
• In a bowl, whisk together 2 of the egg yolks with the sugar. Whisk in the 2 tablespoons of flour. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk and slowly whisk the milk into the yolk mixture. Return the mixture to the pan and bring to a boil, whisking continuously. Lower the heat and continue to cook, whisking, for about 2 minutes or until the mixture has thickened.
• Pour into a bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the mixture. Let cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process the 1 1/4 cups flour, butter and 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar until combined. Add the remaining egg yolk and, with the processor still running, add the water slowly until the dough begins to hold together and pull away from the sides of the processor bowl. Form the dough into a ball and flatten into a disk.
• Place the dough between 2 sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap to facilitate the rolling and roll out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Line 16 3-inch tartlet molds with the pastry. Prick the dough all over with a fork. Place the molds on a baking sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until slightly browned. Remove the shells from the molds and allow to cool completely.
• To assemble the tartlets, fill each shell with a heaping teaspoon of the pastry cream, top with the sliced strawberries and dust generously with confectioners' sugar.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S CASSEROLE MARIE - BLANCHE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Combine noodles, cheese, sour cream, salt, pepper, and chives. Pour into a buttered 2-quart casserole and dot top with the 1 tablespoon butter. Bake about 30 minutes, until noodles begin to brown. Serve immediately.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S BAKED SEAFOOD CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F. Combine crab meat, shrimp, mayonnaise, green pepper, onion, celery, salt, and Worcestershire. Pour into a buttered 2-1/2 quart casserole. Top with crushed potato chips. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until mixture is thoroughly heated.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S MUSHROOMS WITH HERBS

Steps:

• Wash and slice the mushrooms, combine with the remaining ingredients. Let stand 2 hours. Melt 4 tablespoons butter or margarine in a saucepan, add mushrooms and marinade. Simmer 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Serves 4 to 6

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S LEMON ICE

Steps:

• Combine water and sugar in a saucepan; bring to a boil and boil 5 minutes. Cool. Add lemon juice and rind. Pour into 2 refrigerator trays. Place trays in freezer. When mixture is frozen to a mush, remove to a cold bowl and quickly beat with a rotary beater until smooth. Return to trays and freeze again. Remove mixture to cold bowl and quickly beat until smooth. Return to trays and freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

MRS. JOHN F. KENNEDY'S LOBSTER CARDINALE

Steps:

• Drop lobsters into rapidly boiling water. When water returns to a boil, cook lobsters 15 minutes; remove and cool. Boil the water rapidly until it is reduced to 2 cups. Place each lobster on its back and with a sharp knife cut membrane the entire length of the body. Remove and discard the stomach portion, which is under the head. Remove meat from claws and body and cut into 1-inch pieces. Place body shells in a shallow baking pan. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan; add flour and salt. Gradually add 2 cups of the reduced liquid stirring constantly until smooth and thickened. Cook 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add wine, mushrooms, and the remaining butter. Spread a little sauce in the bottom of each shell. Add lobster meat, top with rest of sauce, and sprinkle with cheese. Place 3 to 4 inches from heat in a preheated broiler and broil about 5 minutes, until mixture is hot and lightly browned.