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TOMATO SOUP with ORANGE & CUMIN
GRILLED HALIBUT with TANGERINE SALSA
SAUTEED GARLIC GREEN BEANS
TWICE – BAKED POTATOES
DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
Tomato Soup with Orange & Cumin
Serves 8-10
1 ½ small yellow onions, peeled and quartered
1 ½ medium baking potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
¾ cup (6 Tbsp.) unsalted butter
1 ½ Tbsp. ground cumin
4 Bay leaves
1 cup fresh orange juice (from about 2 large oranges)
3 28 oz. cans peeled whole tomatoes (without basil) in their juice
1 ½ Tbsp. packed finely grated orange zest (from oranges used for
fresh orange juice above)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 half pound (8 oz.) sour cream for garnish
1 small pkg fresh chives snipped for garnish
Sauté the onions, potatoes, butter, cumin, and bay leaves in a large (at least 4 -qt.) saucepan for about 4 minutes. Add orange juice and 4 ½ cups water. Cover, bring to a boil over high heat and reduce to a simmer. Cook until a skewer easily pierces the potatoes, 20-25 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juices
and the orange zest. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to maintain a steady, low simmer and cook uncovered, until the potato chunks are falling apart, another 20 minutes. Discard the bay leaves.
Puree the soup with a hand blender, stand blender, or food processor.
Strain through a medium sieve; discard the contents of the sieve. Season with 1 Tbsp. salt and pepper to taste.
If not serving immediately, let cool completely before refrigerating.
Bring to room temperature about 1 hour before transferring to Hosts home and heat gently. Adjust the salt and pepper as needed, garnish with a dollop of the sour cream and sprinkle snipped chives over the top of the soup and serve.
Grilled Halibut with Tangerine Salsa
Tangerine Salsa
16 Clementine
2 Serrano chilies, minced (about 1 and 1/2 Tbsp.)
½ cup finely chopped “roasted” red bell pepper from jar
½ cup finely chopped shallots (about 4 large shallots)
6 Tbsp. fresh lime juice (from about 4 fresh limes)
4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh chives
4 Tsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
¼ Tsp. salt
¼ Tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Halibut
8 6 oz. Halibut fillets, (similar flaky white fish such as sea bass,
grouper, or cod can be used).
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
½ Tsp. kosher salt
½ Tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 Fresh limes quartered (8) for garnishment on entrée plates
To prepare the salsa: Extract and strain the juice from 8 of the clementines. You should have about 1 and ½ cups of juice. Transfer the juice to a small nonreactive saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the liquid reduces by half and the flavors concentrate. Set aside to cool.
Peel the remaining 8 clementines, divide them into segments and add them to the juice. Stir in the chilies, roasted red pepper, shallots, lime juice, olive oil, chives, parsley, cilantro, salt and pepper and mix well.
To cook the fish:
Preheat the broiler (high setting) and position the rack about 4 inches from the heating element.
Brush the fish with the oil and season each fillet with salt and pepper. Broil the fish skin side down for 8 – 10 minutes or until lightly golden and the fish flakes. No need to turn fish over.
Add a quartered lime and a sprig of left over flat-leaf parsley(used above) along side the fish for garnishment.
Serve side of green beans and potato on entrée plates and serve.
Sautéed Garlic Green Beans
Serves 8
These green beans are a very popular side dish. They are simply elegant and easy to make. Start with fresh green beans, topped and tailed (translation: snap off the tapered ends), and then shock them in ice water after blanching to keep them bright green. You may use frozen, if so, no need to blanche.
2 lbs. fresh haricots verts or slender green beans
(We used Trader Joe's frozen haricots verts and thawed them)
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 Tbsp. finely chopped shallot (about 2 small shallots)
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
Salt and freshly ground white pepper.
Fresh: Set a large bowl filled with water and ice cubes near the stove. In a large pot partly filled with salted, boiling water; cook the beans for 4 to 5 minutes until bright green. Drain and plunge into the ice water to stop the cooking. Drain thoroughly.
In a large 8 Qt. pot, melt the butter over medium heat until bubbling. Add the shallots and garlic and cook for about 45 seconds or just until softened.
Add the beans, toss a few times and season with salt and pepper. Sauté for about 4 minutes longer or until heated through and tender. Serve immediately.
Twice – Baked Potatoes
Serves 8
8 large Idaho baking potatoes, each about 8 – 10 ounces
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream
8 Tbsp. sour cream
8 Tbsp. minced fresh chives
8 ounces shredded Swiss cheese (2 cups)
4 Tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 large eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
¾ Tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Pierce the potatoes a few times with a small, sharp knife. Bake the potatoes directly on the oven rack for about 1 and 1/2 hours or until fork tender. Let the potatoes cool for about 15 minutes.
Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
Using a paring knife, cut an oval from the top of each potato. Scrape the flesh off the cut out piece and put it in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Note: if you do not have a stand mixer, a portable mixer will work fine. Carefully scoop the flesh from the inside of the potatoes, leaving ½ inch of flesh and put the scooped out flesh in the bowl. Keep the potatoes’ jackets intact.
Beat/mash potato flesh in bowl to break up lumps. Add the butter, cream, sour cream, chives, half of the Swiss cheese, the Parmesan cheese, eggs, salt and pepper to the potato flesh in the bowl. Mix on high for about 30 seconds, or until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix for another 30 seconds.
Spoon the potato mixture back into the jackets, mounding the mixture about ½ inch over the top. (spoon any leftover potato mixture into a small ramekin dish or casserole dish and bake alongside the potatoes.)
Transfer the potatoes to a large rimmed baking sheet or shallow roasting pan, sprinkle with the remaining Swiss cheese and bake for 30-35, minutes or until the cheese melts and the potatoes are heated all the way through.
Serve immediately.
Double Chocolate Mousse
Serves 8
Note: If you are concerned about the uncooked egg whites called for in this recipe, use the pasteurized egg whites, which are sold in cartons in the grocery store.
The mousse can be made the day before, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Continue to refrigerate at Host’s home. Easiest to assemble desserts at Host’s home right before serving.
1 ½ cups heavy cream (purchase 1 Qt. to cover whipping cream portion)
6 ounces semisweet or bittersweet dark chocolate, preferably Belgian,
chopped into small pieces
1 Tbsp. plus 11/2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
½ cup egg whites (from 3 to 4 large eggs) or ½ cup pasteurized egg
whites
1/8 Tsp. cream of tartar
1/8 Tsp. salt
¼ cup sugar
1 small container of fresh raspberries to garnish top of dessert
1 small pkg. of fresh mint- use small sprigs to garnish top of dessert and
remainder of large sprigs to garnish around bottom of dessert glass
if you place dessert glass on base plates to serve.
Whipped cream -- garnishment-- see directions below
In saucepan, bring ¾ cup of the cream to a boil over medium-high heat.
Put the chocolate and cocoa in a large glass bowl and pour the hot cream over them. Let the mixture stand for about 1 minute and then whisk until blended. Be sure to break any clumps of the cocoa. Set aside at room temperature for about 45 minutes, whisking occasionally to keep the mixture smooth. The chocolate needs to cool to 80 degrees F. Note: please verify coolness using a candy thermometer. My thermometer only went to 100 degrees F. Once your thermometer shows 100 degrees F., continue cooling for another 5 minutes…this should take the coolness to 80.
In a chilled, dry bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, (if you do not have a stand electric mixer with a whisk attachment, you may use a portable mixer with the beater attachment), beat the egg whites on high speed for 10-20 seconds or until they begin to foam. Add the cream of tartar and salt and beat for about 1 minute longer or until soft peaks form.
Sprinkle the sugar over the whites and continue to beat for 1 to 2 minutes longer or until the peaks are stiff but not dry. At this point, the mixer will make a “wop, wop, wop” sound.
Hand fold the whites into the cooled chocolate folding one direction (make sure it’s no warmer than 80 degrees F before adding the whites). Again, please note the above notation with regard to the candy thermometer.
Pour the remaining heavy cream into the bowl of the mixer and beat with the whisk attachment on high speed for about 2 minutes or until soft peaks form. Hand fold the whipped cream into the chocolate, once again going the same direction. Do not worry if a few flecks of whites remain in the chocolate.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Serve the mousse spooned on dessert plates or spooned into wine goblets, or any other type clear glasses that will allow ample room to hold the mousse, whipped cream and garnishments….USE YOUR IMAGINATION!
Note: Mousse can be piped into serving dishes/glasses using a pastry bag fitted with a star tip.
Whipped Cream:
2 cups heavy whipping cream- chilled
1 pkg. “Dr. Oetker’s Whip It” whipped cream stabilizer (found
at Dominick’s)
1 Tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
The whipped cream can be made up to 1 hour before going to Host’s home.
Keep refrigerated till ready to add garnishments to desserts.
Start with whipped cream, add raspberries using all of package divided equally between all 8 desserts and ending with mint sprigs.
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