APPETIZERS

Spicy Garlic Mushrooms
Grilled Eggplant Dip
Thin Saffron and Herb OmeletsVietnamese Lettuce Rolls with Dipping Sauce
Whole Cranberry Sauce with Lime and Fresh Ginger
Mushroom Tapenade
Vegetarian Spring Rolls
Goat Cheese Tartlets with Olive Compote
Smoked Salmon and Caper Relish on Rye Toast
Rosemary Roasted Almonds

Spicy Garlic Mushrooms

Serves 4

Ingredients
6 cups hot water
10 oz. large mushrooms, trimmed
¼ cup olive oil
6 tbsp. finely chopped red onion
3 tbsp. finely chopped garlic
1 tsp. finely chopped Serrano chili
1 tsp. roasted chili paste
¼ cup lemon grass stock or chicken stock
2 tbsp. Thai fish sauce
1 ½ tsp. Thai sweet black bean sauce
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. finely diced red bell pepper (garnish)

Method

1. Bring water to a boil in medium stockpot. Add mushrooms and boil two minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add onions and garlic and until browned, about 2 minutes. Add Serrano chili and chili paste and sauté one minute.
3. Add mushrooms and all remaining ingredients except garnish. Cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened, about three more minutes. Transfer to a platter, garnish with diced pepper, and serve.

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Grilled Eggplant Dip

Serves 8

Ingredients
1 ea. Japanese eggplants (long and slender, about 2 pounds)
8 cloves garlic, cut lengthwise in half
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3 ea. scallions, both white and green parts, finely chopped
2 tsp. ground coriander, toasted
2 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs. olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Method

1. Preheat the grill to high.
2. Make 8 small slits in each eggplant; insert a half garlic clove in each.
3. Place the eggplants on the hot grate and grill, turning with tongs, until the skin is charred all over and the flesh is very soft, about 20 – 30 minutes. Remove the eggplants to a plate and cool.
4. Scrape the skin off the eggplants. Place the eggplants with the garlic in a medium size bowl and mash to a coarse puree. Stir in the cilantro, scallions, coriander, ginger, lemon juice, oil, and salt and pepper. Serve with pita chips.

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Thin Saffron and Herb Omelets

Yield: 3 thin omelets

Ingredients
pinch saffron threads
6-8 each farm eggs (will vary in size)
4 each scallions with half of the greens, thinly sliced
¼ cup cilantro, leaves only, chopped
¼ cup parsley, leaves only, chopped
1 tbsp. basil leaves, chiffonade
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil, unsalted butter or a mixture of both
¼ pound goat or sheep's milk feta, crumbled or planked
more fresh herbs for garnish

Method

1. Cover the saffron with a tablespoon of boiling water and let sit for 5 minutes to release the color and golden flavor.
2. Whisk the eggs with the saffron and its water, the scallions, herbs and some salt and pepper. Let stand for 10 minutes or so to allow the herbs to impart their flavor to the eggs.
3. Preheat the broiler if using. Place 2 teaspoons of butter into an 8-inch non-stick skillet over medium high heat. When hot, pour in a third of the egg mixture. Lift the edges of the omelet to allow the uncooked eggs to flow underneath, adjusting the heat as needed so that the eggs cook and set but don’t brown much on the bottom. Flip the egg "pancake" over, or finish in the broiler. Slide onto a warmed plate and cook the other two omelets, stacking them on the plate to keep them warm.
4. When done, cut the stack into quarters, then arrange onto a serving platter with the feta and a sprinkling of more fresh herbs. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Vietnamese Lettuce Rolls with Dipping Sauce

Makes 16

Ingredients

Nuoc Cham Sauce
2 small cloves garlic mashed
1 small red chile pepper, seeded and minced
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
¼ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup Nuoc mam
¼ cup shredded carrot

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender.

Vietnamese Peanut Sauce
¼ cup Hoisin sauce
¼ cup water
1 Tbs. Nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce)
2 Tbs. ground dry roasted peanuts
2 Tbs. hot chile sauce (Seiracha)
2 Tbs. Roasted peanuts, finely chopped or crushed in cuisinart (Be careful that you don't make peanut butter.)

Combine ingredients and stir well. Thin with more water if necessary. Sprinkle with crushed peanuts just before serving.

Lettuce Rolls

Method

1. Prepare the dipping sauces and put it in small bowls.
2. Cut the shrimp in half lengthwise. Set aside.
3. Combine the shredded carrot with the sugar.
4. Soften the rice vermicelli in hot water for 10 minutes, drain.
5. Separate the leaves of lettuce. Wash well. Cut off the thick stems and cut each leaf in half.
6. Have all of the herbs ready. Keep each separate.
7. Fill a large bowl with warm water. Dip 2 rice wrappers in the water. Spread on a counter top. When the rice wrapper is very pliable, lay a piece of lettuce on the bottom third. Fill with a heaping tablespoon of noodles, 4 shrimp halves, a spoonful of carrots, some bean sprouts and several mint leaves. Roll halfway. Fold both sides in. Lay in 2 more shrimp halves at the crease, add some green onions, Chinese parsley and carrots. Continue rolling. Wet the end with a little water and seal. Place seal side down on a platter lined with a wet towel. Cover with another wet towel. Continue until the ingredients are used up.
8. Serve rolls on plate with two dipping sauces.

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Whole Cranberry Sauce with Lime and Fresh Ginger

Ingredients
½ cup water
½ cup sugar
½ cup real maple syrup
1 bag fresh cranberries
zest and juice of one lime
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
pinch of salt
freshly ground pepper

Method

1. Put the water, zest, lime juice, sugar and maple syrup into a medium-sized heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until the sugar has dissolved, about 3 minutes.
2. Add cranberries and continue to simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add ginger and mix well. Continue to simmer for an additional 8-10 minutes, until most of the cranberries pop.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

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Mushroom Tapenade

This is a delicious condiment on almost anything — with crackers, as a topping on Bruschetta, or as a garnish on grilled or sautéed fish, shellfish and chicken.

Makes approximately 2 cups

¾ cup finely chopped white onion

2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic

2 teaspoons minced fresh peeled ginger

4 tablespoons canola or grape seed oil

1 pound crimini, shiitake or other wild mushrooms cut into 1/4 inch dice

2 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

1 teaspoon hot pepper sesame oil (or to taste)

1/8 teaspoon five-spice powder

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon chopped, rinsed salted black beans, found in Asian groceries (optional)

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Method

1. Sauté the onion, garlic and ginger in 2 tablespoons of oil until softened but not brown. Set aside to cool.
2. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to a pan and sauté mushrooms quickly until just beginning to brown (sauté in batches with a little more oil, if necessary).
3. Add mushrooms to onion mixture and stir in remaining ingredients.
4. Store covered in refrigerator up to one week.

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Vegetarian Spring Rolls (Su Chun Juan)

Makes 20 spring rolls

Ingredients

4 cups peanut oil, for frying

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 cups scallions, white and greens cut into 1-inch strips

3 cups bean sprouts, fresh

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry

8-10 Chinese black mushrooms, dried, soaked in boiling water for 20 minutes

1 tablespoon ginger, minced

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

2 cups Chinese cabbage (napa), finely shredded

1 ½ cups carrots, finely shredded

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

1 ½ teaspoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

20 spring roll or Lumpia Wrappers

1 egg yolk

3 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons flour

Vegetable oil for deep frying

Plum or Duck sauce for dipping

Method

1. Heat a wok over high heat until hot, add 1 tablespoon of canola oil swirling to coat the pan. Add the scallions and stir-fry for 1 minute over high heat. Add the bean sprouts, salt and 1 tablespoon of the rice wine.  Continue stir-frying over high heat until the bean sprouts are slightly limp. Place the mixture in a colander and let it drain for 10 minutes, tossing occasionally.
2. Drain the mushrooms, cut off the stems and cut the caps into fine shreds.
3. Mix the soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of water, sesame oil and cornstarch together to form the Spring Roll Sauce.
4. Heat the wok over high heat until hot, add the 2 tablespoon of canola oil and swirl to coat pan. Add the ginger, garlic, cabbage and carrots and stir-fry for about 10 seconds or until fragrant. Add the black mushroom shreds and stir-fry another 30 seconds. Add the remaining rice wine. Stir-fry for a minute and add the Spring Roll Sauce. Toss lightly over high heat until the sauce has thickened. Spread the mixture in a  pan and let it cool for 15 minutes. Combine it with the bean sprout mixture.
5. Mix the egg yolk, 3 tablespoons of water and flour together to form the Adhesive.
6. Separate the spring roll wrappers and place them on a counter so that they look like a diamond, with one of the points of the diamond pointing toward you. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of the stir-fried mixture on one wrapper, near the edge closest to you. Spread some adhesive on all of the outside edges with a pastry brush. Wrap the point closest to you over the filling tightly, then bring in the two points on either side tightly over the filling. Roll the Spring Roll over the last point, tightly. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.
7. Preheat the vegetable oil to 375 degrees. Add 4-5 of the spring rolls at a time, seam side down and deep fry, pressing down into the oil constantly, for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oil to a rack over a sheet pan. Finish frying the rest of the spring rolls in the same manner.
8. Serve with duck or plum sauce. They can be made ahead and kept in a 200 degree over the about an hour.

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Goat Cheese Tartlets with Olive Compote

Makes approximately 2 dozen tartlets

Ingredients

For the Pastry

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

4 oz butter, very cold

4 oz water, cold

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg yolk

For the Filling

12 oz goat cheese

2 oz heavy cream

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

2 eggs

salt and white pepper to taste

For the Olive Compote

½ cup assorted gourmet pitted olives

Method

1. To make the pastry: Sift flour and salt together. Cut butter into small pieces. Using fingertips, mix the butter and flour together, flaking the mixture until it begins to resemble coarse meal.  Mix together the water and egg yolk. Add the liquid to the flour mixture and fold together just until it begins to hold the shape of a ball. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Remove dough from refrigerator and roll out using extra flour for dusting until the dough is approximately 1/12 of an inch thick. You should not be able to dent the dough by lightly pressing with a finger. Cut into 2-inch circles.
3. Lightly oil tartelette molds. Press the dough circles gently into the mold, removing any excess with a sharp knife.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
5. To make the filling: Mix the goat cheese with the eggs. Sprinkle flour over the mix and stir in well. Add cream and season to taste. Spoon the goat cheese mixture into the tartelette molds.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes until custard is set and edges of the crust are browned. NOTE: You may want to increase oven temperature for smaller tartelettes or increase cooking time for larger tartelettes.
7. Make the Olive Compote: Chop all olives together until minced. Top each finished goat cheese tartlet with 1/3 teaspoon of the compote.

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Smoked Salmon and Caper Relish on Rye Toast

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

6 oz cold smoked salmon, thinly sliced

¼ cup red onion, finely diced

¼ cup capers, drained

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 green onion, minced

3 oz cream cheese, softened

12 slices cocktail rye bread

1 oz olive oil

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Cut rye bread into triangles. Brush each triangle lightly with olive oil. Lay on sheet pan and bake until lightly toasted. Remove and cool.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine onions, capers and Dijon mustard. Set aside.
4. In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until softened and blend in the minced green onion. Set aside.
5. Cut salmon into 24 even-sized pieces and roll each piece into the shape of a cornet. Fill a small piping bag with the cream cheese mixture and fill each cornet with a small amount of cream cheese. Place the cornets onto the rye toasts. Place 1/3 teaspoon on the caper relish at the base of the cornets. Transfer to a platter and serve.

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Rosemary Roasted Almonds

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

1 pound raw whole almonds, shelled

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher salt)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Mix all ingredients together to fully coat the almonds. Spread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet (sheet tray).
3. Cook for 8 minutes. Stir the almonds and cook another 7-10 minutes. Remove, let cool and transfer to a serving dish.

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