Cold Corn Vichyssoise

Serves 4

1 tbsp sweet butter

1 tbsp corn oil

1 large onion, diced (about 1 3/4 cups)

1 large potato, diced

4 large ears of corn, husked and kernels cut off 1/2 tsp salt (optional)

2 cups cold water

1/2 cup white wine

1 1/2 cups half and half

2 tbsp chopped chives or chopped fresh tarragon (or 1 tbsp of each)

Heat the butter and oil in a sauce pan.

Add the onions and saute for two minutes.

Mix in the potatoes and corn and simmer for another two minutes.

Add the salt (optional) and water and bring to a boil.

Once the mixture begins to boil, lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Using a hand blender, puree the soup in the sauce pan or you can transfer the soup to a food processor and process until pureed.

For a soup with an extra smooth texture, push it through a fine sieve or china cap.

Stir in the half and half, then add the chives or tarragon.

Refrigerate until chilled before service.

Serve in chilled bowls, if you like. You can garnish the top with a spoon of fat free sour cream.

To really lower the saturated fat, replace the half and half with a fat free milk blend. You can also replace the butter with additional corn oil.

Grilled Veal Chop

This is a great summertime recipe, a recipe I slightly altered to include flavorful garden tomatoes. The original recipe is by Jacques Pepin.

4 veal chops, 10-12 oz each

For the Sauce:

2 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp diced red onion

2 tbsp drained capers

1 medium tomato, diced

1 tbsp fresh chopped sage

2 tsp julienned lemon zest

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 tbsp chicken stock

For the Marinade:

1 tbs of olive oil and 1/2 tsp of paprika

Turn your BBQ grill to high.

Mix the oil and paprika and using a pastry brush, brush all sides of the chops.

Place on the grill and cook for about 3-4 minutes.

To have nice grill markings on each chop, envision the letter X. First place the chop on an angle of one side of the X. After 2 minutes, using large grill tongs, turn the chop in the direction of the other side of the X.

After another 2 minutes, turn the chop over and repeat the above process.

After the second side is cooked, turn your grill off.

Place the chops on a sizzle pan* or oven-ready dish and hold in an 150 degree oven for 10 minutes while you finish your side dishes or salad. This will allow the internal juices to rest and not bleed out during service.

You can hold the chops for a maximum of 20 minutes while you finish your side dishes.

To serve, place the chops on a platter or plate and spoon the sauce mixture around each chop.

This dish goes well with a garden salad and a nice freshly baked bread.

*Sizzle pans are very common in the restaurant business. They are indestructible oval metal plates used for grilling and broiling individual portions. I have had mine many years and they still look as though I recently purchased them.

Scampi Sauce form the Legendary Petite Marmite

In memory of “Mr. Gus,” Costanzo Pucillo, Chef/Owner

During 1976-1977 I was one of the lucky few chefs to work at the legendary Petite Marmite restaurant on Worth Avenue, in Palm Beach, Florida.

The first time I prepared this yellow mustard Scampi Sauce I thought to myself, what an unusual Scampi recipe to have so much yellow mustard.

This sauce was so popular we would make ten gallons at a time, some of it for shipping in smaller jars to guests visiting from all over the globe.

Once you try it, you too may become a fan of this sauce.

The recipe to follow is a scaled down version of the original production recipe that would almost fill a ten gallon mixing bowl. This recipe should yield about 12 - four ounce portions.

3 shallots

1 clove garlic

1 oz Worcestershire sauce

7 oz fresh lemon juice

8 oz sherry

16 oz soft butter

12 oz American yellow-mustard

Grate or finely chop the shallots and garlic, add Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and sherry.

Mix the mustard and butter until smooth and well blended, then add to the mixture above.

Place on medium-high heat and bring to a simmer. Stirring constantly, simmer for five minutes.

Place in a stainless bowl and hold on the side until you broil or grill your shrimp.

Ladle four ounces of sauce per portion of shrimp.

At Petite the shrimp we grilled to accompany this sauce were Spanish Reds. Also called, (Carbineros “Red Spanish Shrimp” or Crevette Rouge) You will never see a shrimp with such white flesh and a beautiful red outside shell, as Spanish Reds.

Bolognese Sauce

This excellent recipe yields four servings.

1 tbsp chopped onion

1 clove chopped garlic

2 tsp chopped celery

2 tbsp chopped carrots

1 tsp chopped red or green pepper

1 large ripe tomato, peeled and diced

2 oz dry white wine

1 pound lean ground beef or veal

12 oz seasoned tomato sauce

2 tbsp good olive oil

Black or red pepper to taste

1 pound of your favorite pasta, I like to make my Bolognese with Tagliatelle.

Heat oil in a 10 inch skillet.

Add onion and garlic and saute for 3 minutes.

Add remaining vegetables and tomatoes and saute for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add white wine and reduce until all the liquid is almost evaporated.

With a wooden spoon, move the vegetables to one side of the skillet and add the ground meat to the empty area of the skillet.

Using the wooden spoon, break up the meat and continue to saute until all the meat is lightly browned.

Add the tomato sauce and simmer another ten minutes.

Serve with your favorite pasta.

After draining your cooked pasta, I add one ladle of Bolognese sauce to the cooked pasta and stir in evenly.

Then plate the pasta and serve one ladle of sauce on top of the pasta.

For added flavor and plate presentation, I sometimes drizzle a small amount of alfredo sauce around the rim of the plate just before service.

BBQ Side Dishes

Coleslaw

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup yellow mustard

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp Kosher salt

1 tsp ground white pepper or 2 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp celery salt

1 medium head cabbage, cored, then shredded finely

2 stalks of celery, cut across the grain in thin slices

In a large bowl mix all of the seasonings together.

Fold in the cabbage and celery, mix well, then cover and chill.

Potato and Egg Salad

Serves 8

4 lb potatoes, Red Bliss or Yukon Gold

3 stalks celery, washed, peeled and diced

4 whole scallions with greens, cleaned, and diced

1/2 red pepper, diced

3/4 cup regular or light mayonnaise

3/4 cup fat-free sour cream

3 tbsp yellow mustard

2 tbsp pickle relish

1 tsp prepared horseradish

1 tsp Kosher salt

2 tsp paprika, Hungarian preferably

6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and diced

Black pepper to taste

Bring potatoes to a boil and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Drain and cool immediately. This recipe works better when potatoes are cold, so if time permits I cook potatoes a day in advance and refrigerate.

Slice the potatoes and place in a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl, mix the mayonnaise, sour cream and the remaining ingredients.

Spoon the mixture over the sliced potatoes and fold gently until all the potatoes are coated.

Cover and chill until service.

Pickled Watermelon Rind

This is a great side dish with summer BBQ.

2 pounds peeled watermelon rind, cut into 1x2 inch strips

4 cups sugar

2 cups apple cider vinegar

5 whole cloves

1 stick cinnamon

2 bay leaves

Bring a large pot of water with two bay leaves to a boil.

Add the watermelon rind and simmer for 15 minutes.

Divide rinds into Mason jars. (Either four small or two large jars)

In a 4 quart pot, bring the vinegar, sugar and remaining items to a boil. Stir until it’s all is dissolved.

Remove the stick of cinnamon and cloves and carefully pour the vinegar mixture over the cooked rind.

Cover and let cool before refrigerating.

Lip Smacking BBQ

All across America, BBQ season has arrived. Here are a few ideas worth trying this season. If you would like a healthy version of any of the listed sauces or side dishes, just reply and I will send you my recipe.

Dry Rubs and BBQ Sauces:

Memphis Style Dry Rub

Texas Style Dry Rub

St. Louis Country Style BBQ Sauce

Jack Daniels BBQ Sauce

Carolina Golden BBQ Sauce

Eastern North Carolina BBQ Sauce

Memphis Style Wet BBQ Sauce

Coffee BBQ Sauce

Dr. Pepper or Cola BBQ Sauce

Georgia BBQ Sauce

Texas Mopping Sauce

Park Lane BBQ Sauce

Sweet and Sticky Sauce

Popular Side dishes:

BBQ Baked Beans

Potato and Egg Salad

Classic Mayonnaise Coleslaw

North Carolina Red Slaw

Hush Puppies

Creamy or Vinaigrette Cucumber Salad

Corn and Cheese Casserole

Pickled Watermelon Rind

Carolina Style Banana Pudding

Traditional Cuts of Meat for BBQ:

Pork Spare Ribs: Taken from the pork belly, they are called “spare” because they are butchered in a manner to spare the bacon.

St. Louis Ribs: These are spare ribs that have been trimmed of the skirt meat, rib tips and pointed end, so the shape is a neat rectangle, yielding slender ribs with a good amount of meat.

Baby Back Ribs: Small curved ribs cut from the prized top-loin of the hog. Less meat than spare ribs, but leaner and more tender.

Country Style Ribs: Approximately one inch thick strips of pork cut from the shoulder end of the pork loin. Sometimes resembles a slim pork chop. They cook much faster than bone-in ribs.

Pork Butt: Sometimes boneless, but frequently this cut consists of the upper half of the shoulder, with the blade bone, and sometimes part of the leg bone still attached. A hefty cut weighing 5-10 pounds. Requires a few hours of slow cooking, great for pulled pork or slicing for Cuban sandwiches. (And that crispy skin, yum) To speed the cooking process, I sometimes slow-boil for two hours, then finish with a seasoned slow roast.

Beef Spare Ribs: These are the bones attached to prime ribs. Many catering halls, who serve boneless prime ribs, will start with bone-in prime ribs, then remove the bones after roasting. This yields a tender rib bone easy to season and finish in the oven or grill.

Beef Short Ribs: Slightly squared ribs, with good marbling come from the short plate-front belly of the steer, cut between the bone. Another style called Flanken, is thinner and cut across the bone.

Beef Brisket: A 1.5 to 2 inch cut of meat from the chest or lower breast of the steer. The brisket consists of two parts, the flat cut is leaner than the point cut which requires much more cooking time. The point cut is normally cooked for a few hours then slow smoked.

Chicken Wings, Thighs and Drum Sticks: Very popular cuts for BBQ, rich in flavor and easy to BBQ, yielding good crispy skin.

Spatchcocked Chicken: Whole chicken with the backbone, and breast plate removed. This allows the bird to lay flat during roasting or grilling, which produces even heat throughout the bird during cooking.

Helpful Ideas for Grilling Season

Toppings, Accompaniments and Flavorings for Grilled Food

Compound Butters are quick methods of adding a finishing flavor to grilled meats. I like to consider them time savers. During the warmer weather I spend more time outside, but still want an upscale dinner presentation - compound butters offer this.

Compound butters season your grilled foods from start to finish. They can be made by folding flavors into softened, room temperature butter. For one stick of butter, add one tablespoon of fresh chopped herbs, like parsley, basil or rosemary and one tablespoon of lemon or lime juice. Blend with a fork and spread mix on cellophane or parchment paper and roll into a cylinder. Tightly twist the ends, then freeze or refrigerate until you are ready to serve. When grilling a steak or chop, take a thick coin sized slice of your butter and place on top of grilled meat just before serving.

Just a few of the endless ingredients that can be added to a stick of butter are: chopped garlic, smashed avocado, tomato puree, soy or teriyaki sauce, orange, lemon, or lime juice, fruited liquors, umami pastes or dry umami blends, or a mixture of fresh and dry herbs and spice blends.

Marinades are seasoned liquids that are used before and during grilling to flavor, moisten, and sometimes tenderize foods. They are usually an acid and oil based mixture, with the addition of your favorite herbs and spices. Approximately 15 minutes before grilling I baste the item I am going to grill, making sure I cover the item fully.

During the summer I always have fresh herbs and spices growing in my garden. Many times I will cut 2-3 ten inch stems of a herb like rosemary or basil and use these stems as a brush to spread my marinade over the food I am grilling. The aroma from the herb stems add an additional flavor to the item you are grilling. You can use a single herb or mix different herbs to combine flavors.

Rubs are a combination of dry ground spices and finely chopped herbs that are sometimes moistened with a little oil or flavored vinegar, wine, soy sauce or juice. The rub is patted into the meat and refrigerated until cooking. If your rub contains an acid (vinegar or lemon juice), be careful not to use it too far in advance, as this can over-tenderize your item.

Here are a few additional accompaniments to your grilled foods:

Salsas are a chunky mixture of fruits and/or vegetables, herbs and spices.

Chutneys are flavorings from India that are made of fruits, vegetables and herbs that also go great with your grilled items.

Compotes are a mix of fresh or dried fruit that are cooked in a syrup and flavored with spices and liqueurs. These may also be served with dessert.

Coulis is a chilled sauce made from a puree of fruits and vegetables that can be served as a dip for your grilled meats.

Mojo is a spicy South American or Caribbean sauce, served on the side, although it may also be used as a marinade.

Reductions may be used as a demi-glace to finish the cooking process, spread over your meat before serving. These are made by simmering a liquid down to a smaller volume, which will intensify the flavor. You then paint your grilled item with the glaze before service.