• preparation

Arrange the cooked mussels on a serving dish. Refrigerate. Combine mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice and chives.
Pour sauce over the mussels. Serve cold

• preparation

Dice the fish into 1/2-inch cubes, rinse with fresh water, drain, and place in a large nonreactive salad bowl.

Squeeze the limes and pour the juice over the fish. Add the rice wine vinegar, sriracha sauce and ginger. Mix well and chill 15 to 20 minutes in the refrigerator.

Cut onion and green pepper into thin slices, and cut tomato into small cubes. Remove seeds from cucumber and cut into thin half-moons.
onions, tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers in bowls

Drain some of the lime juice, add the vegetables and season with salt and pepper.
Five minutes before serving, add the coconut milk. Serve chilled.
Tip
you can substitute tuna with jackfish, halibut, salmon, or snapper.

• preparation

In a medium bowl, combine the apple, blue cheese, celery, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Stir gently to combine. Season to taste with salt.
To assemble, mound a small spoonful of the apple mixture onto the core end of each endive leaf. Sprinkle with the hazelnuts and serve.

• preparation

Cut each apricot into 8 slices.
In a mixing bowl, combine the unpeeled apricots, lemon juice and sugar. Cover and set aside for 12 hours.
Transfer apricot mixture to a pot, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 25 minutes.
Remove the foamy top while cooking. Remove the fruit from the syrup with a skimmer and transfer to a bowl. Set aside.
Boil the syrup until thickened. Add reserved apricots and almonds to syrup. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes while gently stirring the preserves.
Allow to cool before transfering to jars

• preparation

Dice and freeze fatback. Dice the veal and pork. Heat oil in skillet. Sauté the onions. Combine meat, onion, and seasonings in a bowl. Mix cream and egg whites. Pour over meat. Refrigerate for a few hours.
Marinate artichokes in wine, brandy. Season with salt and pepper. Puree the meat with fatback. Add the pistachios and ham.
Grease a 5 cup mold and line top and bottom with pastry dough. Alternate forcemeat and artichokes ending with forcemeat.
Cover pâté with pastry. Brush with egg yolk.
Cut an opening in the center.
Bake at 350 degree for about an hour. When cold, fill the pate with sherry wine aspic.

• preparation

Snap off the woody ends of asparagus where they naturally break when you bend them or cut them off with a knife.

Boil water in a large pot or saucepan with steamer then reduce to simmer, add asparagus, cover with lid and steam asparagus until tender (about 8-10 minutes) *This will depend on your preference.

Use tongs to remove asparagus

In a small bowl, whisk balsamic vinegar, oil, red wine, dijon mustard, salt and pepper together.

Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Arrange cooked asparagus tomatoes on a large platter.

Sprinkle with feta cheese and parsley.


Drizzle with ½ the dressing and serve the remainder on the side *Can be served warm, room temperature or chilled.



????Variations & Substitutions
Tomatoes- you could use cherry tomatoes instead of grape tomatoes
Asparagus -you could use grilled or oven-roasted asparagus instead of steamed
Tarragon- fresh tarragon is ideal, but you can use dried
Feta cheese - you can use regular, light or fat-free feta or use goat cheese
Add-ins- you could also sprinkle on a little parmesan cheese and/or add red onions or green onion

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Roll puff pastry sheet on a floured work surface to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut into 4-inch squares.
Cut cheese into fingers about the size of asparagus spears.
Spread each pastry dough evenly with mustard.
Lay an asparagus spear and a strip of cheese on each pastry square. Roll them up, seal and place seam side down on a buttered baking sheet. Brush rolls with beaten egg.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until pastry is brown and cheese is melted

• preparation

In a small bowl, whisk together stock, oil and truffles.
In a deep 10 -to 12-inch skillet bring 3 inches salted water to a boil and cook asparagus until crisp tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Drain asparagus. Pat dry. Transfer to a serving dish and toss with butter.
Spoon truffle broth over asparagus and season with salt and pepper. Serve asparagus warm or at room temperature.

• preparation

Heat oven to 400°F.
Lightly grease or spray cookie sheet.
Place croissant halves 1 inch apart on cookie sheet. Bake 5 minutes.
Divide scrambled eggs among croissants. Crumble bacon on top of eggs.
Sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon cheese.
Bake about 5 minutes.

• preparation

Dough
In a small bowl, add 1/3 cup lukewarm water and 1 tsp. sugar. Add yeast and let sit until foamy, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Combine 3 ¾ all-purpose flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. In a stand mixer fitted with a dough blade, add water, olive and yeast mixture and blend. Knead on low speed for about 10 to 12 minutes until the dough comes together and is smooth. Remove dough from the bowl. Turn dough onto a well-floured surface and continue knead by hand until smooth and elastic, about 2 to 5 minutes. The dough should be soft but not sticky. If dough is still too sticky, add a little more flour. Place the dough in a lightly oiled medium bowl and cover. Let rest in a warm spot until doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Sauce
Drain the tomatoes in a strainer to remove excess liquid. Process the tomatoes in a food mill over a medium bowl. Discard excess liquid or keep to make a soup.

Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium-low heat. Add the garlic and sauté 2 minutes or until softened. Add tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Set sauce aside. Let cool to room temperature.

Toppings
Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

Place a pizza stone on the bottom rack of oven when oven begins to preheat. Heat according to manufacturer’s directions.

Punch down dough. Divide dough into 4 balls. Using your hands, stretch and pull (or alternatively roll with a rolling pin) each ball of dough into 10 to 12-inch rounds depending on how thin you want your crust.

Sprinkle some flour onto a pizza paddle (if you don’t have a paddle, you can sprinkle flour on pizza pans or baking sheets). Place a round of dough onto the pizza paddle or pan. Evenly spoon over tomato sauce and basil and cheese. Season the pizzas with salt and pepper and chile flakes, if desired. Drizzle with olive oil. Transfer the pizza to the preheated pizza stone. Bake until topping is bubbly and crust is golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with remaining rounds of dough.

• preparation

Dice the fish into 1/2-inch cubes, rinse with fresh water, drain, and place in a large nonreactive salad bowl.

Squeeze the limes and pour the juice over the fish. Add the rice wine vinegar, sriracha sauce and ginger. Mix well and chill 15 to 20 minutes in the refrigerator.

Cut onion and green pepper into thin slices, and cut tomato into small cubes. Remove seeds from cucumber and cut into thin half-moons.
onions, tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers in bowls

Drain some of the lime juice, add the vegetables and season with salt and pepper.
Five minutes before serving, add the coconut milk. Serve chilled.
Tip
you can substitute tuna with jackfish, halibut, salmon, or snapper.

• preparation

In a medium bowl, combine the apple, blue cheese, celery, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Stir gently to combine. Season to taste with salt.
To assemble, mound a small spoonful of the apple mixture onto the core end of each endive leaf. Sprinkle with the hazelnuts and serve.

• preparation

Cut each apricot into 8 slices.
In a mixing bowl, combine the unpeeled apricots, lemon juice and sugar. Cover and set aside for 12 hours.
Transfer apricot mixture to a pot, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 25 minutes.
Remove the foamy top while cooking. Remove the fruit from the syrup with a skimmer and transfer to a bowl. Set aside.
Boil the syrup until thickened. Add reserved apricots and almonds to syrup. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes while gently stirring the preserves.
Allow to cool before transfering to jars

• preparation

Dice and freeze fatback. Dice the veal and pork. Heat oil in skillet. Sauté the onions. Combine meat, onion, and seasonings in a bowl. Mix cream and egg whites. Pour over meat. Refrigerate for a few hours.
Marinate artichokes in wine, brandy. Season with salt and pepper. Puree the meat with fatback. Add the pistachios and ham.
Grease a 5 cup mold and line top and bottom with pastry dough. Alternate forcemeat and artichokes ending with forcemeat.
Cover pâté with pastry. Brush with egg yolk.
Cut an opening in the center.
Bake at 350 degree for about an hour. When cold, fill the pate with sherry wine aspic.

• preparation

Snap off the woody ends of asparagus where they naturally break when you bend them or cut them off with a knife.

Boil water in a large pot or saucepan with steamer then reduce to simmer, add asparagus, cover with lid and steam asparagus until tender (about 8-10 minutes) *This will depend on your preference.

Use tongs to remove asparagus

In a small bowl, whisk balsamic vinegar, oil, red wine, dijon mustard, salt and pepper together.

Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Arrange cooked asparagus tomatoes on a large platter.

Sprinkle with feta cheese and parsley.


Drizzle with ½ the dressing and serve the remainder on the side *Can be served warm, room temperature or chilled.



????Variations & Substitutions
Tomatoes- you could use cherry tomatoes instead of grape tomatoes
Asparagus -you could use grilled or oven-roasted asparagus instead of steamed
Tarragon- fresh tarragon is ideal, but you can use dried
Feta cheese - you can use regular, light or fat-free feta or use goat cheese
Add-ins- you could also sprinkle on a little parmesan cheese and/or add red onions or green onion

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Roll puff pastry sheet on a floured work surface to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut into 4-inch squares.
Cut cheese into fingers about the size of asparagus spears.
Spread each pastry dough evenly with mustard.
Lay an asparagus spear and a strip of cheese on each pastry square. Roll them up, seal and place seam side down on a buttered baking sheet. Brush rolls with beaten egg.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until pastry is brown and cheese is melted

• preparation

In a small bowl, whisk together stock, oil and truffles.
In a deep 10 -to 12-inch skillet bring 3 inches salted water to a boil and cook asparagus until crisp tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Drain asparagus. Pat dry. Transfer to a serving dish and toss with butter.
Spoon truffle broth over asparagus and season with salt and pepper. Serve asparagus warm or at room temperature.

• preparation

Heat oven to 400°F.
Lightly grease or spray cookie sheet.
Place croissant halves 1 inch apart on cookie sheet. Bake 5 minutes.
Divide scrambled eggs among croissants. Crumble bacon on top of eggs.
Sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon cheese.
Bake about 5 minutes.

• preparation

* Peel and cook sliced carrots until soft. Drain, and place carrot slices in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes. Puree in a mixer. The carrot puree should be thick.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush the interior of a 6-cup soufflé mold with the softened butter.
In a heavy saucepan heat the olive oil. Add the onions and garlic. Cook briefly while stirring, until onions are wilted. Stir in the flour and cornstarch. Add the milk. Cook while whisking until sauce becomes thick.
Tranfer the bubbly sauce to a large mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix in chopped basil.
Mix egg yolks, and carrot puree into the thick cream sauce. This mixture can be prepared 2 hours ahead.
Using an electric beater, whip the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff and glossy. Do not overbeat. Gently fold into cream sauce mixture. Pour and scrape the mixture into the prepared soufflé mold.
Place on a baking sheet. Cook for 20 to 30 minutes. Serve at once.

• preparation

In a medium saucepan, heat water and butter to a simmer. Add flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon over low heat until mixture no longer sticks to pan and forms into a ball. Remove from heat.
Beat eggs in thoroughly, one by one until mixture is smooth. Mix in the cheese and seasonings.
Transfer cheese mixture to a mixing bowl.
Heat the oil in a deep fryer to 350 degrees. Carefully fry half of the dry parsley sprigs for about 10 to 12 seconds.
Transfer to a plate on a paper towel. Repeat with remaining parsley. Season with salt.
Spoon about 5 or 6 tablespoons of the cheese mixture into the oil. Do not crowd as they double in size and self rotate while cooking. Fry for 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper.
Keep beignets in a warm oven while frying the remaining. Arrange the warm cheese beignets on a platter with the fried parsley.
Serve with hot tomato basil.
Note: If served as hors d'oeuvres, fry teaspoonfuls of the cheese mixture.

• preparation

Peel and wash potatoes. Slice into 1/4-inch thick slices, then into 1/4-inch sticks. Wash thoroughly in cold water. Drain well.
Deep fry in batches at 350 degrees until potatoes are cooked, but not brown.
At serving time, increase oil temperature to 375 degrees. Fry potatoes in batches, until golden brown.Sprinkle with salt. Serve hot.

• preparation

Peel and cut potatoes into large cubes. Place in a large saucepan, boil in salted boiling water until tender. Drain well, and put through a ricer.
In a large saucepan, combine potatoes with butter, egg yolks, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Using a wooden spoon, mix well over medium heat until mixture thickens.
Spread mixture onto a greased baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cold.
Shape duchess potato into small logs, (1 inch round by 3 inches long).
Dip in beaten egg mixed with oil. Coat in flour, and roll in breadcrumbs and sliced almonds combined. Deep Fry at 350 degrees until golden brown

• preparation

Snap off the woody ends of asparagus where they naturally break when you bend them or cut them off with a knife.

Boil water in a large pot or saucepan with steamer then reduce to simmer, add asparagus, cover with lid and steam asparagus until tender (about 8-10 minutes) *This will depend on your preference.

Use tongs to remove asparagus

In a small bowl, whisk balsamic vinegar, oil, red wine, dijon mustard, salt and pepper together.

Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Arrange cooked asparagus tomatoes on a large platter.

Sprinkle with feta cheese and parsley.


Drizzle with ½ the dressing and serve the remainder on the side *Can be served warm, room temperature or chilled.



????Variations & Substitutions
Tomatoes- you could use cherry tomatoes instead of grape tomatoes
Asparagus -you could use grilled or oven-roasted asparagus instead of steamed
Tarragon- fresh tarragon is ideal, but you can use dried
Feta cheese - you can use regular, light or fat-free feta or use goat cheese
Add-ins- you could also sprinkle on a little parmesan cheese and/or add red onions or green onion

• preparation

Cut asparagus in halves. Discard the woody parts. Cut spears into 1-inch pieces. Cook in salted boiling water until tender, about 6 minutes. Melt butter in a skillet. Add asparagus, scallions, salt and pepper to taste. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Puree mixture in a blender. Put through a strainer. Heat in a saucepan with the cream, and keep warm until needed.

• preparation

Cook white and green asparagus separately in a 5- to 6-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until just tender, about 5 minutes for white asparagus; about 3 minutes for green asparagus.
Transfer asparagus with a slotted spoon to a colander and rinse under cold water (to stop cooking), then drain again. Pat dry.
Heat 3 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sauté shallots, stirring, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add morels and sauté, stirring frequently, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add asparagus, tarragon, salt, pepper, and remaining 3 tablespoons butter and sauté, stirring, until heated through, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Serve immediately.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Peel and cut potatoes into large cubes. Place in a large saucepan, boil in salted boiling water until tender. Drain well, and put through a ricer.
Transfer to a saucepan, and combine with butter, egg yolks, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Mix well over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in chopped truffles, and sliced almonds.
Cool potato mixture until it becomes easy to handle.
Shape into pancakes 3 inch round by 1 inch thick. Arrange on a greased baking sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Toss pumpkin seeds and 1 tsp. oil on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Bake until golden brown and puffed, about 5 minutes; let cool. Finely chop 2 Tbsp. pumpkin seeds. 

Whisk chopped pumpkin seeds, lemon juice, mustard, maple syrup, vinegar and remaining oil in a medium bowl; season dressing with salt and pepper.


Combine fennel, Asian pear, celery root, Granny Smith apple, most of the Manchego, and remaining pumpkin seeds in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over top and toss to combine; season with salt and pepper. Top with remaining Manchego.

• preparation

Steam or boil cauliflower and garlic until soft. Drain, add buttermilk, light butter, salt, pepper and purée with a hand blender or regular blender.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line 2 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Butter and flour bottom and sides.
Whisk whole eggs and sugar in an electric mixer. Beat until triple in volume. In another bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar to form soft peaks. Add sugar while beating. Fold egg whites into whole egg mixture. Fold in ground almonds, flour and butter. Distribute batter between the two pans. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until lightly brown and springy to touch. Cool in pans and unmold over racks.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Lightly oil a 9-inch springform pan. Dust pan with flour, tilting to coat evenly and tapping out the excess. Line bottom with parchment or wax paper. Lightly oil paper.
Spread almonds in a shallow pan and bake for 4 to 8 minutes, until light golden. Let cool.
In a food processor or blender, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and toasted almonds. Process until almonds are ground. Set aside.
In a measuring cup, combine buttermilk, oil and vanilla and almond extracts. Set aside
In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, egg whites and sugar. Beat with an electric mixer at high speed until mixture is thick and pale, about 5 minutes. The beaters should leave a ribbon trail when lifted.
With a rubber spatula, alternately fold reserved dry ingredients and buttermilk mixture into egg mixture, making 3 additions of dry ingredients and 2 additions of liquid.
Gently spread batter in prepared pan and tap the pan once on the counter to release air bubbles. Bake for 45 minutes, or until top springs back when lightly touched and cake shrinks away slightly from sides of pan.
Place on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Loosen edges of cake from pan, remove pan rim and invert cake onto rack. Remove pan bottom, peel off paper and let cool completely.
To prepare berries: In a large bowl, toss strawberries with sugar. Set aside.
To make vanilla cream: Chill a mixing bowl. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over water; let stand for 1 minute.
In a large saucepan, bring about 1 inch of water to a simmer. Adjust heat so water barely simmers. In a heatproof mixing bowl large enough to fit over the saucepan, combine egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and softened gelatin. Set the bowl over the simmering water and beat with an electric mixer at low speed until an instant-read thermometer registers 140 degrees F. Increase mixer speed to high and continue beating over the heat for 3½ minutes. Remove bowl from heat and beat meringue until completely cooled, about 4 minutes more.
In the chilled bowl, combine cream and vanilla and beat with electric mixer at medium speed until soft peaks form. Fold one-fourth of the meringue into the cream. Gently fold in remaining meringue.
To assemble cake:
No more than 2 hours before serving, place the cake on a serving plate. Using a serrated knife, slice cake horizontally into 2 layers.
Carefully lift off top layer. Spoon half the berries and all the juices onto the bottom layer. Spread with half the vanilla cream. Cover with the top layer. Spoon remaining vanilla cream on top and arrange remaining strawberries over cream. Refrigerate until serving time.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Peel apples. Core, and cut into thin round slices.
Combine rum and sugar. Pour over apples. Let stand a hour.
Spread apricot preserves over bottom of an 8-inch round baking dish.
Arrange apple slices on top. Save juice.
Sprinkle apples with sugar.
Bake until soft and brown. Cool.
Heat liquid, pour over apples. Serve warm.

• preparation

Peel, core and grate the apples.
Sprinkle them with the rum or Calvados and mix everything well.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar and beaten eggs. Add the milk and whisk everything together to remove any lumps.
Fold the apples into the batter.
Melt a teaspoon of butter in a small pan (blini pan style). Place 2 tablespoons of the beignet mix in the frying pan, distributing the grated apples over the surface.
When the beignet is set and browned on one side, flip it. Add another teaspoon of butter to the pan and brown the other side.
Repeat the operation with the apple-batter mixture.
Reserve the beignets pancakes in a dish.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Enjoy still warm.

• preparation

Peel, quarter and core apples.
Melt apricot jam in a thick bottom saucepan.
Add apples and cook slowly until apples are melted into a thick sauce.
Dissolve unflavored gelatin in cold water. Set for 5 minutes.
Add to hot apple mix.
Cool mix. Fold in whipped half of the cream.
Line lady fingers on bottom and sides of a charlotte mold.
Spoon apple mixture in mold. Cover and chill.
Unmold apple charlotte unto a serving dish.
Melt the remaining 1/3 cup apricot jam. Strain and spread over charlotte.
Decorate with remaining whipped cream.

• preparation

Crêpe batter:
In a medium bowl, combine flour, oil, eggs, egg yolks,
and 1/2 cup milk, beating until blended and smooth.
Add remaining milk, whisking until batter is smooth.
Strain batter into a clean bowl. Refrigerate, covered, for 2 hours or longer.
Melt the butter over low heat, and mix into the crêpe batter.
Flavor with vanilla or rum extract.

Apple mixture:
Peel apples. Core and slice thinly. Melt butter in a non-stick frying pan.
Add apple slices. Sauté for 2 minutes over high heat.
Add brown sugar and Calvados or apple brandy.
Sprinkle cinnamon over cooked apples. Transfer to a bowl.

Make apple crêpes:
Heat a 7-inch non-stick skillet until a drop of water sizzles and rolls off.
Pour in 2 tablespoons of batter, rotating pan to cover bottom of skillet evenly.
Spoon 2 large tablespoons of prepared apple mixture over crêpe,
spreading evenly over surface of crêpe.
Pour enough batter to cover apples. Cook for a minute.
Flip the pancake. Use a spatula if necessary. Cook till brown.
Transfer apple crêpe to a greased baking tray.
Continue cooking remaining crêpes.
Can be prepared 2 hours ahead.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Finish baking crêpes until apples are soft, 10 to 12 minutes.
Place a crêpe on each plate.
Top with vanilla ice cream and sprinkle with cinnamon.
Serve at once.
Note: as an alternative, use half apples, half pears.

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Peel, core, and slice apples. Cook in saucepan to make a purée. Add sugar.
Cook till dry and thick. Cool mixture.
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in an electric mixer.
When firm, add sugar and continue beating for 1 more minute at medium speed.
Fold in apple mixture. Add Grand Marnier.
Make a caramel with sugar, a little water and lemon juice.
Pour in a soufflé mold. Pour apple mix in mold.
Bake in waterbath for 30 minutes. Unmold mousse on a serving plate.
Serve with custard cream.
Custard:
Mix sugar and egg yolks till creamy. Gradually whisk in boiling milk.
Add vanilla. Heat in a saucepan and stir with a wooden spoon over low heat till thick.
Do not allow to boil. Strain and cool.

• preparation

Preheat oven at 400 degrees.
Line pie crust in a 9 inch pie plate. Peel, core, and cut apples into wedges.
Melt butter in a saute pan. Add apples. Cook for 2 minutes. Mix in the cinnamon, sugar, and Calvados and cook apples until tender. Transfer to a large bowl to cool.
To prepare the custard:
combine the sugar, flour, lemon zest, cream, eggs, and vanilla.
Pour over apples and blend well. Pour mixture in pie crust.
Bake for 15 minutes.
Top with the melted apricot jam.
Decorate top of pie with strips of remaining dough into a lattice work.
Brush with a beaten egg. Bake at 350 F for 15 to 20 minutes, until pie is golden brown.
Allow pie to cool, then serve at room temperature.