Raclette Burgers

So nearly after a month, finally here is post for the much talked about Raclette Burger. I've been kind of lazy about blogging because my food photography is less than par. It's hard to make food look pretty for the camera when you want to eat it right away.

So what is raclette? According to Wikipedia, raclette is a semi-firm salted cheese made from cow's milk originating from mountainous region of Valais in Switzerland (home of the Matterhorn and Lake Geneva). Raclette comes from the French word "racler" which means to scrape. This cheese dates back to the Middle Ages when Swiss cow herders would carry blocks of raclette with them when they would herd their cows to and from the pastures in the mountains. They would place the cheese next to the campfire and when it would reach the perfect softness, scrape it onto some bread or potatoes. Traditionally raclette is served with small potatoes, cornichons (gherkins), pickled onions and dried meats such as prosciutto. Nowadays, raclette is served using an electric table top grill pan that grills the potatoes on top and melts the cheese on the bottom tray. This is how I first encountered raclette. It was at the boyfriend's parent's condo in Mammoth and now, every time we are in Mammoth, we break out the raclette machine. There is something about being in the mountains that makes me crave raclette! But raclette cheese is SO good it shouldn't just be for the mountains which is why I made a hamburger with it!

These hamburgers are AWESOME! I just love raclette cheese with the cornichons. It sounds like a weird flavor combination but trust me, it is the bomb! The hamburger would work well with slices of raclette cheese on top instead of stuffed in the burger. The Amateur Gourmet found pre-sliced raclette which would work perfectly.

If you want to try the real thing and don't want to splurge for a machine, Basilic on Balboa Island has raclette night on the first Tuesday of the month. My friend's parents own the restaurant; her dad is the chef and her mom is the maitre-d. It is a cozy and intimate gem amongst Orange County's overabundance of chains and was named OC's Most Romantic Restaurant by OC Weekly. Be sure to make reservations before dining, especially for raclette night. There are only 9 tables.

TBC Raclette Burgers
makes 3 burgers

1 lb. ground chuck beef 80/20
3 oz. raclette cheese, shredded
Montreal steak seasoning
3 freshly baked hamburger buns
1 bunch of frisee or arugala

for the aioli:
1/4 cup mayonaise
a large spoonful of cornichons, coarsely chopped
1 tsp. cornichon juice

Directions:

1. To make the cornichon aioli, combine the mayonaise, chopped cornichons and juice, Set aside.

2. Separate the ground chuck into 1/3 lb chunks. To make the patties, take a 4 inch cookie cutter lined with plastic wrap and press half of the 1/3 lb chunk into the cookie cutter. Place 1 oz. of the shredded raclette and then top with other half. Pressed the edges to seal the patties together and lift out of the plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining beef and raclette cheese. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cooking.

3. Preheat pan or grill to high. Brush burgers with oil and sprinkle liberally with Montreal Steak seasoning. Cook for 5-7 minutes on each side.

4. Lightly toast hamburger buns and generously spread with cornichon aioli. Place cooked hamburger and top with frisee or arugala followed by the hamburger bun top.

Cheesy Grits with Coca-Cola Red-Eye Gravy

To continue the theme of pantry cooking, here is the ultimate pantry meal, Cheese Grits with Hot Dogs and Coca-Cola Red Eye Gravy. Actually it sounds like the ultimate white trash meal. I didn't feel like going to the grocery store so I just threw this dinner together. In the South, grits are often served with ham and red-eye gravy for breakfast. Red-eye gravy is traditionally made with black coffee but can be made with Coca-Cola. It sounds totally weird but Coca-Cola is acidic like beer and wine and is great for deglazing and making sauces. I use it in my Pulled Pork recipe. Hamsteaks are usually used for the red-eye gravy but I didn't have any so I just used some sliced up hot dogs. The grits recipe serves 4-6 people (so if serving more than 2 people, double the ingredients for the gravy). I like to make extra grits and put them in a loaf pan, then slice it up and fry it in butter for breakfast the next day. Or maybe pour some chili over it. I use Bob's Red Mill Coarse Ground Cornmeal which can be found in most grocery stores. The Albertson's near my house has it in the "Organic" aisle alongside the gluten-free products. If you can't find the Coarse Ground, the Medium Grind Cornmeal will work, which can be found in the baking aisles of most grocery stores.

TBC Cheesy Grits with Hot Dogs and Coca-Cola Red-Eye Gravy
serves two

2 cups whole milk
2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces sharp Cheddar, shredded
3 hot dogs, sliced
1 TBSP butter
1/2 onion, small diced
1 cup Coca-Cola

Place the milk, water, and salt into a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Once the milk mixture comes to a boil, gradually add the cornmeal while continually whisking. Once all of the cornmeal has been incorporated, decrease the heat to low and cover. Remove lid and whisk frequently, every 3 to 4 minutes, to prevent grits from sticking or forming lumps; make sure to get into corners of pot when whisking. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until mixture is creamy.

Remove from the heat, add the pepper and butter, and whisk to combine. Once the butter is melted, gradually whisk in the cheese a little at a time.

While the grits are cooking, start the Red-Eye gravy. In a saute pan, add the butter over medium-heat. When it stops foaming, add the onions and cook until lightly browned. Add the cut up hot dogs and cook until lightly browned. Add the Coca-Cola and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and cook until desired consistency.

Divide grits and hot dogs among two bowls and then ladle gravy on top.

Goat cheese stuffed Turkey Burgers with red pepper apricot relish

So my MacBook malfunctioned again last week! :( It is the 4th time in a year. First I lost all my pictures. A few months later, the DC board went out so I wasn't able to use my laptop unless it was plugged in. In February, my hard drive completely died. It just literally stopped working. And just recently, the computer screen went blank. Luckily I have a good friend who works at Apple and he is able to get my MacBook running, usually with only a little damage to my pocket book. That is what I love about Apple! Had this been a PC, I would probably still be computer-less and dealing with Geek Squad or whoever you deal with when a PC malfunctions. When my computer screen went blank on Tuesday, I simply made an appointment at the Apple Genuis Bar for Thursday (when my friend worked) and my computer was fixed by Sunday. So Thanks Torey and Thanks Apple Genuises at Fashion Island! That explains my Internet absence last week. And now on to better and tastier things!

A while back, Albertson's had some crazy sale on ground turkey. Being budget conscious, I stocked up and froze a couple pounds. After making several dinners, I had a mere 1/2 lb. left. I also had about 2 oz. left of goat cheese from the Beach Blanket Blackout Bingo Birthday Bash. So I made goat cheese stuffed turkey burgers. I had the perfect amount for 2 burgers and a slider. To accompany the burger, I made a roasted red bell pepper and apricot relish from the bell peppers I bought from the Irvine Farmer's Market. The relish recipe is more than enough for the burger recipe. It taste delicious in grilled cheeses and an accompaniment to any BBQ'd or roasted meat.

This meal is a perfect example of how budget cooking can still produce a gourmet meal. I actually had all the ingredients on hand except for the dried apricots. Lucky for me I have a lemon tree. I made my own bread crumbs by toasting a piece of bread and then grinding it in the food processor. Chicken broth, vinegar, Dijon mustard and hot sauce were all in my pantry. Just because you are poor, you don't have to eat poorly!


Goat Cheese Stuffed Turkey Burgers with Red Pepper and Apricot Relish
adapted from Culinary Institute of America Grilling
makes about 2 burgers

1/2 lb. ground turkey,
1/4 cup toasted bread crumbs
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemon zest
pinch of dried thyme
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 oz goat cheese, sliced into 1/4" medallions
hamburger buns or sandwich bread (I used Trader Joe's Cheddar and Garlic Sourdough Loaf)

For the Relish:
Makes 2 cups

2 roasted red peppers
2 TBSP cup vegetable oil
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 cup diced red onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 TBSP white wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2-3 drops hot sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper

1. Combine turkey, breadcrumbs, lemon juice, zest, thyme, salt and pepper. Mix well. Divide into two or three portions. To make the patties, take a 3 inch cookie cutter lined with plastic wrap and press 1/4 of the turkey mixture into the cookie cutter. Place the goat cheese medallion next and then top with 1/4 turkey mixture. Pressed the edges to seal the patties together and lift out of the plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining turkey mixture and goat cheese. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cooking.

2. Preheat pan or grill to high. Brush burgers with oil and cook fro 7-8 minutes on each side.

Red Pepper and Apricot Relish

1. Roast the bell peppers. The easiest and fastest way to do this is by directly placing the bell peppers on the burner and charring the skin. After the skin has blistered and turned black all over, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel the skins off under running water. Seed and dice the peppers into 1/2 cubes.

2. Heat oil in medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Add apricots, onion, and garlic. Saute until translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the diced red bell peppers and broth. Simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5-10 minutes.

3. Add the vinegar, mustard, and hot sauce. Cook until liquid has almost evaporated. Check the seasonings. Chill. The relish should be served at room temperature or chilled.

Broke as a Joke Risotto

This Saturday will mark seven months since I was laid off as a line cook. It has been a rather tumultuous journey since January. I graduated from culinary school (yay!), mentally prepared myself to leave all my friends and family to move to Baltimore only to find out Matt was laid off from his job one month before I was to move, my roommate asked me to leave earlier than anticipated (thanks for the two week notice, very thoughtful of you), scrambled around Costa Mesa to find a place that accepts two dogs and two unemployed people (next to IMPOSSIBLE), and then on top of it all, there was an incident involving Hank and Matt's dad's cat. Let's just say Hank emerged victorious and the cat, well, it ended up in a box. The cat incident has estranged us from his parents and any help they would offer us.

The money is running out and because I made diddly squat at as a line cook, I barely make anything from unemployment, just enough to pay my phone bill, car payment and insurance. And you want to know the most disheartening thing is? Matt makes more money from unemployment than I do working 60 hours a week as a line cook.

So it has been an interesting past two months, complete with breakdowns and serious contemplation periods of what to do with my life (graduate school? buckle down and get a corporate job? suck it up and get paid $10/hr to work as an overworked/underpaid line cook at a chain restaurant and never see my friends or family?). All that fun stuff plus beach time, bicycling, trips to the library, quality time with Hank and George and LOTS of cooking.

As you can tell, I don't have a very big grocery budget, so many of the dishes I cook now rely on pantry staples. Risotto is a good budget dinner because you can pretty much throw anything in there: from frozen vegetables to last night's take out dinner, risotto is very versatile. I always have frozen peas and some chicken broth in my pantry so pea risotto was the obvious dinner choice. I also had some goat cheese and some cherry tomatoes leftover from the Beach Blanket Blackout Bingo Birthday Bash so I just threw that in as well. The result was a delicious, healthy dinner for less than $6 for the total meal!

TBC Broke as a Joke Risotto
serves 3

1/2 medium onion, chopped, about 1/3 cup
1 TBSP olive oil or butter
3/4 cup Arborio rice
32 oz. carton of low sodium chicken broth
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 cup frozen peas
3 oz. goat cheese
handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Place the chicken broth and crushed garlic clove in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Set aside. Meanwhile, add butter or oil to saute pan over medium heat. Wait until it starts to foam and then add the onion. Saute the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the Arborio rice and saute the rice until translucent, about 2 minutes. Ladle some of the warmed chicken broth into the rice, stirring until liquid has evaporated. Continue adding liquid in stages, constantly stirring. Wait until the liquid has absorbed before adding more. When the rice is creamy and you have used all of the chicken broth, check the seasonings. Add some salt and pepper to taste.
3. Add the frozen peas and the goat cheese and stir to melt the goat cheese and to heat the peas. Add the halved cherry tomatoes and top with Parmesan cheese.

Please don't forget to vote for Hank and George in the Cutest Dog Contest. We could win a million dollars!

Fettucine Alfredo with Fresh Pasta

I just love freshly made pasta. It is a real treat for an Italian food lover like myself. Fresh pasta is very easy to make and even the most amateur cook should have no fear when attempting to make pasta. It is so easy with a food processor but the traditional "well method" can be used that you see utilized by an Italian nonna and even the chefs on Food Network. The "well method" is when you make a pile of flour like a volcano (with a depression in the middle). The eggs go in the middle and you beat the eggs whilst incorporating flour (This method is also good for pancakes). To watch a video on how to make fresh pasta using the "well method" check out this video by the Academia Barilla Culinary School on YouTube.

In culinary school, my chef instructor taught us the easiest method possible using a food processor. You throw the flour, salt, olive oil and eggs in the food processor until the dough forms little balls the size of the interior of these: 00

Then you just wrap it in plastic, let is rest for 20-30 minutes and your dough is ready to roll out. You don't need a fancy pasta machine either. You can just use a rolling pin and make tagliatelle (long strands of pasta about 1/4" inch wide).

Now that you know how to make your own pasta, it is important to know what sauce to use on it. You may have wondered before why there are so many different pasta shapes. Pasta is pasta right? WRONG! A pasta shape determines what sauce it will be paired with. Same thing with fresh pasta vs. dry pasta. Fresh pastas don't do very well with tomato sauces but are excellent with rich sauces such as cream sauces or ragouts.

I had some extra cream from my foray into ice cream making (ice cream posts will be in the future!) so I made this simple Alfredo sauce to accompany my fresh pasta. It only requires 4 ingredients: heavy cream, parmigiano reggiano, butter, salt and pepper. Well five, if you count salt and pepper as individual ingredients.

TBC's Fettucine Alfredo
serves 4

for the pasta:

3 large eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
2-3 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
10-12 oz. all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)

for the Alfredo sauce:

1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a food processor combine eggs, oil, salt and pulse. Add flour and continue to process until coarse meal forms about the size of these : oo

Remove the mixture from food processor and form into a ball. Dough should be firm and not sticky when touched. If it is sticky add, more flour. Wrap in plastic and let rest for 20-30 minutes.

After dough rests, set a large stockpot of water to boil. Roll out dough while you are waiting for the water to boil. If using a pasta machine, start with the rollers in the largest position. Take 1/4 of the dough (keep the rest covered in plastic so it will not dry out) and pass through the rollers , gradually decreasing the distance between the rollers with each pass until you reach your desired thinness. To keep the finished pasta from sticking together and from drying out, place in a sheet pan dusted with flour. Sprinkle some flour in the strands of pasta and gently form into "bird nests" and cover with a tea towel. The fresh made pasta should rest for another five minutes more which is perfect time to assemble the Alfredo sauce

In a skillet over medium-low heat, combine cream and butter, adding 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

When the water boils, add pasta nests. The pasta should only take 3-4 minutes, maybe even less depending how thin you rolled the pasta. Using tongs or a pasta spoon, transfer pasta to sauce. Add cheese and toss to combine. If sauce is too thick, add some pasta water. Taste and adjust seasonings.