Feast: Alumni Volunteer Dinner 2018-2019 — The Gourmand Film Writer

A decade ago, the school I work at began an alumni volunteer program to bring alumni back to our school to give an opportunity to serve the community and our students for a year. These alumni work in various locations throughout our school from tutoring to service to alumni relations. Sometime after the first year, I wanted to do something to show our gratitude for their service. So, I began to make a dinner for each group of alumni.

This year’s dinner’s theme was an American Steakhouse French Bistro, combining French cooking technique and ideas with an American Steakhouse spin. Playing with this was a great deal of fun as I love making different versions of Steakhouse meals. I’ve already posted one recipe about a Modern American Steakhouse.

Photo credits to the incredible Joey “The Man” Sciammas!

Thanks to all for you for your incredible service this year.

1st Amuse:

Rillettes aux Deux Saumons

Smoked and Fresh Salmon

Thomas Keller may be America’s greatest chef. Perfecting French cuisine, his dishes are deceptively simple, yet incredibly complex. I remember one time when dining at the French Laundry I asked for the recipe for a dish. The waiter actually photocopied a recipe for me. It was twenty-eight steps and took two days to make.

For the first Amuse, I chose to make his incredible Salmon Rillettes. A salmon dip that is spread on toast or vegetables. His dish barely cooks the salmon, leaving it moist and subtle. He also uses homemade smoked salmon as well adding a surprise depth of flavor. An incredible dish.

2nd Amuse:

French Onion Soup

One of my favorite dishes ever is French Onion Soup. There is something about the depth of flavor offered in this simple dish. I use four different types of onions as well as cognac, white wine, vermouth, and sherry. The combination is a rich and dense soup. Topped with gruyere cheese and a toast point, bubbling and delicious.

Served with French 75

1st Course:

Breslin Cesar Salad Herbed Cesar Dressing, Anchovy Croutons (sadly no picture as we devoured it too quickly, but there is a picture of the drink)

Is there perhaps a more American salad than the Cesar Salad? This dish is an example of saltiness at its greatest: anchovies, parmesan cheese, and worcestershire sauce. The best version of this I’ve ever had was at Amy Bloomfield’s Breslin in New York. She updated the recipe by including fresh herbs in hers. I used an herb pesto in mine. She wrapped croutons with anchovies which were beautiful as well as tasty. After several attempts to do so, my anchovies kept disintegrating, so I made an anchovy butter and sauteed the croutons in it.

Served with Pickled Green Onion Gimlet

2nd Course:

Cod with Gnocchi, Roasted Carrots, and Carrot Jus

A play on a dish by Jamie Oliver. He loves to roast fish with potatoes and mushrooms. Rather than roasting the fish, I prefer pan seared fish as to try and keep it from over-cooking. The roasted potatoes were replaced by gnocchi and ever since seeing Alex Guarnaschelli make a carrot jus, I have played with that sauce for Chicken and Fish. The result, sweet, slightly acidic and light. A wonderful accompaniment to fish.

Served with Dupont Foret Saison Ale

3rd Course:

Steak “Frittes” Fried Shallots, Red Wine Reduction, Gem Lettuce Salad

What would an American Steakhouse be without Steak? What is the classic French Steak Dish… okay, perhaps it’s Steak Au Poirve, but another is Streak Frittes. For me the problem with making Steak Frittes at home is frying french fries. French fries really are one of the hardest things to do incredibly well in an amatuer kitchen. Plus, the clean up is a pan with a ton of oil that you need to get rid of after frying. So, my take on this to make it a little easier is to do Steak with Fried Onions. I love shallots. Light, delicate. Soak them in buttermilk, hot sauce, and garlic, and then bread in rice flour. They take merely 1-2 minutes to fry, in much less oil and provide that wonderful crunch and sweetness to accompany the steak.

A salad is merely a palate cleanser to cut through that through the richness of both the steak and fried onions.

Served with Black Stallion Limited Edition Howell Mountain Zinfandel 2016

Intermezzo:

Clementine Granita with Buttermilk and Black Pepper

Creating fascinating palate cleansers is an arduous task. I admit, that I often fall back on granitas. Easy to make. This is based on an intermezzo that I had at Manresa. The result of the clementine shaved ice with buttermilk is the taste of a childhood classic: the orangesicle.

4th Course:

Cheese Plate

1st cheese with Pears with Truffled Honey

2nd Cheese with Preserved Apricots and Chili

3rd Cheese with Brandied Cherries

Served with Baywood Grappa

I love the French progression that goes to cheese before desert. I would often take a cheese plate over desert. This one is one of my favorites devised from a cheese plate at Otto in New York. Also I finished my last bottle of Baywood Grappa. Baywood was a winery in Lodi that I became very close to because of a tasting room on Cannery Row in Monterrey. The price for their wines was one of the best I’ve ever found. Granted their wines weren’t great, but for the price they were worth it and they did so many varietals. From a pure symphony, to a late harvest symphony to a petit verdot and a tempranillo. It was great. Then, I discovered their grappa. Best I’ve ever had. Clean and powerful. Just a wonderful finish to any rich cheese.

5th Course:

Spiced Apple Tarte Tatin With Chocolate Sauce and Crème Anglaise