Day 74: Rockfish, Rabbit Saddle, & Clafoutis

Woops—the weekend zoomed by and I didn’t ever end up writing a quick weekend update!  Before I knew it, I was heading back to school to start Week 20, which is going to end with our fifth (and notoriously difficult) practical exam on Friday, as well as another theory exam. 

Overall, the menu was quite delicious!  Much better than last week’s sweetbreads…if I do say so myself.  Our first course was a potato encrusted rockfish served with a green olive sauce.  We started by breaking down rockfish (I still need to practice breaking down round fish, but I’m slowly getting better at it).  We then sliced potatoes extremely thinly, until they were almost translucent, with a deli slicer, coated them with melted clarified butter, and carefully wrapped them around the rockfish filets.  We also added in some herbs (chives) for a bit of color.  Right before service, we seared these on both sides in a saute pan to cook through.  The potatoes ended up getting crispy and delicious and it kept the fish very moist. 

The green olive sauce involved blending olives (which we blanched to remove some of the saltiness), onions (sweated), garlic, olive oil, parsley, lemon juice, and a bit of Pernod.  I really liked this dish! 

Our main course involved quite a bit of work.  The main component was a boneless rabbit saddle, stuffed with sautéed spinach, sautéed mushrooms, cooked quinoa, and sundried tomatoes.  The trickiest part was removing the spine from the saddle without puncturing the skin.  To hold it together, we wrapped them in caul fat. 

The rabbit saddles ended up getting braised in a liquid made by searing mirepoix, rabbit bones and deglazing with white wine and veal stock.  This liquid ended up being reduced at the end and turned into a sauce.

To go along with our rabbit, we also made homemade pasta (which at this point, we all know will probably be part of our fifth exam this Friday…).  To add a little interest and flavor, we actually added some chopped chives to the dough while we were rolling it.  It added a fun color variation too! 

And some plain asparagus on the side!  Peeled, of course  

Our dessert was another winner!  We made a blueberry clafoutis.  Traditonally, clafoutis are made with cherries, which still contain their pits (which prevents the juice from spilling and adds flavor).  However, they can really be made with any type of fruit.  Since cherries are not in season, we used fresh blueberries (ironically, they are also not in season—haha) and also a bit of griottes, which are dried cherries soaked in alcohol. 

The batter is very simple to make and quite similar to a crepe batter—simply a combination of all-purpose and almond flour, sugar, cream, milk, and eggs.  It is very moist and custard like in flavor.  I liked it a lot!  And it really was so simple to make…

I see more of these in my future! 

We ended the day by getting together our marinade for a venison dish we will be making this Thursday! 

And now I am off to study for my upcoming test—which will most likely translate into going to bed early, as I am tired!  Posting this week might be a bit sporadic, but I will do my best to keep you all updated…

Boxwood Winery

This Thursday, we took a break from school and headed out to Boxwood Winery in Middleburg, VA for a private tour and field trip!  Since we have now had two wine classes at school so far, it was exciting to visit a winery and learn a little bit more about the wine making process.  It was a beautiful property and, luckily, the weather was great!

We started off the day with a quick tour of the grounds given by Boxwood’s head wine maker, who explained a little bit about the wine making process.  Though the winery is not certified organic, he explained that they practice organic and sustainable growing practices, which includes planting a wide variety of ground cover to prevent a monoculture, which inevitably ends up limiting the productivity of the vineyard. 

They winery is run by a very small team, to maximize quality, and despite the vineyard’s relatively small size, they have the facilities and equipment to oversee the entire wine making process, including bottling—which apparently many wineries have to outsource. 

Right now, Boxwood produces 5 varieties of grapes:  Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, & Malbec.   We ended up tasting three of their blends, as well as a rose. 

The vineyard had just finished bottling the last year’s grapes within the last month or two!  And many of the grapes are just beginning to grow for the upcoming season…

Check out the bottling equipment and lab! 

After we had a tour of the grounds, cave (where the wine is aged in oak barrels) and the facility, which was absolutely spotless, we had a short tasting, during which we tried three reds, as well as their rose blend.  It was a lot of fun! 

We ended the day by heading into downtown Middleburg, where we had a very casual lunch—which our assistant, Allyson made and brought from school that morning--at their tasting room store. 

Turkey sandwiches, cornichon pickles, Cheeto puffs, and Coke Zero.  Classy! 

At the end of lunch, a bunch of us walked around town before heading home!  Overall, it was a really fun, relaxing day and a nice break from the daily grind of school. 

Still can’t believe we only have about 5 more weeks of school left before we start our restaurant externship…  I will miss these guys so much! 

From Left to Right:  Me, Lyndsay, Hadley, Blanca, & Tasha

Market Basket #5 Update!

Friday, we all headed back to school for our 5th Market Basket challenge.  We were given sea scallops, flank steak, and nuts as our primary ingredients and had to come up with another three-course menu.  Blanca, my partner, and I ended up coming up with:

Pan Seared Scallops with Romesco Sauce

Pan Seared Flank Steak with Fresh Olive & Oregano Salsa, Roasted Blue Potatoes & Asparagus

Chocolate-Caramel Macadamia Nut Tart

Overall, we got pretty good feedback and the Chef, Barry Koslow, ended up choosing our flank steak as his favorite main course. 

Back soon with another quick weekend update!