Snapper and Fingerling Potatoes with Red Pepper Sauce

Ingredients:

• Snapper
  
• Red pepper x 3
• Shallot x 3
• Lime x 1
• Water x 1/4 cup
• Cream x 1/4 cup
• Fingerling potato x 3
  
• Cilantro
• Butter, olive oil, salt, pepper

Potato: Boil potatoes until almost cooked. Peel and slice in half. saute in butter until slightly golden brown.
Sauce: Chop and fry shallots and red peppers in olive oil. Season. Add juice of a lime and 1/4 cup water. Bring to boil and simmer until peppers are cooked. Add cilantro and blend (drain some water out to make it thicker). Taste, season and add cream if you think it's necessary!
Fish: Fry the fish, 4 - 6 minutes each side (depending on the thickness of the fillet). Plate the fish on top of the potatoes and in a pool of red pepper sauce. Garnish with some black peppercorn and lime zest.

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Avocado Salad

Ingredients:

• Chicken breast x 1
• Pancetta x 4 slices
• Asparagus x 2 or 3 spears
  
• Goat cheese
• Avocado x 1
  
• Lime x 1
• Cilantro
• Salt, peppercorn , butter
  

Butterfly and pound a chicken breast (between 2 sheets of plastic wrap) until you get an even thickness. Put aside. Fry asparagus in butter until almost cooked. Stuff the chicken with asparagus, goat cheese, lime zest and peppercorn. Roll the chicken and wrap the outside with pancetta and tighten with cooking twine. In the same pan, on medium high heat, fry each side until a bit crispy (3 minutes). Put in the oven - 350°F - for 10 to 15 minutes. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Cut and serve with avocado herb salad.
Avocado herb salad: peeled and sliced avocado, chopped cilantro, salt, pepper, lime, avocado oil. Try to make it a bit acidic. This cuts through the richness of the dish.

Corn Soup (Take 2)

Ingredients:

• Corn, 5 cobs, dekerneled!
• Onion, 1 medium, chopped
• Carrot, 1 medium, chopped
• Garlic, 2 cloves, chopped
• Red chili, 1, deseeded and chopped
• Vegetable Stock, 1 cup
• Cream, 1/2 cup (optional)
• Cilantro
• Butter
• Salt, pepper, chepotle pepper (optional)
  

Saute onion and carrot in butter for 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add garlic, chili and some chopped cilantro stalk. Add corn and some chopped cilantro to the mixture and cook for 2 minutes. Add vegetable stock, bring to boil and simmer for 10 - 15 minuets until the corn is cooked. Take off the heat. Add some more cilantro, chepotle pepper and cream and blend until smooth. Pass the soup through a sieve (in batches) for a smoother texture. Garnish with a couple of cilantro leaves and black salt.

Hungover Breakfast!

Scrambled egg with fresh herbs, bacon, toast, nectarine, blueberry, green tea and some Danish rhubarb jam!

Carrot Ginger Soup (Take 2)

Ingredients:

• Carrot 5 normal size, chopped
• Ginger 1 inch, graded or chopped
  
• Onion 1 medium size, chopped
• Shallot 1, chopped
  
• Garlic 2 cloves, chopped
• Cream 1/2 to 1 cup
  
• Vegetable Stock
• Red chili 1, chopped
  
• Coriander 1 fistful, chopped
• Butter 1-2 tbsp
• Olive oil (just a bit)
• Salt, pepper

Note: This is a simpler version of my previous carrot ginger soup. The difference is that, this time I made my own vegetable stock and the result was much better. It's so easy: boil 6 cups of water with some vegetables and herbs! I used some onion, garlic, carrot, ginger, chili, scallion, thyme, cilantro stalks, salt and pepper. Make a big batch and you can keep it in the fridge for 1 week or in the freezer for 6 to 12 months!

Now the soup: sauté the onion in butter/olive oil (2 minutes), add garlic and ginger, salt, pepper, chili (3 minutes). Now add the carrots and sauté for 5 minutes, then add vegetable stock, until it covers the vegetables and let it cook, low heat for 10-15 minutes until carrots are fork tender. Let it cool down a bit, add coriander and blend well until very smooth … add cream, mix well, taste and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with fresh chopped coriander.

B.L.T

BLT with Italian pancetta, mixed greens and tomato on a French baguette

Coq au vin

Ingredients

• 4 chicken legs (coq au van is traditionally made with rooster)

• 1 bottle of full-body dry red wine (I used pino noir)

• 5 thin slices of bacon slices, diced
• 1/4 lb button mushrooms
• 6-7 small white onions
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, mashed

• 2 carrots, peeled and quartered

• 1 white onion, sliced
• Herbs: 5-6 sprigs of thyme,1 bay leaf, Parsley, cilantro

• Oil, butter

• Salt and pepper
  

A day in advance, marinate the chicken in 1 bottle of red wine, herbs and sliced white onion and carrot. Cover and put in the fridge. The next day, remove and drain the chicken dry with paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken with oil in a hot skillet. Remove the chicken. Using the same skillet, add garlic to the vegetables and heat for a couple of minutes. Put the chicken and the vegetables in a large sauce pan. Pour the wine and add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil at moderate heat, then cover and simmer for 1, to 1.5 hours. You can add some parsley or cilantro at this point. While the chicken is cooking, fry the bacon until crispy. Take it out and put it aside on a paper tower. Drain the oil in the skillet, add the mushrooms with some butter, cook for 7-10 minutes. Take the mushrooms out. Add the pearl onions and cook for 5 minutes, spinning the onions so they wont brown too much! Take the chicken out (you know it's ready when the chicken falls off the bone!), drain the wine and add it to the skillet, add 1 tbsp of butter, mushrooms and the pearl onions and reduce until it coats the back your spoon. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper if needed. Add the chicken and cook for 3 more minutes. Plate and garnish with bacon and fresh parsley or cilantro. Bon appetit!

Vegtable, nut and goat cheese sandwich

Roasted red pepper, sauteed mushroom, pecan, goat cheese and dijon mustard

Pad Thai

Ingredients:
Tiger shrimp (4), Red bell pepper (1),
Snow peas (1 cup), Chili (3),
Rice noodle (1 package), Garlic (4 cloves)
Ginger (1 inch), Sugar (2 tbsp),
Green onion (2 springs), Egg (2),
Coriander (1 bunch), Fish sauce (4 tsp),
Lime (2), Shallot (1),
Crushed peanuts, bean sprouts
Soy sauce Vegetable, peanut or canola oil

Marinate the shrimps in lime, oil, salt, pepper, cilantro and some ginger
Make the sauce : Mix one lime + zest, sugar, finely minced garlic and shallot, fish sauce and the chilies. You can add a bit of soy sauce as well
Chop the vegetables thinly to decrease the cooking time. Once everything is chopped and ready, heat a wok (or a big pan) to medium heat, add a few tbsp of oil.

Start by adding the bell pepper and the snow peas with a few tbsp of the prepared sauce. Cook for 2 - 3 minutes. Then add the chopped green onion bulbs with some more sauce. Meanwhile cook the noodles according to the package instructions and also fry the shrimps in a separate pan - 2-3 minutes each side. Crack the eggs in the vegetables and mix well. Add the cooked noodles and the rest of the sauce. Mix well. Add green onion tips, bean sprouts, peanuts and some chopped coriander. Mix and taste. Add more lime or soy sauce if desired. Plate and garnish with more peanuts and chopped coriander.

Beet Soup

Bring 4 to 5 scrubbed red beets to boil in cold salted water. Turn the heat to medium. Cook until fork tender (not too tender), about 40 to 60 minutes. Drain but reserve the cooking water. Peel and slice the beets into big chunks. Return them to the pot, add 1 to 2 cups of the cooking water and 1 cup of cream. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm with a chunk of goat cheese in the middle of the bowl.

Sirloin Steak with Carrot and Beet Salad

Sirloin steak: Let the meat rest until it's at room temperature. Season all sides with salt and pepper. Preheat the oven to 350°. Put a pan on medium high heat. Add some vegetable oil and wait until the oil starts to ripple. Carefully place the steak in the pan. Cook each side for 2 -3 minutes. Add a nub of butter and let it melt under the meat. Put the pan in the oven for 5 - 7 minutes (for medium rare). Take out, baste with butter. Let the steak rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Beet and carrot salad: grate 1 beat and 2 carrots. Finely chop some parsley. For the dressing mix olive oil, rice vinegar, tiny bit of ginger, salt and pepper.

Once the meat has rested, cut into slices. I also garnished the plate with a carrot, sliced into halves and sauteed in the same pan as the meat.