Flavors in Love

Do you ever eat at a restaurant and love a dish so much that you want to recreate it at home? This is one of the reasons I started cooking. When I first came to New York City in my early 20′s from Texas, everything I tasted was new. I started experimenting and trying dishes that I ate in restaurants. I still do the same thing today.

On vacation in Provence this summer, we ate at a great little neighborhood place called Le Bistro des Alpilles in Saint-Remy. One of the meals I had there was a simple little dish of sauteed langoustines with a puree of fennel and potato. It was so clean and precise. I vowed to make it myself when I got home….

BISTROT DES ALPILLES VERSION......

So I did!

MY VERSION.......

Fennel-Potato Puree: Serves 2
1 fennel bulb

2 small Yukon gold potatoes

1 cup heavy cream

4 tablespoons butter

1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 tablespoon salt

Peel the potatoes and roughly chop the fennel, removing the hard core in the center. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the potatoes and fennel with the rest of the ingredients. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes.

In a food processor, puree the mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Sauteed Shrimp with Pernod: Serves 2

(Pernod is the name brand of a type of French alcohol called Pastis. It has a licorice flavor and is great to cook with)

Clean a pound of jumbo shrimp and season it with a little sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat a skillet over medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter.

Add the shrimp to the pan with a generous sprinkling of fresh thyme. Saute just until the shrimp is opaque and pink on one side, about 2 minutes. Flip the shrimp over and add a splash of Pernod to the pan (about 1/4 cup). Continue cooking 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately with the fennel-potato puree.

Being able to relax and cook your food outdoors over an open flame is such a treat. Its one of the best things about summer!

Corn and tomatoes are at their peak right now and we are picking tomatoes from our garden every weekend. I chose this menu to highlight both of those ingredients.

I became aware of Lava Lake lamb when I saw a woman in Citarella doing a demo of these lamb chops. I love it when a meal is delicious, eco-conscious, and easy to prepare, so these really caught my attention. I bought these Lava Lake lamb chops because I believe that eating grass-fed, all-natural meat is so much better for you. These lambs have never been given hormones or antibiotics and have never been placed in feed lots.

GRILLED LAMB CHOPS:

8 Grass-fed Lava Lake lamb chops

3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients above and marinate the lamb chops for at least 30 minutes. Grill them for about three minutes per side, to a perfect medium rare.

They were so juicy and flavorful….lots of mmms and ahhhhs at my table.

Along with the lamb, I served grilled sweet corn with a chipotle aioli and a tomato salad with watercress, basil, fresh mozzarella, and a balsamic vinaigrette. At this time of year I eat as much corn as possible..its just so sweet. And the adobo sauce from the chipotles is smoky and spicy…it marries perfectly with the crunchy sweetness of the corn.

When I’m out in the Hamptons, I buy my corn from my favorite vegetable stand, Pike Farms.

SWEET CORN WITH CHIPOTLE AIOLI:

8 ears of corn

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chiles

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 minced garlic cloves

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon Mexican spice mix

Peel the husk down on the corn and remove the silk underneath, but leave the husks attached. Soak the corn in water for 10 minutes.

Combine in a bowl the mayonnaise, adobo sauce, lime juice, garlic cloves, smoked paprika, and Mexican spice mix.

Grill the corn about 7 minutes, then roll over onto the other side and grill 7 minutes more.

Remove the husk and slather with the chipotle aioli….then listen to the sounds of lip smacking enjoyment…Serve with plenty of napkins!!

Everything about Capri is sensuality magnified….from its clear, turquoise waters to its winding streets filled with bougainvillea…to the warmth of the Caprese people…to the fresh, simple tastes of the Italian cuisine..What an enchanting island and the perfect ending to a sublime trip.

We have been to the Amalfi coast before, but staying overnight in Capri is an entirely new experience. I can now understand the magic of this little island.

We stayed at the charming Scalinatella Hotel, which has the same owners as the larger
Quisisana, but a much more boutique-y feel. We immediately ran into someone from New York as soon as we checked in and he advised us to have lunch by the pool…a flawless meal and probably the best lunch on the Island. We had a spaghetti alle vongole, and even though we’ve had this dish a million times in the U.S., it just doesn’t compare to having it in its native land. I will re-create the dish soon and share it with you. They were kind enough to give me the recipe.

Our room was delightful, with a great view of the sea. How do I even find the words to explain the radiance of the sun setting over the island while the birds are singing and the moon is rising in the background. It is a lovers paradise. There’s nothing about it that’s not perfection.

Lo Scoglio was our favorite restaurant on the coast. The best way to go is by boat and you can even jump in for a quick swim on the way…

Lo Scoglio

We got to meet the family that owns this charming restaurant. Antonia is the daughter and she is so proud of their new and improved kitchen..she and her father showed us around and she translated for him. There is a family farm that provides them with all of their produce and meat…and of course their fish comes from local waters and absolutely everything is homemade. It is such a traditional family-run restaurant…after lunch we saw “nonna” (grandma) in the back scrutinizing the bills..

They served us a simple arugula salad…with tomatoes that were sugary sweet…and it was drizzled with balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil from their own olive trees.

Then M. had the larger tomatoes, sliced and served with the freshest mozzarella and basil.

After the tomatoes we had a cooked vegetable dish comprised of six different vegetables from their farm…which was an entire meal in itself…but of course we had to leave room for pasta.  I had the special house pasta with zucchini and M. had spaghetti with seafood….while we listened to the sweet sounds of children splashing in the crystal waters below us.

Spaghetti with seafood

For dinner we went to the celeb hangout Villa Verde and had brick oven pizza…

Three days in Capri was just too short….and we loved it so much that we already booked our vacation for next year.

Here’s a question…when you have a euphoric travel experience and dream about it for many years, then return to experience it again, does it ever exceed your expectations? I have only been to Barcelona once and ever since I have been dreaming about going back to this dynamic city by the sea. It’s been nine years and the Spanish food culture has gone through a revolution. It is the go-to place for every Chef and foodie looking for new adventures. My good friend, Gerry Dawes, is an expert on Spanish food, wine, and culture, and he helped me design my trip. I had so many new places to check out, and some of the old favorites to visit again.

My partner M. drove like a crazy-mad-hungry-foodie from Provence to Barcelona to make our 3 o’clock lunch reservation at Can Majo...although we did make a stop along the way and I must say the rest stops in Europe, and especially in France, are a revelation compared to our side-of-the-road fast food joints! Our mouths were watering for paella during the whole drive. It was exactly as we remembered. The food is simple but the fresh ingredients turn it into magic, and certainly the atmosphere helps, sitting right on Barcelona’s busiest beach watching the bathing suits go by.

We had grilled langoustines and fried calamari and a very chilled bottle of Spanish white. Happiness. Then we followed this with a seafood paella that was sublime.

Seafood Paella

We were so full that we decided not to eat dinner that night... .We went to see a movie instead, and then stopped by the Hotel Arts for a drink and a stroll around the Casino.

Hotel Arts

The next day, we hit the streets and stopped by the Boqueria market.

Boqueria Market

Monday was not the best day to be at the Boqueria because about half of it was closed…so, we looked around a bit and returned the next day when everything was in full swing. Just take a look at these photos and you can see why I felt like a kid in a candy store.

Psychedelic Candy

Hams and More!

Exquisite Fruits

Dinner that night was at Restaurant Moo in the Hotel Omm, with Chef Felip Llufriu at the helm.

The first course was Chef Llufriu’s signature dish, which he learned directly from Spanish Chef extraordinaire, Ferran Adria. It was called The Golden Egg… the buttery soft egg yolk encased by a crackling sweet lacquered shell, which is really caramel, dusted in gold leaf…surrounded by crispy salty corn. The mouth-feel was astonishing.

The Golden Egg

Chef Llufriu really is a genius….the way he mixes the different tastes and textures…salty, crunchy, sweet, smooth, all in one bite. He utilizes all of the indigenous ingredients of his country and it was such an innovative meal…

Spider Crab Ravioli w/ peas and orange

Caramelized Apple Dessert

This was Michelin star dining. Expensive but worth every penny. The atmosphere was chic, the service was impeccable.

The proprietor of Can Majo recommended that we try Bar Mut the following night, a bustling tapas bar with an impressive wine list, and then head to Muttis, the exclusive private club upstairs. We were not disappointed! In my limited tapas bar experience this was truly the highlight. I could eat like this every day! The pictures will tell it all…

Grilled Langoustine

What a pro!!

The most tender octopus

Egg yolk, potatoes, and shrimp

Adios Barcelona…on to Capri…..I hope you all join me on the final leg of my journey.

For help planning your Spanish vacation, please visit GerryDawesSpain.com!