Recipe: Chef Ryan Scott's Sweet Corn Soup

Tonight I continued my intern hours by assisting former Top Chef contestant Ryan Scott at a fundraiser event in San Francisco, Art for Aids. We served his amazing sweet corn soup with pickled cherry tomatoes as well as a hit of chili oil and tomato salt. Ryan's got a catering company here in SF now call Ryan Scott 2 Go.

We're in a heat wave... It struck with such sudden viciousness I actually got a call from a friend in sheer confusion. She couldn't understand why it was sweltering in her place, then walked outside and realized it was the entire city that was melting. Hot steaming soup at the peak of summer? In SF, it's usually a nice option since we're often still in coats anyways. That said, the soup received rave reviews despite the hot environs. Many people said it was the best dish in the house (other tables included SF notables Town Hall, Maya, Home and Asia de Cuba). My favorite feedback was someone who asked whether it was sweet or savory, and after being told it was savory told us "Well I like it even better than dessert."

Corn soup is one of those simple but completely pleasurable foods best served at the height of summer. Ryan's posting his recipes on his website, but because I can't seem to find it up yet check out the version I found here.

If you're interested in other summer corn recipes, I also found this old SF Chronicle article full of options, and a note on how to make "corn milk" (which is included in Ryan's recipe as well).

“Top Chef” Ryan Scott Sweet White Corn Soup Recipe
1/4 pound butter
1cup leeks, white part only, minced
2 cups onions, finely minced
2 Qt corn milk
1 Qt shucked corn
2 1/2 Qt's vegetable stock
1-cup heavy cream
Dash of Tabasco
3 T salt

Sweat in a large saucepan the butter, onions, and leeks or until translucent (5-10 min). Add the corn milk, corn, stock and simmer for 1/2 hour. Then add cream, salt, Tabasco, and bring to a boil. Puree in blender and strain through a fine mesh strainer (depending on the desired consistency of the soup)

“Top Chef” Ryan Scott Pickled Cherry Tomatoes Recipe
2 lbs Cherry tomatoes, cut in half and washed
2Tbs slivered garlic (as thin as a dime)
2 Tbs slivered ginger (as thin as a dime)
2 Tbs minced parsley
1 1/2 Tbs salt
1 Tbs Espelete pepper
1/2 Tbs tumeric
1 1/2 Tsp cracked black pepper
1 cup champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup corn oil
1 cup sugar

Boil salt, sugar, and vinegar till dissolved.

Heat the oil just warm enough to lightly cook the garlic, ginger, and spices. Cook till garlic is tender not brown.

Add vinegar slowly to the oil mixture and then add parsley. Pour liquid mixture over the halved tomatoes, let cool at room temperature, and then refrigerate. This mixture will hold up for weeks as long as its chilled. When serving it does taste better at room temperature.

Eat Here, Now

If you are in the Bay Area and have an excuse to have a nice dinner (or like me need no excuse), I have been raving about Commis to anyone and everyone. It's only been open 6 weeks or so, over in Oakland. I've been twice already I loved it so much, and if you're into cooking it's especially cool to sit at the counter and watch the chefs in the open kitchen. I posted my review on Chowhound, and was ammused to see it quoted under EaterSF's recap of online chatter about the restaurant with the heading "The Final World... For Now." If only I always got the final word.

Recipe: Flourless Almond Torte with Melted Chocolate and Berry Sauce

This European torte uses ground almonds (almond flour) in place of "normal" flour. It's a good option for anyone eating gluten-free. It's also delicious and easy. I was so enthralled that I decided the torte deserved its own photo album. I bet other nuts would work well also in this recipe, especially hazelnuts.

Ingredients
Cake
1 ½ cups almonds
¼ cup maple syrup
3 large eggs
1 tsp almond extract
¼ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp sea salt
Toppings
2 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted, for topping
½ pint fresh raspberries
agave nectar, to taste
lemon juice, to taste
2 Tbs almonds, toasted and chopped

Procedure
1 Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line an 8 inch cake pan (a fluted tart pan or pie tin would work) with a parchment paper circle cut to fit the bottom.
2 In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, grind the almonds until they have a flour like consistency, about 1 - 2 minutes. If you go too long, it will get sticky and eventually turn to almond butter... not what you want. Run a spatula around the sides of the work bowl if it isn't mixing evenly.
3 Measure the maple syrup, eggs, extracts, and salt into a measuring cup, mixing well to break up the eggs. With the food processor running, pour the maple syrup mixture through the feed tube and process until smooth.
4 Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes. The torte is ready when the top is lightly golden brown and the center is just set, it may appear to even be a bit jiggly. Touch it to make sure it isn't too dry. Tent with foil if the top browns too quickly.
5 While the torte is baking, puree the raspberries with a touch of agave and a splash of lemon juice. Strain out seeds and set aside.
6 When torte is finished allow it to cool slightly before gently inverting the torte over a plate to remove from the pan. Carefully peel off the parchment paper. Turn it back over and place it on serving platter. Spread the melted dark chocolate over followed by the toasted almonds. Serve with the raspberry sauce.

Author: Adapted from "One Bite at a Time" by Rebecca Katz

Winding Down

We're in the final countdown now. As of this Monday there was exactly one month left of school. Going into Bauman I had no idea what to expect. Would this be a "real" culinary program? It certainly isn't as well known as the CCA, Cordon Bleu, or myriad other professional cooking schools out there. I did what research I could, including an open house, web search, and careful read of all the school's materials. But honestly I had no idea what was to come the day I walked in that door.

Now, with five months of hindsight, would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY. No doubt whatsoever. Why? While I haven't received a traditional culinary experience (we had only one day of working with "meat," in our case only poultry), I have learned a ton. This has been a real education in how to make the type of food people should be eating; food that's not only delicious, but also healthy. Beyond the culinary skills, I feel extremely lucky to have a wonderful cast of characters as my costudents -- everyone from a former chef at Esalen, to my cauliflower-loving high-tech working carpooler, to a former physical therapist. Plus, as I've asked around in the food industry I've heard only good things about Bauman.

While I'm counting down the last days of class with a sense of sadness (there won't be a next year to look forward to like in grade school), the fact that the end is in sight is also somewhat of a relief. Just as I discovered this is a "real" program, I also realized the demands weren't trivial. Quite a few of my classmates are not working. My long work + class days have been exhausting at times. But I don't have it nearly as bad as some of my working classmates who are also commuting an hour+ each way to school.

What has been my biggest surprise in school? Probably that I like baking! I always considered myself more into cooking than baking, but I've found myself volunteering for more and more baking recipes, and realized that many of my blog postings have been baking related as well. This week, when I made the class' dessert (an almond torte with chocolate and raspberry sauce) I mentioned to everyone that I've never been into baking. They all said they'd gotten the impression it was my thing.

When this is done what's next? Spain! I have my flight booked. It's a trip planned around a dinner (thanks to my friend's El Bulli reservation... a meal at the world's #1 restaurant, what could be more appropriate for culinary school graduation?). I'm also hoping to take a cooking class in Barcelona, and do a food tour through the city. When I get back, I'll have about 40 internship hours to complete before I receive official certification as a Natural Chef, but I have six months to do those.

These last few weeks have been busier than usual, with a final project to prepare and showcase meal to plan. My final project subject is cooking for individuals with lactose intolerance, and I'll have the "awful" homework tomorrow night of testing a goat cheese cheesecake recipe I plan on preparing for the class (goat milk dairy is often easier to digest for those who have difficulty with cows milk). Because of the packed schedule, I've had less time to update photos and add recipes recently. But I plan on posting new favorite recipes soon, including the almond torte and a really flavorful fresh green bean and corn saute with chile powder and lime.

Weight Management Class Recipe: Roasted Salmon with Minted Plum Salsa

I'm having trouble figuring out which recipes to post from Weight Management class. They were all good! My teammate Jit and I made lettuce soup... Sounds weird, right? It was in fact delicious, simple (and of course healthy). Cooked lettuce is something that fascinates me. And the soup had tarragon too, which is one of my favorite herbs and completely underappreciated. There were also lemon almond cookies, chickpea basmati burgers with tomato chutney, cauliflower "couscous" and a zucchini carpaccio salad I'll get around to posting too.

But in the end there was one recipe that really blew me away:

Roasted Salmon with Minted Plum Salsa

SALMON INGREDIENTS
1 ¾ lbs salmon fillets, skinned, portioned
½ cup lemon juice
¼ cup tamari
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
black pepper

SALSA INGREDIENTS
2 Tbs honey
⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
1 medium jalapeno, minced
4 large plums, whole, 1/4" dice
½ medium red onion, finely chopped
½ cup yellow tomato, 1/4" dice
½ Tbs grated ginger
2 Tbs minced mint
2 Tbs lime juice
2 Tbs olive oil

Procedure
1 Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2 In an oven proof dish, marinate fillets for about 30 minutes in lemon juice and tamari, turning once midway.
3 Before roasting press garlic slices on top of each fillet then grind some black pepper over. Roast in the marinade for about 7 - 10 minutes, depending on thickness. Baste with the marinade occasionally. When done, flesh will look opaque and feel firm yet the middle should still be slightly reddish. The fish will continue to cook
after removing it from the oven.
4 PLUM SALSA: Combine honey and vinegar in a small saucepan and cook over moderate heat until reduced and it coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and let cool.
5 Combine remaining salsa ingredients together in a medium bowl and stir in the cooled reduction. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over salmon fillets.

From Weight Management

Making Seasoned Salts

Seasoned sea salts are a simple pantry item that can absolutely transform a dish. I use mine on roasted meats and veggies, sprinkled on scrambled eggs, and to rim glasses -- really you can use them on most things (farmers markets often showcase them on fresh heirloom tomatoes). They sell for around $15 at my local grocery store, but are extremely cheap to make yourself. And we learned in class that they are also very easy to make. So before you consider shelling out money for a fancy little packet, check out how to make a big batch at home. They also make beautiful party favors, holiday gifts, etc.

In my research I came across a posting from Mark Bittman of the NY Times on making sea salts that provides additional ideas you may want to check out. I notice he doesn't oven dry his, but I expect doing so preserves the herbs and other additions so that your salt keeps better.

Seasoned Sea Salt

Ingredients:
1 cup good quality sea salt (make sure you use sea salt and not simple table salt. sea salt has minerals and better flavor. plus table salt can actually leech minerals from your body)
At least 1/4 cup fresh herbs, washed and thoroughly dried, then rough chopped (Any mix you'd like. Rosemary, parsley, thyme, oregano, lavender, etc...)
Other additions (a garlic clove or two and citrus zest work well)

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 100F.
2. In a food processor, add all ingredients and process until well combined (herbs should be small specks of color). It is essential that herbs are completely dry before doing this. You can wash them approx. a day ahead, spin dry or pat with towel, and then leave out to dry completely until use.
3. Spread salt on a baking sheet in a thin layer (use multiple baking sheets depending on amount). Place in oven and bake approx. 45 minutes. (If you have a food dehydrator, you can use that instead of the oven).
4. Cool before packaging. Clumps may form. If you want to ensure even texture you can run the salt in the food processor again once oven-dried.

Note: We made rosemary and garlic salt with lemon zest. For our batch, we halved the recipe, used one clove of garlic and the zest of one lemon (to give a sense of proportion).

Recipe: Roasted Garlic and Herb Mashed Root Veggies

There's nothing more comforting than mashed potatoes. I'm always on the lookout for alternative versions since I can't have a lot of dairy and most use milk or cream. Plus, in class recently we discussed other health conditions that limit consuming potatoes due to their high-glycemic content (which spikes blood sugar and is bad for anyone who needs to limit their sugar intake like diabetics or those with candida).

Even if you don't have specific reasons to avoid potatoes, this "alternative mash" is soooooooo good. From the roasting, the veggies develope a sweet overtone that is rounded out by the savory roasted garlic and fresh herbs. You can use it as a versatile frame, swapping in any type of root vegetables you'd like, or use different herbs (we didn't have thyme and used rosemary instead).

Garlic and Herb Root Mash

Ingredients
1 large bulb garlic
2 medium turnips, peeled cut into 1 inch cubes
2 medium rutabagas, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 heads cauliflower, chopped into medium florets
1 tsp fresh oregano
1 tsp fresh thyme
to taste salt and pepper
2 Tbs ghee, if desired

Procedure
1 Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the top off of the garlic bulb and drizzle with a little grapeseed oil. Wrap the garlic bulb in parchment paper and then foil and roast for 30- 40 min.
2 Place the turnips, rutabagas, and cauliflower in a large steamer pot and steam until very soft when pierced with a fork, about 15-20 minutes. It's fine if the cauliflower is softer than the other vegetables.
3 Once tender, transfer the vegetables to a large bowl and add the roasted garlic. Mash well with a potato masher. Alternatively, puree in a blender for a smoother consistency. Add the oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper and mix well. If desired, add the ghee for a creamier taste and texture.

Author: By Katherine Wilson, Natural Chef Instructor