Good Living 123

This appetizer classic was first created to simply fill in for the snails that were highly heralded in New Orleans’ French Quarter in the late 1800s, at a time when a snail shortage was plaguing the restaurants.  Jules Alciatore, son of Antoine’s founder, Antoine Alciatore, developed an alternative recipe in 1889, using snails, to fill in the gap. He named the dish Oysters Rockefeller for the rich green sauce that reminded him of the millionaire J.D. Rockefeller.

Interestingly, the dish caught on so fast that the actual recipe became and remains a highly-guarded family secret. That said, a 1986 laboratory analysis revealed that the sauce’s mystery ingredients included parsley, celery, scallions or chives, olive oil, and capers.

To keep the rich green color, most restaurants use spinach, rather than parsley. And debate runs hot as to whether or not to add Pernod or top the dish with panko. Make it the way you like it and name it what you want. At Antoine’s in New Orleans, where they have counted every order since they first served it in 1889, more than 3½ million orders of Oysters Rockefeller have been served.

If you’d like, celebrate the history of the dish with my rendition. I like a little added cheesiness… and definitely bacon, neither of which are in the original recipe. Or simply order any version of baked oysters at your favorite restaurant.

Oysters Rockefeller

2 dozen rinsed, live oysters, shucked; top shells discarded; oysters loosened with paring knife

6 T butter

¼ – 1/3 c finely minced shallots or onion

2 packed cups baby spinach leaves, de-stemmed

2 T Pernod or white wine

1 T lemon juice

1½ c heavy or whipping cream

½ c each: finely grated Romano & Fontina cheeses

½ tsp black pepper

Dash of hot sauce (such as Mike’s Red Hot or tabasco), optional

¼ c shredded Monterey Jack cheese

¼ c panko breadcrumbs, tossed with 1 T melted butter

¼ c cooked, diced bacon

Place opened oysters on pan in refrigerator. Melt butter in large skillet over med heat; sauté onion for 1 min. Then add spinach and Pernod; stir for 1-2 minutes to start spinach wilting. Stir in lemon juice, cream, Romano & Fontina cheese, pepper, and hot sauce, if using. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat; let cook till liquid has reduced by half. Cool the spinach mixture completely in the refrigerator. To cook, divide spinach mixture atop each oyster. Sprinkle with Jack cheese, breadcrumbs, and bacon, if using. Bake or grill at 450°F for 6-8 min (small-medium oysters) or 8-12 (large oysters). Serve hot with fresh lemon wedges.

KISS Tips: Oysters should be cooked hot and fast. They are done with the centers are puffy and the edges start to curl. Oyster shells are notoriously uneven. Nesting them in beds of rock salt (ice cream salt) in your pan or individual baking dishes prevents sauce from being wasted.

Photo by Rob Wicks

If you’re unfamiliar with English toffee, think of a Heath bar, which has an English toffee core. So, how many generations have enjoyed the sweet confection known as English toffee? Every generation since the early 19^th century.

There are subtle and not-so-subtle differences between English toffee and American toffee. For example, Americans often use a combination of white and brown sugars. The British use only brown sugar. Both varieties tend to drizzle or coat the toffee with chocolate, but the American versions often sprinkle the top with chopped nuts, such as walnuts, almonds, cashews, pecans, or Brazil nuts. Some claim that English toffee may be harder than American toffee. Others claim the reverse.

Hard or chewy, this candy is made by caramelizing sugar. It all starts with 1 cup each of true butter & sugar (brown or white or combo), ¼ c water, and ½ tsp salt. If you are a candy maker, you know how to get it to the hard-crack (300°F) stage. If not, you do not need to start with English toffee. Simply buy a piece… or a box. If you’re lucky you can find a bakery or candy shop that still makes it fresh.

A couple of days before Christmas, Sir Ronald and I went to a lovely holiday event at the historic Lake Lure Inn in Lake Lure, North Carolina.

The 1927 setting proved to be a perfect place for “A Dickens Christmas Musical Evening,” which featured the piano stylings of Josef Patchen.

And the menu was splendid! We started with an elegant roasted sweet red pepper bisque, followed by crab cake-stuffed mushrooms with pepper coulis and bacon-wrapped roasted asparagus. (Good enough to get seconds, so I did!!!) The salad was delightful with fresh baby spinach, cranberries, and roasted pecans.

Our main course included stuffed Cornish game hen and a carved roasted round of beef, along with scalloped gouda potatoes, garlic-roasted Brussels sprouts, and broccoli & cauliflower gratin. Topping it off was a station-flamed bananas foster.

All this, while we enjoyed old-fashioned Christmas carols and other holiday favorites by Leroy Anderson, Wells & Tormé, Martin & Blaine, Barnard & Smith, Cahn & Styne, and more! This evening proved to be a delightful way to celebrate Christmas!

Photo by Henry Perks

Bouillabaisse is a hearty seafood stew that harkens back to ancient Greece, where Marseille was founded in 600 BC. To be authentic, the classic French soup must include Provence, France’s indigenous red scorpion fish.

However, in the United States and elsewhere, we substitute red snapper, sea bass, grouper, cod, or some other fish. Bouillabaisse comes from the old word “bolhahaissa,” which means to boil and simmer.

Many people believe Bouillabaisse and Cioppino are interchangeable, but they are not quite the same. Cioppino has a rich, tomato-based broth and, while it includes a firm-fleshed white fish, Cioppino usually emphasizes special shellfish, such as king crab legs or lobster (depending on your location). The broth for Bouillabaisse uses a spicy, white fish stock as a base, with some diced tomatoes added. Bouillabaisse is also characterized by the addition of saffron or fennel, plus white potatoes and often some orange peel. (Unless I want them for thickening purposes, I tend to omit the potatoes.)

Photo by Stefan Schauberg

When serving Bouillabaisse, the broth and fish are generally served separately, along with hearty, sliced bread with a rouille spread, which is like a garlicky mayonnaise. In truth, to Super Simplify this, serve garlic French bread… and picture yourself sitting at a sunny surfside table in the south of France. But, of course! Oui, oui!

Bouillabaisse

This is Super Simplified of the full-on version. Now and then, I enjoy preparing recipes with many ingredients when the end result is a traditional and timeless classic.

1 each: leek and lg sweet onion, chopped

28-oz canned petite-diced tomatoes

¼ – ½ tsp each: cayenne pepper & red pepper flakes

1 bouquet garni (2 bay leaves, 4 sprigs thyme, 1 sprig tarragon, 2 whole cloves, & 6 peppercorns)

Olive oil (½ cup)

2 lb white fish… sea bass, halibut, grouper, cod; cut in chunks

2 each: carrots & celery stalks, finely chopped

¼ c pinot grigio (or other dry white wine)

1 tsp orange zest (or crushed dried orange peel)

3 qts fish stock

Salt to suit your taste

½ – 1 tsp saffron threads, soaked in 1/8 c hot water

Meat from 2 lobsters (1-2 lbs each), cut into pieces

1 lb. lg large or jumbo shrimp, shelled & deveined

½ lb sea scallops, rinsed & patted dry

1 lb mussels, rinsed & scrubbed

4 oz calamari rings

1 T finely chopped or minced garlic

4 T fresh lemon juice (1 medium-sized lemon & its zest)

¼ c finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

In a glass bowl, combine ¼ of the leeks, onion, and garlic. Stir in all the diced tomatoes, cayenne, red pepper flakes, bouquet garni, and ¼ c olive oil. Add fish chunks to the bowl, stirring to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large Dutch oven over med heat. Sauté remaining leeks and onions, plus all the carrots and celery for 5 minutes. Add remaining garlic; continue cooking & stirring for 3 min. Then stir in wine, orange zest, fish marinade (but NOT the fish chunks), and the fish stock. Salt to suit your taste. Bring to a simmer for 15 minutes; stir in saffron. Stir in fish and mussels; let cook 5 -7 minutes. Then add shrimp, scallops, calamari, lemon juice (& zest); let cook another 3-4 min. Then stir in lobster and parsley. Divide among warmed soup bowls and serve. Serve with toasty garlic bread. Makes 4-6 servings.

KISS Tips: There are some amazing products on the market now, such as Better Than Bouillon. I like adding a T of their Lobster Better Than Bouillon to fish stew bases. Though completely non-traditional, I love this 2-3 slices of hearty, diced bacon, cooked before the leeks and onions. Oh, yeah!!! To prepare bouillabaisse the old-school way, divide your fish and seafood into warmed soup bowls and serve, ladling broth over the top of each bowl. (You can even start with a slice of your garlic bread in the base of the bowl.) Or serve the bowls with the broth in them and pass a platter with all the fish and seafood on it. Would you like to fancify this with some traditional, old-world flavor? After adding saffron to the base, heat ¼ c Pernod (anise-flavored French liqueur) briefly, ignite, and pour over the bouillabaisse.