JP’s Recipes

People do frequently ask me for a number of my recipes, so from time to time I’ll be posting whichever recipe was the last requested!

AUGUST 2011 RECIPE – JP’s Bread Pudding w/Kentucky Bourbon Sauce

This simple but unbelievably delicious desert nearly caused a stampede at our annual summer party this year.  Note that there are two “pre-cooking” steps, one requiring about an hour of time to expose the bread to dry air and one allowing the bread to soak up the egg mixture for anywhere from an hour to overnight in the ‘fridge. Again, this does require the use of real eggs, so cut down your serving size and enjoy the full balance of flavors rather than substitute! You’ll never need to go to Cinnabon again!

Pudding:

3 Tablespoons Butter

1 ½ to 2 loaves French Bread

1 cup raisins (optional)

5 Large or 4 Jumbo Eggs

6 cups Milk

3 cups Sugar

3 Tablespoons Vanilla

1 ½ teaspoons Ground Cinnamon

½ teaspoon Nutmeg

¼ teaspoon Chili Powder

¼ teaspoon Salt

 

Sauce:

1 Stick (8 Tablespoons) Butter

1 cup Sugar or ½ cup Sugar & ½ cup Maple Syrup

¼ cup Kentucky Bourbon (Tennessee Bourbon or Irish Mist in a pinch)

2 Tablespoons Water

¼ teaspoon Nutmeg

¼ teaspoon Salt

Pinch of powdered Ginger or Clove if desired

1 Egg

 

Remove the Bread Loaves from any packaging for an hour or so prior to cooking in a dry location. Use the 3 Tbs Butter to spread over a 9×13 baking dish, glass preferably.  Slice Bread into ½ thick slices and arrange in dish almost vertically (leaning on each other like tipped dominoes), if desired tuck the raisins between the slices.  In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until frothy then whisk in the milk, sugar, vanilla, spices and salt. Pour over the bread and cover with wax paper – let it soak in for at least an hour, or begin the night before and let soak in overnight – press down on the wax paper with a spatula every now and then to wet the tops of the slices.  When soaked, bake in a 350 degree oven until the top is golden and puffy, about an hour.  Meanwhile, melt the butter for the sauce in a small heavy saucepan over low heat, add the sugar(s) bourbon, water, nutmeg, salt and spices and cook, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is blended. Turn off heat. In a small bowl whisk the egg, then add it to the sauce mixture still whisking it rapidly. Turn the heat on to medium and simmer gently, while continuing to stir slowly, it will not curdle but instead will thicken – cook for about a minute.  Cover the pudding with the sauce and let stand for 30 to 60 minutes, cut into squares and served. Can be refrigerated and reheated on a hot plate or a 350 oven for 10 minutes and will keep several days refrigerated.

 

OCTOBER RECIPE – JP’s Coconut Custard Pie

This is an incredible pie, but it cannot be made without the requisite number of eggs and yolks – egg substitutes and egg whites cannot produce the creamy custard necessary.  Think smaller slices for this pie – even those of us NOT counting calories or cholesterol levels only need a slim slice to reach gastronomic nirvanna on this one.

1 Prebaked Flaky Pie Crust

3 Whole Eggs

3 Additional Egg Yolks

½ Cup Sugar

1 Teaspoon Spiced Rum, Buttered Rum, or Vanilla

1/8 Teaspoon Salt

 

1 Cup Heavy Cream or Half and Half

½ Cup Whole Milk

½ Cup Coconut Milk Canned (or 1 Cup Heavy Cream & 1 Cup Whole Milk)

1 Cup Shredded Coconut

½ Teaspoon Nutmeg or Cinnamon

 

Preheat Oven to 325°. Warm the prepared pie crust and spread bottom with the shredded coconut. In a large glass bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, rum/vanilla and salt.  Bring to a simmer in a small sauce pan over medium heat the Cream, Milk and Coconut Milk (do not be concerned if your coconut milk is solid as it comes out of the can, it will very shortly melt).

“Danger Will Robinson, Dangerous Step Approaching!!”

Now, whisking all the while, GRADUALLY add the simmering milk mixture into the egg mixture… do it slowly or it doesn’t combine correctly, and keep whisking those eggs!

IMMEDIATELY pour the hot custard over the shredded coconut into the WARM crust. Sprinkle top with a bit more shredded coconut and the nutmeg. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until it is set but wiggly, like jello, when you rock the pie plate slightly. Let cool completely on a rack before serving then serve or refrigerate. If refrigerating, allow it to sit out 1 hour to come back to room temperature. Heating this pie is not at all a good idea!

September Recipe – JP’s Hudson Valley Quiche

 If you shop for this at the Old World Marketplace up in the Gateway, you can find local cheeses, dairy and locally grown vegetables – or on Thursdays until November, get them at the Farmer’s Market in the Riverspace parking lot.

3 Eggs

5 to 6 ounces of chevre

1 ½ Cups Heavy Cream (or ¾ Cup each Heavy Cream and Half & Half)

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon chili powder or Hungarian paprika

7 or 8 white mushroom, sliced

5 or 6 shallots, peeled and coarsely chopped

7 or 8 roast garlic cloves (don’t use raw! Buy pre-roasted or roast your own)

1 Tablespoon Butter

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Gouda, Edam, Mild White Cheddar, Gruyere or other mild white cheese

1 Flaky Pie Crust, pre-baked and ready to fill (or purchased pie crust)

Preheat Oven to 375°. Set the Chevre out to soften. Work with vegetables first. In a sauté pan heat the butter and Olive Oil and sauté the mushrooms and shallots at medium to medium low heat and allow the shallots to become transparent and the mushrooms to cook down some reducing some in volume – if they require a bit more moisture to prevent crisping add a shot of wine, beef stock or more butter. After about 5 minutes, add the roast garlic after cutting the cloves into 4 or 5 slices each. Sauté a few minutes more, and set them aside.

In a large bowl add the softened chevre and crack open the 3 eggs – with a whisk beat the eggs and try to incorporate as much chevre as possible before adding the cream. Continue whisking, adding the salt and spices until the eggs and cream are completely melded and any remaining chunks of chevre are pea-sized or smaller.

With a grater, grate some mild white cheese over the bottom of the prepared crust – just enough to cover the bottom – pour a small layer of the egg/cheese/cream mixture over it, then spoon the sautéed vegetables into the crust as evenly distributed as possible. Pour the rest of the liquid over this. Sprinkle top with a hint of nutmeg and some fresh ground black pepper. CAREFULLY slide into oven, bake until top of filling is browned and set, between 30 – 33 minutes (unless your oven is running hot). Remove and set on rack to cool a bit before serving and allow a bit more “set” – it can be served then, or later either cool or gently re-heated.

August Recipe – JP’s 5-layer Lasagna Recipe

Pasta:

1 lb. of Lasagna Noodles or enough to get five layers in your lasagna pan

For the Meat Sauce:

1lb ground meat

1 Tbs Olive Oil

1 chopped onion

2 chopped shallots

1 chopped garlic clove

2 Tbs crushed roasted pumpkin seeds (optional)

Dash of Nutmeg

Dash of Cinnamon

Dash of Red Pepper

1 tsp unsweetened cocoa

5 cups crushed tomatoes

Bay leaf

1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Large pinch of dried oregano or marjoram

Pinch of salt

1 round of cracked pepper

Dash of sugar (if necessary)

For the Cheese Mixture:

4 Cups Ricotta Cheese

4 Eggs

2 Cups shredded Mozzarella

¼ cup grated Romano cheese

Pinch of dried oregano

Pinch of chopped parsley or cilantro

Dash of Salt

1 round of Cracked Pepper

For top and bottom:

1 cup plain red tomato sauce

1 Cup shredded Mozzarella

¼ grated Romano cheese

 

Cook pasta to within 1 minute of recommended cooking time – pour off most of the hot water and add cold to cover noodles – set aside.

Brown meat in large dutch oven or heavy sauce pot.  When fat renders, pour off and add olive oil, onions, shallots, garlic, seeds and spices listed up to and including cocoa.  Brown the meat further until it is very broken and the vegetables are translucent.  Add the additional ingredients and allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes, if the sauce is not “wet” enough for your taste, add a bit of red wine or water.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit.  In a bowl, crack open the 4 eggs and mix together with the rest of the cheese mixture ingredients until well mixed and a pale yellow color.

Use some of the plain sauce to coat the bottom of your lasagna pan.  Make a layer of lasagna strips (overlapping edges slightly) to fill the width of the pan.  Spread about ¼ of the cheese mixture over the pasta, cover that with about ¼ of the meat sauce.  Add another layer of pasta… repeat until you’ve done 4 layers.  On top of the 5^th layer of pasta, add the rest of the plain sauce (should be a thin layer) and sprinkle the rest of the cheeses on top – add a pinch of oregano and parsley if you wish.  LOOSELY cover with foil (if you cover it tightly, the melting mozzarella will stick to the foil – so make a tent over the pan.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and bake another 10 – 15 minutes, allowing the top to brown.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.  It’s even better the next day!