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HOOSIER HOME COOKIN’




Through the years I’ve mentioned many times my affection for beautiful, durable porcelain coated cast iron cookware. While these pots, bakers and saucepans are made by many manufacturers, my heart belongs to Le Creuset (and, no I’m not paid to say that!). Last week, I had the opportunity to take an autumn gourmet cooking class by Le Creuset chef, Trisha Ranallo. Each recipe for the next two weeks has been tested and approved by yours truly. Webster says Cassoulet is “French” for a slowcooked casserole in a pot. Originating in the south of France, the dish typically contains sausages, meat and white beans. Super Quick Pork Cassoulet features kielbasa and pork tenderloin in a thick tomato broth that warms the soul. Serve it with a loaf of artisan bread that bakes right in a cast iron dutch oven. This bread is crusty on the outside, chewy on the inside and is perfectly giftable. And, there’s no need to knead! At $1.12 a loaf, you’ll be sharing with all your friends. For dessert, Chocolate Mousse anyone? With only three ingredients, it’s all about the prep. Make sure to use only the highest quality trio of fresh eggs, cream and chocolate. And, be sure your bowl and whisk are incredibly clean and free of any oils. This recipe is beautiful served individually in espresso cups. Happy eating!

Super Quick Pork Cassoulet

2 16-oz. cans cannellini beans,
drained and rinsed
1 T. butter
1 T. vegetable oil
1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 1-
inch chunks
Salt and pepper to taste
12 oz. kielbasa sausage, sliced
into 1-inch rounds
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
1 14.5 oz. can crushed tomatoes 2 C. low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 C. finely grated Parmesan
cheese
Place butter and oil in 5-quart
cast iron pot and heat on
medium setting. Pat pork dry
and season with salt and pepper. Add pork pieces to the pot
and cook on each side for three
minutes or until nicely browned.
Remove meat to the lid of your
pan (or a plate). Add sausage,
Old Bay Seasoning and onion to
the pan drippings. Saute for
three minutes. Add garlic and
thyme, stirring to blend flavors.
Add broth, tomatoes and
browned pork back into the pot.
Puree 1 can of the beans and
add to the pan to thicken. Then
add the can of whole beans. Reduce heat to low and simmer
until slightly thickened, about
five minutes. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
Sprinkle each serving with
grated Parmesan cheese. Note:
You can also create this recipe
in a slow cooker. Toss everything in the slow cooker (make
sure you brown the meat and
sausage and sauté the garlic
and onions first). Cook on low
for four hours.

No Knead Artisan Bread in a Pot

3 C. all-purpose or bread flour
plus more for dusting
1 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 5/8 C. water
In a large bowl, combine flour,
yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 C.
water and stir until blended.
Dough will be shaggy and sticky.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap.
Let dough rest at least 12 hours,
preferably about 18 hours, at
warm room temperature – about
70 degrees. Dough is ready
when its surface is dotted with
bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it.
Sprinkle with a little more flour
and fold it over on itself once or
twice. Cover loosely with plastic
wrap and let rest about 15 minutes. Using just enough flour to
keep dough from sticking to
work surface or to your fingers,
gently and quickly shape dough
into a ball. Generously coat a
cotton towel (not terry cloth) or
piece of parchment paper with
flour or cornmeal; put dough
seam side down on towel and
dust with more flour. Cover with
another cotton towel and let rise
for about 2 hours. When it’s
ready, dough will be more than
double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with
your finger. At least half an hour
before dough is ready, preheat
ovento450degrees.Puta51/2
to 7 1/4 quart cast iron oven into
the oven as it heats. When
dough is ready, carefully remove
pot from oven. Slide your hand
under the towel and turn dough
over into the pot, seam side up.
It may look like a mess, but
that’s ok. Shake pan once or
twice if dough is unevenly distributed. It will straighten out as
it bakes. Cover with lid and bake
30 minutes, then remove lid and
bake 15 to 30 minutes more until
loaf is beautifully browned. Cool
on a rack. Makes one 1 1/2-lb. loaf.

Chocolate Mousse

5 oz. good quality semi sweet
chocolate, chopped
1 C. very cold heavy cream
3 large egg whites with NO traces
of yolk, at room temperature
Fill a medium saucepan with 2
inches of water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Place
chocolate and 1/4 cup of the cream
in a large heatproof bowl. Place remaining cream back in the refrigerator until ready to use. Nest the
bowl over the saucepan, making
sure the bottom does not touch the
water. Melt chocolate, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula
until smooth and completely combined with the cream. Remove the
bowl from the saucepan and set
aside to cool slightly. Place the remaining 3/4 cup of cream in a second large clean bowl and beat until
stiff peaks form. Do not overbeat.
Fold in half of the whipped cream
into the cooled melted chocolate,
then gently stir in the rest, trying
not to deflate the whipped cream.
Set in the refrigerator. Place egg
whites in a third large bowl and
whisk vigorously until still peaks
form, about 3 minutes. Alternately,
you can use an electric mixer of
course. Gently fold the egg whites
into the chocolate cream mixture
just until there are no longer large
blobs of whipped cream or egg
white. Do not over mix. Spoon or
pipe mousse from a pastry bag into
individual serving cups and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Garnish
with shaved chocolate or a dusting of cocoa powder.



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