Eat to the Beat 2012

This past Tuesday was my fourth time participating in Eat to the Beat. You can read about my experience last year here.

This year I offered Wild Mushroom Soup Shooters topped with Chives and Truffle Oil. This year, for the first time, Eat to the Beat offered guests the chance to vote on their favourite dish of the evening and guess what? My dish won!!! I am always so honoured to participate in this event with such amazing and talented female chefs so wining is something I am very proud of.

Here is the winning recipe:

Wild Mushroom Soup
Serves 4-6

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
• 2 shallots, minced
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked of the stems
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms
• 1/2 pound shitake mushrooms
• 1/2 pound oyster mushrooms
• 1 small package (1 oz) dried porcini mushrooms, re-hydrated in 1 cup of boiling water, water reserved
• 1 small package (1 oz) dried chanterelle mushrooms, re-hydrated in 1 cup of boiling water, water reserved
• 1 1/2 cups white wine
• 1 Litre vegetable stock
• 2 cups heavy cream
• kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• truffle oil
• chopped chives

1. Heat a stock pot or large saucepan over medium heat, add the oil and butter. Once the butter has melted add in the shallots, garlic and thyme and cook, stirring occaisionally until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add in the cremini, shitake and oyster mushrooms and saute until mushrooms are softened and starting to brown.
2. Pour in the white wine, using a wooden spoon scrape off any brown bits that have collected on the bottom of the pan. Bring the wine to a boil and let reduce by half.
3. Add in the porcini and chanterelle mushroom, along with the re-hydrating liquid as well as the vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to low and allow to simmer for 20 minutes for the flavours to come together.
4. Remove the soup from the heat, and using a hand blender puree until smooth.
5. Place back on low heat and stir in the cream. Allow to come to a gentle simmer then remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Place into serving bowls and top with a drizzle of truffle oil and a sprinkling of chives.
7. ENJOY!

Seared Scallops with Sweet Corn Risotto

Clearly you can tell by my lack of posting that it has been awhile since I have cooked. Well last night, I actually had the energy to prepare some dinner so I decided to go all out with something a little fancier than a regular weeknight meal.

Jordan and I love scallops but we usually have them with a light sauce as an appetizer. Since I wanted to prepare them as a main I needed an accompaniment that would round out the meal. Scallops and corn make a perfect couple so I decided to pair the simply seared scallops with a delicious sweet corn risotto. It was a perfect, indulgent weeknight meal and I am glad I mustered up the energy to prepare it.

Sweet Corn Risotto
Serves 4

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1 cup white wine
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, heated
• 1 cup of corn, fresh or frozen, pureed until almost smooth
• 1 cup of corn niblets, fresh or frozen
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• handful of chopped chives

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, once hot add the oil, shallot and garlic. Cook until softned and translucnet, about 3 minutes. Stir in the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Cook for one minute.
2. Pour in the wine, and using a wooden spoon scrape off any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, and reduce by one half. Lower the heat to a simmer
3. Pour one ladle of stock into the rice mixture, and continually stir, once the liquid is absorbed add another ladle of stock. Repeat this process until all the stock is used and the rice is cooked to al dente, adding in both the pureed and whole corn with the last stock addition.
4. Stir in the butter and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the chives and cover with aluminum foil to keep in the heat while you sear the scallops.

Simple Seared Scallops
This recipe can be used for any amount of scallops

• fresh, sea scallops
• paper towel
• kosher salt and pepper
• vegetable oil
• butter
• squeeze of lemon

1. Place the sea scallops onto a peice of paper towl and blot out any excess moisture. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a large saute pan over high heat, once hot add enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the scallops, making sure not to over crowd the pan and sear until golden brown on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side.
3. Once finished, add a small amount of butter and a squeeze of lemon juice to the pan and let melt and coat the scallops.
4. Remove and serve.