JUST FINISHED:What a book: Wench: A Novel (Dolen Perkins-Valdez, hardback). From the title you might think this is a book about the s-x word. It’s not. By a long shot. But the story, set in about 1852, is about a black slave woman, and her somewhat misguided “love” for her master. About the children she bore him, under the eagle eye of the master’s wife. But it’s all tied together with a yearly journey made to a place called Tawawa House, a rural inn of sorts in southern Ohio (a free State), that for some years allowed white slave owners to stay at the resort in rustic cottages with their black slaves, as couples. This place existed, according to the author’s afterword, and finally closed because some of the regulars (white couples who stayed in the main house) didn’t fancy this concubine business going on out in the woods. It’s about Lizzie’s relationships with the other slave women, about their desire to run to safety through the local underground, about them secretly meeting some free blacks, finding out more about abolition, and about the hardships all these black mistresses endured, and how little their lives were valued. A real stunning book. (I was sent this book as a perk from Harper Collins – because I had mentioned The Help. No strings attached – I could choose to mention this book, or not, here on my blog. I’m glad to because it’s a very good read.)
RECENTLY FINISHED:Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet: A Novel (Jamie Ford, on my Kindle). A poignant story about a Chinese-American, growing up in Seattle at the beginning of World War II. Henry falls in love with a young Japanese girl before her family is interned in a relocation camp. It a very secretive relationship because his parents would highly disapprove. The story goes back to the 40’s and forward to the 1980’s when Henry is in his 50’s and his wife (not the Japanese woman) has just died of cancer. The story pulls you in from the first page, especially when some artifacts are found in the basement of an old hotel which contain personal belongings from several Japanese families who were suddenly taken away back in 1942. You can see where it’s going, can’t you? I heard criticism of this book that it was just a little bit contrived. Halfway through I’m enjoying it very much.
FINISHED: The Help (Kathryn Stockett on my Kindle, an excellent read); The Moonflower Vine: A Novelby Jetta Carleton (Kindle edition, eh); Chosen by a Horse by Susan Richards (Kindle edition, good book); Bound: A Novel by Sally Gunning (Kindle edition, very good read)
A few weeks ago I was watching Martha when she had several famous New York chefs on the show. Seems like they all made fish of some kind, and this particular recipe just sounded interesting. Since Fall is in the air, a more hearty meal piqued my curiosity. The recipe is from Chef Daniel Boulud, certainly one of the pre-eminent chefs out there today. His method is more French than anything else. This recipe isn’t for a night when you’re trying to get dinner on the table in a hurry. It would be more appropriate for guests or a special evening at home. I have changed the recipe just a little. Originally it served 6. I cut it down to serve 2 (shown below). I couldn’t find salsify at the market, so I substituted parsnips. I hadn’t fixed celery root in years, but most markets here in California carry it regularly. I love the subtle taste of celery in this root vegetable.
So, here’s the gist of the recipe. First you make the wine and port sauce. It boils down to next to nothing (I actually left the shallot in the sauce, and I forgot to add the peppercorns altogether). Meanwhile, you peel and cube the celery root. Be sure to use a sturdy peeler if you have one. A light-weight one probably couldn’t pull the heavy peel off. Dig out any eyes and remove most of the very dark swirly parts (the part that’s actually the peel) by just peeling an additional layer or two. Cut into cubes and then you poach the root in milk to which you’ve added some seasonings. That takes about 20 minutes. I pureed it in the food processor (the actual recipe has more steps) and didn’t use all the milk, but just about.
The fish is fairly straight forward – you place some fresh sage leaves (from my garden) on the salmon fillets, then top them with one or two slices of bacon. I wanted to use one slice rather than two, but use your own judgment. It will be harder to turn the salmon if you lay the bacon on top (as I did) rather than wrapping two slices around the middle (so the bacon will stick to itself where the ends meet). I actually baked my salmon in the oven, but the done-ness was much harder to judge (it was overcooked, even though I used a thermometer), so I recommend you stick to the recipe below pan sautéing it.
The results: Absolutely delicious. The celery root puree with its moderately subtle celery flavor was a great pairing with the hearty salmon. The SAUCE is what makes it, though. I wish I’d made more. You want to take each bite that includes a bit of the celery root, salmon, bacon and sauce.
Salmon with Parsnips and Celery Root Puree
Recipe: Chef Daniel Boulud, Bar Boulud, NYC
Servings: 2
WINE SAUCE:
3 whole black peppercorns — crushed
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh savory — or substitute sage
1 small garlic clove — smashed
1/2 cup Syrah wine — or other full-bodied red wine
2 tablespoons port wine
1 small shallots — finely minced
2 cups low-sodium beef stock
PARSNIPS:
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound parsnips — trimmed, peeled, rinsed, dried, and cut into equal stick-sized pieces
SALMON:
4 sage leaves
3/4 pound salmon fillets — skinless
2 slices bacon salt and freshly ground black pepper
CELERY ROOT PUREE:
1 whole garlic clove — smashed
1 sprig fresh sage
1 sprig fresh thyme
3/4 pound celery root — peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces (about one large)
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh chives — or minced Italian parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
1.SAUCE: Place peppercorns, thyme, savory, and garlic in a piece of cheesecloth; tie with kitchen twine to enclose.Transfer to a medium saucepan, along with, Syrah, port, and shallots.Bring to a simmer over low heat and cook until liquid has reduced by three-quarters.Add beef stock and continue cooking until liquid has reduced by two-thirds and lightly coats the back of a spoon.Remove cheesecloth bundle from saucepan and discard; set sauce aside and keep warm.
2.PARSNIPS: Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.Add parsnips, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and tender, about 10-15 minutes.Remove from heat and keep warm.
3.SALMON: Place 2 sage leaves across the length of each piece of salmon; wrap each with 1 slices bacon to secure.Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet.Season salmon with salt and pepper and add to skillet.Cook, turning once, until bacon is crisp, fish is golden, and its internal temperature reaches 130 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 4 minutes per side.
4.Divide celery root puree evenly between 6 serving plates.Serve with a few pieces of parsnips and a piece of salmon.Garnish with bacon and crispy sage leaves.Drizzle sauce around plate and serve immediately.
5.CELERY ROOT PUREE: Place garlic, sage, and thyme in a piece of cheesecloth; tie with kitchen twine to enclose.Place in a medium saucepan along with celery root and enough milk to cover (you may not need to use all the milk).Bring to a simmer over medium heat; continue simmering until celery root is tender, 20 to 30 minutes.Strain mixture through a fine mesh sieve set over a medium bowl, reserving 1/2 cup of milk and discarding cheesecloth bundle.
6.In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat until nut-brown in color, about 8 minutes.Remove pan from heat and pour butter into a bowl, leaving any burned sediment behind.
7.Transfer one-third of the celery root, reserved milk, and browned butter to the jar of a blender; blend until smooth.Slightly mash remaining celery root with a wooden spoon or a potato masher.Stir in pureed celery root mixture and chives; season with salt and pepper.Serve immediately.
Per Serving (assuming you eat every speck of the celery root and parsnips, which we didn’t): 812 Calories; 43g Fat (50.7% calories from fat); 48g Protein; 45g Carbohydrate; 10g Dietary Fiber; 174mg Cholesterol.
(Dolen Perkins-Valdez, hardback). From the title you might think this is a book about the s-x word. It’s not. By a long shot. But the story, set in about 1852, is about a black slave woman, and her somewhat misguided “love” for her master. About the children she bore him, under the eagle eye of the master’s wife. But it’s all tied together with a yearly journey made to a place called Tawawa House, a rural inn of sorts in southern Ohio (a free State), that for some years allowed white slave owners to stay at the resort in rustic cottages with their black slaves, as couples. This place existed, according to the author’s afterword, and finally closed because some of the regulars (white couples who stayed in the main house) didn’t fancy this concubine business going on out in the woods. It’s about Lizzie’s relationships with the other slave women, about their desire to run to safety through the local underground, about them secretly meeting some free blacks, finding out more about abolition, and about the hardships all these black mistresses endured, and how little their lives were valued. A real stunning book. (I was sent this book as a perk from Harper Collins – because I had mentioned The Help. No strings attached – I could choose to mention this book, or not, here on my blog. I’m glad to because it’s a very good read.)
(Jamie Ford, on my Kindle). A poignant story about a Chinese-American, growing up in Seattle at the beginning of World War II. Henry falls in love with a young Japanese girl before her family is interned in a relocation camp. It a very secretive relationship because his parents would highly disapprove. The story goes back to the 40’s and forward to the 1980’s when Henry is in his 50’s and his wife (not the Japanese woman) has just died of cancer. The story pulls you in from the first page, especially when some artifacts are found in the basement of an old hotel which contain personal belongings from several Japanese families who were suddenly taken away back in 1942. You can see where it’s going, can’t you? I heard criticism of this book that it was just a little bit contrived. Halfway through I’m enjoying it very much.
(Kathryn Stockett on my Kindle, an excellent read); 
by Jetta Carleton (Kindle edition, eh); 
by Susan Richards (Kindle edition, good book); 
by Sally Gunning (Kindle edition, very good read)
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(Mario Batali & Gweneth Paltrow); 
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