Wild Alaskan Smoked Salmon In Puff Pastry With Figs And Goat Cheese

I had an idea to use the Wild Alaskan Smoked Salmon I got at Big Lots and wrap it in puff pastry. Given the fact that the salmon is already cooked and I was thinking of baking it in puff pastry, I needed some professional advice on this one from my friend Executive Chef William Hernandez.

Chef Willy gave me some figs and he suggested that I layer the figs over the salmon and then top it with goat cheese. I had some leftover chives which I decided to chop and sprinkle on top of the goat cheese. The result was a savory dish with a sweet twist that was a hit with my relatives visiting for the holidays.

YOU WILL NEED

Wild Alaskan Smoked Salmon

Sliced Fresh Figs

Goat Cheese

One Puff Pastry Sheet

Chopped Chives (Optional)

HERE ARE THE STEPS

Layer Smoked Salmon, Figs, & Goat Cheese On Puff Pastry Sheet & Sprinkle With Chopped Chives

Fold Puff Pastry & Brush With Egg Wash

Bake On Parchment Paper At 400 Degrees Fahrenheit For 20 Minutes

Plate & Garnish If Desired

Cut & Serve

Enjoy!!! 

Chef Recommends Pairing This Dish With A Bottle Of

La Crema Pinot Noir...

Thanks Chef Willy for the great tips and recipe! My family voted two thumbs up to you on this one...

SHORT RIB & SPINACH LASAGNA FROM CHEF WILLY'S KITCHEN

GREETINGS FROM CHEF WILLY'S KITCHEN...

This festive holiday dish is just something I must share with you. Straight from Chef Willy's kitchen, he has created and shared his delicious SHORT RIB & SPINACH LASAGNA recipe for all to enjoy. This dish is rich, creamy, and moist with the perfect balance of flavors. Chef Willy says, this versatile dish is great for the holidays and all year round, and shows you how very easy it is to make.

Executive Chef William Hernandez

Chef Willy's Short Rib and Spinach Lasagna

Serve With Garlic Toast

YOUR INGREDIENTS ARE:

• Braised Short Ribs
• Spinach Bechamel
• Parmesan Cheese
• Provolone Cheese
• Touch of Truffle Essence
• Rosemary
• Beef Stock
• Fresh spinach
• Fresh ground garlic
• Olive Oil
• Heavy cream
• 1 tsp. nutmeg
• Salt and pepper to taste

PREPARING THE SHORT RIBS

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
• Season short ribs with salt and pepper
• Sear short ribs in a skillet with olive oil on high heat for 3 minutes on each side to seal in flavor
• Place short ribs in a baking pan with beef stock and rosemary
• Cover with foil
• Bake short ribs for 3 hours
• Remove short ribs from oven and cool
• Remove short ribs from stock
• Remove meat from the bones
• Chop short ribs and set aside

PREPARING THE SPINACH BECHAMEL

• Sauté spinach with garlic and olive oil
• Add heavy cream
• Add 1 tsp. nutmeg
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Add a touch of Truffle Essence
• Reduce mixture for 30 minutes

CHEF'S NOTE: Buy lasagna sheets from your local grocery store or supermarket

PREPARING THE LASAGNA SHEETS

• In a large pot, bring one gallon of water and salt to a boil
• Add lasagna sheets and cook for 10 minutes
• Carefully remove lasagna sheets from water to keep them intact
• Cool lasagna sheets

ASSEMBLING YOUR LASAGNA

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
• Grease or spray a baking pan with baking spray prior to assembling lasagna
• Layer cooked lasagna sheets on bottom of baking pan
• Spread spinach bechamel over lasagna sheets
• Layer chopped short ribs over spinach bechamel
• Layer Parmesan and Provolone cheese over chopped short ribs
• Repeat the layers of lasagna sheets, spinach bechamel, chopped short ribs, and cheeses
• Continue this process until you build 5-6 layers for the lasagna
• Bake lasagna uncovered for 30-40 minutes until golden brown
• Remove from oven and let rest to set for a few minutes before cutting
• Cut lasagna into squares and plate using a spatula to remove lasagna from baking pan
• Serve hot with garlic toast and a nice Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio

Short Rib & Spinach Lasagna After Baking From Chef Willy's Kitchen

Time To Cut & Plate Short Rib & Spinach Lasagna

Chef Willy Recommends Cutting Lasagna Into Squares And Using A Spatula To Remove Lasagna From Baking Pan When Ready To Plate

Chef Willy Recommends Serving Short Rib & Spinach Lasagna With Garlic Toast And A Fine Chardonnay Or Pinot Grigio

CHEF'S NOTE: This dish is excellent for sharing and enjoying with family and good friends.

FROM CHEF WILLY'S KITCHEN...BON APPETIT!!!

Mummy's Culantro Pesto

Mummy recently made a condiment which I am calling Culantro Pesto. It is a combination of fresh Culantro leaves blended with garlic, kosher salt, coarse ground black pepper, hot pepper, and vegetable oil.

Traditionally, pesto is made with olive oil, but since it has such a distinctive and strong flavor, my Mom decided to use regular vegetable oil instead. The result was delicious as well as very versatile. You can use Culantro Pesto as a condiment, for seasoning meat and seafood, as a topping for toast, on eggs, sandwiches, or on buffalo wings, just to name a few.

After blending all ingredients, she bottled it and this time we did not refrigerate it. The last time we did, the pesto got a dark discoloration. So we experimented this time and just kept it out at room temperature and this worked really well for retaining the color as well as the flavor.

Mummy's Culantro Pesto

Try It On Chicken Wings...

Give it a try...If you want a more mild flavor, just eliminate the hot pepper...

                                                                       

Deliciously Decadent Duck Liver Wrapped in Duck Skin

Hello all my Foodies out there. Ready to try something different? One of the reasons that I absolutely love writing this Blog is that I can think outside the box and color outside the lines, and if the "Food Police" show up at my door, I don't really care. Experimenting with different recipes and techniques gives me great joy, especially when it works.

I hope that this introduction has adequately prepared you for what is about to follow. I guess a good mantra for this post would be, "Do not judge a book by its cover"...

As you view the following photos, I know that some people will think, "This is just not pretty", and I may risk getting a call from my sister Anjani in Canada questioning my good judgement. But I assure you, that will not deter me from sharing what I am about to, because it is truly deliciously decadent. So I ask you to take it all in with an open mind, and imagine the amazing possibilities of what you too can create in the comfort of your own home.

Before we begin this photo journal, I would like to share a little background with you. I made curry duck for a very dear friend, Chef Willy, as a way to celebrate both our birthdays. When I was prepping the duck to season it, I trimmed off some excess skin and reserved this with the duck liver because I just knew that I wanted to dream up a recipe using these two items. I used the same seasoning marinade that I used for the curry duck, without the curry. Thus began the creation of this recipe..."Deliciously Decadent Duck Liver Wrapped in Duck Skin"...

Duck Skin Laid Out On Foil In A Baking Pan

                                                                 

Duck Liver Placed In Center Of Duck Skin

First Fold Of Duck Skin

Second Fold Of Duck Skin

I Used A Small Skewer To Secure The Duck Skin

Flip The Stuffed Duck Skin With Skewer Side Down

I Added A Couple Extra Pieces Of Duck Skin On The Sides Of The Stuffed Duck Skin

I Baked The Duck Liver Wrapped In Duck Skin At 400 Degrees Fahrenheit For 30 Minutes, Basting With The Rendered Juices Every 10 Minutes. I Drained Off The Rendered Duck Fat.

I Spooned My Special Mixture Of Vietnamese Sauce Over The Duck Skin

After Baking 10 More Minutes

Done!!! I Then Carefully Removed The Skewer Before The Taste Test

First Cut For Photo Shoot

First Bite...Deliciously Decadent!!!

Want An Extra Kick?...Drizzle A Little Sriracha Sauce Over The Top...

I hope this will inspire all Home Cooks and Food Lovers all around the world to have fun and create something amazing. If you love it...that's all that matters...Happy Cooking!!!

                                                                    

Michael's Halloween

My nephew Michael sent me some wonderful pictures via his Mummy's iPhone that I wanted to share with you. He made a Halloween Gingerbread House, carved a really cool pumpkin, and is looking fierce in his Darth Vader Halloween costume.

Michael made a beautiful Halloween Gingerbread House

Michael carved a really cool Halloween Pumpkin

Michael is DARTH VADER...

Very Cool Dude...I'm so proud of you!!!

                                                                 

Have A Great Gator Weekend!!!

Hey Guys...Today the Gators play a favorite...The Georgia Bulldogs...At 3:30 PM on Saturday 29th October, we take on the Georgia Bulldogs in Jacksonville.

To welcome in the Tailgaiting Tradition, I would like to suggest a special drink for this celebration. A Carib beer with a shot of Tequila infused with Key Lime...It's delicious!!!

                                                  

I added a small Key Lime to my Carib too...

Tequila with Key Lime

Enjoy a great GATOR weekend and have fun...Whether we win or we lose, we GATORS will always drink...GO GATORS!!!

                                                         

CHEF WILLY'S AMAZING KITCHEN

On Monday 24th October, I had the pleasure of participating in a Wine and Dine event at Saboré.
                                                           

                                                                       

Executive Chef William "Willy" Hernandez

                                                               

                                                                  
We were greeted at the door by Executive Chef William "Willy" Hernandez, his warm smile lighting up the atmosphere and inviting us to share his five course dinner with an accompanied wine pairing.

Each course was exquisitely prepared and delivered to our tables by servers who were very pleasant and efficient, adding to a memorable experience. As each dish came my way, the aromas were already delighting my senses before I had even tasted my first bite.

Preceding each course, we were given details about the wine accompanying and complimenting that specific course. Below is the menu and wine paring for the evening. All these fine wines were also offered at a special discounted price for Saboré diners that night.

Chef Willy's Menu for Saboré's Five Course Dinner & Wine Paring

                                                                     
                      
I wish I had pictures of the food to share because they were absolutely stunning, but I do have a photo of the wine that accompanied our dessert course, Caposaldo Moscato.

Caposaldo Moscato

                                                                      
Caposaldo Moscato is made from handpicked Moscato grapes from hilltop vineyards in Italy's north region. These grapes create a pleasantly sweet and lightly effervescent wine with a fragrant aroma of acacia blossoms, peaches and apricot and a clean crisp finish. It can be served chilled before, during or after dinner.

Please sign up at the Saboré website to receive their newsletter announcing special events. That way, you too can take advantage of the next "Wine and Dine with Saboré"...