Les Halles.

Next time your in New York City stop bye Les halles for some steak frites!

Next time your in New York City stop bye Les halles for some steak frites!

SAME GREAT TASTE FOR OVER 70 YEARS!

Eric's Fish and Chips.

Ingredients

• 4 large baking potatoes, cut into French fry strips

Beer Batter:

• 1 (12-ounce) bottle Beer
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon each of Old Bay, Salt and Onion Powder
• 1 1/2 pounds Cod fillets, skinned with bones removed, and fish cut diagonally into 1-inch-wide strips

Directions

In a Deep Fryer or Dutch Oven, heat oil to 270 degrees F.
blanch potatoes until translucent, roughly 7 minutes removing with a slotted spoon or spider. Set aside.
Crank up the fryer to 375 degrees F.
Batter-
In a large bowl, pour in 1 bottle of beer. Sift 1 1/2 cups flour into the bowl, whisking in gently until just combined, stir in Old Bay, salt and onion powder. Pat fish dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper and coat the fish in the beer batter. Dredge the pieces of fish in 1/2 cup of remaining flour and slide into oil as coated. fry fish, turning over frequently, until deep golden and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet and keep warm in oven. Fry remaining fish in batches, returning oil to 375 degrees F between batches.  Once fish is cooked keep warm in a 225 degree oven.  Fry the blanced fries in batches until brown and crispy about 3 minutes.

Wednesday Night Dinner.

Last night we had our friend Alycia over for dinner.  Alycia being the foodie she is brought over the recipe for Maíz Asado con Alioli y Queso Cotija La Especialidad de la Casa. which is grilled corn with alioli, lime, espelette pepper and aged cheese from Toro restaurant in the south end. It was amazing! The perfect appetizer.  I took care of the main coarse.
Seeing it's been awhile since I've made my amazing Flat Bread pizza's I decided it was time to bring them back and try something different.  The first pizza was fried eggplant with a roasted tomato sauce, mozzarella and whipped ricotta cheese and the second was a pizza with potato cream(instead of red sauce) white onion, mozzarella, topped with dressed baby Arugula, fried calamari and a Old Bay roasted garlic alioli. It was a great night filled with great food, drinks and conversation.

                                          Fresh squid for the fried calamari.

                                          Lovely ladies.

Beef Tenderlion, Black Truffle Butter & French Onion Soup.

Ripert's Cod Sauté

Breaking down chicken.

Instead of buying my chicken already butchered ( boneless breasts, legs, thighs, wings etc.) I prefer to buy the whole bird and break it down myself.  It is much cheaper this way and goes alot further. Bell and Evan chickens are much better that your typical supermarket birds, but if you obsessed with chicken like I am do some research buy from local farms that raise there birds humanly and if you are ever in Vermont buy Misty Knoll chicken. In my opinion they raise some very fine tasting birds. Remember always save the carcasses for making stock.

Beer Brined Grilled Pork Chops

Ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 2 cups dark lager beer
• 1/4 cup coarse salt
• 3 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons mild-flavored (light) molasses
• 1 cup ice cubes
• 6 1- to 1 1/4-inch-thick center-cut bone-in pork chops
•  
• 7 large garlic cloves, minced
• 3 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons dried sage leaves

Preparation

• Combine 2 cups water, beer, 1/4 cup coarse salt, sugar, and molasses in large bowl. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve. Stir in ice. Place pork chops in large resealable plastic bag. Pour beer brine over pork chops; seal bag. Refrigerate 4 hours, turning bag occasionally.
• Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Remove pork chops from beer brine; pat dry. Mix garlic, pepper, 2 teaspoons salt, and sage in small bowl. Rub garlic mixture over both sides of pork chops. Grill pork chops until instant-read thermometer inserted into center of chops registers 145°F to 150°F, about 10 minutes per side, occasionally moving chops to cooler part of rack if burning. Transfer chops to platter; cover with foil, and let stand 5 minutes. 

Food and Tattoo's.

I Love Getting Tattooed.

Sarah's Scallops.

Oink.

I love the fall.  September, October and November are my favorite months of the year.  When I think of Fall I think of Sunday night dinners filled with roasted meats and vegetables, chicken and beef stock simmering all day on the stove top, pumpkins and warm apple pie.  October is also special to me because it's when I met my wife 6 years ago.

Every Sunday morning Sarah and I do our rounds, Whole Foods, Trader Joes and my favorite Savenor's ( a specialty grocery store located in Cambridge where Julie Child used to shop.)  Savenor's is great, they have everything from Waygu strip steaks to Raddle Snake and even Lion.  I went with a safer choice, I bought a beautiful piece of local pork belly which i'm gonna braise in beer and serve with roasted potatoes sauteed  apples. I LOVE FALL.

My Obsession at the moment.

Pulpy*Juicy*Zesty

Friday night dinner.

After a long night at the restaurant I felt the need to refuel my tired, sore and burnt body.  In my mind that only meant  one thing, GRASS FED BONE IN RIB EYE STEAK.  Pair that with the perfect Manhattan and a big old brick of homemade hash browns with herbed sour cream. I was in heaven.

When grilling steak I almost always finish it with a dollop of some sort of compound butter.  Compound butters are pretty easy to make, a combo of fresh herbs, garlic maybe even a dash of white truffle oil.  Bellow is a quick recipe for a compound butter. Enjoy.

Goat Cheese and Herb Compound butter.

1 stick unsalted butter ( at room temperature)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon goat cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 shallot fine diced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme chopped
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper

Method-

Add all ingredients to food processor and mix well.  Lay out a piece of plastic wrap.  Form butter into a log and roll it up in the plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Grinding beef.

Sarah and I FINALLY bought the meat grinding attachment for our kitchen aid mixer.  It is so much better grinding meat fresh rather than what you buy at the grocerey store. I really enjoy using a mixture of chuck boneless short rib and hanger, it gives the burger a very meaty steak flavor. Quick tip if grinding beef cube it and make sure it is very well chilled.

Happy Weekend! Have a slider!

I know it's almost out of season, But it's so good!

 Eric’s Fall Creamed Corn Risotto

Corn Stock

    6 ears corn, husked

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

2 celery stalks, halved lengthwise

1 leek (white and light green part only)                                                            

Corn Purée and Sauté

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 small onion, diced

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Red Pepper roasted skin removed and medium dice

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

4 sprigs of fresh thyme

Risotto

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 small onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice

2 cups Arborio rice

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Make the Corn Stock

Using a large chef's knife, cut the corn kernels off the cobs and set aside. Place the cobs in a large stockpot along with the onion, celery, and chopped leek. Add 10 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain the corn stock through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl. Discard the solids. You should have at least 6 cups of stock.

Make the Corn Purée

Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the butter begins to foam. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of the reserved corn kernels, season to taste with salt and pepper, and continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the kernels begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the cream, thyme, and 1 cup of the corn stock and continue to simmer over low heat until the mixture begins to thicken, about 10 minutes. Remove the thyme and purée the mixture in a blender until smooth.

Sauté the Corn

Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining corn kernels and sauté until the corn is tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Make the Risotto

Heat the olive oil in a large wide saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Add the wine and reduce the heat to a simmer until most of the wine has evaporated. Add 1 cup of the corn stock to the pan and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until most of the stock is absorbed. Repeat the process with the remaining 4 cups of corn stock, making sure the stock has been fully incorporated after each addition before adding more. Once the rice is tender yet firm to the bite, remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the corn purée, sautéed corn, and grated cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Hello Friday morning! This is my first posting.

I never really got the whole blog thing or never really even cared about them.  Maybe cause I'm a terrible typer, speller and just plain bad with punctuation.  But as I get older I need a creative outlet and a way for myself to express how I feel and what I'm passionate about!  I'm 28 and Married to an amazing woman. I cook for a living and love food.  This blog will serve as a place for me to post my recipes, my views on food and maybe an occasional restaurant review.  Here we go!

Pan Roasted 'Misty Knoll' Chicken breast, Roasted Root Vegetables, Roasted Garlic Goat cheese fondue and Reduced Balsamic.