Caille en Sarcophage

Here is the main course I made for my black box exam: Pan Roasted Truffle-Scented Quail with Crisp Puff Pastry, Rosemary Mushroom Jus Lié, Glazed Carrot Curls, Cilantro Pesto.

I found the inspiration for this dish online, which means "Quail in Cage" and refers to a fancy, expensive version of quail sitting in puff pastry. 

I made my own puff pastry shells.

For the quail, I stuffed it with foie gras, seasoned it with salt and pepper, pan seared it, roasted it, and finished it with truffle oil. I didn't bother tying the legs up or anything.

For the sauce I made a quick rosemary and mushroom jus lie by sweating mushrooms in red wine, and reducing it with jus and rosemary.

On the side, I made a butternut squash puree and cilantro parmesan pesto for the plate, and butter-poached carrot curls.

Pumpkin "Curry"

This is what I made for dinner last night. I call it Pumpkin "Curry", because I left out most of the spices that would normally categorize a dish as curry in order to adapt the recipe to suit my family's taste preferences. Nevertheless, it was very good! I came along the recipe in a cooking magazine, and it sounded very intriguing. Although pumpkins are most commonly associated with carving, followed by baked goods, they also work very well in main dishes as they are very similar to any other squash. Obviously fresh pumpkin must be used in this recipe, because it is kept in pieces and not pureed. I used a fresh pie pumpkin (or sugar pumpkin). When choosing pumpkins to eat, the smaller the better in terms of taste and texture. The recipe called for stir-frying the pumpkin with onion, and then adding some spice, tomato paste, and chicken broth and simmering into a sauce. Since the pumpkin was only cooked for a total of less than 20 minutes, I decided to wrap it up in foil and bake it for an hour beforehand at 350F, and then dice it. Without this step, I don't think the pumpkin would have been tender enough, as even now it was not the least bit mushy. The recipe did not call for chicken at all, but I decided to add some for extra protein. I prebaked the chicken breasts with the pumpkin, but instead of dicing and adding directly to the sauce, I just served it on the side with a drizzle of the sauce. It was much easier and less time consuming. Serve the curry over rice, and you've got yourself a delicious, hearty fall meal! 

P.S. Don't forget to save the pumpkin seeds for roasting. I did mine with a little olive oil, salt, and paprika for 25 minutes at 350F along with the pumpkin. Makes a great appetizer!

Risotto

Tonight I made risotto for supper, which is an Italian rice dish cooked in broth to a creamy consistency. It is one of my signature dishes, and I make it quite often. My family likes to eat it relatively plain - no fancy flavours like butternut squash, wild mushroom, or seafood. I usually only flavour my risotto with olive oil, chicken broth, onion, Parmesan cheese, and freshly ground black pepper. That's all it needs. My family also likes to have our risotto as a main course with a few sides, rather than as a side dish with a main course. We just spoon up large helpings and add some vegetables and sometimes meat on the side. Everyone likes their risotto cooked to a slightly different consistency. Some like it quite soupy, others very dry. My family's preference is somewhere in between the two, leaning closer to the dry side. Risotto can be cooked quite firm, al dente, soft, or mushy. We like ours softer than al dente, but with a little chew to it.
A common misconception about risotto is that it is quite difficult, labour-intensive, and time-consuming to make. Well, this is not true. It is an easy art to master once you get the hang of it, it just requires a little practice. It does not take too long to make, 30 - 60 minutes, but it does require a close eye and quite a bit of stirring. It does not need to be stirred constantly, but quite often to prevent the rice from sticking and to allow it to absorb the liquid evenly.
Plain risotto is a convenient dish to make, because it uses only common shelf staples. One year for Christmas I gave a mushroom risotto mix as a present. It would keep for three months and, along with a carton of chicken broth, contained pretty much everything you need to make the dish. It is a wonderful gift to accompany with a good quality wooden spoon (an essential tool for making risotto), some oven mitts, and an imported extra-virgin olive oil. This is a gift sure to delight any home cook!