Ingredients:

450 grams (1 lb.) pork meat
300 grams (2/3 lb.) veal meat
250 grams (1/2 lb.) smoked lardoons (bacon)
5 cl. ( 2 fl. oz.) cognac
2 eggs
2 blades of thyme
2 bay leaves
nutmeg, salt & pepper

Procedure:

Cut the meats into cubes. In an electric mixer, with the blade accessory, put meat cubes and crush them, but not too thinly. Put the meat in a salad bowl, pour the cognac, add the thyme leaves, the nutmeg, salt (not too much because of the bacon) & pepper ; mix everything and leave for 15 minutes. Add the 2 eggs to the meat and mix to obtain an homogeneous mixture ; put it into a paté terrine, smooth the surface and display the bay leaves on. Cover with the terrine lid. Put the terrine on the oven baking tray in which you must always keep some water during the baking time (this is called “bain marie”). Bake in preheated oven at 180°C / 350°F for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Let it cool down then keep in fridge for at least 12 hours before serving. Serve with French bread and cornichons (gherkins).

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds cubed pork stew meat
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (4.5 ounce) can diced green chile peppers, drained
1/2 (3.5 ounce) can chopped jalapeno peppers
1/2 medium onion, chopped
5 tablespoons tomato sauce
3 1/2 cups water
onion salt to taste
garlic salt to taste
salt and black pepper to taste

Procedure:

Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in cubed pork, and cook until nicely browned and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Remove skillet from heat, and allow to cool briefly. Sprinkle flour over pork. With a wooden spoon, stir pork to coat, scraping the bottom of the skillet to loosen browned bits. Add chile peppers, jalapenos, and onions. Stir in tomato sauce and water. Season to taste with onion salt, garlic salt, and salt and pepper. Return skillet to medium heat. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove cover, and cook 10 minutes more. Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients:

2 strip loin steaks at least 3/4 inch thick
freshly grated black pepper

Mushroom Sauce:
2 cups cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 cup mixed dehydrated mushrooms (porcini & lobster)
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp. white wine
2-3 tbsp. fresh flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

Procedure:

Place the dehydrated mushrooms in a heat-proof bowl and with enough very hot water to cover them. Let them soak for at least 30 minutes. Drain but save the mushroom liquid. You can use 1 tbsp for the sauce and the rest can be added to any soup or stew for a wonderful flavor. Slice the mushrooms. Preheat the BBQ or broiler until very hot. Cook the steaks over medium high heat for 4-5 minutes and turn. Continue to cook for 4 minutes for medium or longer if you prefer your steak well done. Remove the steaks to a platter and cover with foil for 5 minutes or so. This relaxes the meat and makes for a much more tender steak. In the meantime, heat the oil and butter over medium high heat in a skillet on top of the stove. Saute the onions until translucent. Lower the heat to medium and add the mushrooms (raw sliced cremini and drained rehydrated mushroom slices. Saute for 5 minutes, add the garlic and toss until fragrant. Add the wine and lemon juice and toss. If there is too little liquid (you want the pan moist, just a little more than a film of liquid) add some mushroom liquid. Add the parsley, taste for seasoning and add salt & pepper if needed. To serve, plate the steaks and top with mushroom mixture. Makes 2 servings.

Ingredients:

3-4 cups water and/or vegetable broth
2-8 mushrooms, whole, halved, or sliced
1-2 stalks lemon grass, cut into short lengths and bruised
1 in galangal, sliced
4 kaffir lime leaves
2-4 tbsp. lime juice
4-8 sprigs cilantro, chopped
3-6 Thai chiles, bruised
0-2 Thai chiles, sliced
1 tbsp. Thai red curry paste
1/2 tsp. sucanat (optional)

Procedure:

Put liquid in pot on stove. Add chiles, lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, sucanat, and curry paste; let boil for 5 minutes. Add 1 tbsp. lime juice and mushrooms; reduce heat and let simmer for 10 minutes or until mushrooms are cooked. Add lime juice and cilantro to taste and serve.

Ingredients:

500 grams, a broad thin slice of lean boned veal
3 hardboiled eggs, peeled
1/2 pound (225 g) breadcrumbs
3 slices mortadella
3 slices cooked ham
50 grams (2 ounces) finely sliced salami
100 grams (4 ounces) fresh caciocavallo cheese (use a fresh provolone if need be), diced
50 grams (2 ounces) or a cup, freshly grated aged caciovavallo or Parmigiano
a small bunch parsley, minced
2 tablespoons raisins (optional)
2 tablespoon pine nuts (optional)
a clove of garlic, minced
onion, sliced
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup dry white wine
extra virgin olive oil
sugar
salt and pepper to taste
butcher’s twine

Procedure:

Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a pot and add the onion and the tomato; season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar and cook for 15 minutes. In the meantime combine the breadcrumbs with the garlic, the parsley, the fresh and grated cheeses, the raisins, and the pine nuts. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and add enough olive oil to it to soften it to the consistency of a fairly thick paste. Spread out the slice of meat on your work surface, pounding it gently with a smooth-faced pounder or the flat of a knife. Season it with salt and pepper and brush it with olive oil. Lay the slices of cold cuts over the meat, and shape the breadcrumb mixture into a sausage shape in the center of the meat; press the hardboiled eggs into the breadcrumbs. Next, roll the slice of meat up around the filling, and tie the toll tight with butcher’s twine, being careful to make a good seal lest the cheese melt and emerge as the meat cooks. Heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a pot and brown the roll on all sides. Sprinkle the wine over it and continue cooking until the wine has evaporated, then add the tomato and onion sauce and simmer for an hour. When the time is up remove the braciola from the pot and let it cool some on a serving dish. Slice it, heat the sauce through and spoon it over the slices, and serve at once.

Ingredients:

1 kg. jumbo shrimps
1 cup canned coconut milk
2 tbsp. desiccated coconut
2 onions
1 tsp. garam masala
2 tsp. garlic-ginger paste
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. coriander powder
2 dried red chilies (optional)
½ tsp. chili powder
1 cinnamon stick
2 cardamom
2 whole cloves
2 bay leaves
4 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. sugar
black pepper, salt, to taste
fresh cilantro leaves to garnish

Procedure:

Shell and devein the shrimps, then set aside until required. Chop 1 onion and grate the other one.
Heat the oil in large pan. Add garam masala and cook over low heat, stirring constantly for 1 minute or until it gives of its aroma. Add the chopped onions and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes or until gold. Stir in the grated onion, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamoms, chili powder, cloves, and bay leaves and cook stirring constantly for few minutes. Stir in half coconut milk, desiccated coconut and sugar and season with salt to taste. Add the shrimps and cook, stirring frequently for 7 minutes or until they change color. Stir the remaining coconut milk and bring to a boil. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Serve immediately with rice, garnished with cilantro. Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

2 to 3 liters (0.5 to 0.8 gal) saltwater
300 grams (0.66 pounds) colored pasta
2 potatoes, pealed, cut into small cubes
1 tablespoon margarine or butter
600 grams (1.3 pounds) leek, cut in small slices
3.4 fl. ounces vegetable soup

Procedure:

Boil the saltwater. Add pasta and potatoes, cook for about 15 minutes until pasta is al dente and the potatoes are soft. Heat the margarine or butter in a pot. Add the leek and stew. Pour the vegetable soup over the leek and cook for about 10 minutes. Add leek to pasta and potatoes. Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

2 tsp. ground white pepper
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. sage
1 tsp. mace
3 oz salt
6 oz. bread crumbs -plain
10 lbs. fat pork butt (if lean add 1 lb. fat back)
2 cups ice water.

Procedure:

Grind meat-1/2 medium 1/2 fine add spices and mix very well. Stuff into small casing links or make into compact pattys. Leave overnight in Fridge before freezing. Fry till golden brown.

Ingredients:

1 chicken, about 2 pounds or a little more.

Marinade:
2 tablespoons of garlic, minced
half a teaspoon Thai pepper powder
1/4 cup of fish sauce
1/4 cup of whiskey
1/4 cup of honey
1/4 cup of coconut milk
1 tablespoon of red curry paste
2 tablespoons Thai chili in oil

For flambeing :
1 cup whiskey

Procedure:

Mix the marinade ingredients, then clean and prepare the chicken. Thoroughly coat the chicken with marinade, and leave to stand in a wok for 12 hours (refrigerated). Remove the chicken from the wok allowing to drain thoroughly, then over medium heat reduce the marinade to form a thick sauce. The chicken should be stood upright on an ovenproof plate (in Thailand a metal disk with a vertical peg attached is used. Something similar is sold as a “chicken roaster” in America), and cooked in a medium oven until the skin just begins to change color. Remove the chicken and place it on a flame proof (we suggest heavy metal) dish and bring to a side table. Pour whiskey through the interior of the bird, and then ladle it over the outside so the bird is thoroughly coated, then ignite and allow the whiskey to burn itself out. Carve the chicken, and serve with Thai jasmine rice, and stir fried green vegetables, and the usual Thai table condiments and the reduced sauce.

Notes on Flambeing (be careful, you are playing with fire after all!)
Heat liquor until warm. Do not overheat or alcohol will evaporate
Never pour liquor directly from a bottle into a hot pan or an already flaming dish as the flames may travel to the bottle.
Grape-based brandies (cognac or any California-made brandy) are ideal for this dish.
To make the flames of a dessert last longer, soak a sugar cube with cognac and place it on the food before igniting.

Ingredients:

1 1-pound fresh skinless salmon fillet, 1 inch thick
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh pineapple
1/2 cup chopped red sweet pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon snipped fresh cilantro or chives
1 tablespoon honey
1 small fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Procedure:

For salsa, in a medium bowl combine pineapple, sweet pepper, onion, 2 tablespoons of the lime juice, the cilantro, honey, and jalapeno pepper. Cover and refrigerate up to 2 hours. Lightly grease the rack of an indoor electric grill or lightly coat with cooking spray. Preheat grill. Rinse fish; pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 4 serving-size pieces. Brush both sides of fish with the remaining lime juice and sprinkle with cumin. Place fish on the grill rack, tucking under any thin edges. If using a covered grill, close lid. Grill until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. (For a covered grill, allow 4 to 6 minutes. For an uncovered grill, allow 8 to 12 minutes, gently turning once halfway through grilling.) Serve the fish with salsa. Makes 4 servings.