Author: Hans Susser

Germany/USA

Happy Bastille Day France ! (Coq au Vin )

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Let’s celebrate the day with a classic ” Coq Au Vin “.
But first :
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” Bastille Day is the name given in English-speaking countries to the French National Day, which is celebrated on the 14th of July each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale (The National Celebration) and commonly Le quatorze juillet (the fourteenth of July). It commemorates the 1790 Fête de la Fédération, held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789; the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille fortress-prison was seen as a symbol of the uprising of the modern nation, and of the reconciliation of all the French inside the constitutional monarchy which preceded the First Republic, during the French Revolution. Festivities and official ceremonies are held all over France. The oldest and largest regular military parade in Europe is held on the morning of 14 July, on the Champs-Élysées avenue in Paris in front of the President of the Republic, French officials and foreign guests.”
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To help you celebrate at home (or just to have a great meal because it is saturday
or whatever day 🙂 ,
here is one of my old standby’s for a hearty meal. And just because there is a lot
of wine in the marinade and sauce does not mean you should not make the meal
even better with another bottle of grat red wine.
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Photo Credit: Hans D. Susser

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Marinade :

Chicken 1200 gr , 8 cut, Bone in
Bay Leaves 5 ea
Thyme Sprig 2 ea
Rosemary Sprig 1 ea
Cloves 5 ea
Mirepoix 1 lb
Garlic chopped 5 Gloves
Burgundy Red 1 ½ qt

Preperation:

Olive Oil 2 oz
Tomato Paste 2 oz
Sweet Paprika Powder 1 oz
AP Flour 3 oz
Salt & Black Pepper to Taste

For the Garnish :

Butter 1 oz
Bacon 3 oz
Button Mushrooms 5 oz
Silver Onions, parboiled 3 oz
Parsley, chopped 1 oz
Salt & Black Pepper to Taste
Heart shaped toasted bread wedges

Method :

In a stainless steel container combine the chicken and the marinade
ingredients for 24 hours.
Remove the chicken, pat dry and season liberally with salt and freshly
ground black pepper.
In a heavy cast iron pan, sauté the chicken in the olive oil until mahagony brown.
Remove the chicken, add flour and sauté until dark brown roux forms.
Return the chicken together with the stock, mirepoix , cloves, bay leaves, herbs and cover.
Place in a 300* oven until chicken is tender, approx. 30-40 minutes.
Remove chicken and strain the sauce in a saucepan. If necessary,
simmer and reduce the sauce until it reaches the desired consistency.

Garnish:

Render the bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon , add the butter, mushroom and onion and sauté for one minute. Add parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

To serve :

Place the chicken on a platter, cover with sauce , garnish with mushroom and onion and top with toast’s.
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” Breakfast Of Champions ” # 2

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” Rigatone Carbonara “, with tomatoes and Basil
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Bella and I sharing breakfast.
(Don’t worry, I have my own bowl, on the table. 🙂
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My version of “Carbonara” :
Wisk 2 egg yolks and 1 whole egg with 1/2 cup milk,
2 tbsp parmesan, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
Saute 3 cup’s rigatone in butter (use olive oil if you prefer), until
pasta becomes lightly crispy on a few spots.
Add egg mixture, tomatoes and chiffonade of basil and cook
until egg’s start to set. Share with a loved one .

Bon Appetit ! Live is Good !
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Cancun Cowboys

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Chorizo Sliders and spicy Slaw
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Tonights dinner were these terrific sliders with caramelized onions and gorgonzola,
with a slaw of cabbage, corn, radish, cilantro and ranch dressing.
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Sliders :
Take chorizo mix and shape into small, thick burgers.
Cook until cooked through but still juicy.
In another pan, saute onions until caramelized.
At the same time, brush buns lightly with olive oil and
toast under broiler until golden.
Arrange pickle, scallion, cheese and chili on top bun.
Put a dollop uf greek yoghurt on bottom bun, top with
chorizo patty and caramelized onion.
To eat, put to top and bottom buns together and enjoy
the heck out of it 🙂
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Slaw :
Season Cabbage and radishes wit salt and lime juice and let stand
for 30 minutes. Squeeze to remove all moisture, add diced avocados,
cooked corn, cilantro and ranch. Mix.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

” Matzo Ball Soup, Chicken & Root Vegetables “

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” During My Time “ ,

– Chicken soup cured all “weh weh’s”
If I had a runny nose, slightly elevated temperature,
a lowdown of any sort, or just pretended I was not fit for school that day,
the first order of help from my mother was usually “Chicken soup”
Whatever vegetables and starch was available in that moment went into
a pot with whatever part of chicken was available right then and there and
in no time was transformed into a bowl of comfort and goodness.
And YES ! There where fat-eyes swimming on top of the broth –
And NO- we did not die from them 🙂

Chicken Soup ! Memories !
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” Rotelle, Artichokes, Snails & Grape Tomatoes “

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A few months ago I had one of these “whatever is in the cupboard” moment’s.
Low and behold, some of my favorites : Pasta, snails, artichokes.
The wonderful result of this :
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Personally I think it looks great, and best of all, it tastes even better.
That and the different textures made it an outstanding dish 🙂
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Boil the rotelle, strain, reserve some of the cooking water.
Make a mixture of cornstarch, flour, salt, garlic powder and lemon-salt.
Dredge the snails in the mix and fry at 375 degrees until crisp on the outside,
but moist and plum on the inside. Reserve on absorbent paper.
Fry the artichokes and reserve the same way.
Saute finely chopped garlic and onion in olive oil until opaque.
Add rotelle, a good amount of soft (not melted) butter, finely grated
parmesan cheese, tomatoes and some of the cooking water to the pot
and stir until a sauce forms that coats the pasta lightly.
Season with salt and pepper.
To serve, place pasta on bottom of plate or bowl, top with snails and
artichokes and sprinkle with parmesan and chopped parsley.

Bon Appetit ! Live is Good !
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” 10 Of The Worlds Most Expensive Dishes “

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Is it possible some folks are just plain rediculous ? 😦
You judge for yourself :
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To enlarge picture, click on it !

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” For Offal Lover’s Only ! “

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Friend’s, by now you have probably realized that some of my recipes and / or pictures
are of food which is a bit outside the mainstream. ( Some of my articles as well ? )
Yesterday I came across this article in the huffpost which reminded me again how
far most of our young “colleagues” and their guest’s / client’s in the culinary world
have moved away from the well rounded professionals we oldtimers were trained to be.
It praised the new generation of inventive and adventurous and oh so clever chef’s for
using the whole animal. WOW!
When I apprenticed in the sixties back in Germany, we were used to getting delivered
the whole animal, or if this was impractical because of it’s size and weight, a half (veal,
pig, stag, boar) or a quarter (beef). Fresh game was always dropped off whole by
the village hunter, and two four times a year we slaughtered our own pig’s which we
raised mostly on food scrap’s from the restaurant. So, on most restaurant’s menu’s
you wood find cut’s from ALL part of the animals. From snout to huff and tail and just
about anything in between was used for a well rounded menu, at small country inn’s
all the way up to five star restaurants.
So, in this spirit, here is my take on Gizzards :

” Fried Spicy Gizzard’s, Guacamole & Totopos ”
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Simmer the cleaned gizzards in red wine, garlic, salt and cayenne pepper until tender. Strain, dry.
Season with salt, cayenne pepper and garlic powder and fry until the edges become crisp.
Don’t fry too long or they become dry and tough. Season and fry the onions the same way.
To serve, sprinkle with cilantro and chili flakes.

Because I served these with guacamole, I did not need a dipping sauce .
If you want to use a dipping sauce, try this:
Soy sauce with scallions, lime juice, sriracha and a bit of rice wine and sugar. 🙂
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” When A Cook Makes A Mistake…..Culinary Quotes “

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Culinary Wisdom at it’s finest 🙂
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” If an architect makes a mistake, he grows ivy to cover it. If a doctor makes a mistake, he covers it with soil. If a cook makes a mistake, he covers it with some sauce and say’s it is a new recipe.”
Paul Bocuse

“All the best cooking is simple. There is really nothing new in it. I have 4,000 cookbooks dating back to 1503, and everything that is in nouvelle cuisine was there 200 years ago.”
Anton Mosimann

“All of Bavaria can be divided into a small group of butchers and a larger group of people who look like butchers.”
Heimito von Doderer

“After all the trouble you go to, you get about as much actual ‘food’ out of eating an artichoke as you would from licking 30 or 40 postage stamps.”
Miss Piggy

“A nickel will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat.”
Old New York Proverb

“…the key dietary messages are stunningly simple: Eat less, move more, eat more fruits and vegetables, and don’t eat too much junk food. It’s no more complicated than that.”
Marion Nestle

“A house where neither wine nor welcome is served to friends, soon will have none.”
Rob Hutchison

“A converted cannibal is one who, on Friday, eats only fishermen.”
Emily Lotney

“A diet is when you watch what you eat and wish you could eat what you watch.”
Hermione Gingold
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Source unknown

” Flatbread & Shrimps “

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Minutes to prepare (I used store bought flatbread)
Hours of satisfaction 🙂
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Simmer shrimp in water with salt and lemon juice until just done.
Schock in ice water. Remove tails except for 3 shrimps, for decoration.
Dice peppers and chili. Chop cilantro.
Marinate shrimp, peppers and chili with lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Heat the flat bread on both sides under your broiler, adding some more char if you like.
Brush lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Add shrimp salad to flat bread, drizzle greek yoghurt and sriracha on top.
Sprinkle with cilantro and top with tail-on shrimp. EAT !

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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