Alsace Food & Wine Pairing Lunch

1) Pan Roasted Squab Foie gras bruschetta, autumn vegetables with a truffle relish, natural sauce
By Nancy Oakes, Boulevard

Ingredients:
6 squabs, boned breasts (reserve leg trimmings and liver)
4 Tbs olive oil
2T chopped fresh thyme
1/2 cup pinot noir
2 cups rich dark chicken jus
Season with salt and pepper
Procedure:
Heat 2 tbs. of olive oil in a roasting pan over medium heat. Season the squabs with salt and pepper. Brown each squab breast, skin side down, until the skin is a dark golden brown and blood comes to the surface of the breast meat. Turn over and sprinkle with the chopped thyme and cook another minute. Remove from the pan and set aside to rest. Pour oil out of the pan, reserving the pan drippings and juice. Heat the pan again and deglaze with the pinot noir. Reduce to a syrup, add the rich natural chicken jus, and reduce by half. Strain and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Foie Gras Brushetta
Ingredients:
5 croutons cut from Pain Levain, crust removed
12 oz. Fresh foie gras ( Grade A)
5 Tbs olive oil
6 whole shallots halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced
1/2 cup solera sherry
1 tsp fresh sage-chiffonade
Procedure:
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Bring foie gras to room temperature, clean and remove all veins. Season with kosher salt and press foie gras flat to about 1 1/2 inch thick and chill. Heat the olive oil in a heavy non corrosive saute pan. Add sliced shallots and cook over medium heat,lightly caramelizing the shallots. Sprinkle with the sage and deglaze with the solera sherry. Cook until almost evaporated and syrupy, set aside.
To cook foie gras: Pre heat the oven to 400º degrees. Lightly dust the foie gras with all purpose flour, brush off excess. Heat a heavy non-stick saute pan with 2 Tbs of olive oil until hot. Add the foie gras and cook until dark golden brown and a nice crust has formed. Turn the foie gras over and put pan into oven for approximately 4 minutes. Remove the foie gras from the pan onto a plate and set aside to chill.
Pour off the fat and reserve. When the foie gras has chilled and firmed, slice into julienne strips and 1/4" thick. Combine the julienne foie gras with the caramelized shallots and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper.
To make croutons: Brush the croutons with the reserved foie gras fat ( if the fat has solidified, rewarm gently) and season with salt and pepper. Toast in 350 degree oven until golden brown. Top each crouton with the foie gras and shallot mixture.

Autumn Vegetables with Truffle Relish
1 Tbs. fine dice butternut squash
1 Tbs. fine dice celery root
1 Tbs. fine dice parsnips
1 Tbs fine dice Yukon gold potatoes
1 Tbs. fine dice apples
4 Tbs olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Preheat oven to 350º. On separate sheet pans cook the vegetables until tender, but not mushy. Remove from pans and set aside mixed together in a medium bowl.

For the truffle relish
2 Tbs. minced shallots
3 Tbs. minced portabello mushrooms (no gills)
2 Tbs. minced black truffle
1 Tbs. truffle oil
1/2 cup olive oil, plus more if necessary
1 Tbs. freshly chopped parsley and thyme
Heat 3 Tbs. of the olive oil in a nonstick sauté pan and cook the shalots until tender with no color. Remove shallots to the bowl with the autumn vegetables. Mix together, add truffle oil and the chopped herbs. Check the seasonings adding more salt and pepper if needed.

2) Sea of Cortez Rock Scallop Vegetables carpaccio and ginger Riesling vinaigrette
By Chef Nancy Oakes

Ingredients
6 Sea of Cortez scallops or 10 Main scallops
1 English cucumber sliced into thin rounds or Japanese mandoline
3/4 cup fresh hearts of palm sliced into thin rounds or Japanese mandoline
1 bunch chives, finely chopped
2 Tbs. olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Arrange plates before cooking scallops by placing a ring of overlapping cucumber slices followed by a ring of hearts of palm on plate. Heat medium saute pan to high, add olive oil. Season scallops with salt and pepper. Sear on both sides until golden brown and cooked to medium ( about 2 1/2 minutes per side) remove from pan.
Place scallops in center of plate and spoon dressing around. Sprinkle with chives.

Ginger Riesling Vinaigrette
2 whole Meyer lemons - pierced several times with a fork
Peeled fresh young ginger
2 whole yellow tomatoes
1 cup pure olive oil
1 Tbs Karo syrup
1/4 cup riesling wine
Salt and pepper to taste

Place Meyer lemons in a microwaveable container and cover. Microwave on high for 4 minutes. Cool. Strain out the juice. Do not squeeze lemons as you will have a bitter taste. Halve the tomatoes and squeeze out the seeds.
In a blender, add tomatoes, lemon juice, ginger, Karo and the Riesling. Blend until well mixed. In a steady stream, slowly add olive oil until emulsified. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Strain through a fine strainer or chinoise.

3) Pumpkin Brioche Pain Perdu With Spiced Blackberries

By Chef Nancy Oakes

Pumpkin Brioche Pudding
6 ounces brioche bread, cubed, crusts removed and toasted
1 cup of heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
1/2 vanilla bean
1/2 cup maple syrup
3Tbs. candied ginger, minced
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 Tbs. ground ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 egg yolks
1 whole egg
pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 350º degrees. Spray six 8 ounce ramekins with nonstick coating and set aside. Bring heavy cream, milk and vanilla bean to a boil. Remove from heat, let sit 5 minutes. Strain.
Whisk maple syrup, candied ginger, canned pumpkin, ground ginger, ground cinnamon , egg yolks and whole egg in medium sized bowl. Add cream and milk mixture until combined well. Fold in brioche bread. Let mix stand for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Pour or ladle into remekins and bake in Bain Marie (with water half way up sides of ramekins 30 - 45 minutes.

Cinnamon Brickle Ice Cream
1 quart vanilla ice cream
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp.vanilla
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 Tbs. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
Butter an aluminum foil lined sheet pan. Combine sugar, corn syrup , butter and water. Bring to boil and cook to the caramel stage. Remove from heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Pour onto the prepared sheet pan. Let harden. Chop and sprinkle on top of vanilla ice cream.

Spiced Blackberries
2 pints of blackberries, picked and washed
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
Bring sugar, water and cinnamon stick to a boil. Remove from heat. Add blackberries. Serve warm. Do not cook blackberries.