[KYHeirloomer]

Witht he holiday season fast approaching I thought it might be fun if we had a virtual party right here.

What I'm thinking is we can design a tapas/mezze/small plates party. We can do this one of two ways. Either just post a list of recipe titles and have those interested ask for the recipe, or post the title and recipes immediately.

Personally, I prefer the first approach, because otherwise the list can become too cumbersome. But I'm open to play either way.

What say you all?

[bainst]

I am all in. Whatever the majority decides on, I will abide.
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Live as if to die tomorrow. Learn as if to live forever.
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[swan]

great plan - I'm in ! I was just thinking about the holidays the other day...nice to get some inspiration from you guys. I'm fine with either option !
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http://jaap-en-mickey.blogspot.com

[KYHeirloomer]

Well, I thought it was a good idea, but apparently not.

There have been more than 200 views of this thread, but only two responses. So I guess nobody much is interested in participating.

[simona]

I believe that if you start with YOUR list ( first option) , you'll get more answers/ demands of recipes/ participation rates. It will also give an exact idea of what you have on your mind, as I personally don't understand the "party" part of your plan. It sounds as an opportunity to exchange party recipes, a very good idea indeed, but where does the forum's party fit in?
Good luck

No more war, more exptraordinary party recipes!

[KYHeirloomer]

Well, we'll give that a try, Simona, and see what happens.

I used the word "party" loosely, just to mean that if we all got together (obviously not feasible) to have a tapas/mezze/small plates party, these are some of the dishes we might put on the table.

So, here's a starter list:

1. Seafood lollipops with peach gastrique.
2. Miniature Kentucky Hot Browns.
3. Sausage, Shrimp & Cantaloupe skewers.
4. Gougere in assorted shapes and fillings.
5. Chicken Shiu Mai with Mango Sauce.
6. Pear and Gorgonzola Filled Won Ton cups.

[clotilde]

To this virtual table I shall bring:

- gouda and dried pear scones,
- a bowl of peacamole,
- some cheese thins,
- a batch of Jo Jo potatoes,
- and a salad of grated carrots and beets.

Oh, and if I have time to bake it, I'll bring a loaf of starter bread also, and a couple of bottles of biodynamic wine from the corner wine shop.

[simona]

KYH, nice list.
I would like very much to get your recipe for :
- Seafood Lollipops with peach gastrique ( gastric peaches? -intriguing). Isn't that one of your secret recipes?
I will think about some entrees and/or deserts for "our" New Year virtual party .
Thank you .

No more war , what for GS are peach gastriques?

[gingerpale]

I'll be happy to come with some

half-dollar size corn fritters (very approximately 4 cm.),

small baked potatoes stuffed with corned beef hash,

and mushroom-shallot tarts.

Yes, please post about the seafood lollipops!

[KYHeirloomer]

No, there’s nothing secret about this recipe, Simona. It’s just complex to execute, considering the various cooking techniques involved and that it’s actually several recipes combined.

I first developed it as a seafood sausage. When making it that way it includes crayfish tails, mixed in after grinding the other ingredients, to provide a little tooth. For the lollipops, however, the tails make the forcemeat too coarse, and they can fall apart when frying. If you want the flavor of the crayfish, grind them with the other ingredients.

While using small skewers to create lollipops makes a more dramatic presentation, you can skip that stage, and just serve the balls alone.

In total, it requires:

Seafood forcemeat
Fish stock or equivalent
Cornmeal batter
Peach gastrique

Seafood Forcemeat

1 lb raw shrimp, peeled & deveined
½ lb raw tilapia or other white-fleshed fish
½ dozen raw oysters
6 oz cooked crab meat
1 shallot, minced
1 tsp fennel seed, coarsely ground
1 tbls dry tarragon or 1 tsp fresh
2 tbls parsley, minced
¾ tsp white pepper
2 egg whites
2 tbls cream

Cut tilapia in small pieces. Toss with the shrimp, crabmeat, tarrgon, parsley, fennel seed and pepper so that spices are evenly distributed. Run through a meat grinder, using the medium plate.

Lightly beat egg whites and cream. Incorporate into the seafood mixture

for the seafood balls:

1 recipe seafood forcemeat
Several cups fish stock

Bring stock to a slow simmer. Drop seafood forcemeat, by double tablespoons, into liquid. Allow to poach a few minutes, turning frequently, until balls just firm up. Remove from liquid and set aside. Ball can be refrigerated, covered, for up to two days.

make a batter:

In a deep bowl, combine 1 cup fine cornmeal, ½ cup flour, salt, pepper, an egg, lightly beaten, and enough milk to make a medium batter.

Insert a short skewer into each seafood ball. Dust with corn starch. Dip in the batter, swirling to cover completely, assuring that some batter contact the stick.

Deep fry at 350F until balls are browned and crisp on the outside. Drain well. Drizzle with peach gastrique, or serve the gastrique as a dipping sauce in small bowls.

I first came up with this sauce after stopping at a farm market in Maryland which had all kinds of fruit ciders, including peach. Peach cider is difficult to find, though, so you can substitute peach juice, peach nectar, or even agave juice or nectar for the same effect.

Peach Gastrique

1 cup peach cider or nectar
Scant ½ cup red wine vinegar
1-2 tbls sugar

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, lower heat, and reduce at a fast simmer until syrupy.

[swan]

I would take care of some of the desserts.

- miniature classic tiramisu
- dark chocolate mousse, unsweetened whipped cream at the top and sprinkeled with the caramel-au-beurre-salee-powder I found at G. Detou (no, Debbie found at G. Detou)
- lemongrass or earl grey infused creme brulee
- tarte tatin or dutch apple pie
- some red fruits in wine jelly or fruits on skewers with perhaps a creme anglaise-dip.
- a nice lemony cheesecake

All ofcourse in miniature (uhm, perhaps not too miniature ?!?) or individual portions, applepie maybe still in its in mini-molds?, served in beautifull glasses or on crisp, small white plates.
_________________
http://swans-place.blogspot.com
http://jaap-en-mickey.blogspot.com

[gingerpale]

Swan I was hoping someone would bring dessert! Is there such a thing as "classic tiramisu"? I thought it was a "There are as many recipes for fried chicken as there are southern cooks" situation. I've never made it, but would like to. Can you recommend?

Clotilde's peacamole is intriguing-- especially when you get to the perfume part! Has anyone here tried it? In the comments with the recipe people wrote that they've made it over and over.
I love the grated beet and carrot salad--always add sunflower seeds and feta or blue. Lived on it for a week when it was first posted!

KYHeirloomer, the oysters got lost in your post--are they ground with the other fish? I have a grinder (only because I live with a hunter!) so I'd like to try a simpler version of this. I figure I'm using a grinder because a food processor would make the mix too fine/liquidy?
I'd use just shrimp and one other fish for this (a project for me) the first time. I'll adjust the amounts. Would you say the mixture is cooked through after the poaching? Or does the frying finish cooking the fish as well as browning the batter?

[KYHeirloomer]

As should be obvious, Ginger, any combination of seafood would work with this. Originally I didn't include oysters at all, until I saw Cat Cora make "seafood corndogs." She used only oysters and shrimp.

Sorry about the ommission. If you include oysters, grind them raw, with the other ingredients. But go easy, as the oyster flavor can easily dominate all the others.

I chose tilapia for this because I wanted the finned fish to provide bulk more than flavor. Most seafood sausages use salmon, which is fine if you want that flavor. But I wanted the shellfish to predominate.

The corn batter is just my preference. You could use any batter you prefer. A tempura would be ideal, in fact.

The poaching basically precooks the balls, but not all the way through. Basically you're forming a shell that holds the balls together. I use a 2-tbls sized disher (mini-ice cream scoop), and poach them for only two or three minutes, rolling them in the poaching liquid to assure even coverage. The frying then completes the cooking, as well as browning the crust. For perspective, when I make seafood sausages they poach for 10-15 minutes.

When she made her seafood corndogs, Cat Cora piped the mixture directly into the poaching liquid, to form logs. That's another option.

And yes, you're right. Do not use a food processor for this, for the reasons you gave.

[swan]

Gingerpale, I'm sure there are a LOT of versions of Tiramisu out there, all nice/nicer/nicest, but I prefer one I got a long time ago and it works. Usually if we order a tiramisu somewhere we enjoy it, but add' but it's not better then mine'
I'm travelling now and as I want to give you the correct proportions I'll find and post the recipe next week when I'm back at the HK homebase!
_________________
http://swans-place.blogspot.com
http://jaap-en-mickey.blogspot.com

[gingerpale]

ok! Thank you both for replying to my questions -- it will be fun to do these for real. Looking forward to Simona and Bainst checking/chiming in.