Sweet Tea Series #3
Southern Brunch
Southern Frittata
8 slices bacon (about 1/2 pound) cut into ½” ribbons
¼ stick butter
1 small yellow onion (diced)
1 red bell pepper (diced)
1 green bell pepper (diced)
½ pound ham steak (diced)
2 garlic cloves (smashed and diced)
½ teaspoon hot sauce
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup white wine
¼ teaspoon salt
12 eggs
2 cups shredded Gouda cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large cast iron skillet, sear bacon on medium heat until crispy. Remove bacon and set aside. Melt butter and sauté onions, peppers, and garlic until soft. Add ham steak and deglaze with white wine. Let simmer until white wine is reduced by half. Reduce heat to low. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs with salt, pepper, and hot sauce until frothy. Add egg mixture and bacon directly to pan and incorporate. Cook on low heat, mixing constantly, until mixture starts to stiffen evenly. Top with shredded cheese and place directly in the oven for approximately 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Allow pan to cool. Remove from pan and cut into wedges. Serves six.
Hollandaise and Poached Eggs
Hollandaise
1 pound butter
6 egg yolks
1 small lemon
1 teaspoon hot sauce
Poached Eggs
12 eggs
3 quarts water
½ cup white vinegar
Bring water and vinegar to a rolling simmer in a 1-gallon saucepan. In a separate saucepan, melt butter on low heat and skim off foam. This clarifies the butter and separates the milk solids that fall to the bottom (also known as drawn butter). In a stainless mixing bowl mix egg yolks and place on top of the simmering saucepan, whisking constantly. This heats the eggs very slowly (also called tempering). In small increments, slowly add hot butter. Are you still whisking? Once all the butter has been added, remove from heat and add juice of ½ lemon and a touch of hot sauce. Set aside for Benedicts.
Reduce saucepan heat to low. Make sure water is at a slow roll, meaning its not moving. If the water is boiling or simmering, it will cause all the eggs to break and overcook. Carefully drop eggs a few at a time and poach until cooked as you would like them. Carefully take them out with a slotted spoon and set aside for Benedicts.
Eggs Sardu with Blackened Jumbo Shrimp
1 batch hollandaise from above recipe
½ stick butter
1 6-pack English muffins
1 batch poached eggs from above recipe
2 1-pound ham steaks (seared and cut into 6 pieces)
½ stick butter
1 medium onion (julienned)
1 medium red bell pepper (cleaned and julienned)
2 garlic cloves (smashed and minced)
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
1 8-ounce bag fresh baby spinach
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy cream
12 large jumbo Gulf shrimp
¼ cup blackening seasoning
¼ stick butter
Halve English muffins, toast, and add butter. Set aside. In a large non-reactive sauté pan on medium-high heat, melt ½ stick butter and sauté onions, bell peppers, and garlic until softened. Add artichoke hearts, salt, pepper, and cream. Reduce heat to low and allow cream to reduce. Fold in fresh spinach until wilted. Set mixture aside. To blacken shrimp, melt butter in a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. Coat shrimp with blackened seasoning and sear until tails are cooked thoroughly.
To assemble, place English muffins on plate, top with ham steak, then egg, then sauté mixture, then hollandaise, then 2 shrimp. Serves 12.
Southern Green Tomato Benny
1 6-pack English muffins
12 fried green tomatoes (recipe from this year’s first Sweet Tea class)
1 pound andouille sausage (Apple Market carries it) seared and cut on the bias
1 batch hollandaise
1 batch roasted red pepper rémoulade (from this year’s first Sweet Tea class)
12 poached eggs
Green tomato maque choux (from this year’s first Sweet Tea class)
Assemble the Benedicts with the English muffin topped with green tomato, then andouille, then rémoulade, then green tomato, then poached egg, then hollandaise. Makes 12 Benedicts.
Monte Cristo Sandwiches
With Bourbon Honey Mustard and Blackberry Sauces
Monte Cristo8 slices bread (preferably Italian or potato bread)
4 slices baby Swiss cheese (preferably Boar’s Head)
8 slices turkey (preferably Ovengold by Boar’s Head)
12 slices ham (preferably Boar’s Head honey ham)
8 pieces bacon (about 1/2 pound) from Bourbon Honey Mustard recipe below
3 eggs
1 cup milk
½ tablespoon salt
½ tablespoon black pepper
½ stick butter
In a mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Whisk thoroughly and set aside. Assemble sandwiches and stab with a couple of toothpicks to hold together. In a large sauté pan on low to medium heat, melt butter. Submerge sandwiches in egg mixture, flip and submerge on the other side and place directly in the pan. Cook on each side until golden brown and cheese is fully melted. Makes 4 sandwiches.
Bourbon Honey Mustard8 pieces bacon (about ½ pound)
¼ stick butter
1 small white onion
1 large shallot
2 garlic cloves
¾ cup bourbon
½ cup honey
½ cup brown sugar
¼ tablespoon salt
¼ tablespoon pepper
1 cup Creole mustard
On medium high, sauté bacon in a large sauté pan until crispy. Set aside for sandwiches. Add butter and sauté onions, shallots and garlic until soft and translucent. Deglaze with ¼ cup bourbon. Reduce heat to low and add brown sugar and honey until bubbly. Add remaining bourbon and whisk in salt, pepper, and Creole mustard. Set aside.
Blackberry Sauce
1 pound frozen or fresh blackberries
½ cup red wine
½ cup bourbon
1 ½ cups white sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup cornstarch
Water (cold)
In a medium saucepan on medium heat, add blackberries, red wine, bourbon, sugar and salt. Heat until it simmers. Put cornstarch in a cup and mix in cold water until mixture is very consistent and smooth. This is called slurry, which is a thickening agent. Add slurry and the mixture will thicken rapidly.
Pain Purdue “lost Bread”
Stuffed with Grand Marnier Cream with Bourbon-Glazed Peaches
Stuffing
1 8-ounce block of cream cheese (soften to room temperature)
4 ounces mascarpone cheese
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
½ cup sugar
4 tablespoons Grand Marnier
In a small saucepan, on low heat, whisk together Grand Marnier with sugar until it becomes syrup. Set aside and allow to cool. In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients until full incorporated. Set aside.
Batter
6 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon coriander
¼ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
In a large mixing bowl, whisk all ingredients together until fully incorporated. Set aside.
Topping: Same recipe as the bourbon-glazed peaches from last class
Breads
2 large bread begets or six hoagie rolls
½ stick butter
¼ cup chopped pecans
Cut ends off of begets, cut into thirds, shave crust off, and cut in half like a po’ boy bun. Add cream cheese mixture evenly and close. Submerge entire roll in batter until fully soaked. In a large sauté pan, on low to medium heat, melt butter and sauté French toast until golden on each side and egg mixture is fully cooked inside and out. Cut in half and top with bourbon-glazed peaches. Garnish with chopped pecans.
