A Touch of Happiness
Whether it's for a wedding shower or a rehearsal dinner, you'll want to bring that touch of something special to the table. Hans Rueffert, the chef and new owner of the historic Woodbridge Inn offers a few suggestions and recipes from his book. For a personalized touch, come visit Hans and Amy Rueffert at the newly renovated historic Woodbridge Inn in Jasper.
Recipes and photos by Hans Rueffert,
author of Eat Like There's No Tomorrow,
$24.99. On sale at Cowan's Book Nook,
Out of the Blue, Jasper Drugs, the
Woodbridge Inn, Foxtales Book Shoppe,
Unique Kitchens and hanscooks.com.
For information about catering, call the
Woodbridge Inn at (706) 253-5275.
Chocolate Honey Crème Brulee
This is a stripped down version of the classic crème brulee, but one I think you’ll make a bit more often. When chocolate and honey get together, you know you’re going to end up with something good.
- 12 oz. evaporated milk
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder or grated chocolate
- 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon raw sugar (for caramel top)
In a large bowl, beat eggs, whole milk, and evaporated milk together until well blended. Add honey, cocoa powder, orange peel, and vanilla. Divide mixture evenly into ovenproof ramekins or custard cups and place in a baking pan. Pour boiling water into baking pan until it reaches half way up the ramekins. Bake at 325 F for 1 hour or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Carefully remove from water bath and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. To serve, sprinkle an even layer of sugar on the tops of the brulees and caramelize with either a torch or directly under a broiler.
Grandma Grace’s Cranberry Orange Cake
My wife, Amy’s, Grandma Grace made this a part of her
holiday tradition for probably 40 years. The addition of
orange juice makes the cake incredibly moist, and the cake is
best if you make it a few days in advance. The trick is keeping
yourself from eating it before the holidays, so I advise you
make two: one for you and one for your family.
-
2 ¼ cups sifted all purpose flour
2 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup diced dates
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
grated rind of two oranges
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup buttermilk
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 cup orange juice
Preheat oven to 350° F. Sift together flour, 1 cup of sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Stir in nuts, dates cranberries, and orange rind. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, and oil, then add to the flour and fruit mixture. Pour into a well-greased bundt pan and bake for one hour, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool until lukewarm. Remove the cake and place it on a rack over a wide dish. Combine orange juice and remaining 1 cup sugar and pour it over the cake. Take the collected drippings and pour over again until most of the juice has been absorbed. The cake will keep in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks if wrapped in foil, but I doubt it'll last that long!
Rocky Road
Chocolate can be a little finicky if you don’t know what you’re
doing. Heat it too quickly and the fat will actually separate
from the cocoa, leaving you with a sticky, oily mess. Cook it
too long and it’ll scorch, a kitchen nightmare that you’ll never forget. The trick is to melt the chocolate over slow, steady heat.
This process is called tempering, and it’s an essential part of
working with chocolate. One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate
is to use a double boiler (sometimes called a bain-marie).
Simply take a pot and add a couple inches of water and bring it
to a low boil. Put your chocolate into a heat-proof bowl and set
it over the steaming pot. The steam gently melts the chocolate
without the risk of separation or burning.
-
12 oz. milk chocolate chips
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate chips
½ cup Brazil nuts
2/3 cup mini-marshmallows
Using the method described above, temper the chocolates,
stirring gently to combine. Remove from the heat and
immediately stir in the nuts and marshmallows. While the
mixture is still warm, pour into small baking cups or simply
make small islands on a sheet of waxed paper. Refrigerate
until firm then try and keep the kids away! Feel free to
substitute Brazil nuts for your favorite nut or mix in other
ingredients like dried fruit, coconut or candy pieces.
Green Goddess Dressing
Green Goddess is an herb lover’s dream, and it’s never the same
thing twice. If you don’t have sorrel or burnet, get some! And
if you can’t find them, just use any tasty, leafy green herbs at
your disposal. Woody herbs like thyme, rosemary and lavender
can be a bit strong for this delicate dressing, so try sticking to
tender, soft-leaved herbs like oregano, basil, mint, lemon balm,
fennel, dill, and the like.
-
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon burnet leaves
3-4 sorrel leaves, rough chopped
2 tablespoons lemon verbena leaves
2 tablespoons Greek basil leaves
2 tablespoons mint leaves
¼ cup fennel stems and fronds
salt
pepper
6 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
1 cup Greek yogurt
3 tablespoon avocado oil
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Serve with crisp greens like mache, arugula, or even watercress. Green Goddess also makes an excellent dip for raw veggies or even as a spread for sandwiches.
French Onion Soup
This version is just a little different from the one at the
Woodbridge Inn, but only to make it easier for you to
prepare at home. You can use just Swiss cheese, but the
three-cheese combination is hard to beat.
-
1 tablespoon olive oil
4-5 Vidalia onions, sliced
salt
1 teaspoon coriander, ground
1 tablespoon Braggs liquid amino acids or low sodium
soy sauce
4 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon red wine
Day old bread, toasted
½ cup Swiss cheese, grated
½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
½ cup cheddar cheese, grated
In a large, heavy pot on medium-high heat, add the oil,
onions, salt, coriander, wine, and Braggs and sauté for
about 8 - 10 minutes. You want to the onions to take on
just a little color, but not go too brown. Add the chicken
stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer
and adjust the soup for seasoning.
To make the cheese caps for the soup, combine the three
cheeses and use your fingers to form cheese disc slightly
larger than your serving bowl. Smash the cheese disc on top of a small circle of bread and really squish the two
together.
To serve: Place soup in a bowl. Lay cheese/bread cap
gently on top. Broil for about 4 - 5 minutes or until the
cheese is just all gooey and running down the sides of the
bowl. It’s not a good onion soup if you can’t pick the
cheese from the side of the bowl with your fingers.
Asparagus Salad with Lemon Yogurt Vinaigrette
Grilling lemons may not be something you’re used to doing,
but it adds a lush, caramel sweetness to the dressing. If
you’re using a grill pan, cooking the asparagus after the
lemons will add a little extra zing to the spears.
-
3 lemons, halved
1 tablespoon olive oil
6-8 asparagus spears
1 ½ tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, minced
salt & pepper
¼ cup plain yogurt
2-3 cups fresh arugula
2-3 tablespoons fresh goat cheese (chevre)
lemon zest
Grill the lemons
pulp side down
on medium heat,
rotating them
occasionally so
that they don’t
burn. When
they’ve softened
up a bit and have
some nice color
on them, set the
lemons to the side
and let them rest
while you work
on the asparagus.
Add the oil to the
pan and sauté/
grill the asparagus
over medium
heat for about 2-3 minutes. The asparagus should be warm
throughout, but still crunchy. How can you tell if they’re
ready? Eat one!
To make the dressing, use a fork to really render out the
juice and pulp from the grilled lemons. Add vinegar,
mustard, yogurt, garlic, salt, and pepper. Whisk to combine.
Arrange the arugula in a bowl. Crumble the goat cheese
over the arugula in a large bowl and add your dressing. Toss
the salad thoroughly, plate, and arrange the asparagus on
top. Add a sprinkle of lemon zest and a little cracked pepper
and you’re good to go.
Shrimp Parfait
I love the simple, sweet tomato shrimp cocktails you find a good Mexican restaurants, and I adore fresh tomatillo salsa. This is a surprisingly vibrant combination of those two flavors and makes for a beautiful presentation.
-
2 cups water
1 cup shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon peppercorns
½ teaspoon fennel seed
½ cup organic ketchup
½ cup vidalia onions
hot sauce (optional)
4-5 tomatillos
1 clove garlic, rough chopped
1 jalapeno pepper
juice from 2 limes
¼ cup cilantro, roughly torn
dollop of sour cream, to garnish
Add the water, shrimp, bay leaves, peppercorns, and fennel
seed to a heavy pot. Poach the shrimp on low heat (make
sure the water never reaches a boil ) until they just turn pink
and opaque. Drain the shrimp and shock them in a bowl of
ice water. When they’re nice and chilled, drain them again
and rough chop the shrimp into bite size pieces. Divide the
chopped shrimp into two equal piles.
For Red Sauce: In a bowl mix ketchup, onions, a splash of
water, and half the shrimp together.
Add a splash of hot sauce if desired.
For Green Sauce: Grill the tomatillos and the jalapeno
for about 2-3 minutes, turning frequently. You want the
tomatillos to get a little soft and squishy. In a food processor,
pulse the tomatillos, garlic, and jalapeno together until
they’re thoroughly pureed. Add the lime juice and cilantro
then blend for another 10 seconds or so. Remove from the
processor and add the remaining shrimp.
Keep everything nice and chilled until you’re ready to
assemble the parfaits. When you’re ready to serve, simply
alternate layers of the green and red cocktails. Feel free to
add embellishments like sour cream, more diced onions or
tortilla chips.