Confit de Canard

Confit de Canard

Cuisine French

Ingredients

  • 2 duck legs and 2 breasts If using a whole duck, save carcasses for Orange Reduction. See recipe below
  • 6 garlic cloves
  • 8 cups of rendered duck fat
  • kosher salt
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp ground coriander
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground allspice
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • ¼ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 tsp ground cloves
  • ¼ tsp finely crumbled dried thyme
  • 1 Turkish bay leaf finely crumbled

For the Orange Reduction

  • 1 duck carcass
  • Caramel made from made with 4 oz of sugar and 2 tablespoons of water brought to a boil
  • 2 oranges

Instructions

  1. Mix all the spices together and sprinkle them evenly over the legs and breast. Lightly coat legs and breast all over with kosher salt. Set them in a flat, glass baking dish with the garlic cloves, cover with plastic wrap, and cure them in the refrigerator for 36 hours.
  2. Preheat the oven to 275°F (135°C). Drain and discard all the liquid from the baking dish. Remove from baking dish all duck meat and garlic cloves and pat dry. Clean baking dish. Return the legs and garlic to the dish and cover with the duck fat. Bake until the garlic cloves have turned a deep golden color, which will take 2 to 2-½ hours. Let the meat cool in the fat until it can safely be transferred to a large canning jar. Strain the fat through a cheese cloth and pour enough over the meat to cover it by at least an inch. Allow to cool completely and then store as is in the refrigerator, sealed under the duck fat for at least 24 hours.

To Reheat:

  1. Remove the cold duck fat from the breast and legs by scraping off excess. Place on a baking sheet and roast in oven for 10 minutes till the skin is brown and crispy.

For the Orange Reduction:

  1. Roast duck carcass in 300°F oven for 30 minutes. Remove carcass and place in large pot with cold water until body is fully submerged. Let boil for 2 hours. Remove all solid items and discard. I like to use a chinoise which is a conical strainer used for making perfectly smooth soups and sauces. Once you have your clean duck stock, pour into a sauce pan, add caramel and juice of 2 oranges. Reduce till you get a thick consistency. If you would like a thicker consistency, add 1 teaspoon of cornstarch diluted with ½ teaspoon of water and then bring back up to boil. 

Coulibiac of Salmon

Coulibiac of Salmon

A classic savory Russian pie that is constructed by layering coucous, salmon, spinach, mushrooms, and dill. It is a traditional Yule holiday dish in Russia because it looks like a present: red (salmon) and green (spinach), all gift-wrapped in puff pastry. Although it can be made early in the day, it is best baked fresh for the meal. It is a wonderful fish dish for entertaining friends and family. It could be served plated or on a buffet, and can be served at room temperature of needed.
Cuisine French

Ingredients

Filling:

  • 3 cups pre-boiled Couscous
  • 6 cups of water for cooking Couscous
  • 2 cups butter
  • ½ cup finely chopped onions
  • ½ tsp of minced garlic
  • 2-½ lbs of fresh clean spinach
  • 3 cups finely chopped mushrooms
  • I like to use chanterelles for their nutty flavor, but any wild mushrooms work.
  • 6 lb filet of skinned salmon
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive Oil
  • 1 cup finely chopped fresh dill
  • Frozen puff pastry defrosted

For glaze for pastry:

  • 1 egg and 1 tsp of milk
  • Champagne Beurre Blanc (see below)

Champagne Beurre Blanc

  • 2 cups of brut champagne
  • ¼ cup shallots
  • 2-3 teaspoon salt to taste
  • ½ pound 2 sticks unsalted butter

Instructions

Filling:

  1. In saucepan, combine couscous and water, cover, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender and water has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Uncover and, using fork, toss lightly with 2 tbsp butter. Let cool.
  2. In skillet, melt remaining butter; sauté onions and mushrooms until soft, about 5 minutes. Place mushroom mixture aside. In same skillet, sauté fresh spinach with 3 tbs of olive oil and ½ tsp of minced garlic. Place spinach aside. Skin salmon fillets (if not already done) and pull out any small pin bones if any.
  3. On a metal baking sheet large enough to have an 8-inch space around salmon, layout a baking sheet paper so it will be easy to remove coulibiac once it is cooked. On top of the baking sheet paper, layout the puff pastry so that it covers the entire baking sheet. In the center of the baking sheet, vertically place couscous (shape it to mimic the filet of salmon). Season this and each layer with salt and pepper. Place the filet of salmon on top of couscous. Then spread the onion mushroom mixture next, and then sautéed spinach, making an even layer. Sprinkle with dill. In the center of your baking sheet you should have all the filling ingredients tightly layered neatly on top of each other and ready for you to begin to close the puff pastry.
  4. To begin to close the puff pastry, whisk together the egg and milk and brush over the edge of pastry. Fold the sides over the filling toward the center and turn under to seal. Brush with glaze. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. If you have a thermometer, you can remove from the oven till the internal temperature of the coulibiac reads 150 degrees. Serve with Champagne buerre blanc and garnish with dill.

Champagne Beurre Blanc

  1. Cut the butter into 1-ounce pieces and keep chilled. Boil the champagne fiercely over a high flame, with the shallots and seasonings, until the pan is very nearly dry. Whisk butter into the hot, damp shallots, still over a high flame. When all the butter is absorbed, remove the pan from the heat, let cool briefly, and strain into a sauce boat. Serve at once.

Tart Tatin

Tart Tatin

This, without a doubt, is the best loved tarte in France. Culinary legend has it that two Tatin sisters ran a small hotel and restaurant in the French region of Sologne (the Loire Valley, Western France). Times were hard and good help expensive. On a particularly busy day, one of the sisters forgot to put the pastry in her tart pan before adding the apples, so she arranged it as a lid over the fruit before putting it in the oven. To serve, she tipped the tart onto a plate, allowing the juices to pool around the browned, crisp pastry. Her customers were delighted and a tradition was born!


<b>Some helpful hints:</b>

*Suggested apples are: Fujis, Criterions, Winesaps, or Northern Spies. Jonagolds or Golden Delicious will work too, but if you used them, sprinkle the apples with 2 teaspoons of lemon juice right before you put the pastry over them. Otherwise, you won't get the proper taste.

*The 3 rules of Tarte Tatin:

1. Leave the apples in quarters and fit as many into the pan as possible.

2. The caramel must be good, rich, and dark, which will only happen through long, slow, cooking.

3. The tart MUST be served warm, otherwise it is considered inedible!


Now the recipe:

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup of softened butter
  • 1/2 cup of Vanilla Sugar see below for recipe
  • 6 large apples
  • fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup of Calvados or Apple Brandy
  • 1 Pâte Brisée tart dough, rolled out (see below for recipe)
  • 2 cups Vanilla ice cream or creme fraiche

Instructions

  1. The pan you choose for Tarte Tatin is important as it must be able to withstand cooking on a stovetop and in the very hot oven with extremely hot caramelizing sugar. A heavy-bottomed seasoned cast-iron pan is preferable.
  2. Preheat the oven to 200°C, 390°F. Measure your pan and cut your pastry sheet into a round disc to fit as a lid. Cover the pastry so it doesn't dry out and put it aside for later. Peel and core the apples, then cut into quarters. Brush with lemon juice so they do not brown. Melt the butter and sugar together in the pan and slowly cook together until the sugar dissolves. Add the apple brandy and bring to a boil for 5 minutes.
  3. Arrange the apple quarters in the sugar mixture in a snug even pattern. Begin at the outside edge and stand the quarters on their sides, facing in one direction with stem ends toward the center. Pack the apples as close together as possible, gently pushing them together so they are held standing by pressure. Make a second circle of apples inside the first, packing them in on their edges as well. Place two apple quarters right in the center of the second circle to fill in the small space that remains. The idea is to get as many apples into the pan as possible, while keeping them nicely arranged.
  4. Cook over a slow to medium heat for around 20 minutes until the apples are slightly soft and the sugar has begun to caramelize. Place the pastry round securely on top of the apples. Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. Place a serving dish over the pan and flip upside down to release the dessert, so that the pastry is underneath. Serve at once, Cut tarte into wedges and serve hot or warm with vanilla ice cream. or creme fraiche. Add some lemon zest to the creme friache or ice cream for a pleasant contrast. Serve with a glass of Apple Brandy.

Pâte Brisée (Tart Dough)

  1. Yield: 1 (10-inch) tart dough

    1-¼ cups all-purpose flour
    ½ teaspoon salt
    1 tablespoon sugar
    4 ounces cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
    ¼ cup very cold water

  2. Combine the flour, salt, sugar, and butter in a food processor and pulse for approximately 15-20 seconds, or until it resembles coarse cornmeal. With the motor running, add the water; the motor should not run for more than 20 seconds. Remove the dough from the machine and shape it into a disk measuring approximately inches across and 1-1/2 inches thick. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Vanilla Sugar

  1. Makes 1 cup
    If you go to the grocery store in France, you will find Vanilla Sugar in small little packets. Well, we don't have that luxury here so....

    1 cup sugar
    ½ fresh vanilla bean, or 1 used vanilla bean

  2. Pour the sugar into an airtight container, and push the vanilla beans down into the sugar. Cover and let ripen for at least 1 week. Replenish the sugar as you use it, pouring out the sugar that is already flavored, adding new sugar to the container, and topping it with the flavored sugar. Replace the vanilla beans once every 2 months.

Madeleines

Lemon-Scented Madeleines

Chef, Jean-Jacques proudly launches Bistro Maison "Madeleines." Jean-Jacques speaks of after school treats his mother prepared of fresh madeleines dunked in hot chocolate. The good ones, apparently, bob back to the surface of the chocolate. Jean-Jacques still believes in this quality test: if it doesn't float, if it doesn't bob back up to the surface when you sink it with your spoon, and if it doesn't have a lump on top, it's not a true madeleine. In fact, he believes the right way to serve madeleines is scallop-side down, so you can see the lump.

You may have sampled these scrumptious morsels as a dessert paired with hot chocolate on our menu. They are now available packaged in half dozen sachets to enjoy at home. Lemon scented Madelines are an irresistible snack on their own or with a cup of hot chocolate or tea, Lately, gift packages of Bistro Maison Madelines adorned with ribbons have been spotted around town as hostess gifts and party favors offered by those in the know.

When creating “Madelines”, Jean-Jacques began by purchasing the finest butter from Oregon's own Farmer's Cooperative Creamery right here in McMinnville. It makes all the difference. In a taste test it beat out all the best brands hailing from the Normandy region of France.

Cuisine French
Servings 1 dozen

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs separated
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
  • 6 oz Farmer's Cooperative Creamery FCC unsalted butter, melted, divided
  • zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Take 2 tablespoons of the melted butter and cool it to room temperature. Use this butter to generously grease the madeleine molds. A note of importance is to properly butter the molds. Use a pliant brush, and take care not to miss a single cranny. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar and salt, the remaining melted butter, the vanilla extract, the lemon zest and juice, until thickened.
  2. Add the flour, about a ¼ cup at a time, beating between additions. Add the egg whites, one at a time, and beat until well combined. Fill the molds 2/3 full and bake until golden, about 25 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar when cool.

Recipe Notes

** Special order packages for quantities of 25 or more are available and can be arranged through Deborah or Jean-Jacques.

White Truffle Fondue

White Truffle Fondue

Bistro Maison created the wonderful idea of serving an Oregon white truffle fondue on Valentine's Day. Every December and January we get lots of white truffles from our local foragers. Since we are closed for vacation the month of January, Chef Jean-Jacques immediately cleans them upon receiving them and makes a compound butter of white truffles. He then refrigerates this compound butter which allows the intense unique flavor if this exotic mushroom to remain dormant until he is ready to use them again. When he allows the white truffle butter to come up to room temperature, the smell and flavor of the white truffles are as strong as when he first received them. We needed a romantic appetizer for our Valentines Day menu and we could not think of one more appropriate to showcase our Oregon White Truffles.
Cuisine French
Servings 4 people

Ingredients

Utensils

  • Cheese Fondue set with ceramic pot 4 fondue forks, stand, burner and safety fuel.
  • At Bistro Maison we like to use Le Creuset.

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
  • 1/4 cup Oregon Dry White Wine
  • 1 cup Grated Gruyere cheese
  • 1 cup Grated Emmental cheese
  • 1 cup Oregon's White Tillamook Cheddar Cheese
  • 1 tablespoon Oregon's Clear Creek Kirshwasser
  • 2 tablespoons Oregon's White Truffle Butter
  • 1 tablespoon White Truffle Oil

Accompaniments: all should be cut in 3/4" cubes

  • Fresh pear and apples
  • cubes of ham
  • Roasted red beets carrots
  • cornichons
  • cherry tomatoes
  • crusty bread 2-day old preferred. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve

Instructions

  1. Pour in wine and ground nutmeg in Fondue pot over heat.
  2. Keep heat on low until bubbling.
  3. Reduce the heat to low, and gradually stir in grated cheeses.
  4. Continue to heat until cheeses melt, stirring constantly.
  5. When you add the cheese, stir in a zig zag rather than circular motion to help break up the cheese.

Note: Keep the fondue warm over as low heat as possible to avoid scorching the cheese.

  1. Once cheese is melted stir Oregon's Clear Creek Kirshwasser into cheese mixture.
  2. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes until mixture is thick and smooth, stirring frequently.
  3. Do not allow fondue to boil.
  4. Add white truffle butter and stir until dissolves into cheese mixture.
  5. Remove from heat and drizzle in white truffle oil while stirring mixture.
  6. Transfer directly to a lit fondue set to prevent cheese from separating.
  7. Serve with the accompaniments.

Croque Monsieur

Croque Monsieur


Cuisine French
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter +1/2 tablespoon
  • 1/3 cup flour
  • 2 1/4 cups milk
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch of ground nutmeg
  • 2 cups about 3/4 pound grated Gruyere or Emmenthaler Swiss cheese
  • 1/2 cup grainy mustard
  • 4 slices French country bread large round loaf
  • 4 slices ham

Instructions

  1. Start by making the béchamel sauce: Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat.
  2. Add the flour, and mix briskly with a whisk for 2 minutes. Still over low heat, add 2 cups of the milk, Continuing to whisk briskly. When the sauce comes to a boil, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
  3. Remove from the heat, and let cool.
  4. Spread butter on one of the side of the bread (will be bottom side)
  5. Spread mustard on the other side (top)
  6. Top each slice of bread with a slice of ham and then liberally with the béchamel sauce.
  7. Sprinkle with the grated gruyere, and cook in an oven or under a broiler until golden brown.
  8. Serve with pomme frites or salad

French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup


Course Appetizer
Cuisine French
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 2 people

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 10 oz dry white wine
  • 1 oz port or sherry
  • 2 cups water
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 tbsp grated Swiss Emmenthaler or Gruyere cheese
  • French bread
  • Olive Oil

Instructions

  1. In a skillet, melt butter over low heat and sauté thinly sliced onions over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring frequently using a wooden spoon.

  2. In the meantime, cut slices of French bread into 1/2 inch pieces, brush them with olive oil and toast them at 350 degrees in the oven for about 15 minutes until they are dry crusts.

  3. Sprinkle flour over onion slices; stir until mixed well.

  4. Slowly pour in brandy and dry white wine; bring to a boil, add water.

  5. Lower heat to medium, cover skillet and cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally using a wooden spoon.

  6. Remove from heat.

  7. Season with salt and pepper.

  8. Pour onion soup into individual bowls add bread, Swiss cheese and put under the broiler.