Cooking, American Style Class 1 American Cuisine

Cooking, American StyleClass 1American Cuisine International Center at Catholic Charities Community Services May 2013 Instructor: Virginia Guilford

Cooking, American Style • Class 1 – American Cuisine • Class 2 – Navigating the Supermarket • Class 3 – Recipe & Shopping Reports

Cooking, American StyleClass 1 • Is there an American Cuisine? • Recipes for American Classics • Small-Batch Microwave Strawberry Jam • Corn on the Cob / Barefoot Contessa Corn Salad • Good & Plenty Macaroni & Cheese • Steaks with Mushroom Red Wine Sauce • Aunt Betty Bob’s Brownies • Your Assignment

Is There an American Cuisine? • Is American cuisine simply a mix of food from other countries? • Are there any uniquely American dishes? • Is there a uniquely American style of cooking and eating?

New American Cuisine Union Square Cafe Gotham Bar & Grill Mercer Kitchen Restaurant Cookshop American Comfort Food Sarabeth’s Bakery Shake Shack Clarke’s Standard Smith & Wolensky Bobby Van’s Little Pie Company Regional Specialties Southern/BBQ New Orleans California New England Fast Food Burgers French Fries Chicken & Waffles Onion Rings Chili Types of American Restaurants

Recipes • Small Batch Microwave Strawberry Jam • Corn on the Cob / Barefoot Contessa Corn Salad • Good & Plenty Macaroni & Cheese • Steaks with Mushroom Red Wine Sauce • Aunt Betty Bob’s Brownies • Choose a partner. Read each recipe, and decide what kitchen equipment is required to make it.

1.5-quart & 4-quart saucepans with covers Cast-iron skillet Stainless steel sauté pan 2-quart baking dish Microwave safe bowls & plates Cookie sheet Baking pan Microwave Kitchen Range with Oven Measuring cups & spoons Whisk Silicone spatula Spatula Tongs Chef’s knife Paring knife Instant-read thermometer Grater Basic Kitchen Equipment

Small Batch Microwave Strawberry Jam • It is fun to make your own jam. It is easy to do! • Don’t try to double this recipe – it only works for making a small batch of jam. If you want to make more jam, you should use traditional methods of stove-top cooking. • Serve your jam on buttered toast, on muffins, scones, or popovers or over vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients 2 cups strawberries, hulls removed, and cut into quarters 1 cup sugar This recipe can also be used with other fruits - like plums or apricots (remove the pits, and cut into chunks) or peaches (peel, remove pits, and cut up) and you can also make jam with combinations of fruit - like strawberry & rhubarb or apricot pineapple (use 1 1/2 cups apricots and 1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple) or raspberry peach, or blackberry raspberry. Directions Stir the strawberries and sugar together into a microwave-safe bowl. The bowl should be a lot bigger than the fruit so that there will be plenty of room for the jam to expand as it cooks. Microwave at high. Stop every 5-10 minutes to stir the fruit and scrape down the sides. Continue microwaving the fruit, until the jam has thickened. This will probably take about 30-35 minutes. This recipe makes about 1 cup of jam. Jam will keep for a few weeks in the refrigerator. To keep longer, store in the freezer. Small Batch Microwave Strawberry Jam

Hulling strawberries Ingredients & Techniques • Cutting Up Peaches, Apricots, Plums

Corn on the Cob Barefoot Contessa Corn Salad • Corn on the cob is a classic American side dish. • The recipe for Barefoot Contessa Corn Salad is from Ina Garten, who is a chef and caterer who works on Long Island. Her cooking show, The Barefoot Contessa, is on the Food Network. She is a very good cook who uses fresh and local ingredients. This is a good salad to serve with grilled steak or fish, and it is also a good dish to bring to a potluck dinner.

Ingredients 1 teaspoon of salt 5 ears of corn, husks removed, and silk pulled off 2 Tablespoons of butter for each ear of corn Salt, to taste Directions Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add the salt and the ears of corn. When the water with the corn in it returns to the boil again, cover the pot, turn the heat to low, and let the corn steam for 5 minutes. Remove the corn from the water, and put the corn on a large platter and serve with butter & a sprinkle of salt. Corn on the Cob

Ingredients 5 ears of corn, cooked & cooled ½ cup diced red onion 3 tablespoons cider vinegar 3 tablespoons olive oil ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon black pepper ½ cup fresh basil leaves Directions Cut the corn kernels off the cob. (Stand the corn on its end in a large bowl, and slice down with a knife, cutting close to the cob. The corn kernels will fall off into the bowl.) Toss the kernels together with the diced red onions, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Just before serving, slice the fresh basil leaves into thin strips, and toss into the salad. Taste for seasonings and serve cold or at room temperature Barefoot Contessa Corn Salad

Selecting the Best Corn Buy corn when it is ‘in season’ and fresh – July and August • Buy corn with the husks on. Choose corn that has green, fresh-looking husks and golden brown corn silk • Buy corn that is heavy

Ingredients - Corn Varieties • Kinds of Corn • Field Corn • Blue Corn • Popping Corn • Sweet Corn • Some Types of Sweet Corn • Yellow Sweet Corn – ‘Early Golden Bantam’, ‘Incredible’ • White Sweet Corn – ‘Silver Queen’, ‘Argent’ • Variegated Sweet Corn – ‘Butter & Sugar’, ‘Honey & Cream’

Techniques - Preparing Corn • Shucking corn – • removing the corn husks • Cutting corn kernels off the cob

Techniques - Dicing & Slicing • Diced – cut into small squares • Julienned / Thinly Sliced - cut into thin strips.

Ingredients - Vinegar • Types of Vinegar – • cider vinegar – sweeter, milder vinegar, made from apple cider • white vinegar – standard vinegar • red wine vinegar – used for salad dressings • Balsamic vinegar – rich, slightly sweet, made from fermented grape pressings • rice vinegar – mild, less acidic

Good & Plenty Macaroni & Cheese • Macaroni and cheese is a classic, home-style dish. Children love it, and so do adults.Many people say that it is the ultimate comfort food. Cheese-y and rich, with a brown crust, it can be served as a main dish (maybe with sautéed spinach and a sliced-tomato salad on the side) or as a side dish in a larger dinner. It is a popular side-dish to serve with baked ham or barbecued spareribs. • Any leftovers can be frozen in single-serving ziplock bags or freezer containers, and reheated in the oven or microwave. • This recipe is from a famous little take-out place called Good and Plenty To Go, which is now closed. So if you want the famous Good & Plenty Macaroni & Cheese, you will have to make it yourself!

Ingredients 1 lb elbow macaroni, cooked 2 cups heavy cream 2 cups milk 8 Tablespoons butter (1 stick) 6 Tablespoons flour 2 cups yellow cheddar cheese, shredded (about 8 oz of cheese) 2 cups Muenster cheese, shredded (about 8 oz of cheese) Directions Preheat oven 350 degrees. To cook the macaroni: Bring a large pot of water to a full, rolling boil. Add the macaroni, stir once or twice. Cook 9 minutes until the macaroni is tender. Place a colander in the sink, and pour the macaroni and water into it. Allow the water to drain away. To make the white sauce: Heat milk and cream in a saucepan until it is warm; set aside. Melt butter in another sauce pan; whisk in flour. Let the butter and flour cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly with the whisk. Remove from heat and add the warm milk & cream. Stir together. To make the cheese sauce: Shred the cheese using the large holes on a shredder. Add most of the shredded cheeses to the warm white sauce. Stir to melt the cheese. Set aside a handful of the shredded cheese (about ½ cup) to put on top. Put the cooked macaroni in a large 2-quart buttered dish or pan. (It is good if the pan is not too deep – you want to have plenty of golden brown crust. You can use 2 pans if you don’t have a pan that is the right size.) Stir cheese sauce into macaroni. Top with the reserved shredded cheese. Bake at 350⁰ until brown and bubbly on top – about 25-30 minutes Good & Plenty Macaroni and Cheese

Making a Roux or White Sauce • Roux = Butter and flour cooked together is called a roux. The roux is added to a sauce to thicken it and give it a rich flavor. • A roux can be light in color, if it is only cooked for a few minutes, or it can be darker, if it is cooked longer. • A light roux is the basis for a white sauce. • A darker roux is the basis for the sauce for many French dishes, including Cajun French Jambalaya. • White Sauce = White sauce is a sauce made by cooking together flour and butter into a roux and adding warm milk. The sauce can then be flavored with cheese or other flavorings.

Ingredients – Milk & Cream Milk and Cream = There are many different kinds of milk and cream products. They are sold in gallon, 2-quart, 1-quart, pint, and half-pint containers. Basically they differ in the amount of butter fat they contain. • Heavy Cream = 36% butterfat • Whipping Cream = 30% – 36% butterfat • Half and Half = 10.5% – 18% butterfat • Whole Milk = 3.25% butterfat • 2% Milk or Reduced Fat Milk = approximately 2% butterfat • Skim Milk = 0% - 0.5% butterfat

Ingredients – Types of Milk • Organic Milk & Cream • Ultra-pasteurized Milk & Cream • Cow/Goat/Sheep Milk • Soy/Rice/Almond Milk

Ingredients – Small Pasta Macaroni is a kind of small pasta used in casseroles • Elbows • Ditalini • Radiatori • Farfalle or Bowties

Steaks with Mushroom Red Wine Sauce True American-style steaks are grilled on a barbecue grill. But you can also make a good steak with a nice red-wine sauce on the stove top.

Ingredients 4 filet mignon steaks Olive oil Balsamic vinegar Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Blackened Steak Magic or other seasoning blend 4 Tablespoons of butter 8 mushrooms, sliced. Use the brown Baby Bella mushrooms, if possible 1 cup red wine (a Cabernet, such as J Lohr Cabernet Sauvenoign is good) Directions Pat meat dry with paper towels. Put in a shallow dish or plate and sprinkle olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and seasoning on the meat. Heat the frying pan over high heat. Add a splash of olive oil and swirl around so that the bottom of the frying pan is lightly covered with oil. Add the steaks. Cook on the first side for about 5 minutes, or until the steak has a dark brown crust. Then turn the steak over, and cook for about 5 minutes on the other side. Test for doneness with a meat thermometer (meat should be at 120 for medium rare), Remove the steaks from the pan, and place on a platter. Add the butter to the pan (do not clean the pan), and swirl until it is melted. Add the mushrooms, and cook, stirring all the time, until the mushrooms are dark and cooked through – about 2 minutes. Then add the red wine, and cook over high heat until the wine and mushrooms and the pan drippings are reduced to a thick, syrup-y sauce. Pour the sauce over the steaks and serve. Steaks with Mushroom Red Wine Sauce

Filet Mignon - leanest, most tender. From the tenderloin Boneless Strip Steak or New York Strip Steak - marbled and tender with abundant flavor T-Bone & Porterhouse – combines the filet mignon & strip steak together, with the t-shaped bone that separates them. Ribeye – juicy and flavorful; cut from the rib Sirloin – less tender, but with a bold flavor. Flank steak – cooked medium rare, and sliced in thin crosswise slices for London Broil Types of Steak

Testing Steak for Doneness Doneness – • Rare • Medium Rare • Medium • Medium Well • Well There are several ways to test for steak doneness • Cut into the meat with a knife (the meat should be pink for medium rare), • Test with a meat thermometer (120 for medium rare), or • Touch the meat with your finger – the meat should feel like your ear lobe for rare, like your cheek for Medium-rare, and like the tip of your nose for Well-done

Aunt Betty Bob's Brownies • These are my favorite brownies. They are very easy to make. • If you don't have a baking pan of the right size, you can just use a flat cookie sheet and create a pan by folding up a piece of heavy aluminum foil into a pan shape - create sides that are about 1.5" high.

Ingredients ½ cup butter (1 stick) 1 cup sugar 3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (Ghirardelli is a good brand) 2 teaspoons vanilla 2 eggs ½ cup flour plus 1 teaspoon for the pan 1½ cups pecans, roughly chopped or whole PAM oil spray Directions Preheat oven 350 degrees. Prepare the pan by spraying it with PAM and then shaking the teaspoon of flour around the pan to spread the flour all over the bottom & sides. Melt butter in saucepan. Add sugar, cocoa powder & vanilla to the melted butter and whisk together. Let this mixture cool for 5 minutes. Stir in eggs & flour and mix with a whisk until blended. Stir in pecans, and scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool for 30 minutes. Cut into squares. Aunt Betty Bob’s Brownies

To grease & flour the baking pan for cakes and brownies: Spray with PAM Add flour & shake Techniques - Prepare the Baking Pan

Your Assignment • Either: • Cook one of these American recipes • Or: • Eat an American food at a restaurant • Report on your experience in Class 3 • What Recipe did you prepare? • What Restaurant did you visit? • Did you like what you cooked or ordered?

Cooking, American Style Class 1 American Cuisine