Cool Food For A Warm Month

Patricia Williams, this weekend's Chef on a Shoestring for The Saturday Early Show, is showcasing a meal that requires very little heat to prepare — terrific for the month of August. As always, it's a three-course meal that costs less than $40.

Williams was a professional ballerina before turning her creative energy to the culinary arts. She has cooked in a variety of high-profile New York restaurants.

She took her first cooking job plating desserts at The Quilted Giraffe. Completely self-taught, she quickly worked her way up the ranks and went on to work on the line at Arizona 206, Sarabeth's Kitchen, and at 150 Wooster before becoming the executive chef at Restaurant Charlotte, where she received accolades for her Southwestern-inspired fare.

Williams went on to become the executive chef at restaurants such as City Wine & Cigar Company, Berkeley Bar & Grill, Butterfield 81 and Morrels. She's now the executive chef at District, where she focuses on seasonal dishes.

Here is her menu for The Saturday Early Show:

Bay Scallop Ceviche
Poached Fillet Mignon over Tomato Salad
Summer Fruits with Honey and Whipped Cream

FOOD FACTS

Ceviche: A popular Latin-American appetizer consisting of raw fish marinated in citrus juice. The acid in the citrus actually "cooks" the fish, firming the flesh and turning it opaque. Only very fresh fish should be used for this.

Bay Scallops: Generally found on the East Coast, these scallops are very, very tiny. It takes about 100 to equal a pound. Bay scallop meat is sweeter and more succulent than that of the sea scallop.

Poaching: This method cooks food gently in liquid that's just below the boiling point. Poaching produces a delicate flavor in foods and imparts some of the liquid's flavor to the ingredients being poached.

Fillet Mignon: This is an expensive cut of meat (the chef managed to find it for $12.99 a pound; usually, it costs $19 and up). It's boneless and comes from the tenderloin. It's very tender but lacks the flavor of meat that's attached to the bone.

RECIPES

CEVICHE OF BAY SCALLOPS
(Serves 4)

Ingredients:
3/4 pound cleaned bay scallops
Juice of 3 limes
2 tablespoons red onion, finely diced
1 pint of red grape tomatoes, sliced in quarters
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
1/2 cup cilantro leaves

Method:

1. Combine all ingredients about 30 minutes before serving and place the scallop ceviche in the refrigerator.
   
2. Using small bowls, divide the mixture among four bowls and serve.

Ingredients:
20 ounces cleaned tenderloin of beef (fillet mignon)
1 quart chicken stock
1 onion diced
1 carrot diced
1 bay leaf
5 black peppercorns
2 large red beefsteak tomatoes
1 mango
1 avocado
1 bunch basil
3 tablespoons salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Method:

1. Combine the chicken stock with the onion, carrot, bay leaf, 2 tablespoons salt and peppercorns.
   
2. Bring to a simmer and add the beef; do not boil. Remove when the temperature reaches 120 degrees (about 15 minutes). Let the meat rest and begin to make the salad.
   
3. Slice one red beefsteak tomato. Cut the remaining red beefsteak tomato in eighths. Dice the mango and avocado.
   
4. Combine the mango, avocado, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and the tomato cut in eighths.
   
5. Place the sliced tomatoes in a bowl and toss with 1 cup basil leaves, 3 tablespoons olive oil and 2 teaspoons salt.
   
6. Place 2 slices of tomato on each plate and top with the avocado mango mixture. Slice the beef and place on top of the tomato salad.

Ingredients:
2 large ripe nectarines
1 pint blueberries
1 pint honey
1/2 pint whipping cream
lemon verbena or mint

Method:

1. Slice each nectarine in eight pieces and combine with the blueberries.
   
2. Heat the honey and add the lemon verbena or mint. Allow mixture to heat for about three minutes so the honey will be infused with the herb flavor.
   
3. Drizzle desired amount of warm honey over the blueberry and nectarine mixture. Lightly whip the cream and place a dollop on top of the blueberries and drizzle with more honey.