Warm Up with Some Tasty Comfort Foods
Need a little comfort food on a cold, wintery day?
Renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson has just what you're looking for when it comes to indulgence. On "The Early Show" Friday morning, Samuelsson, the owner of the hot new New York restaurant Red Rooster, whipped up some of his favorite comfort foods that are sure to become your own favorites -- from Mac and Greens to Apple Pie.
RECIPES:
Mac and Greens
Serves 8
1 package orecchiette
1 stick butter
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 quart heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1/2 pound Cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 pound parmesan, freshly grated
1/4 pound gruyere, shredded
1/4 pound crème fraîche
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon yellow mustard powder
Salt and white pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup panko
1/2 cup toasted bread crumbs
1/2 cup parsley, washed and dried
1/4 cup basil leaves, washed and dried
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
2 cups Collard Greens
1. Preheat oven to broiler setting at 375 F.
2. Cook the orecchiette per the package's instructions. Drain and set aside.
3. Melt the butter in a stock pot, saute shallots until caramelized and then stir in flour. Add garlic, heavy cream and milk and continue to stir until flour is dissolved and there are no lumps. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to low then add all cheeses, including creme fraîche. Whisk until cheeses are melted and incorporated into the sauce.
5. Mix in nutmeg, mustard powder, salt and pepper.
6. Toss pasta together with sauce and greens and transfer to a baking pan.
7. In a food processor, blend panko, bread crumbs, parsley, basil, Parmesan, salt and pepper until fine.
8. Sprinkle breadcrumb topping over the pasta and place in oven. Broil for 5 to 8 minutes, until golden brown.
Collard Greens
6-8 servings
6 bacon slices
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
4 cups (about 6 ounces) very thinly sliced collard greens (about 2 bunches)
4 cups (about 1-1/2 pounds) very thinly sliced bok choy (about 2 heads)
1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Drain on paper towels, and crumble into small pieces. Set aside.
2. In small saucepan, bring the coconut milk and soy sauce to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the mustard and crumbled bacon. Set aside
3. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large straight-sided pan over low heat. Add the garlic, and slowly toast until pale golden brown, about 10 minutes. (Be careful not to let it burn). Lift the garlic out of the oil with a slotted spoon and set aside.
4. Add the collard greens and cook, stirring frequently, until the greens start to wilt. Stir in the coconut milk mixture and cook for about 20 minutes, until the greens are tender and the sauce has thickened.
Fried Yardbird
Serves 4
4 chicken thighs, skin-on
4 chicken drumsticks, skin-on
1 cup salt
8 cups water
1 quart buttermilk
3/4 cup coconut milk
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Chicken Shake (recipe below)
1/2 pound all-purpose flour
2 ounces semolina flour
1 ounce cornstarch
1/2 ounce ground white pepper
5 quarts frying oil
1. Mix salt in water until dissolved. Place chicken in brine and let sit for 1 1/2 hours.
2. Combine buttermilk, coconut milk, garlic and Chicken Shake then place chicken in marinade overnight in refrigerator.
3. Combine all-purpose flour, semolina flour, cornstarch and white pepper to make breading.
4. Remove marinated chicken from fridge and allow excess marinade to drip off.
5. Roll chicken in breading, shaking off excess.
6. In an 8-quart pot, fill with oil and bring to 300 F. Once oil is hot, carefully drop chicken into the oil and let fry for about 15 minutes (inner temperature should be at least 165 F).
7. Remove chicken from oil and place on paper towel. Season chicken with Shake to taste.
Berbere
Makes about 1 cup
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1/2 cup ground dried serrano chili peppers or other ground dried chili peppers
1/2 cup sweet paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon ground cardamom (preferably freshly ground)
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Finely grind the fenugreek seeds with a mortar and pestle or in an electric spice or coffee grinder. Combine the remaining ingredients and add the ground fenugreek seeds, mixing well. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Chicken Shake
Makes 4 cups
1/8 cup ground garlic
1/2 cup celery salt
1/2 cup ground cumin
1 cup berbere
1 cup smoked spicy paprika
1/8 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup ground white pepper
1. Combine in a mixing bowl and stir until blended.
For Marcus Samuelsson's Apple Pie recipe, go to Page 2.
Apple Pie
Makes 10-inch pie
For crust:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups coarsely grated sharp Cheddar
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
6 to 8 tablespoons ice water
1. Stir together flour, salt and cheese in a large bowl or pulse in food processor. Add butter and shortening, and work with hands or continue to pulse in processor until mixture resembles coarse meal.
2. Drizzle ice water over mixture and work with hands or pulse until blended into mixture. Squeeze small handful of dough - if it doesn't hold together, add more ice water until it does, making sure not to overwork the dough, which will make it tough.
3. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least one hour, but no more than a few days.
For filling:
1 3/4 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced into 1/2-inch thick pieces
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Zest from 1 1/2 lemons
2 3/4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 stick butter, diced
Mix together brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom, lemon zest, flour and cornstarch. Toss apples in and mix to coat.
To bake:
1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. Roll out pie dough until very thin and cut into 14-inch circle.
3. Place round dough in 10-inch pie pan. Add filling and top with diced butter. Fold overlapping dough onto the filling.
4. Place in pie in oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 325 F and remove pie from oven. Cover with aluminum foil and continue to bake for 45-50 minutes.
5. Let cool and serve with whipped cream or ice cream, depending on your preference.