Coffee Grand Marnier Ice Cream

It’s Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day.

I’m not sure where that could lead us, but one time, in one of my newspaper columns there was a mistake in the printed copy of my recipe for vanilla ice cream. Instead of listing vanilla as an ingredient, the newspaper copy listed the ingredient as Dijon mustard!

You can imagine the calls I got for the mustard ice cream recipe!

Actually, there is such a thing. Gourmet Magazine printed a recipe for mustard ice cream to go on top of gravlax. And food writer Patricia Wells wrote about mustard ice cream on top of gazpacho.

Mustard ice cream for dessert though? Uh uh. No way.

I’m sure there are lots of creative dessert ice cream flavor to try. However, I never stray far from this one: Normandy Ice Cream. It’s from an old French Cookbook “La Cuisine” by Raymond Oliver, who was once the chef and owner of the world-renowned Grand Vefour Restaurant in Paris.

Normandy Ice Cream is basically coffee ice cream but it also has Grand Marnier in it. Very sophisticated flavor, not too alcoholic. This is the kind of ice cream you eat by itself. It doesn’t need sprinkles, fudge sauce or nuts or anything.

The recipe is easy. You can mix it up in a home ice cream maker. But if you have a bowl and electric mixer you don’t even need an ice cream machine (the machine will of course make the ice cream smoother). I’ve changed the instructions somewhat from the original recipe.

Raymond Oliver’s Normandy Ice Cream

  • 4 cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup superfine sugar
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
  • 2 tablespoons instant coffee

Beat the cream, adding 1/2 cup sugar gradually, until the mixture is thick. Set aside. Beat the egg yolks with the remaining half cup of sugar until the mixture is thick and light yellow. Beat in the Grand Marnier and instant coffee and blend in thoroughly. Fold the coffee mixture into the whipped cream. Blend thoroughly. Freeze in 2 shallow pans for about 45 minutes, then beat the mixture again and return to the freezer until hard (you can use a pretty mold). OR: place the coffee mixture in an ice cream machine and proceed according to manufacturer’s instructions.

NOTE: this includes raw egg yolk, which might pose a health risk. If preferred, you can make this recipe by cooking the egg yolks into a custard: use 2 cups of the cream for the whipped cream. After you beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick and light, stir in the remaining cream and cook this mixture until it is thick and coats the back of a spoon (or 160 degrees). Then stir in the Grand Marnier and coffee.

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All-American Thanksgiving World Cup Dinner

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I’m making an all-American World Cup dinner today to send good vibes to the team. They play Ghana today. Go USA!!!!

Here’s the dinner — Thanksgiving! I’m roasting a turkey. I made stuffing, Baked Cranberries (and added Grand Marnier), Mashed Sweet Potatoes and later will roast some asparagus. Dessert will be a Blueberry Crumb Cake with ice cream.

Here’s a recipe for the Mashed Sweet Potatoes. Takes almost no time. No  sweetener in these. If you have a sweet tooth you can add some honey or maple syrup. But even someone on a diet can eat these. Sweet potatoes are healthy. No need for the butter either.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

  • 4 large sweet potatoes

  • 2 tablespoons butter, optional

  • 2 teaspoons grated fresh orange peel

  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1/2 cup orange juice, approximately

  • salt to taste

Roast the potatoes in a 400 degree oven for about one hour or until tender. Cut the potatoes in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl. Add the butter, if used, and stir it in. Add the orange peel, cinnamon and the juice. Mash the ingredients and blend them thoroughly. Add more juice if needed to make the sweet potatoes fluffy. Taste for seasoning and add salt to taste.

Makes 6-8 servings

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Cajun Fried Fish

About 30 years ago most Americans thought of catfish as an ugly, bewhiskered, leathery-skinned bottom-feeder known primarily in the American south and fit only for the poor. Then Cajun cooking came along, catfish farming became big business and people from New England to Montana to California knew what they had been missing all those years.

Catfish, the ugly duckling of fish, has become a lovely swan, with people loving the sweet, mild, delicate meat. 

Catfish became so popular in the 1980s that June 25th was declared National Catfish Day in 1987.

So today, to celebrate, have some Cajun Fried Catfish. If you don't eat catfish, this recipe is still awesome and easy. It’s terrific with fresh corn and sliced tomatoes. Great plain but I like it on a Portuguese roll, slathered with tartar sauce too. Southern cooks make hush puppies with catfish. These crispy corn meal puffy fritters are a perfect side dish. Try it if you have extra time.

Cajun Fried Fish

2 pounds grouper, tilapia, etc. or catfish fillets, cut into 3 pieces each

1/2 cup milk

2/3 cup flour

2 large eggs

1 cup corn meal (approximately)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves)

vegetable oil

Place the fish fillets in a pan and pour the milk over them. Let the fish soak for at least 30 minutes. Place the flour in a dish. Beat the eggs in another dish. Combine the corn meal, salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder and thyme in a third dish. Remove the fish from the milk and dredge the fillets in the flour. Coat the fillets with beaten egg, then dredge the egg-coated fish in the corn meal mixture. Place the fillets on a rack to “air dry” for 15-20 minutes. Heat about 1/2-inch vegetable oil in a large, deep pan. When the oil is hot enough to sizzle a bread crumb, fry the fillet pieces, a few at a time, for 3-4 minutes per side, or until browned and crispy. Drain on paper towels. Makes 4 servings

Hush Puppies

1-1/2 cups corn meal

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 small grated onion

1 large egg

3/4 cup milk

vegetable oil

Combine the corn meal, flour, baking soda, salt and onion in a bowl. Beat the egg with the milk and pour into the corn meal mixture. Heat about 1/2-inch vegetable oil in a large, deep pan. When the oil is hot enough to sizzle a bread crumb, drop about a heaping tablespoon of the corn meal batter into the oil and fry for 2-4 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Makes 4 servings

You could also use the oil you used to fry the catfish.

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Onion Rings

Beer batter onion rings? No way!

Today is National Onion Ring Day, which presents a real dilemma for me because the very best onion rings I ever tasted was in a restaurant called Hackney’s in Glenview, Illinois and I live in Connecticut.

I first tried Hackney’s onion rings when I was in college and the crunch and salt taste of those things made a lasting impression. Sometimes, you know, the memories outweigh reality. But I went back to Hackney’s a few years ago and the onion rings were just as good as I had remembered.

Here’s what’s good about the Hackney’s onion rings. They aren’t thick with batter crust. Thick batter crusts are all about the crust (which can be soggy or fall off). Hackney’s is about the ONION!

I don’t know what they do to it, but it comes looking like a loaf.

Now, it’s only about 8:30 a.m. on the east coast but I could eat an order of those right now, for breakfast.

I’ve tried making onion rings many ways over the years. The closest I ever came to Hackney’s is the recipe that follows. No beer batter.  Just crispy, salty, wonderful fried onion rings.

Fried Onion Rings

2 large Spanish onions, sliced thin

milk

all-purpose flour

salt

paprika

vegetable oil

Place the sliced onions in a bowl and pour the milk on top. Scatter the rings to get all the onion rings moist. Place about one cup of all-purpose flour on a large plate or in a big plastic bag. Add some salt and paprika (about 1/2 teaspoon each). Heat about 2-inches of vegetable oil in a large, deep pan to 360 degrees (a bread crumb will sizzle). Using a few onion rings at a time, remove the rings from the milk and place in the flour. Toss to coat the rings with some flour. Fry the rings for about 3 minutes, tossing them about as they cook. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Continue with the remaining onion rings. Sprinkle with more salt if you like. Makes about 4 servings unless you really love onion rings, in which case this recipe will serve 2.

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Swiss Roesti for World Cup and Wimbledon

Big day for Switzerland! The soccer team plays Chile today in the World Cup and tennis champion Roger Federer begins to defend his title in the first day of play at Wimbledon.

Let’s eat.

How about some Swiss Roesti?

Roesti is basically hash browns. Who doesn’t like that? It’s terrific with eggs at breakfast, with a sandwich at lunch and with most everything at dinner.

Here’s an easy recipe.

Roesti

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes

2 tablespoons butter

1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Peel the potatoes and cut them in half. Put them in a pot, cover with lightly salted water and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer the potatoes for about 20 minutes or until they are tender. Drain and let the potatoes cool in the refrigerator (this makes it easier to grate them). When the potatoes are cool, grate them into a bowl.

Heat half the butter and olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, add the potatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper and press the potatoes down with a firm spatula. Cook the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until well browned on the bottom. Slide the roesti onto a plate or cutting board. Add the remaining butter and olive oil to the pan. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, put the roesti uncooked side down in the pan. Cook for another 10 minutes or so, or until golden brown and crispy. Serve roesti by cutting it into wedges. Makes 4 servings

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Terrific article and recipe

Ronnie - Your take on Father’s Day cooks (and Mother’s Day outings) was profound AND funny! We enjoyed it immensely and were prompted to think about this phenomenon. No BBQ-ing here today in the land of perpetual sunshine & outdoor grilling. We instead attended the Wild West Father’s Day brunch at my mother-in-law’s facility, where all the men wore cowboy hats and a Roy Rogers-Dale Evans-type team sang Happy Trails and clog danced. NEXT YEAR your recipe for sure!

Submitted by Carol Selkin (carol_selkin@sbcglobal.net)

Roy Rogers and Dale Evans — now that brings back a lot of memories!  Happy Trails to you!

Hanger Steak with Charmoula Pesto for Father's Day

How come on Father’s Day so many men cook but on Mother’s Day so many people eat out, usually for brunch? I don’t get it. If men like to cook why don’t they cook for Mother’s Day too?

Is it because Mother’s Day is before the “official” outdoor grill season (which many food writers say starts Memorial Day weekend)?

I don’t think so. Lots of people use their grills all year, or at least when the warmish weather begins and that’s usually before the end of May.

Anyway, Father’s Day seems to be a grill day. In our family it used to be a tribal event at my uncle’s house and included the entire crew of aunts, uncles and cousins. I love my family but always hated this event because my uncle used to grill hot dogs and for so many people that the franks were never crispy on the outside and they were barely cooked. It just became an excuse for me to eat bagsful of potato chips. Even the desserts were remarkably bad — the kind of wobbly cakey-pies that when you see them at a bakery you wonder who would buy them.

When I got married I had an excuse not to go to the family cookout. We got into the habit of visiting my Dad for brunch, then to my in-laws for dinner. My Dad, who was a world-class father, but not a world class cook, would usually make waffles. My mother-in-law made her world class rib roast for dinner. She would never have let my father-in-law near the stove, or even the kitchen for that matter.

So, any dads who are reading this, you should know your children are storing the event in their memory bank. If you’re grilling make it memorable. Here’s a recipe for Grilled Hanger Steak made with a Charmoula Pesto — its a spicy, Moroccan-style sauce that I like on beef, but it’s also good for chicken or lamb. You can also mix some Charmoula with mayonnaise to use as a sandwich spread 1/2 cup may to about 2 teaspoons Charmoula).

Hanger Steak with Charmoula Pesto

  • 3 large cloves garlic, mashed
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • salt to taste
  • hanger steak, about 2 pounds

Preheat an outdoor grill or oven broiler. Mix the garlic, paprika, cumin, cayenne pepper, parsley and cilantro in a bowl. Stir in the lemon juice. Add the olive oil gradually, beating the mixture constantly. Taste and add salt if needed. Brush the mixture over the meat. Let the meat marinate for at least 30 minutes. Grill the steak 4-5 minutes per side or until cooked to your liking.

Makes 4 servings

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