ADDICTIVE!!!! Worth the drive alone!

We decided to go a bit wild and order the Luca Special it had red sauce, BBQ Chicken, red onion, bacon, sliced Almonds & cilantro. We enjoyed the flavors of the BBQ sauce, the chicken was cooked to perfection and the cilantro added a nice touch.  We ate a few slices then Chef John wowed us with some of his specials.  We began with homemade lobster ravioli’s

The sauce was devine!

Next came an amazing triple Berry salad, with mixed field greens, grilled chicken, strawberries, black berries, & raspberries, red onion, tomato, goat cheese and candied walnus with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette.  I don’t usually order this type of salad but I was sold, I loved every bite, the goat cheese added that great tartness with the wonderful fruit and chicken, I loved it.

I am a big fan of this salad.

Next came a most tender and delicious veal marsala.  The sauce was silky the meat cooked to perfection it was something you wanted to savor.

The flavors were spectacular in this veal marsala.

If we hadn’t had enough, out came the most satisfying short ribs with a port demi glace, a 4 cheese risotto finished with a garlic spinach garnish.

This might have been our favorite, but they were all too good to point only one out as the favorite.

As our belly’s began to rumble, screaming for us to stop, out came the pistachio crusted sea Bass, with a perfect white wine beurr banc, garlic mashed potato, and sauteed spinach.

This was a wonderful dish and we managed to clean the plate.

We loved the service and when we were done Chef Easton, a sous chef, in charge of all of the sauces, came out to meet us.  What a wonderful young man.  You can feel his passion for food and more importantly as a dinner you can taste the Passion.   Chef John explained that he loves to have all of his Chef’s, and there is a great crew, get an opportunity to come up with specials.  He loves to see his staff thrive. I love this attitude.  After we were more than stuffed, a nice young man came over and told us he is the coffee man and can get us anything we like. We ordered their fresh roasted coffee with the French press.  It was a fantastic way to end a delicious day. We loved the specials that we tried, they really shined and the prices were not out of sight, this is a great find.

If you have never used a French press try it at Cibo E Vino, they will teach you how. It is such a great way to experience their fresh roasted coffee.

2 generous cups kumquats

1 ½ cups water
2 cups table sugar (I used vanilla sugar)
1 cup raw sugar
1 heaping tablespoon Szechuan Peppercorns

3 Star Anise
3 cinnamon sticks, broken
½ cup crème fraîche or heavy cream
6 tablespoons butter (about 3 oz)

To candy kumquats:

Wash and dry the kumquats and slice into ¼ inch rings.

In a heavy sauce pan over medium high heat toast the cinnamon, star anise, and peppercorns until fragrant.  About 30 seconds.  Add the water and then the sugar.  Stir to combine and bring to a boil.  Cook until all of the sugar is dissolved.  Add the kumquats and bring to a boil again.  Lower the heat until the mixture barely simmers.

Simmer for about an hour to an hour and a half or until the kumquats are translucent all the way through.

Remove from heat and strain out the kumquats and spices over a high-sided pot.  Allow to drain for a few minutes then spread onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

Pick out the spices and discard.

Allow to dry over night then roll in regular table sugar.

Store in a cool dry place.

To make the caramel:

Return the sugar syrup to the stove over medium high heat.  The high sided pan will keep the sugar from boiling over.  Affix a candy thermometer to the side of the pan.  DO NOT STIR.  Allow the sugar to come to boil.  The mixture will bubble voluminously.  If it start to escape the pan, lower the heat and blow gently on the bubbles to get them to sink (do not blow too hard as this will cause the caramel to spatter and hot sugar is culinary napalm).

Boil until the sugar reaches 240 degrees, softball stage.

In the mean time remove the butter and cream or crème fraîche from the fridge.  Slice the butter into 6 pieces.  Place the crème fraîche into a microwave safe container.

Once the sugar has reached the softball stage, remove it from the heat and drop in two pats of butter.  Stir gently until fully incorporated.  Remove the candy thermometer if it’s in the way.

Microwave the crème fraîche on high until hot (about 30 seconds).

Add another pat of butter and pour in the crème fraîche, stirring continuously until incorporated.  Continue adding the butter until it’s gone.  The last pat should take a while to melt and the mixture should be glossy.

Return the caramel to the stove and bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Reaffix the candy thermometer to the side of the pan.  The caramel should have cooled off quite a bit by now.  Cook on medium high, stirring occasionally until the caramel reaches 260 to 265 degrees, hard ball stage.

While the caramel comes up to temperature, line a baking sheet with non-stick foil or parchment paper.

When the caramel has reached 260 degrees, remove from heat and stir until the bubbles subside.  Pour the caramel onto the prepared cookie sheet and chill until firm.

Cut the caramel into squares and wrap in waxed paper.  Store in an airtight container; in a cool, dry place.  I prefer to keep mine in the fridge.

I have made flavored Cashews for the first 60 listeners that come to the remote.  Those that could not make it, here is the recipe:

Chili Lime Cashews
Ingredients:
3 cups of raw cashews
2 limes zested
5 Teaspoons of salt
4 Tablespoons of brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes ( use more or less depending on your heat level)
1/4 teaspoon of chili ( use more or less depending on your heat level)
2 egg whites

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Place lime zest & salt in a large bowl and press together with the back of a wooden spoon
Add the rest of the ingredients
Whisk together until the eggwhite gets frothey the add the cashews to coat
Spread the mixture on a parchment lined baking sheet
Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.  Stir half way through to insure even baking.
ENJOY!

Candied Bacon Cashews
This recipe is from Colin Lynch executive Chef Drink in Boston
Ingredients
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of water
3 1/4 pound of raw cashews
1/4 cup diced cooked bacon
half of the bacon fat from cooking
1 tablespoon cold butter
smoked salt

Directions:
Combine the sugar & water in a saucepan until the sugar is dissolved
Add the cashews and stir until all of the water is gone and the sugar begins to caramelize ( about 10 minutes)
add the bacon bits and remove from the heat
add the bacon fat and chilled butter and mix
Spread onto a greased cookie sheet to cool

I found that they tend to get soggy so roast them in a low oven for a while to crisp them up.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons Butter – plus some to grease the pan
2 Cups dry milk powder ( I used organic skim milk)
1/4 Cup cashews, ground in a food processor, plus 2 tablespoons chopped
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 10 oz can of sweetened condensed milk

Directions:

Grease an 8 by 8 inch square pan
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and add the dry milk powder, ground cashews, chopped cashews, 1/4 cup chopped pistachios and ground cardamom.  Stir and cook until the mixture begins to turn golden, about 10 minutes.

In a separate pot, heat the sweetened condensed milk over low heat.  Pour into the nut mixture and turn the heat off.  Stir to combine, and then pour into the prepared pan.  Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios, press them into the fudge and let set for at least 20 minutes.  Cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces and serve.

Chuck Hughs

CARROT CAKE

SUCRE A LA CRÈME WITH MALDON SALT AND PECANS

Carrot Cake

Recipe courtesy Chuck Hughes

Cake:

2 cups/500 ml all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon/15 ml baking powder

2 teaspoons/10 ml baking soda

1 teaspoon/5 ml ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5 ml allspice

1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5 ml ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5 ml ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5 ml salt

1 1/2 cups/375 ml sugar

1 cup/250 ml canola oil

4 eggs

3 cups/750 ml peeled and grated carrots

1 cup/250 ml chopped pineapple

1 cup/250 ml walnuts, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup/125 ml dried cherries

1/2 cup/125 ml dried golden raisins

Frosting:

2 packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup/125 ml butter, softened

2 1/2 cups/625 ml icing sugar

Zest and juice of 1 orange

Maple Walnuts:

1/2 cup/125 ml maple syrup

1 cup/250 ml toasted walnuts

For the cake: With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line two 8-inch (20-cm) springform pans with parchment paper.

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl, combine the sugar, oil and eggs with a whisk. Gently stir in the dry ingredients. With a spatula, gently fold in the carrots, pineapple, walnuts, cherries and raisins.

Divide the batter between the pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in the pans on a rack. Run the blade of a knife around the cakes and unmold.

For the frosting: In a bowl, cream the cream cheese with the butter and icing sugar with an electric mixer. Add the zest and juice and continue beating until the frosting is smooth and creamy.

Spread the frosting over the top of the cakes and stack them on a platter.

For the maple walnuts: In a skillet, bring the syrup to a boil. Add the walnuts and stir continuously until the syrup has crystallized around the walnuts. Pour onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and let cool. Garnish the cake.

Yield: 12 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Inactive Prep Time: –

Ease of preparation: easy

Active Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Sucre a la Creme with Maldon Salt and Pecans

Recipe courtesy Chuck Hughes

Oil, for greasing pan

1 1/2 cups/375 ml brown sugar

1 cup/250 ml 35-percent cream

1/2 cup/125 ml sugar

1/2 cup/125 ml maple syrup

1 tablespoon/15 ml butter

Pinch salt

1/2 teaspoon/2 ml vanilla extract

1/2 cup/125 ml pecans, toasted and roughly chopped, for garnish

Maldon salt, for garnish

Line an 8-inch (20-cm) square pan with plastic wrap and lightly oil.

In a saucepan, combine the brown sugar, cream, sugar, maple syrup, butter and salt and bring to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar. Attach a candy thermometer in the center of the pan and simmer over medium heat without stirring until the thermometer reads 237 degrees F (114 degrees C). Add the vanilla extract without stirring.

Place the pan in a cold water bath. Cool, without stirring, until the thermometer reads 113 degrees F (45 degrees C), about 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the water bath. Using an electric mixer or a wooden spoon, stir vigorously until the mixture begins to lighten in color and become creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Please note that if you whip too much, the sugar and cream mixture will harden before you have time to pour it into the pan.

Pour immediately into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Garnish with crushed toasted pecans and Maldon salt. Cover with plastic wrap. Let cool for about 1 hour at room temperature or 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Remove from the pan and remove from the plastic wrap. Cut into squares. Store in an airtight container.

Yield: 12 squares

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Inactive Prep Time: 1 hour

Ease of preparation: intermediate

Active Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes (includes cooling time)