Cooking & Kitchen

Jenn-Air Dual-Fuel Range

Finally, after dealing with the crappy, original glass-top electric range in our house for as long as possible, I’ve had enough. Generally, modern glass-top electric ranges run the spectrum from crappy to very good. This old battlehorse was probably the very first one ever built, before the technology had progressed, so it had gotten a bit, well, slow over the years.

In fact, if I took your palm and placed it flat on the biggest burner on the range, turned that burner up to high, within 30-45 minutes you’d say, “Gee… I might need to start thinking about moving this hand in a little while”. Yes. It was that slow (well, maybe not really, but it was slow).

So, feeling flush from my recent ongoing adjunct teaching gig at Midwest Culinary Institute, I decided to purchase an upgraded range. And boy, did I!

After careful & considerable research, I decided on a Jenn-Air Stainless Double Oven Dual-Fuel Range. “Dual-fuel” means that the ovens are electric and the 5-burner continuous-surface cooktop is gas (pictured top right of this article). The larger of the two ovens is convection. The cooktop ranges from 600 BTUs to 16,000, so we’ve got a good spread there.

Chris, an guy specializing in such things, came to finish the gas line to the stove and to make sure that the ovens were perfectly level (Wendy had grown tired of lopsided cakes from the old oven). The old oven was quickly claimed by a guy from FreeCycle.ORG (a truly wonderful service if you’ve got stuff to get rid of) and was out of our lives.

The new stove is awesome. I am really, really happy with my purchase, and I got a great deal (and great service) from Bridgeville Appliance in Pennsylvania. Work with Jim there — he’s a nice, honest guy.

Here are some specs on my range…

Control Panel

• Customization options include control lockout and 72-hour Sabbath Mode.
• Bread Proofing protects bread dough from room temperature changes or drafts during proofing.
• Electronic oven controls with keypad entry activate with just a light touch.
• Electronic clock with timer provides a sleek look and easy operation.
• Auto Convection Conversion takes the guesswork out of convection cooking for consistent results.
• Drying feature makes it easy to dry fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers in the oven.
• Favorite Setting makes it easy to program and save the oven settings for a favorite family recipe.
• Cook & Hold setting keeps food warm in the oven for up to one hour after the preset cook time has expired.
• Keep Warm option keeps food warm while you’re waiting for guests to arrive or finishing up the meal.
• Delay-start cooking and cleaning puts your oven to work while you’re doing other things.

Cooktop

• Five sealed gas burners with lift-off burner caps provide easy cleanup and great cooking flexibility.
• Gas cooking surface provides the excellent heating control cooks prefer.
• SureFlame ignition protection prevents flame from being accidentally extinguished by drafts.
• Ultra high performance 16,000 BTU burner offers quick heat-up for boiling.
• Ultra low output simmer burner reduces to 600 BTUs for heating delicate sauces.
• Porcelain-on-cast iron burner grates are durable and stylish.
• Infinite surface control settings provide pinpoint temperature control for gourmet cooks.

Exterior

• Brushed stainless finish control knobs provide a sleek style accent that enhances any décor.
• Extra-large Panaview oven window allows you to see what’s cooking, without opening the door.
• Stainless steel towel bar oven door handle combines form with function for a distinctive look.
• Double oven cooking flexibility in a range that fits in the same space as a traditional range.

Oven

• Electric Two-Speed MultiMode convection oven provides Convect Bake, Convect Roast and Drying capabilities for outstanding results.
• Electric double ovens allow you to cook two different foods at two different temperatures.
• Two ovens allow you to cook two different foods at two different temperatures.
• Create-A-Space half-rack in lower oven converts from a full-width oven rack to provide extra room for a side dish.
• 5.22 cu. Ft. overall capacity provides ample space to cook an entire meal with ease.
• CustomClean self-cleaning oven enables you to match cleaning levels to soil buildup to keep oven sparkling clean.
• Bread Proofing, Drying, Cook & Hold and Keep Warm options expand oven capabilities.
• Upper oven is fully-equipped with bake, broil, toast and keep warm function to meet most of your basic cooking needs.

Performance

• Gas cooking surface provides the excellent heating control cooks prefer.
• Electric double ovens allow you to cook two different foods at two different temperatures.
• Infinite surface control settings provide pinpoint temperature control for gourmet cooks.
• Ultra high performance 16,000 BTU burner offers quick heat-up for boiling.
• Ultra low output simmer burner reduces to 600 BTUs for heating delicate sauces and melting chocolate.

On June 24, 2008, version 2.1 of the hydrocolloid recipe collection edited by Martin Lersch was released. This excellent collection is a useful (and free!) resource for those of us interested in molecular gastronomy. See below for download links for the PDF of the current version as well as the previous two versions. A PDF reader is required to view or print this document. (Please see the note below about printing.)

Lersch describes this new version, excerpted from his blog post:

This new version includes corrections of typos, minor additions to the property tables, plus an important update in the gelatin section and a recipe for agar filtration.

Thanks to feedback from a reader there is also recipe now for agar filtration (based on a Spanish forum post). This works just like gelatin filtration, but is much faster. Apparently you get more or less the same results with regard to clarity, flavor and color.

If printing the collection, make sure the hydrocolloid properties table is rotated so it prints correctly. This table is presented in landscape format. The right most column of the first page is gelatin - if you don’t see it, try printing these pages again. The pages are optimized for printing on A4. If printing on Letter sized paper, make sure you check the “resize” or “fit to paper” option in your pdf reader.

Lersch, from the Forward of the new edition:

A hydrocolloid can simply be defined as a substance that forms a gel in contact with water. Such substances include both polysaccharides and proteins which are capable of one or more of the following: thickening and gelling aqueous solutions, stabilizing foams, emulsions and dispersions and preventing crystallization of saturated water or sugar solutions.

In the recent years there has been a tremendous interest in molecular gastronomy. Part of this interest has been directed towards the “new” hydrocolloids. The term “new” includes hydrocolloids such as gellan and xanthan which are a result of relatively recent research, but also hydrocolloids such as agar which has been unknown in western cooking, but used in Asia for decades. One fortunate consequence of the increased interest in molecular gastronomy and hydrocolloids is that hydrocolloids that were previously only available to the food industry have become available in small quantities at a reasonable price. A less fortunate consequence however is that many have come to regard molecular gastronomy as synonymous with the use of hydrocolloids to prepare foams and spheres. I should therefore emphasize that molecular gastronomy is not limited to the use of hydrocolloids and that it is not the intention of this collection of recipes to define molecular gastronomy.

Along with the increased interest in hydrocolloids for texture modification there is a growing scepticism to using “chemicals” in the kitchen. Many have come to view hydrocolloids as unnatural and even unhealthy ingredients. It should therefore be stressed that the hydrocolloids described in this collection are all of biological origin. All have been purified, some have been processed, but nevertheless the raw material used is of either marine, plant, animal or microbial origin. Furthermore hydrocolloids can contribute significantly to the public health as they allow the reduction of fat and/or sugar content without loosing the desired mouth feel. The hydrocolloids themselves have a low calorific value and are generally used at very low concentrations.

One major challenge (at least for an amateur cook) is to find recipes and directions to utilize the “new” hydrocolloids. When purchasing hydrocolloids, typically only a few recipes are included. Personally I like to browse several recipes to get an idea of the different possibilities when cooking. Therefore I have collected a number of recipes which utilize hydrocolloids ranging from agar to xanthan. In addition to these some recipes with lecithin (not technically a hydrocolloid) have been included. Recipes for foams that do not call for addition of hydrocolloids have also been included for completeness. Some cornstarch recipes have been included to illustrate it’s properties at different consentrations. Recipes where flour is the only hydrocolloid do not fall within the scope of this collection as these are sufficiently covered by other cook books.

All recipes have been changed to SI units which are the ones preferred by the scientific community (and hopefully soon by the cooks as well). In doing so there is always uncertainty related to the conversion of volume to weight, especially powders. As far as possible, brand names have been replaced by generic names. Almost all recipes have been edited and some have been shortened significantly. To allow easy comparison of recipes the amount of hydrocolloid used is also shown as mass percentages and the recipes are ranked in an ascending order. In some recipes, obvious mistakes have been corrected. But unfortunately, the recipes have not been tested, so there is no guarantee that they actually work as intended and that the directions are complete, accurate and correct. It appears as if some of the recipes are not optimized with regard to proper dispersion and hydration of the hydrocolloids which again will influence the amount of hydrocolloid used. It is therefore advisable to always consult other similar recipes or the table with the hydrocolloid properties. The recipes have been collected from various printed and electronic sources and every attempt has been made to give the source of the recipes.

Since recipes can neither be patented nor copyrighted, every reader should feel free to download, print, use, modify, and further develop the recipes contained in this compilation. The latest version will be available for download from this page and will also be announced on Khymos blog. I would like to thank readers for giving me feedback and suggestions on how to improve the collection. Feedback, comments, corrections and new recipes are always welcome to webmaster at  khymos dot org.

Download:

• Texture - A hydrocolloid recipe collection (version 2.1, June 2008) - 1.6 Mb
• Texture - A hydrocolloid recipe collection (version 2, May 2008) - 1.8 Mb
• Hydrocolloid recipe collection (version 1, August 2007) - 433 kB

I learned recently that the IRON HORSE INN, long a fixture in the Glendale restaurant scene, has closed its doors.

I’ve got mixed feelings about this closure. We’ve spent many enjoyable evenings at the Iron Horse over the last 5+ years, from the time we took the Happy Mouth Supper Club there for a great meal, to my working in the kitchens with Chef Jackson, to getting to know Chef Chris and his variety of brulee recipes (Wendy pines for his S’More Brulee).

Sadly, the last several times we dined at the IRON HORSE over the last year or so, we knew something was wrong. The quality of both the food and (especially) the service degraded quickly (we waited an hour for appetizers on Christmas Eve 2007). We could sense the end was coming.

But still, when the end came, we still feel a bit sad. Hopefully, a new owner will take over the IRON HORSE and return the great building to its rightful place on the landscape of Glendale, and Cincinnati’s restaurant scene.

Bon chance, IRON HORSE INN. It was good to know you.

UPDATE (January 10, 2008): I just spoke to one of the owner’s of the IRON HORSE who confirmed that they’re currently “open only for private parties” while they “explore some other opportunities”. Typically, the HORSE closes for New Year’s holiday, but this year they’ve “extended” that closing… indefinitely. The owner said that they’ll email us with any additional news.

Jean-Robert at Pigall’s
Tuesday, September 25, 2007

On Tuesday, September 25, 2007, Wendy & I ate at Jean-Robert at Pigall’s for an amazing dinner to celebrate Wendy’s birthday. The menu with wine pairings is below. Stupidly, I had my suit dry-cleaned and my notes from the dinner didn’t come back with it.

Salutation Cove Oyster with Three Tomatoes: Salad, Puree, and Water
JK Carriere Glass, Willamette Valley, 2005
This was a fun dish since it presented the tomatoes three ways. The briny fresh oyster was a nice counterpoint.

Tuna Tartare with Cucumber and Fennel Mimosa and Organic Quail Egg
JK Carriere Glass, Willamette Valley, 2005
I adore the Tuna Tartare that is prepared at the restaurant and think that the egg on top makes a really nice sauce when you topple the tower (the dish is presented in a tower) and mix everything together. The fennel and cucumber mimosa provided vegetal counterpoints to the richness of the fish and egg.

Jonah Crab with Kentucky Caviar Cream, Gazpacho Style with Seaweed Sorbet
Kerpen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, 2005
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Jean-Robert knows his way with fish. This Jonah Crab dish was perfectly fresh and included the local Kentucky Caviar Cream. And Seaweed Sorbet is delicious! Whoda thunk it?!

Lobster with Sea Beans, Morels, and Mint Sabayon
Verget Bourgogne “Terroirs de Vergisson”, 2006

Breast of Squab with Oregon Morels, Figs, and Sea Beans
Mystery Wine

Seared Foie Gras, Black Pepper and Sweet Wine, Watermelon and Watercress, Chanterelles and Cauliflower
Kracher Zweigelt Beerenauslese, Burgenland, 2003
Watermelon and Foie Gras are a good pairing. I love seared Foie Gras with a fruit accompaniment. Terrific dish.

Sea Scallop with Duo of Zucchini and Yellow Squash, Heirloom Tomatoes Roasted with Balsamic and Ragout of Snail and Horseradish
Rene Mure Cotes du Rouffach Tokay Pinot Gris, Alsace, 2001

Braised Arctic Char, Beets and Lemon Emulsion, Basil and Goat Cheese Risotto, Compote of Candied Fennel
Joseph Voillot Bourgogne Vieilles Vignes, 2004
The basil and goat cheese risotto was a real standout in this dish.

Short Rib Ravioli with Heirloom Tomatoes, Abbaye de Bel’loc and Tomato Vinaigrette
Pierre Gonon Saint Joseph, 2003
After having produced a ton of these ravioli while working in the kitchen, it is nice to experience the full impact of this dish in the dining room. It was delicious!

Lamb Loin with Thyme-Red Wine Sauce, Eggplant Roulade with Mushrooms, Corn, and Merguez Sausage
Pierre Gonon Saint Joseph, 2003

Assortment of Imported and Domestic Cheeses
Domaine de la Casa Blanca Banyuls, 2004
I so love a cheese course. I think a cheese course adds impact to any meal, and is an elegant stop along the courses. The cheese course at Pigall’s provides tastes of 5 different cheeses (though for Wendy, 5 spoons of Epoises would be enough!). the Banyuls that was poured was delightful.

Variation of Sweets
Jean Lallement Grand Cru Brut, N/V

On Saturday, October 13, 2007, only a couple days after returning from a wonderful week of vacation in Mexico’s Mayan Riviera (report coming soon), I worked at Jean-Robert at Pigall’s.

When I arrived, I was greeted warmly and asked immediately if I was there all night. I said I was, and Raymond told me that I’d be running the amuse bouche and cheese stations since the guy that had been running them (”duh-Rob”) was, um, not coming back to the restaurant.

The kitchen gang had already done most of the preparation for the station (how they find time to finish their own extensive preparation lists — any one of which is more complicated than my little station — AND another station as well, I’ll never know!). I still had some preparation work to do to get ready for service — preparing duck purses (the amuse bouche is currently a duck purse, egg & fish ring, and chilled soup) and finishing a few other things before setting up my stations. I am convinced that if I had a prep sheet I would be able to execute it — do all my own prep — for the amuse bouche & cheese stations and be ready for service on time. They’ve hired a new guy to replace “duh-Rob”, so I may not get the chance to test that theory for a while.

During service, the tickets written by the servers are handed to Chef, who is working to my left side at the pass. He “splits” the tickets — re-writing it onto separate slips for kitchen stations — then gives the server’s original ticket to me, which constitutes a “pickup” order from my station.

I prepare duck purses, baking them for a few minutes in the convection oven until they’re crispy and warm. I draw a line of grainy mustard diagonally across a small square plate. The duck purse goes on one side of the line with a piece of toast, and the fish & egg ring goes on the other side, atop a smear of lemon cream. The fish & egg ring is topped with a lightly-dressed frisee salad. A demitasse cup is filled with the chilled soup (fennel, this evening) and topped with a quenelle of chantilly cream and some chopped chives. When vegetarians or people with food allergies come in, we make special accommodations for them throughout all the stations. The amuse is moved to the pass (I only have to turn around to be at the pass) and given to servers who whisk it away to the guests. I mark the ticket and move it to the ticket hanger. Repeat 100 times.

When a cheese order comes in, I take a long rectangular plate and put 4 pieces of different cheeses on it in ascending order of flavor, bleu cheese is at the far right end. I then take a small silver serving spoon and top it with wonderfully runny Epoisses cheese and add that to the rectangular plate. The plate is dressed with mustarda, a quenelle of fruit compote, and a line of port wine reduction. A nice bowl of three kinds of toast goes out with it.

I found the evening’s pace to be brisk but was able to manage it easily. Any time I asked Raymond for anything — like to replenish my soup or to fire more duck purses — he jokingly (and loudly) announced to the kitchen, “Vogel is weeded!”. There was a clear “half time” as I got to the top of my orders. It was quiet at my station, and after restocking and cleaning up, I was able to track the progress of particular tables as their tickets moved around the kitchen.

Because of my proximity to Chef, I had the chance to observe him at work and have a good conversation with him. Earlier in the day, he took me over to the location of his next project — a lounge called TWIST.

It was a fun evening (if your definition of fun is, like mine, working your ass off in a hot, dark, crowded space!) and I really enjoyed working the station. After cleaning up my station, I hung around for a glass of wine with Chef before heading home.

During the early part of September each year, the Bethesda Foundation hosts GOURMET SENSATION, one of their signature fund-raising events. Since 1988, chefs from all around the world as well as local chefs have shared their culinary creations with an ever-growing and appreciative crowd to raise funds for Hospice of Cincinnati. This year’s event was on Saturday, September 8, 2007 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio.

My involvment with GOURMET SENSATION is as an appreciative guest, but I am involved with an event that occurs before GOURMET SENSATION — that is the chefs’ appreciation dinner the night before. For more than 12 years, Michael & Kathy Brown have prepared a multi-course meal for the chefs and their guests. For two of the last three years, Michael & Kathy have allowed me to assist them with preparations and service of this meal (I missed helping in 2006 because I was on vacation). This grand meal is presented in the beautiful dining room of the Cincinnatian Hotel, in their Palace restaurant which closes for the evening to allow Michael and his crew to move in and work in the hotel’s kitchens. This year, we served over 70 people.

On Thursday and Friday September 6 & 7, I went to the Brown’s house to assist with preparation of the meal. Several other professional cooks and enthusiastic amateurs show up to work for short or long shifts at the Brown’s house, so their large kitchen is crowded and bustling with activity.

The menu Michael & Kathy designed was as follows:

• Home Cured Wild Coho Salmon and Gazpacho
  2006 Gunderloch “Redstone” Riesling (Rheinhessen, Germany)
• Medallion of Foie Gras, Viognier Gelee and Fig Compote
  2003 Gregory Graham Viognier (Napa Valley)
• Walleye with Braised Artichokes, Artichoke Puree and Lobster Mushrooms
  2006 Four Sisters Sauvignon Blanc (South Eastern Australia)
• Loin of Veal, Sweetbread, Corn and Apple Ravioli, Honey Crisp Apples and Calvados Sauce
  2004 Four Sisters Shiraz (South Eastern Australia)
• Epí
• Couronne Lochoise, Roasted Beets and Pistachios
  2005 Chateau Calabre (Montravel, France)
  2004 Domaine de Pallus Chinon (Loire, France)
• Chocolate Caramel Walnut Tart
  2003 Gregory Graham “Red Hills” Syrah (Lake County)

The gazpacho was novel — Michael used gelatin filtration (as discussed in McGee’s column in the New York Times (registration required)) so the resulting liquid was intensely flavorful and crystal clear with a reddish tint. The home cured salmon was very tasty (though I only had a nibble).

I prefer seared foie gras to cold, but this preparation of the foie in a tourchon was quite nice (when isn’t foie gras nice?!) and very simple to serve, though I didn’t love the plating — I thought it looked a little crowded. Still, the plates were virtually licked clean when they came back, so the crowd must have been happy. The Viognier gelee was tasty and attractive.

The walleye was cooked very well (Keith has been cooking at the Palace for longer than he cares to admit, and he’s got a real master’s touch with fish and meats), and the lobster mushrooms were a very nice compliment to the flavor of the fish.

A personal favorite dish was the veal — it was beautifully prepared and cooked — very tender, and the sweetbread, corn, and apple ravioli were quite tasty.

The cheese in the cheese course — the Couronne Lochoise, a soft and creamy raw goat’s milk cheese from the Loire valley — was absolutely delicious, though before we portioned them, the individual cheeses looked like glazed yeast doughnuts! We cut each “doughnut” (actually, the word “Couronne” means “crown”) into four wedge-shaped pieces, which was a generous cheese course. The roasted beets & pistachios were wonderful together (very earthy) and complimented the cheese very well. This was one of my favorite elements of the meal.

After the cheese course came Kathy’s delicious Chocolate Caramel Walnut Tart, a beauty for the eyes and a delight on the tongue. Even though I am not a “chocolate person”, I certainly appreciated the rich flavors of this dessert. We served it with a squiggle of Syrah reduction to decorate the plate.

Service of the meal went very quickly and smoothly — Gina, Jody, Tarrick, and others made light work of the plating and service. The menu was well planned and well prepped, so there was very little that needed to be done a la minute. Once service was done, we were taken out into the restaurant and presented to the appreciative crowd.

It was nice to recognize many faces from my previous GOURMET SENSATION experience — good to see Juho and othersm and it was nice to connect with new faces like Nancy & Steve from Baltimore! A few drinks were poured, a lot of conversation, and then I went home and sacked out! I heard reports that lots of the guest chefs went out and painted the town red — some reported getting back to their hotel rooms at 4:30am!

The next evening, Wendy & I attended the GOURMET SENSATION and were very impressed with the dishes prepared by the chefs. While every dish was tasty (and we tried them all), standouts included the bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with bleu cheese, the venison burgers, the sticky toffee pudding, the short ribs, the soft-shell crab, and the fish-in-coconut-milk-broth. A nice upgrade this year was the keepsake wine glass and plastic plate (with wine glass holder). It made juggling food, forks, and wine much easier than before.

Wendy & I were invited to go out with the chefs after GOURMET SENSATION and we intended to… We really did! We went home for a bit of downtime between the event and the partying, and never managed to get back up again to go out. So we missed a good time with the chefs, but I’ve made a promise to myself that next year we will make it!