MENU for a HARVEST EXTRAVAGANZA

First Course

Sweet Yellow Pepper Soup with Crème Fraîche and Chives

WINE:  Pinot Gris or Pinot Blanc (Ponzi)

Second Course

Wild Mushroom Risotto

WINE:  Pinot Noir (Balletto)

Third Course

Grilled Lamb Chops with Peach Walnut Chutney and Roasted Seasonal Vegetables (beets, patty-pan squash and carrots)

WINE:  Syrah (Biale Hillclimber)

Dessert

Tarte Tatin Aux Poires

WINE:  Icewine (Vidal)

SWEET YELLOW PEPPER SOUP

Ingredients:

6 large plump yellow peppers

2 quarts strong home-made vegetable stock, well reduced

1/8 pound raw rice, cooked in vegetable stock while reducing

¼ cup whipping cream

Salt

Dry roasted coriander seed

Fresh ground black pepper

1 bunch fresh chive

Directions:

Roast or grill peppers until skin blisters and turns brown.  When they have cooled a little, strip off blistered skin, open and remove seeds.  Blend cleaned peppers together with a little vegetable stock until smoothly puréed.  Combine with remaining vegetable stock and rice.  Heat thoroughly.  Add cream, salt and a generous sprinkling of coriander and pepper.  When serving, place small spoonfuls of Crème Fraîche and chives with a sprinkling of coriander and black pepper on top.

WILD MUSHROOM RISOTTO

Ingredients:

2 ounces dried porcinis (look for these in produce department)
1 quart mushroom broth or vegetable stock
1 tablespoon (1 turn around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup dry Sherry
4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves chopped to about 2 tablespoons
1/2 cup (3 handfuls) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Coarse salt and pepper

Directions:

Place dried porcinis and stock or broth in a saucepan and bring stock to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer.  In a large skillet, heat oil and butter over medium to medium-high heat. Add shallots and sauté 2 minutes. Add arborio rice and sauté, 2 or 3 minutes more. Add Sherry and cook the liquid completely absorbed.  Add several ladles of hot stock or broth and reduce heat slightly. Simmer, stirring frequently until liquid is absorbed.  Remove mushrooms from water and reserve cooking liquid. Coarsely chop the porcinis and add them to the rice. Continue to ladle broth into arborio, half the remaining amount at a time. Stir mixture each time you add broth and remove from heat when the rice is cooked to al dente.  Cool and store any remaining liquids if there are any.  The ideal total cooking time for perfect risotto is 22 minutes. The consistency should be creamy.  Stir in thyme and a few handfuls of grated cheese. Season your risotto with salt and pepper to your taste.  Serve creamy mushroom risotto from the hot pan with warm, crusty whole grain breads.

PEACH WALNUT CHUTNEY

Grilled Peaches:

2 cups water

2 cups sugar

½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise

1 cinnamon stick

2 whole cloves

1 whole allspice

4 ripe peaches, peeled, pitted and halved

4 1/4-inch-thick slices walnut bread

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

Peach Walnut Chutney:

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

½ Cup diced onion

1 Tablespoon minced fresh ginger

¼ Cup raisins

½ small tomato, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1 large peach, peeled, and diced

½ Cup vanilla syrup reserved from poached peaches

½ Cup dry red wine

¼ Cup balsamic vinegar

½ Teaspoon salt

¼ Cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted

Grilled Lamb:

1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. canola oil
1/4 tsp. fresh mint
4 lamb chops, 2 ounces each, trimmed of all fat

Combine lemon juice, garlic, oil and mint. Marinate chops in oil mixture for 30 minutes. Transfer from marinade to broiler pan or grill and cook, basting with marinade, to desired doneness.

Directions – Grilled Peaches:
Combine the water and sugar in a medium non-aluminum saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the vanilla bean, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the peach halves and simmer them for 3 to 10 minutes, or until they are tender. The amount of time will depend on the ripeness of the peaches. Remove the pan from heat and let the peaches cool in the syrup.

Light a fire in a charcoal grill. Rub the peaches and the slices of walnut bread with softened butter. When the coals are lightly covered with gray ash, grill the peaches (reserving syrup for chutney), cut-side-down, for 2 minutes; turn them gently with tongs and grill for an additional 1-1/2 minutes. Grill the bread on the edge of the grill rack for 30 to 45 seconds on each side, or until it is toasted.

Directions – Chutney:
Melt the butter in a medium sauté pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and ginger, and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add raisins, tomato, peach, vanilla syrup, red wine, balsamic vinegar, and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer the chutney for about 20 minutes, or until thickened; stir frequently, especially towards the end of the cooking time to ensure against scorching. Add the walnuts and simmer for 5 minutes. Makes 1-1/4 cups.

TARTE TATIN aux POIRES

This is a twist on a classic recipe, the Tarte Tatin aux pommes: an upside-down tart with apples. This recipe can be adapted for bananas, mangoes, I've even heard of a version with grapefruit! * If using peaches, be aware that they contain much more water, and it will take longer to caramelize them. Also, be sure to cook the crust thoroughly in the oven before removing it and flipping it to be sure it is not soggy.

Ingredients:

6 peaches (fruit to cover the bottom of the skillet in one layer)

1/4 cup of butter

1/2 cup of sugar

Directions:

Flaky pastry dough (in France, we find good "pate feuillete" at the grocers. In the US Pepperidge Farm makes a good flaky pastry dough which you'll find in the frozen section. You can also play with making your own favorite pie shell).

In a large non-stick skillet that can go in the oven too, over a low flame, melt your butter and then add your sugar, spread evenly in the skillet. Slice your peaches in half, core them and peal them and lay attractively cut side down in the skillet, in a rounded. Let simmer till the sugar begins to caramelize, do not stir.

Once the sugar begins to caramelize and turn brown, lay your pastry dough over the fruit (if using flaky pastry/pate feuillete then punch holes in it with a fork all over, to reduce uneven puffing) and transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake at 400°F until the pastry dough has puffed and browned.

Remove from the oven and cover with a cake plate the size or a bit larger than your skillet, carefully invert the tarte on the plate, let cool a few minutes and serve plain or with a good vanilla ice cream, creme fraiche, or whipped cream. 

Bon appetit!