4.26 Greek Lasagna

My roommate had a craving for pasta this weekend so I thought I’d take advantage of the current break in warm weather to make something warm and comforting.

I started out to make a regular lasagna but was distracted by the nice (and pretty affordable) ground lamb at Fairway. It also happened to be Greek Easter, so I figured a Greek-inspired dish would do the trick.

Greek Lasagna
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Lamb Ragu
1/2 tsp olive oil
1 small red onion, diced
1 lb ground lamb
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 handful golden raisins
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 16oz can tomato puree
Fresh basil (5 or 6 leaves chiffonade)
Garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste

Cheese Layer
1 small container part skim ricotta cheese
1 large egg
4 oz domestic feta cheese, crumbled
1 tbsp dried oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

To Top
4 oz fresh mozzarella
A few handfuls of shaved Parmesan

Fresh Lasagna Noodles
1 Medium glass baking dish

In a large skillet, saute red onion in olive oil until it begins to caramelize. Add ground lamb and brown.
Drain off excess fat and return to medium heat.

Add carrots, raisins, vinegar and cinnamon and stir a few minutes until you can smell the cinnamon. Add tomato puree and seasonings. Turn off heat and let cool slightly.

In a medium bowl combine ricotta, oregano, salt, pepper, and egg. Crumble in feta cheese and mix until well blended.

Skim off a bit of tomato sauce and slightly coat the bottom of a baking dish to prevent lasagna noodles from sticking. Arrange one even layer of fresh pasta sheets across the bottom of the dish. Cover with cheese mixture evenly and add a second layer of fresh pasta. Cover with 2/3s of lamb ragu, retaining 1/3 for the top of the dish. Cover ragu with 1 final layer of fresh pasta. Spread remaining 1/3 ragu over top of pasta.

Thinly slice fresh mozzarella and arrange across the top of the dish. Scatter a few whole basil leaves for color and top off with a sprinkling of shaved Parmesan.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes (1 hour if refrigerating first). Allow dish to stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 4-6 people

Results

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This came out great. As comforting as traditional lasagna with even more flavor. I looked forward to the left overs for the past 2 days.

JL’s Review

4.20 Pelican-Inspired Seafood “Coquille”

I used to visit the same small island off the outer banks of North Carolina each summer growing up. One summer in particular, a small “finished porch” of a restaurant opened, called The Pelican.

The menu was an attempt at French refinement in a small fishing village of 500 permanent residents and sadly, lasted only 1 season. They offered a signature dish called “Seafood Coquille.”

(Actually, Coquille means to serve fish in its original shell, but this dish was served in a plain old gratin dish. Many things at this restaurant were lost in translation, but that added to its charm)

The Owner/Waiter describer seafood coquille as a stew of fish in cream sauce. “We make it with clam juice, clam juice, clam, clam, clam and clam.” A crust of mashed potatoes was added on top and the whole thing was broiled and served bubbling. It was an instant hit with my father and I believe we ate it 4 times during our two-week trip.

With a little help from Ina Garten’s “Seafood Gratin” recipe as a base, I decided the weather was right to attempt my own, decided lower fat, version.

Pelican-inspired Seafood Coquille

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1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup clam juice
1/2 cup dry white wine
Small pinch saffron
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 a small tomato, chopped finely into a chunky puree (should make about 3 tbsp)
sea salt, 3 green pepper corns, 4 or 5 fennel seed, a pinch of celery seed, all ground together
6 large sea scallops
1/2 lb monk fish fillet, cubed
6-12 medium shrimp, de-veined but retaining a shell
3 tbsp butter, at room temperature
2 tbsp flour
1/4-1/2 cup light butter milk
2 medium leeks, rinsed and thinly sliced
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 a fresh sour dough bread, sliced and toasted lightly
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, plus extra to garnish
Fresh Parsley
Olive oil
4 gratin dishes or one medium baking dish

Add chicken stock, clam juice, wine, tomatoes, saffron, spices and 1 clove minced garlic to a medium pot and bring to a boil. Working in batches cook shrimp, scallops and monk fish one at a time, then set aside.

After fish has been poached, remove shrimp peels, then add all fish to a baking dish or divide among 4 gratin dishes.

Continue to boil stock for 5 minutes until reduced.

Combine 2 tbsp butter (I used bummel and brown) and 2 tbsp flour with a fork. Stir into stock and whisk until combined. Add butter milk being careful not to make stock too runny – should be the consistency of a thin gravy. Turn off heat.

In a small skillet saute leeks and carrots in remaining tbsp of butter until softened, about 5 minutes. Pour evenly over fish.

Pour stock over fish and veggies being careful not to disrupt anything too badly.

In a food processor, pulse toasted sour dough bread, 1 clove minced garlic and a handful or parsley until combined into bread crumbs. Spread bread crumbs evenly over each dish and sprinkle with a little olive oil to help brown.

Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until bread crumbs look golden and casserole is bubbling.

Serve warm with additional sour dough bread for dipping.

Results

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Next time I would make the stock a bit thicker, but overall this was great. I didn’t miss the cream at all.

I would recommend making a garlic mashed-potato crust for the top rather than bread crumbs to really make this dish amazing.

JL’s review

4.12 slow-cooked oxtail

A few weeks ago I complained loudly to a fellow cooking classmate about the trouble I have finding interesting meat in Manhattan. He recommended I check out the butchers at Essex Market.

This morning I woke up to sunshine and 70-degree weather, which felt like a perfect day for market, but sadly I’m still about 2 months early for local produce. Rather than be deterred, I decided to take my classmate’s tip and explore Essex.

I was really hoping for venison, or a rabbit, but ended up with a huge bag of oxtail, along with some okra and green plantains I bought on impulse. I set up the crock-pot in an attempt to both braise my meat and avoid using the oven on such a nice warm day.

Ingredients
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2.5 lbs Oxtail, cut into 1.5″ sections
1 medium Spanish onion, sliced into half moons
1/2 lb okra, cut into 1/2″ bites
2 medium green plantain, peeled and sliced into 1/4″ rounds
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 16 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 cups beef stock
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Thai chili sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh parsley

I combined everything except parsley in the crock-pot and cooked on high for about 6 hours, then served with wild rice.

Results

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My Opinion:

Not bad. The oxtail was perfectly tender and okra added a lot to the consistency. Next time I would double the chili sauce for a little more kick.

JLs helpings: