Cast Iron Cook Pilot episode May 11 & 12, 2012 recipes:
Pecan-crusted Halibut (procedure by Chef James Welch when he was Executive Chef at Crippen's Restaurant)
Lemon and Flat-leaf Parsley Risotto
Squash Hush Puppies (adapted from The Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook)
Robert's Mostyum Veggie Stock Ingredients: 2 cups sweet onion diced 2 cups celery stalks sliced 2 tablespoons oil of choice I routinely use sunflower oil but, I used peanut oil on this show 2 quarts of water 6 black peppercorns 2 or more stems and leaves of flat-leaf parsley
Procedure: Heat a sauce pan to medium high. Add the onion and celery stirring constantly for thirty seconds and reduce heat to medium. Stir occasionally until onion and celery pieces are soft but not brown. Add the water, peppercorns, and parsley. Simmer until the volume is reduced by half (one quart). Strain and remove the peppercorns. Use the onion and celery in a recipe of choice.
Robert' Mostyum Lemon and Flat-leaf Parsley Ingredients: 2 tablespoons oil of choice 1 quart of veggie stock 1 cup of arborio rice 1 large lemon 1 half cup or more of flat-leaf parsley leaves slightly chopped lemon zest 1 half cup of Sauvignon Blanc or white wine of choice Kosher coarse salt to taste fresh ground black pepper (optional) grated Parmesan cheese
Procedure: Heat a 12 inch diameter skillet to medium high. Add oil. Add rice. Reduce heat to medium and stir constantly for 2 minutes. Ladle in 1 cup of the stock and stir into the rice. Allow the rice to absorb the stock but, do not allow the rice to dry out and stick to the skillet bottom. Add 2 ladles full of the stock and stir into the rice. Continue this until all the stock is absorbed and the rice has a cream-like appearance and the rice grains are soft. If the one quart of stock is not enough, finish with water. During the show, I added the cooked onion and celery that I used to make the stock. Use a culinary microplane to zest the lemon onto the risotto. Then cut the lemon into halves and squeeze the juice onto the rice. Use a sieve to prevent the lemon seeds from falling into the risotto. Add the white wine. Gently stir the risotto to incorporate the zest, lemon juice, and wine. Add salt to taste. Add the parsley. Add the Parmesan cheese. Serve hot and enjoy!
Squash Hush Puppies Ingredients:
1 cup of cooked yellow squash or zucchini squash 1 and 1/2 cup of plain yellow cornmeal 1 tablespoon of aluminum-free baking powder 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of Kosher coarse salt 1 cup of rice milk peanut oil for deep frying
Procedure: In a mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Mash the cooked squash and add to the cornmeal mix. Add the rice milk and stir the mixture. Heat the oil to 370 degrees Fahrenheit. Use a hush puppy scoop (smaller volume ice cream scoop) and place the formed hush puppy batter into the hot oil. Deep fry for 3 minutes or until the hush puppies are golden brown and cooked throughout.
Pecan-crusted Halibut Ingredients: Fresh halibut steak (the one I used on the show weighed one pound) unsalted butter at room temperature chopped pecans Kosher coarse salt.
Procedure: Heat a skillet to medium high. Sear one side of the halibut steak for two minutes. (do not allow it to burn) Heat an oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. In a mixing bowl combine the butter and pecans. Add salt to taste. Salt the halibut steak. Apply the pecan butter mixture to the seared side of the halibut. Layer an oven safe casserole dish or oven pan with unbleached parchment paper. Lay the pecan-crusted halibut into the casserole or pan and bake until the halibut is completely cooked. To insure food safety, use a meat thermometer to determine safe internal temperature.