Coastal Cooking with Chef Michael Hutchings

Latkes - The Perfect Canapé Foil

Potato Latkes 

Potato latkes have long been one of my favorite foils for canapes. My dear friedn Ann Sly passed the recipe on to me from her Brooklyn roots. I have gone beyond those foundations and use the latke with numerous other topping other than the traditional sour cream and apple sauce.

They are terrific with cavair, smoked salmon, crab salad, rillete of duck and of course apple sauce and sour cream. Make them ahead of time and crisp in a 375 degree F. oven for a few minutes.

Chef Michael

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Winter Salad

Here is a great salad for a winter dinner. Use a variety of mixed lettuces such as arugula, baby greens, frisée, mâche. Toss the greens with a sherry vinegar and olive oil vinaigrette. and garnish with pomegranate seeds, crumbled blue cheese and toasted pecans. Serve it with a crusty artisan bread.

One hint is to buy whole pomegranate and seed them yourself. The packages of seeds are much more expensive that preparing the pomegranate yourself.

Tastefully, 

Chef Michael Hutchings

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Preparing Cultured Abalone

 

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I have been a proponent of cultured abalone since 1981. Farmed abalone have been marketing first by Ab Lab in Port Hueneme by John McMullen. At that time, 1-1/2 inch abalone, dubbed cocktail abalone, were the only size on the market. Currently there are about four abalone farms in California. My source is The Cultured Abalone in the Santa Barbara/Goleta area.

Marine biologist Dough Bush operates a farm on the Dos Pueblos Ranch. Sizes vary from the cocktail size up to six plus inch specimens. The standard market size is the 3-31/2 inch red abalone. Following is a You Tube link that demonstrates how to prepare the abalone.

If you would like more information, contact myself or the abalone farm. I would be delighted to consult on abalone usage and preparation. 805 568-1896, [email protected]

Tastefully

Chef Michael Hutchings

 

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My New Favorite Dessert - Olive Oil Pound Cake

Olive Oil Pound Cake

This is my newest, favorite dessert. Like many menu items, this was a result of a clients request. In this case, there was a lactose free request. This is a recipe from a book by Chef Christophe Buey called Cusine Santé. The concept of the book is that healthy cooking and gourmet eating are not mutually exclusive.

I have already developed several variations that incorporate other ingredients such as raspberry coulis and sorbet, pinepple crush and coconut glace, warm peaches poached in champagne.

Tastefully,

 

Chef Michael