A WORK IN PROGRESS
AVOCADO BISQUE
Peel the avocado and remove the pit. Cut the pulp in several pieces and place in a blender container with the chicken broth (cold), creams, rum, curry powder, salt, and a pinch of pepper. Blend until smooth. May be made ahead and kept refrigerated. Serves four. This recipe may be doubled.
The soup is a lovely color and Faith serves it in well-chilled bouillon cups with a spiderweb garnish of slightly thinned sour cream, or thinned creme fraiche. Use a pastry tube to pipe two or three concentric circles on top of the soup, then take a sharp knife and pull it through the circles, first toward the center, then the next away from the center. A bright nasturtium in the middle adds a nice, elegant Martha Stewartish touch. Nasturtiums are edible. Avoid foxglove and the like.
CHICKEN LIVER AND
MUSHROOM PATE
After cutting any gristle from the livers, heat six tablespoons of the butter in a pan large enough for all the livers and cook them quickly, approximately three minutes on a side. Remove the livers with a slotted spoon and place in the bowl of a food processor or in a blender container.
Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook the mixture for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add to the livers.
Melt the rest of the butter in the pan and stir in the port. Add to the liver mixture. Process until smooth.
Add the nutmeg, then salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the pate into a small crock. Cover it with a thin layer of clarified butter if you wish to keep it for more than two days. Refrigerate when cool. Makes about 11? 4 cups.
This recipe doubles well and should be made a day ahead. It is a wonderfully rich, versatile pate and works as well on thin toast for a dinner party as slathered on baguettes for a picnic.
POLENTA WITH GORGONZOLA
Bring the water to a boil in a heavy saucepan or Le Creuset–type casserole. Add the cornmeal, preferably stone-ground, in a steady stream, stirring constantly.
Keep stirring for approximately five minutes as the polenta thickens. Faith uses a wooden spoon. Add the cheese and butter, stirring until they are melted, about one more minute, then add the salt and pepper.
Serve immediately or keep warm in the top of a double boiler, stirring occasionally. Serves six as a side dish.
Polenta is great. It can accompany a main dish fresh from the pot. It can also be spread out in a pie plate or eight-inch-square Pyrex pan to cool, then cut into wedges or squares. These can be served with sauce or they may be fried in olive oil. Both are also delicious covered with roasted vegetables.
Many brands of instant polenta are excellent. Follow the directions on the box and, again, add the butter and cheese at the last minute. Be sure the Gorgonzola is ripe, but not overripe. If too ripe, it will give the polenta a slightly acidic taste.
MINI ZUCCHINI FRITTERS
Beat the egg, milk, and melted butter together and add to the flour, salt, and pepper. Mix until smooth but do not overbeat.
Put the zucchini in a piece of cheesecloth or a clean dish towel and squeeze the excess liquid out. Saute with the shallot in the two teaspoons of butter until soft, about three to five minutes.
Add the zucchini mixture to the batter and drop the batter onto a well-greased, hot griddle in rounds, approximately two and a half inches in diameter. Turn when golden brown. Makes thirty-six fritters.
Straight from the griddle, these are a nice accompaniment to a main course, fanned on the plate with grilled meat or fish. For Faith’s wedding hors d’oeuvres, spread the room-temperature fritters with salsa topped with a dollop of sour cream, or smoked salmon, sour cream, and a twist of coriander or dill.
The combinations are limitless, though, and these fritters may be made ahead and frozen.
OATMEAL CHOCOLATE GOODIES
