A Dinner Treat from Chef P

Last Saturday evening, L & P, who are friends and neighbors, invited us and friends K & G, and P & G to dinner to celebrate the birthday of K's husband, G. The host, P, prepared one of his typical "chefisticated" dinners. Every bite was terrific.

The menu

1. Appetizers

- Dark rye canapés with boursin cheese spread, topped with thinly sliced radishes and garnished with chives

- Hothouse cucumbers sliced on a bias, piped dill herbed cream cheese, topped with smoked salmon, garnished with capers and fresh dill.

- Green & Kalamata Olives 

The appetizers were accompanied by Korbel Rosé California Champagne

2. Main Course and Side Dishes

- Beef Burgundy

- Roasted Baby Potatoes with Herbs

- Zucchini Gratin

- Baguettes from Ooh La La French Bakery

The main course was accopanied by two wines

- 2005 Château de Chamirey AOC Mercurey Premier Cru Burgundy (100% pinot noir) - a Burgundy wine to accompany Beef Burgundy

- 2007 Les Hauts du Fief Cave de Tain Crozes-Hermitages (100% syrah)

3. Dessert

- Symphonie cake from Ooh La La

The foods were fantastic and the wines were excellent.

Recipes and Comments on the Main Dishes and the Sides

Chef P. obtained all of the recipes below from foodnetwork.com. I have used five recipes from that site, and loved them all.

1. Beef Burgundy

This is a classic French dish, which is called Boeuf Bourguignon in French. It is sometimes called, Beef Bourguignon - using one English word and one French word.

When I was in France in June, I had Beef Burgundy several times. Chef P's was far superior. One of several reasons is that he used a superior cut of beef - beef tenderloin.

The recipe he used was a recipe by Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. It is a 5-star recipe from foodnetwork.com - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/filet-of-beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html Interestingly, Ina Garten has another 5-star Beef Burgundy recipe on foodnetwork.com - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html

2. Roasted Baby Potatoes with Herbs

Chef P. obtained this wonderful Giada de Laurentiis recipe from foodnetwork.com as well - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/roasted-baby-potatoes-with-herbs-recipe/index.html
Chef P provided me with the following comments about how he prepared this recipe:

I put the oil, 5 cloves of smashed garlic cloves in a large baggie with 2 tablespoons of herbs de Provence the day before baking and let it season in the refrigerator, then, next day,  threw the potatoes in it to coat and spread them out on a baking sheet, sprinkle lightly with Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper (not too much). Portioned 40 potatoes for 8 people, had 5 or so left over. = 1.5 pounds of potatoes. I roasted the potatoes for 40 minutes total, turned them at 20 minutes. I removed the garlic before cooking since it is possible to burn chopped garlic which could turn bitter. Anyway, 40 minutes at 400 degrees is plenty.  I did not drizzle with any additional oil after cooking, although a pinch of herbs over the top would look nice.

3. Zucchini Gratin
This was another Ina Garten recipe from foodnetwork.com -

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/zucchini-gratin-recipe/index.html

Chef P told me the following about his experience preparing this recipe:

I cooked the gratin the night before and the gratin veggies were firm to the bite. When I reheated them (for 20 minutes after having turned the potatoes) they got overcooked (mushy) , even though still flavorful. Doing it again, I would take the gratin recipe through covering it with the bread crumbs and cheese, refrigerate, then cook along with the potatoes just before dinner. If you are doing this all the same day then it does not matter.