New Year's Eve Cocktails, Oysters, Party Rules; Drunkorexia

Guest Interview

The Market Report ()

Laura Avery chats with Mary Sue Milliken, co-owner of Border Grill and Ciudad restaurants, about home cooking. When New Year's Eve rolls around she stocks up at the Carlsbad Aquafarm stand at the farmers market to pick up fresh oysters and clams.

For her guests she serves a clam dip, oysters on the half shell drizzled with a very simple vinaigrette made from shallots and red wine vinegar.  To drink she likes to make blood orange margaritas -- a mixture of blood orange juice, lime juice, triple sec and a good tequila.

Clam and Onion Dip
 
2 cups chopped onions

2 tablespoons olive oil

12 littleneck clams

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

a few dashes of Worcestershire

a few dashes of Tabasco

a squirt of lemon juice

salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil in a large skillet and add onions.  Cover and cook, stirring occasionally until golden in color, about 15 minutes.  Uncover and cook to a deeper golden brown, stirring often.  Open 12 little neck clams and cut each into about 3-4 pieces, collecting all the juices as you work.  Toss the clams into the deep brown onions and cook briefly adding the collected juices at the end.  Set aside to cool.  Mix mayonnaise and sour cream in a bowl.  Stir in cooled onion and clam mixture, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and lemon.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Chill four about 2 hours and serve.

Copyright © 2008, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger

Hip and Traditional Oysters
 
We adore oysters with salsas, especially at the holidays. During the cold months, oysters reach their peak of flavor and texture. If you're timid about eating raw oysters, start with the smaller ones like Pacifics, Kumomotos, and Olympias. Once started, it's hard to stop!  For a party, it's always great to give your guests choices: serve a few contrasting salsas as well as lemon wedges and freshly ground black pepper with a variety of oysters and salsas.

Salsas provide wonderful balance and depth to the oysters' natural richness. The red wine vinegar and shallot salsa gives a sublime, "continental" touch. When we're in a particularly spicy mood, we alter that recipe by adding a canned chipotle chile to the blender, and serve this bracing salsa on oysters in shot glasses. For the opposite effect, the chunky tomatillo salsa is like having a mini "salad" on your oyster.

Oysters on the Half Shell

To shuck oysters, wash under cold, running water and scrub with a stiff brush to remove any surface sand, especially around the seam. With a towel in the palm of your hand to protect it, press shell against a work counter.  In the pointy end of the oyster, insert tip of oyster knife, gently twist to break seal, and run knife around edges until shell opens.  Discard empty top shells.  Dab oyster with tip of wet towel to remove any bits of broken shell or sand. If necessary, clean further with a pastry brush dipped in icy salted water. Shucked oysters may be kept, covered with a wet towel, in the refrigerator up to an hour.

Loosen the muscle that holds the oyster to the shell by gently sliding a knife between the two. Arrange 6 oysters per serving on chilled platters. (Or, to serve oysters extra cold, line plates with crushed ice and sprinkle with Kosher salt. Then arrange the oysters on the ice shell-side down.) Spoon about one teaspoon salsa over each oyster to cover with a thin layer.  Serve immediately.

Red Wine Vinegar Salsa

6 shallots, peeled and sliced

3/4 cup red wine vinegar

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Puree shallots and red wine vinegar in a blender until smooth.  Set aside.  (Do not make this simple sauce too far in advance or the delicate flavors will fade.)

Chunky Tomatillo Salsa

4 tomatillos, husked, washed and very finely diced

2 scallions, white and some green parts, thinly sliced on the diagonal

1 bunch cilantro, stems trimmed and roughly chopped

1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeno chile, seeds optional

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours to marry the flavors.

Copyright © 2008, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger

Blood Orange Jalapeno Margarita

Serves 4
 
1 cup Blood Orange Jalapeno Infused Tequila (see recipe below)

1/2 cup Grand Marnier

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

2 tablespoons superfine sugar, or to taste
4 slices blood orange, for garnish

4 Candied Jalapenos (see recipe below), for garnish, optional

Run lime wedge halfway around rim of 4 martini glasses and dip into sugar.  Set aside.

Combine Infused Tequila, Grand Marnier, citrus juices, and superfine sugar.  Pour half the mixture into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.  Shake until chilled, about 15 seconds.  Strain into 2 of the sugar rimmed martini glasses.  Repeat to make 2 more cocktails.  Garnish with a slice of blood orange and a Candied Jalapeno, if desired


Blood Orange Jalapeno Infused Tequila

Makes 1 bottle


1 to 1 1/2 pounds blood oranges, thinly sliced

2 jalapenos (1 green and 1 red), stemmed and sliced in half lengthwise

1 liter bottle of Herradura Silver tequila

 
Place oranges and jalapenos in a glass jar or container.  Pour in tequila.  Seal and store in a cool, dark place for 7 to 10 days (save tequila bottle).  Strain tequila through cheesecloth or a fine sieve and pour back into reserved tequila bottle.  Seal and store in refrigerator or freezer up to 3 months.

Candied Jalapenos

4 jalapenos, mix of green and red

1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

Thinly slice jalapenos crosswise.  In a small sauce pan, combine water and sugar and bring to a boil.  Add jalapenos, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  With a spatula, gently remove jalapenos, laying flat on parchment paper to dry.  Store in a sealed container for up to one week.

Copyright © 2007, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger

Guest Interview

King Hua ()

LA Weekly columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Jonathan Gold nibbles on Alhambra's latest dim sum restaurant, King Hua. He recommends: steamed shrimp and pea-tip dumplings; steamed rice noodle with chicken and bitter melon; chicken feet with angelica in meat broth; har gao; fried chicken knees with spicy salt; wolfberry gelatin.

King Hua
2000 W Main St
Alhambra, CA 91801
626-282-8833

Guest Interview

History of the Cocktail ()

Campanile restaurant's chef-owner Mark Peel explains the difference between a cocktail and punch and recounts the cocktail's history. He also shares some of his tasty libations.

Philadelphia Fishhouse Punch
Serves 5

1 sweet, ripe peach- washed pitted and sliced
2.5 oz sugar
2 oz lemon juice
2.5 oz brandy
2.5 oz apricot brandy
5 oz Mount Gay Rum

1. Mix together peaches, sugar, and lemon juice. Crush and cover, let rest at room temperature for 4 hours

2. Add the spirits to the fruit mixture, reseal and rest overnight

3. Just before serving, strain through a fine mesh strainer into a punch bowl. Stir in 5 oz mineral water, a thinly sliced lemon and orange and one large ice cube (4 oz)

4. Serve with punch cups and ice.

Pancho Victoria
.5 oz lime
.25 oz Oro Blanco grapefruit
10 Kefir lime, ginger syrup
2 oz reposada tequila
½ tsp single malt scotch (smokey) on top

1. Combine first four ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass

2. Gently drizzle the ½ tsp single malt scotch on top of the cocktail

3. Drink

Lord Nelson
2/3 Tablespoon white Lillet
2/3 Tablespoon red Lillet
2 dashes of Regan's orange bitters
2 oz Plymouth gin
1 flamed orange peel in glass, leave peel in

Stir
1. Muddle Regan's orange bitters (in same glass that the peel was flamed in) with one piece of orange zest ½" x 2" with no pith

2. Add both Lillets and the gin, stir with ice for 20 seconds

3. Strain into a cocktail glass that has been flamed with an orange zest

4. To flame: hold a small wooden match in one hand and a thick piece or orange between your thumb and fingers of the other hand. Squeeze the zest through the flame into the glass.

Music break: Dennis Boogie by Dennis Volk

Guest Interview

Mexican Cocktails ()

¡Lotería! Grill owner Jimmy Shaw and his bartender, Carlos, mix up some savory and sweet micheladas and other tasty Mexican cocktails. His newly opened restaurant is ¡Lotería! Grill Hollywood.

To make a michelada, start with ice, Tapatio sauce, 1/2 lime and a tiny bit of soy sauce or Maggi, then pour a lager-type beer, like Corona or Sol. Drink!

¡Lotería! Grill Hollywood
6627 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028
323-465-2500

¡Lotería Grill! - Farmers Market
6333 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-930-2211

Guest Interview

New Year's Eve Party Rules ()

Chow magazine columnist Helena Echlin has advice for surviving New Year's Eve parties. She shares her thoughts on double-dipping, suggestions for mingling, and dealing with boring people.

Music break: Pigeon Toed Banana Peel by West One UK Library

Guest Interview

Oyster Love ()

Seafood specialist Christophe Happillon shares his love of oysters and slurps them like fine wine. He explains that an oyster obtains its flavor depending on where it grows in the sea and "meroir." Find more information about his gourmet tastings at Oyster Gourmet.

Guest Interview

Reusing Wine ()

Du Vin Wine's Stacie Hunt has tasty ideas for using leftover wine. She recommends turning wine into vinegar, making ice cubes, using them as sauce starters, baking cookies and creating an appetizer.

Du Vin Wine & Spirits
540 N San Vicente Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90048
310-855-1161

Cookies al Vino
1 cup (250 ml) wine of any kind 
1 cup (250 ml) vegetable oil 
1 cup (220 g) sugar 
4 tsps baking powder 
5 cups (500 g) flour 
A pinch of salt 
More sugar for rolling the cookies

Work all the ingredients together, until you have a dough that's firm but fairly soft, like pizza dough. Roll it into cylinders that you can shape into rings, or into balls that you can flatten with the palm of your hand, or just about any shape you like.

Dredge the cookies in the granulated sugar, put them on a lightly greased cookie sheet, and bake them in a 360 F (180 Celsius) oven for 20 minutes. Cool them on a rack, and prepare to be asked for more.

Slightly Tipsy Cheese Bread
half a baguette, cut into 2" slices
½ sliced yellow onion
1/8 lbs cooked ham (or prosciutto)
¾-1 cup white leftover wine
1 tsp  freshly ground pepper
1½ cup grated cheese

Heat oven to 400°. Place sliced baguette onto a buttered oven proof skillet or pan with sides. Put onion and ham on each slice. Pour wine over slices. Add cheese and fresh pepper. Bake for 20 minutes.

Music break: Violino d'um Contradaca by Afro Beleza

Guest Interview

Drunkorexia ()

 
Dr. Douglas Bunnell discusses the troubling phenomenon of "drunkorexia," an eating disorder combined with alcohol abuse. He talks about the glorification of binge drinking and losing weight and psychological root behind eating disorders. Dr. Bunnell is the director of outpatient clinical services for The Renfrew Center, a residential eating disorder treatment facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.