Saveur 101

If you usually don’t buy cooking magazines, this month’s issue of ‘Saveur’ Magazine is worth buying. In honor of their 150^th issue they did a collector’s edition of 101 classic recipes for their October issue. The recipes are fabulous and I could not decide which ones to do. The recipes are as diverse as Tex-Mex enchiladas to French blanquette de veau. The recipes are timeless and speak to the scope of the magazine which first was published in 1994. Twenty-five of these recipes have appeared in previous issues in the Classic column and it was a pleasure to see some of these recipes again. The magazine has 101 recipes but the other 49 classic recipes can be viewed on line at saveur.com.

I decided to do chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. I had not done this recipe in years and had the garlic on hand so decided to go with it. You can use up to 100 cloves of garlic but who has time to peel 100 cloves? The garlic cooks so long it melts and the flavor is delicious.

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

Serves 6-8

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 3-4-lb. chicken, cut into 8 pieces (I used 10 skinless, boneless chicken thighs)

Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

40 cloves garlic, peeled

½ cup dry vermouth

¾ cup chicken stock

1 tbsp. chopped tarragon (It is hard to grow in our climate but we still had some in the garden.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a 6-qt. Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper; add to pot and cook, turning once, until browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a 8”x8” baking dish; set aside. Add garlic to pot; cook until browned in spots, about 6 minutes. Add vermouth; cook, scraping bottom of pot, until slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Add stock; boil. Transfer ¼ of the garlic to baking dish; mash remaining into stock. Pour over chicken; bake until chicken is glazed and tender, 15-20 minutes. Garnish with tarragon.

A favorite spaghetti recipe of mine is spaghetti carbonara. I was not surprised to see it in the top 101. Real Roman spaghetti carbonara is pasta, whole eggs, pancetta or (cured pork jowl), pecorino romano cheese, never cream. It can be enjoyed at any time!

Spaghetti Carbonara

Serves 4.

3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

10 oz. pancetta, cut into ½” long x 1/4” square strips

2/3 cup white wine

1 lb. dried spaghetti

2/3 cup finely grated Parmesan

¼ cup finely grated pecorino Romano

2 tbsp. finely chopped parsley

2 eggs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat oil in a 12” skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, and cook until golden, about 1 minute. Remove and discard garlic. Add pancetta, and cook until edges are crisp, about 6 minutes. Add wine, and cook until thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti, and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain, reserving ¼ cup pasta water. In a large bowl, whisk together Parmesan, pecorino, parsley, and eggs; while whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in reserved pasta water until smooth. Add spaghetti along with reserved pancetta mixture. Season with salt and a generous amount of pepper. Toss to combine, and serve immediately.

The ultimate of all the French desserts to take hold of the American culinary imagination might be the chocolate mousse. This is a simple yet sophisticated dessert. It is hard to get it wrong so it is the foolproof final to an elegant meal. I did it for weekend guests who could not come at the last minute so we had to eat it all. Not a problem. My husband loved it!

Chocolate Mousse

Serves 6

1 2/3 cups heavy cream

2 tsp. vanilla extract

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ cup sugar

6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Chocolate shavings, to garnish

In a large bowl, beat cream, vanilla, and salt with a whisk until stiff peaks form; chill. In another large bowl, beat egg whites with a whisk until soft peaks form. While whisking, slowly add sugar, and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Add melted chocolate to egg whites, and fold until almost incorporated; add whipped cream and fold until completely incorporated. Divide among serving cups; chill. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings before serving.