Kouzinna

OK, here are a couple of words you don't often hear together. Greek Cuisine!

Yeah, maybe you know a few places in your area that serve some gyros, or Greek salads.  Maybe, some spanokapita.

But Greek cuisine?

Well, a few weeks back, Dick and I decided to check out some real Greek cuisine.  Albeit with a Disney twist.

The impetus of all this was an email from the Buena Vista Palace resort in Downtown Disney promoting a $79 dollar a night special fall discount rate.  Considering I had stayed at that same resort previously for several trade shows at twice that amount, it really sounded like a bargain.  So Dick and I jumped at the chance for a change in scenery,

The next decision was, where to eat?

Both Dick and I and had on several occasions discussed dining at Cat Cora's Orlando restaurant in the past.  For those of you who may not be familiar, Cat Cora is a celebrity chef who has not only competed (and won) in Iron Chef competitions on the Food Network, but who has also gained a reputation for successfully combining the flavors of her Louisiana upbringing with her Greek heritage.  No small feat.  

Add to that the fact that she is not only a renowned female chef, but also a renowned lesbian chef.  And darn attractive and telegenic to boot.  A combination that is both formidable and laudable in what is still, for the most part, a male dominated field.

Needless to say, both Dick and I arrived with a great deal of anticipation for her Kouzinna restaurant.

Kouzinna means "kitchen" in Greek (think cocina or cucina in Spanish or Italian, respectively.)  The restaurant is nicely ensconced in the Boardwalk area next to the Epcot resort area.  The decor is very casual, and evokes the atmosphere of  a Greek or Turkish taverna.

The menu is heavy on the Greek influences, with only a smattering of the LA bayous.  And all is done with flair.

Dick decided to order the fish stew (a Greek version of bouillabaise.)  For my part, I ordered the sampler (pastitsio, lamb sliders, and a chicken stew.)  The fish stew was excellent, redolent with the aromas of well prepared fish stock and perfectly cooked seafood.  No rubbery shrimp or overcooked scallops, here.  All was expertly prepared in what was, to be honest, a simple recipe that all too often many restaurants screw up.

My sampler was great.  The pastitsio may have been a bit heavy on the bechamel (not so much a crime in my book), and the sliders may have been a tad too spicy (a bit of Cajun exuberance, perhaps?), but all was forgiven with the chicken stew.  Who knew that cinnamon, with a judicious hand, could have provided such a sublime result?  

A bit of Greek wine, a shared baklava, and a final douse of chilled ouzo capped off the evening.

All in all, it was a great evening in a comfortable, welcoming environment.  Disney has a LOT of great dining options (and a lot of crappy ones, let's be real here), but anyone who happens to be at the resort and is looking for something not too expensive, casual, and above all, different (i.e. Greek cuisine), give Kouzinna a chance.  

As Dick would say, "That's all I'm saying..."

Frank

The Best Lap Cat

Paolo, my treasured lap cat had to be put to sleep on Monday September 17th due to ongoing health problems. When I first got him, a friend said he is too feral to become a good house cat. That was many years ago, and he became a wonderful friend and good companion, especially when he was sitting (napping) on my lap. This is an older picture of Paolo (left) and his good friend (and mine too), Lucia. I rescued Lucia from the office parking garage and Paolo showed up a short while later to help her eat her food. The rest is history. He was my good buddy and Lucia and I will both miss him. 

And a special mention is in order to Dr. Simon and the staff at The Cat Doctors in Tampa for their loving care over the years.

May there be an abundance of cat treats in Cat Heaven, Paolo.

Duck Two Ways - Updated

The post on Duck Two Ways from yesterday was missing some important information. First, I couldn't remember how Carol prepared her wonderful pork tenderloin. She has filled in the gap in my memory. Directly from her email... "The pork was coated with fennel seeds and cooked in a sauce of fennel,wine, chicken broth, garlic or whatever spices you might choose that would go with the fennel." Yummy! Thanks again Carol.

Frank also had a couple of good suggestions on the Seared Duck in Fig Sauce. As mentioned in the post you may have to reduce the sauce longer than recommended in the recipe to get the right consistency. You could also achieve the consistency you want by using less liquid such as the chicken broth - less liquid to reduce and less time to do so.

His second suggestion is to put the finished duck in a low (200 degree) oven to keep it warm while the sauce is reducing, but don't let it over cook. The duck is best served medium rare - in our opinion.

Quack I Say

Duck Two Ways

Quack Quack !! Over the last couple of weeks I have enjoyed roast duck breast twice. The first at K Restaurant in the quaint  College Park section of Orlando, followed by an "At Home" preparation last Friday. Both were wonderful. 

Labor Day weekend found us a our good friend Carol's home in Mount Dora. Carol is a foodie and a very good cook in her own right. We have dined at most of the good restaurants in Mount Dora in the past so this trip we decided to branch out to Orlando. We made reservations at K Restaurant and Wine Bar which is located in an old house in this old neighborhood. The service was good and the food was even better. 

I opted for the Duck l'orange served with a side salad, and duck fat roasted cubed potatoes, it doesn't get any better than that. The duck was a perfect medium rare with crispy skin, and the l'orange sauce was superb. There were even bits of candied orange peel in the sauce.

Carol enjoyed the Mussels in a Tomato Broth with an Arugula Salad with sun-dried cranberries, candied pecans, blue cheese and a wonderful house-made grain mustard dressing. Very good!

Frank selected the Penne a la Vodka which he gave a double thumbs up. I was "allowed" to try a bite of Frank's and Carol's selections and would gladly order either on another visit.  The menu changes daily so you never know what might be offered next time, but I would like to return. Highly recommended. 

On Sunday, Carol prepared a sumptuous Pork Tenderloin cooked to a perfect degree of doneness. Maybe Carol would be so kind to remind me what the sauce was on the pork - I only remember how much I enjoyed the meal. Thank you Carol.

About a week later, this past Friday, we decided to fix our own Ducky-Duck dish at my place. We were inspired by a segment from the Kelsey Nelson series on the cooking channel - Kelsey's Essentials. She prepared a Seared Duck Breast with Fig Sauce. (The recipe will follow at the end of the post). 

A touch of sweetness in a duck sauce is aways a good addition, and the fig sauce was a perfect accompaniment.  Frank ended up doing most of the cooking as I wasn't up to 100%. He did a wonderful job of preparing the duck to a delicious medium rare. (Notice a trend here on how we like our duck prepared). He served it with Haricot Verts Almondine with lemon and shallots. We will prepare the duck recipe again - it is a keeper. If you are not a friend of the duck, I would suggest the sauce on a pork tenderloin - it should work great.

What can I say, we enjoy good food whether prepared in a restaurant or at home. All of these meals exceeded our expectations.

That's all I'm Saying 

Seared Duck Breast with Fig Sauce

Recipe courtesy Kelsey Nixon

TOTAL TIME:

45 min

Prep:

10 min

Inactive Prep:

5 min

Cook:

30 min

YIELD:

4 servings

LEVEL:

Easy

INGREDIENTS

DUCK:

•                Four 6-ounce boneless duck breasts, skin scored in crosshatches, at room temperature

•                Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

•                1 teaspoon vegetable oil

FIG SAUCE:

•                1 shallot, minced

•                3/4 cup dry sherry

•                1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

•                1/4 cup fig jam

•                1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

•                Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

•                2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

•                Fresh chives, chopped, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

For the duck breasts: Sprinkle each duck breast liberally with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat. Add the duck skin-side down and reduce the heat to low, cooking as the fat slowly renders and the skin becomes crispy, 8 to 10 minutes.

Once the skin is crispy and golden brown, flip and continue cooking until a thermometer reads 128 to 130 degrees F when inserted into the thickest part of the breast (for medium-rare doneness), 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate or cutting board and allow to rest about 5 minutes. It will carryover cook to about 135 degrees F. Don't tent with foil in order to ensure the duck skin will stay crispy.

For the fig sauce: Pour off all but 1 or 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet, reserving the excess for another use. Over medium heat, add the shallots and cook until softened. Add the sherry and reduce by half. Next, add the chicken broth, fig jam and balsamic vinegar, and continue simmering until the sauce has thickened and is syrupy, another 5 to 7 minutes. (It took more time to reduce the sauce - more like 10 minutes – just watch it until it reached the right consistence. My comment) Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper and whisk in the butter. Garnish with chopped chives.

Serve the sauce alongside thinly sliced duck breast.

Haricots Verts Almondine

TOTAL TIME:

25 min

Prep:

10 min

Inactive Prep:

--

Cook:

15 min

YIELD:

6 servings

LEVEL:

Easy

INGREDIENTS

•                Kosher salt

•                1/4 cup almonds

•                1 1/2 pounds haricots verts (French string beans), root ends removed

•                3 tablespoons unsalted butter

•                1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

•                2 shallots, minced

•                Freshly cracked black pepper

•                1/2 lemon, zested and juiced

DIRECTIONS

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.

Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, toast the almonds over medium-high heat until golden brown and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the pan, finely chop and set aside.

Blanch the string beans in salted boiling water until crisp but tender, 2 to 3 minutes. The salt will impart flavor as well as help keep the string beans crisp. Immediately drain and run cold water over the beans or plunge into an ice bath to cool and stop the cooking process, then remove and completely dry.

Return the saute pan to the burner over medium heat and melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the shallots, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until starting to brown, stirring occasionally, 3 to 5 minutes. Toss the drained beans with the shallots and add the lemon zest and juice. Cook to heat the beans completely through, 1 to 2 minutes.

Remove from the heat and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. Toss with the toasted chopped almonds and transfer to a serving dish.

A Blast from the Past

La Cote Basque has been in nearby Gulfport for over 30 years, owned and staffed by three generations of the same family. This was my first visit thanks to an offer from Groupon. Our server was ecstatic about being part of the 3rd generation. I don't think the decor nor the menu has changed much in 30 years. Frank refers to the decor as "grenier de grand-mère" (Grandma's Attic) with it's collection of old paintings, fabrics, lights and nic-nacs placed throughout the restaurant. I thought it was great fun, maybe a little over the top, but very fitting for a very old French country-styled restaurant.We also noted that each table was set with different china - another nice touch from Grand-mere.

The menu leans strongly French with some German and Swiss influences. You can view the menu by clicking the restaurant name in the opening sentence. We opened our meal with the Pate de Strasbourg, the Goose Liver Pate. It was very smooth, rich, and tasty. The next course was a house salad with a house-made Honey-Dijon mustard dressing which was excellent. I don't know what else was in the dressing, but it was some of the best honey-dijon that I have ever had.

Our Entrees were wonderful and tasty. Frank opted for the Caneton Roti a la Sheree (1/4 Roast Duckling Amaretto, Honey, and Cherry sauce, topped with Nuts and Almonds) which he proclaimed "superb'. I had the Carre d' Agneau Provencal (Rack of Lamb, Demi Glace, Dijon Mustard and Thyme) which was also excellent although just a touch overdone, not by much, but not quite as rare as I like. All entrees are served with 3 veggies and potatoes or rice. Not an overwhelming amount of side dishes, just a couple of bites of each one, but all very tasty.

Overall it was a wonderful dining experience and I would like to go back for more of their great food.

Weekend Roundup

This weekend's activities (all food related) included two fixed-at-home dinners and a first try at a previously untasted/untested ice cream shop in downtown St. Petersburg.

Friday evening found us at my apartment preparing Penne alla Vodka preceded by a classic shrimp cocktail. Recipes will follow at the end of this post. The pasta dish was very tasty and easy to prepare, but I thought it called for too much prosciutto. Next time I will cut back on the quantity. Plus I have never had Penne alla Vodka prepared with prosciutto before, I think you could leave it out if so inclined. 

Saturday evening after a nice lunch at Alesia, and back at my apartment,  we started preparing Irish Butter-Poached Scallops with Leeks and Sweet Garden Peas from the St. Supery Winery newsletter, (included with Wine Club shipment and on their website. I made the gremolata a couple of hours ahead just to get it out of the way. Then I made the clarified butter (Irish Butter, of course). We used large sea scallops (U-10's; about 10 scallops to a pound). While this was more complex than the Penne alla Vodka, it was a winner, a keeper, and worth the effort to prepare.

Finally, on Sunday, after a nice lunch at 400 Beach Seafood and Tap House, we skipped our usual desert stop at Paciugo on Beach Drive and tried out a different Ice Cream and Chocolate shops on 4th Avenue North, about 1/2 block off Beach - Sweet Divas. I still love my gelato, but this was some excellent ice cream. I had their Butter Pecan and Madagascar Vanilla Bean, and Frank had the Chocolate Amaretto with the Madagascar Vanilla Bean. All were very good. 

Oink, and that is all I'm saying.

Penne Alla Vodka

as found on the Web

•                Prep Time: 5 mins

•                Total Time: 15 mins

•                Servings: 6

•                 

•              *tip* squeeze the tomatoes to drain them so the sauce isn't watery"

Ingredients

◦                                  3 tablespoons butter

◦                                  3 -4 cloves garlic, chopped finely

◦                                  1 cup thinly sliced prosciutto

◦                                  1 (28 ounce) cans whole tomatoes, drained and chopped

◦                                  1/2 cup heavy cream

◦                                  1/4 cup vodka ( only a kind you would drink)

◦                                  salt and pepper

◦                                  1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes

◦                                  1 lb penne pasta

◦                                  3/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Directions

1.            In a wide pot big enough to hold all the pasta and sauce, melt the butter.

2.            add the garlic and cook until golden brown.

3.            stir in the proscuitto and cook for a a minute or two.

4.            add the tomatoes, crushed pepper, pepper and salt.

5.            simmer for 5 minutes.

6.            stir in the cream and cook for 2 minutes stirring alot.

7.            add the vodka and cook until it no longer smells strongly of vodka (about 3-5 minutes).

8.            cook the pasta as directed on box but al dente.

9.            add the pasta to the pot with the sauce and mix until it is all coated over the pasta.

toss with the cheese and serve immediately.

Irish Butter-Poached Scallops with Leeks and Sweet Garden Peas (from the St. Supery Winery newsletter)

Makes 6 servings

For gremolata:

·      1 cup coarsely shredded dried breadcrumbs (We used Panko in lieu of breadcrumbs and it worked out fine)

·      2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil

·      Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

·      1 clove garlic, finely minced

·      Grated zest of 1 lemon

·      ½ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or chives, (we opted for the chives – good)

·      For leeks and peas:

·      1 large leek, white and light green parts only, outer layers discarded and thinly sliced (3 to 3 ½ cups)

·      2 tablespoons unsalted butter

·      3 tablespoons crème fraîche or heavy cream

·      ¼ cup water

·      ½ teaspoon sea salt

·      7 grinds of black pepper

·      1¾ to 2 cups shelled fresh or frozen English peas

·      12 to 18 jumbo scallops, depending on everyone's appetite

·      Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

·      1 cup clarified Irish butter (see note below)

·      Grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

·      Watercress sprigs, for garnish

To make the gremolata: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the breadcrumbs in a small bowl, drizzle with the olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat evenly. Spread in a pie pan or small baking sheet and toast for 7 to 8 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Just before serving stir in the garlic, lemon zest, and parsley.

To prepare the leeks and peas: In a saucepan, combine the leek, butter, crème fraîche, water, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until the leeks are a little tender and the sauce is reducing. Use your best judgment as to when to add the peas. If they are fresh but starchy they may take some time, so add them as soon as the leeks start to soften. If they are frozen, they may take just 2 to 3 minutes, so add them at the end. Shake the pan occasionally during cooking to change what is on the bottom of the pan with what is on the top. Cook until the vegetables are tender.

Once the vegetables are cooking, season the scallops on both sides with salt and pepper. In a big sauté pan (large enough to hold all of the scallops in a single layer), melt the butter (I think here is where you add the clarified butter which may not need to be melted if you just prepared it - my comments) over medium heat. When the butter is hot and foamy, add the scallops and poach gently for 3 to 5 minutes, basting as needed, until just done. They are ready when they feel just firm to the touch.

To serve, spoon the vegetables into individual deep plates or shallow soup bowls and top with the scallops. Add the lemon zest and juice to the butter from the scallop pan, then drizzle over the scallops. Sprinkle with some of the gremolata and garnish with the watercress.

Note on clarified butter: To make clarified butter, melt butter over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden but not browned. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve or a coffee filter into a heatproof container, leaving the milk solids behind in the sieve or filter.

The Devil Made Me Do It

Fra Diavolo (Brother Devil) showed up on Tuesday evening for dinner. Actually Frank, not the devil, came down for dinner and requested that I make Mussels Fra Diavolo. Easy I thought, and it was with a recipe I found on-line from Lydia Bastianich. I added the mussels to this Shrimp Fra Diavolo recipe for a traditional spicy red sauce. IMHO it was great, with just the right amount of heat.  The heat factor can be increased or decreased by adding more or less red pepper flakes. I followed the recipe and found it to be perfect for my taste (I don't care for very spicy food, wimp that I can be). Frank declared this to be a "thumbs- up" preparation. We served it with 1/2 pound linguine for the two of us and had leftovers. The recipe serves 6 but can easily be adjusted. Any changes that I made to the original recipe are in red italics. So here it is...

Shrimp in a Fra Diavolo sauce

Lidia Bastianich

This dish is excellent served as a main course or as a dressing for pasta. We used 1/2 pound linguine (not included in recipe)

Ingredients

         6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

         6 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

         2 1/2 pounds jumbo shrimp (about 30) peeled and deveined (I used about 12 jumbo shrimp and 18 fresh mussels for two servings).

         Salt

         One 35-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), cored and coarsely crushed (I used about 2/3 of a 28 oz can of Cento brand San Marzano tomatoes.) 

         8 fresh basil leaves, torn into quarters

         2 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley

         1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (adjust to taste)

Preparation

Heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook, shaking the pan, until golden. This takes about one minute. Add as many shrimp as fit in a single layer with some space between each. If you crowd the shrimp, they will steam in their own juices rather than get crunchy with a lightly browned exterior. Cook, tuning once, until lightly golden, about three minutes. Sprinkle with salt to taste.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate, leaving as much garlic as possible in the pan.

Pour the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the tomatoes into the skillet, season with salt and crushed red pepper, and bring to a vigorous boil. Lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer and cook until it is lightly thickened. After about 5 minutes, add the mussels to the sauce. Simmer another 5 to 10 minutes.  The mussels are done with they open. 

Stir in the cooked shrimp, basil and parsley and cook until the shrimp are heated through. This takes just a few seconds. Do not overcook the shrimp.

Add cooked pasta and toss with the sauce. Serve and enjoy. 

Serving Size

Serves six

Family Gathering

Dateline: Maggie Valley, NC:


The Simpson/Smith clan and the Leinar family gathered again in Maggie Valley, NC for the 4th of July followed by my brother's birthday celebration on the 5th. My Brother (Chuck) and his friend (Peggy) spend their summers in Maggie Valley so we all spend some time with them for his birthday. This year Frank and I flew up from Tampa to Greenville/Spartanburg and drove to Maggie Valley late on the 4th. While we missed the Maggie fireworks, we saw a number of local community fireworks from the highway. 


For the birthday "boy" (many years older than me, but definitely with more hair) 19 of us went to Sagebrush Steakhouse in Waynesville, to feast and imbibe in celebration. I will NOT go down the list of each participants entrees but let me say my rare Prime Rib was very good and everyone left full and satisfied. On Friday we visited another family favorite, Grandma's Chicken Palace which specializes in Southern Fried Chicken, (duh)! Since we ate the chicken last year, Frank and I decided to try the fried catfish. It was very good and not heavily breaded. Again everyone left full and happy. (even though Granny doesn't serve alcohol).


Frank and I spent Friday driving through the Pisgah National Forest to reach Brevard NC near the South Carolina border. The drive was a typically curvy mountain road, but a lovely drive. I spent a number of summer vacations at Brevard College attending what was then billed as "Florida Distance Runners Camp". (Now called Brevard Running Camp - happy someone is carrying on the tradition). We ran through trails in the National Forest and at least once during the week we were bused before dawn to the Blue Ridge Parkway to watch the sunrise through the fog cover in the valley below. It was fun to revisit after at least 20 years.


On Saturday, we drove to Black Mountain to visit an ex-coworker of Frank's. Pat and her husband Bill just moved to Black Mountain from Tampa and are building a house there. We enjoyed the visit and the lunch in town. 


Sunday Frank had to leave for a week in Eastern North Carolina for work, and I flew home on Monday. As always we had a good time visiting with the family, as crazy as always.


That's all I'm saying.

The Birthday Boy and Peggy - what a lovely couple

The Entire Gang

Carmel Cafe

You are so right, Bob, I did not blog about Carmel Cafe previously so I am going to fix that omission since the restaurant is definitely worth a post. Carmel Cafe has 4 locations (South Tampa, Carrollwood, Clearwater, and Sarasota) and offers a broad selection of "Modern Mediterranean Cuisine" as small plates (tapas style) or full dinners. They also have a large by-the-glass wine selection. Frank and I joined another friend, Roger, on his first visit to Carmel. To the best of my recollection we shared Fried Calamari, Seared Scallops, and some other nice dishes that have escaped my memory. Everything was tasty and well prepared. Give it a try if you are near any of their locations. We dined at the Clearwater location with it's casual, but classy contemporary decor, the corporate standard. 


The restaurant uses Apple iPads to present the menu and allows each customer to place their order for food and wine from the iPad that was provided when seated. Very neat and it worked great. When you need a refill, place another order or settle the bill, it is all done on the iPad. Whether you are techie challenged or not, they have hard copy menus and a very competent serving staff.


I would expect this small local chain to grow since one of the co-founders is Chris Sullivan, of Outback Group fame.




LOCATION:
Carmel Café and Wine Bar
2548 McMullen Booth Road
Clearwater, FL, 33761