Louisville Magazine

NOV 2012

Louisville Magazine is Louisville's city magazine, covering Louisville people, lifestyles, politics, sports, restaurants, entertainment and homes. Includes a monthly calendar of events.

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"N obody walks away." When our son was barely old enough to comprehend full sentences, he knew enough to be terrified by a TV car commercial. He ran from the living room, a look of alarm on his face, the sound of panic in his voice, and asked, "Do they mean it?" Te boy literally believed that if a person stepped inside a certain renowned local car dealership, that person would be rounded up and hauled off, possibly in handcuffs. I was reminded of the phrase during a recent bout of entrapment in a salon, which had (count 'em) four ceiling-mounted flat-screen televisions going at once, three of them featuring food preparation. Te fourth ran an endless loop of Oprah, also sporting food issues — specifically, abstinence from bingeing. Mercifully, the sound was muted on all sets, while faux classical music tinkled in the back- ground. My over- whelming thought was, "Will you people cut it out already with all of the ___ing butter?" I mean, Paula Deen is supposed to be on a diabetes-fighting diet, right? But there she was, lardin' up a batch of cup- cakes with four sticks of butter — two for the batter and two for the frosting. Imme- diately after Paula came the Contessa (who would never diet), and out popped several more sticks of butter. She was making an al fresco birthday breakfast for one of her many fab and fortunate friends. One patron of the salon said, "Lordy! I didn't eat breakfast this morning, and I am starving!" Another said, "Shouldn't these ladies be eating some salad?" I felt a version of my son's terror. I thought, "If you people don't get up and walk away, you're gonna be handcuffed and hauled off, not from a car dealership but from this mortal coil." I then asked myself the question Julia Child always asked: What would a French person do? Te French never punish them- selves. But neither do they go overboard. We do not want to eradicate butter alto- gether now, do we? So I came home and consulted that old French bible, Larousse Gastronomique, where I found a lengthy and edifying section on butter, most of it dedicated to straightforward recipes for beurres composes. (Tat's compound butters to you.) What this means is, butters blend- ed with one or more substances, generally reduced to a puree. Some are served hot, others chilled. In all, Larousse has 49 recipes for beurres composes. Yes, we all know from kitchen basics (or from menus across town) of beurre blanc, chive butter, garlic butter. Perhaps you even had a grandmama who made brown butter. But did she call it noisette? Do you know that black butter, not a burned shame, may be the most delicious of the lot? And does Stephen Colbert know that there's a com- position called beurre Colbert? (Not makin' it up; it involves tarragon and a substance known as "dis- solved meat jelly.") Te bottom line is that most of these compounds, paradoxically, are simple. And a little goes a long way. Te ingredients are mini- mal. Either wine or citrus or some kind of herb or minced fish or nut will be whisked into butter as it is reducing. Te final prod- uct, whether served hot or cold, is used in small quantities. Just a tablespoon or so of beurre blanc for instance, drizzled over seared scallops, adds an enormous final wal- lop of flavor. Or a mere teaspoon of chilled anchovy butter spread atop grilled fish or a steak makes the meat feel and taste that much richer. Te rule that will keep the process of making the butters as simple as the ingre- dients themselves is this: Do not walk away. You have to stand guard at the stove. So make sure to have all ingredients lined up in the order in which you will use them. Given that many of the recipes are a vari- ation on beurre blanc, I'm going to start by reviewing that tried-and-true companion, and I'm going to add an ingredient that renders the amalgamation of ingredients foolproof: a tiny amount of heavy cream. Once you've made your own beurre blanc, your palate will suggest to you dozens of things to do with it. Beurre Blanc 1 cup white wine 1/4 cup white wine vinegar 2 tablespoons finely minced shallots 2 tablespoons heavy cream 8 ounces cold unsalted butter, cut into quarter-inch-thick pieces Place the wine, vinegar and shallots in a small saucepan. Over medium heat, bring the mixture to a simmer and reduce it by about 75 percent. Remember: Do not walk away from it. Watch it constantly, and give it an occasional whisk as it reduces. Add the cream. Let it reduce for two more minutes. Ten turn the heat down to low and begin whisking in the butter, four or five pieces at a time. Continue doing this until all of the butter is incorporated. Sea- son it with salt to taste and whisk it again. It is now ready to drizzle over seared scal- lops, shrimp, or just about any seafood you might name. Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter) Brown butter is particularly complemen- tary to many of the fall-themed fresh pastas, such as those stuffed with butternut squash, artichoke hearts, or sage and arugula. Te fresh pasta at Trader Joe's is unusual and af- fordable. 10 tablespoons cold butter in slices 2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley 2 tablespoons fresh sage Place a medium-size thick-bottomed skil- let over medium heat. Add the sliced butter a few pieces at a time, as in the previous recipe. Continue to cook the butter. Once melted, the butter will foam up a bit, then subside. Do NOT walk away. Watch carefully as lightly browned specks begin to form at the bottom of the pan. At this point, the butter should have a nutty aroma. Add the herbs and stir. Remove the pan from the heat and place it on a cool surface to help stop the butter from cook- ing further and perhaps burning. (It's easy to overcook browned butter and unintentionally end up with beurre noir. You may even want to have a larger pan of ice water handy to stop any hint of black- ening. But practice will lead you to know immediately when to stop cooking by eye- balling and smelling the butter.) Drizzle the browned butter over pasta and top with fresh grated Pecorino Ro- mano. 11.12 LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE [41]

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