Monday, October 24, 2011

Another sauce!

It has been a while since I last posted a blog….much has happened here in my world, and I simply have not had the time or energy. But, things are calming down. This last weekend I volunteered to help with the release of the vineyard's new wine....Somerset Ridge Crimson Cabernet. It has quickly become the favorite of many! I am among them.


There was a family gathering here in Kansas City for the military funeral of my uncle, Colonel G P Vogt. The National Cemetery in Leavenworth, Kansas was absolutely beautiful with the hundreds of huge old trees gracing the hillsides in the 128 acre cemetery. The leaves are turning, but the grass is still very green. It was a wonderful afternoon of loving family and military pride, an overwhelming combination. My Uncle Pete was quite a character. We spent many hours laughing as we remembered and shared stories of him. It was wonderful having all of my cousins gathered once again.

I find it rather difficult to jump back into blogging after being away from it. The month of October has been a very busy time and it is difficult to figure to get my mind under control! I am usually not at a loss for words, but I am having a tough time deciding what to write about! I know I owe you another mother sauce recipe, so I suppose I should start there.


http://foodlorists.blogspot.com/2008/
 So far we have covered Béchamel, based on milk, thickened with a white roux. and Espagnole, based on brown stock (usually veal), thickened with a brown roux. I hope you have tried them!

This time I want to tell you about Velouté, a sauce based on a white stock, thickened with a blonde roux. “Veh-loo-TAY” is a fancy French name for a white sauce that is stock based and thickened with a white roux.
The stock used is usually chicken, veal, or fish.

 1 1/2 cups white stock (veal, chicken, or fish) - white stock just means the bones were not roasted
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons flour
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Bring the stock to a simmer in a large saucepan.

In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over low heat (don't let it burn) and add the flour. Raise the heat to medium and stir the butter and flour together for about 2 minutes. You are making the roux. Take a good whiff and it should have a pleasant toasted smell.

Whisk the simmering stock into the roux and keep heating and whisking. When the stock begins to simmer again, turn down the heat to low and cook until the sauce thickens. A thin skin may form, just skim it away with your spoon. Depending on your stovetop, the sauce may take 5 - 10 minutes to get to your desired consistency.
Season with salt and pepper

From this basic sauce, you can now make the two most notable sauces that are based on velouté. They are Sauce Allemande and Sauce Supreme. I would like for you to try Sauce Allemande.

The Allemande Sauce (which is also sometimes called "German Sauce") is a finished sauce made by thickening a velouté with a mixture of egg yolks and heavy cream called a liaison
The Allemande sauce is sometimes mistakenly called Sauce Parisienne. Sauce Parisienne is similar, but it uses cream cheese instead of the egg-cream liaison, and so it is a different sauce altogether.

1 quart velouté
½ cup heavy cream
2 egg yolks
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper, to taste
Lemon juice, to taste

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the velouté over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer and reduce for about 5 minutes or until the total volume has reduced by about a cup.
In a stainless steel or glass bowl, beat together the cream and egg yolks until smooth. This egg-cream mixture is your liaison.
(In the culinary arts, a liaison is a mixture of egg yolks and heavy cream that is used to thicken a sauce.)
Slowly add about a cup of the hot velouté into the liaison, whisking constantly so that the egg yolks don't curdle from the heat.
Now gradually whisk the warm liaison back into the velouté.
Bring the sauce back to a gentle simmer for just a moment, but don't let it boil.
Season to taste with Kosher salt, white pepper and lemon juice. Strain and serve right away.
Makes about 1 quart of Allemande Sauce.

No comments:

Ponte Vecchio, Florence, Italy

Ponte Vecchio, Florence, Italy
oil painting by Kay Tucker

Somerset Autumn on Wea Creek

Somerset Autumn on Wea Creek
Oil Painting by Kay Tucker, Private Collection

Floral

Floral
oil painting by Kay Tucker

Kansas Storm

Kansas Storm
oil painting by Kay Tucker, Private Collection

Watercolor Collage

Watercolor Collage

Tempo al Tempo....All in Good Time

Tempo al Tempo....All in Good Time
48"x36" sculptural painting by Kay Tucker