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Bev Masterson, who along with her husband Wes, do much of the work in the officers mess, picked three of her favorite recipes from the book for this web site. Capt. Jaffee dedicated the book to them. "It was very hard to choose just three recipes from the "Recipes From A Coal-Fired Stove" cookbook as there are so many very good recipes in this book. I tried to boil it down to three. On page 14 , I choose for the appetizer, the Shrimp Cocktail. It looks elegant served in a stemmed glass. On page 106, for the Main Course, I choose the Roast Leg of Lamb with Mint Sauce. This was taken from the menu of meals served on the Titanic. On page 192, for dessert, I choose Zabaglione with Champagne and Raspberries. I can honestly say, that all the meals we have served for the raffle dinners have been a huge success. Guests often ask for the recipes, and that is why the book was written. Wes and I have enjoyed being able to serve all the meals for the Lucky Raffle Ticket Holders. -- Smooth Sailing"-- Bev RECIPES FROM A COAL-FIRED STOVE: The Jeremiah O'Brien Cookbook, by Capt. Walter W. Jaffee (The Glencannon Press), Hard cover, 234 pp, $29.95. Click on the "Available" Button below for the Gift Store, where the book can be purchased. SHRIMP COCKTAIL RECIPES FROM A COAL-FIRED STOVE (Page 14) Sometimes the simplest things are the best. It's hard to beat a good shrimp cocktail. Just enough shrimp to whet the appetite, a good sauce and you have a dish that pleases the eye, tantalizes the nose and tastes fantastic. We've served this as a first course on several of our O'Brien dinners. Serves 8. Ingredients DIRECTIONS: Put enough water in a pot or large saucepan to more than cover the shrimp (but don't put the shrimp in yet). Add salt. Bring water to boil. Add shrimp and boil until color changes and shrimp are just done (about 5 minutes or less). Don't overcook the shrimp or they'll get tough and lose their flavor. Pour off hot water and let shrimp cool. Prepare the sauce by mixing together the catsup, horseradish, Worcestershire and lemon juice. Adjust mixture to personal taste. Peel the shrimp. Arrange decoratively on a leaf of butter lettuce on a small plate or in a stemmed glass. Drizzle sauce on thick part of shrimp. NOTES: Be creative in boiling the shrimp. There are probably as many recipes for this as there are Cajuns in Louisiana. Start with a couple of tablespoons of salt. Add any one, any combination or all of the following: peppercorns, bay leaf, thyme, tarragon, allspice, dill weed. You can also get "shrimp boil" at most markets, which will give the shrimp a good flavor... For the sauce, be brave, add more horseradish or throw in a few dashes of Tabasco, adjust the balance to your own likes and taste.
ROAST LAMB RECIPES FROM A COAL-FIRED STOVE (Page 106) This was the main course for our Titanic dinner and, again, Last Dinner on the Titanic was, with a few changes, our guide. Lamb is probably the least used meat commonly available. The taste is distinctive, the aroma while it is cooking, divine. The trick with this dish is to make your own mint sauce. If you buy the bottled stuff you might as well throw this book away. Another hint: if possible, use fresh lamb rather than frozen and make some effort to get fresh herbs. It makes a big difference. Directions Trim gristle and excess fat. Stir together garlic, 2 TBS. of the oil, rosemary, mustard and pepper; rub over surface of the meat, marinate at room temperature for at least an hour or in a refrigerator for up to forty-eight hours. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the remaining oil over high heat; add lamb and sear, turning often, until browned all over (about five minutes). Serves 6. Ingredients Mint Sauce DIRECTIONS: Place
leg in roasting pan. Deglaze the skillet by pouring wine
and salt into it; bring to boil, stirring to scrape up
any brown bits; pour over meat. Cook lamb in 450 degrees
F. oven for fifteen minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees
F. for
another twenty-five minutes for rare, thirty-five minutes
for medium-rare. Remove lamb from pan, tent with foil,
and let
rest for fifteen minutes.
NOTES: If you like garlic, take a couple of extra cloves, cut them into slivers, poke holes in the lamb with a knife tip and insert the garlic before roasting... The lamb actually continues cooking after you take it out and tent it with foil... Allowing the meat to rest before slicing causes it to hold together better when you slice it. Otherwise it has a tendency to fall apart. Also, it gives the juices a chance to reabsorb, rather than drain... If you like sauce on your meat, double the sauce ingredients. That way you're sure of having enough... Personally, I like all the little bits and pieces in the sauce. You don't really have to sieve it. ZABAGLIONE WITH CHAMPAGNE AND RASPERRIES RECIPES FROM A COAL-FIRED STOVE (Page 192) This is a delicious cold variation on the classic Italian dessert which is usually served warm. The champagne gives it an extra little touch that elevates it above the ordinary. We served this as one of the desserts for an Italian night dinner based on a menu from the SS Mariposa on one of her voyages in the late 1950s. Everyone loved it. Serves 8. Ingredients 5 large egg yolks 1/2 C. sugar 1/2 C. champagne 2/3 C. well chilled whipping cream 1 pint fresh raspberries mint leaves DIRECTIONS: In a metal bowl, beat the yolks and sugar together with an electric mixer for about three minutes or until the mixture is thick and pale. Beat in the champagne. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and beat the mixture with a hand-held mixer for three to flue minutes or until it is about four times its original volume and just hot to the touch. Transfer the bowl to a larger bowl of ice and cold water and whisk the mixture until it is cold. Beat the cream in a chilled bowl with an electric mixer until it holds soft peaks. Fold 1/3 of it into the yolk mixture, then, gently but thoroughly, fold in the remaining whipped cream. Divide the raspberries between eight wineglasses, spoon the zabaglione over them and garnish with mint leaves. |
