Flavor combinations take priority in Krauses’ cookbook, re-released with new name
Tried, true and tasty can be said about countless flavor combinations. Caramel with popcorn, spinach with cheese, orange with miso, apricot with honey, to name a few.
Throw in just the right additions, and classic flavors rise to the level of interesting, unexpected and exotic. How about caramel corn with chile pepper, spinach and cheese with anise, miso-orange sauce with chestnuts, apricots with honey and thyme?
Lawrence residents and restaurateurs Robert and Molly Krause take taste up a notch in their cookbook, “The Flavorful Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Amazing 3-Ingredient Flavor Combinations.”
The book, released in August, is a reprint of the couple’s first cookbook, with a new title and a new cover. The original cookbook, released in 2010, is titled, “The Cook’s Book of Intense Flavors: 101 Surprising Flavor Combinations and Extraordinary Recipes that Excite Your Palate and Pleasure Your Senses.”
Molly Krause said the new book’s title and cover better reflect that it contains plenty of recipes accessible for home cooks — many straightforward and simple (like the four-ingredient Jack and Coke Ice Cream), with others that are more complicated yet “do-able” (for example, make-it-yourself duck prosciutto in a salad with melon and fennel oil).
Flavors are so much the focus that the book is organized by them, unlike traditional cookbooks organized by course or ingredient. The chapters in “The Flavorful Kitchen” have names like “Traditional with a Twist,” “Bright and Light” and “Decidedly Decadent.” Each highlights trios of flavors followed by recipes that incorporate them.
“We were really wanting to push the discussion and the idea of different flavor profiles,” Krause said. “We wanted to have people, instead of approaching the book with a dish they wanted to make, approach cooking something with the kind of flavor they’re going for.”
The Krauses are the former owners of Krause Dining, Esquina and the Burger Stand, after recently passing ownership of the Burger Stand to partners Simon and Codi Bates of Lawrence, Molly Krause said.
“The Flavorful Kitchen” can be ordered through Lawrence bookstores The Raven and Signs of Life. It’s also available through the publisher’s website, fairwindspress.com, and major online booksellers.
Recipes
A few recipes from “The Flavorful Kitchen,” with accompanying photos from the book courtesy of Fair Winds Press, 2013.
Berry + citrus + cheese = Killer Triple-Berry Salad
This salad has all the components of a complex salad — juicy, sweet fruit; salty, tangy cheese; flavorful greens; and crunchy, candied nuts. Make the dressing and segment the citrus ahead of time.
Raspberry Vinaigrette
1 shallot, chopped
?2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon (11 g), plus 1 teaspoon (4 g) Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon (13 g) sugar?
1 tablespoon (20 g) honey?
1/4 cup (60 ml) raspberry vinegar
?2 tablespoons (15 g) fresh raspberries
2 tablespoons (18 g) fresh blackberries
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup (60 ml) grapeseed oil
1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil?
Salt and pepper
Salad
2 cups (110 g) chopped sweet greens (such as red oak, romaine or butter)
2 cups (110 g) chopped spicy greens (such as frisée, watercress or mizuna)
Salt and pepper?
1/2 cup (75 g) strawberries, quartered
1/2 cup (65 g) fresh raspberries?
1/2 cup (75 g) fresh blackberries?
2 oranges, supremed (segmented, with peel removed and pith sliced away)
1 grapefruit, supremed
1/2 cup (60 g) crumbled blue cheese
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup (100 g) candied walnuts
To prepare raspberry vinaigrette: Place the shallot, garlic, mustard, sugar, honey, vinegar, raspberries, blackberries, and lemon juice in a food processor. Run for 1 minute or until finely blended, scraping the sides twice or three times. With the processor running, add the oils slowly, in a steady stream. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Keep covered in the refrigerator for up to several weeks, until ready to use.
To prepare salad: Place greens in a bowl and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Evenly distribute the remaining ingredients on top of the greens, dress with raspberry vinaigrette, and serve immediately.
(Recipe from “The Flavorful Kitchen Cookbook,” Fair Winds Press, 2013)
Blue cheese + pear + nut = Gorgonzola Soufflé with Pear-Walnut Sauce
When making a soufflé, it is important that the eggs come to room temperature. Before you even gather your other ingredients, pull five eggs from the refrigerator so that they will be ready to go when you need them.
Pear-Walnut Sauce
1 cup (100 g) unsalted walnut halves
2 cups (475 ml) heavy cream
Salt?
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
1 pear, peeled, cored, and quartered
1 cup (235 ml) white wine (such as Riesling or Champagne)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vinegar (Champagne or apple cider)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup (50 g) sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) water
Blue Cheese Soufflé
1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
3 tablespoons (42 g) unsalted butter, plus extra to grease the dish
3 tablespoons (23 g) all-purpose flour
1 cup (235 ml) milk?
4 egg yolks, at room temperature?
3 ounces (85 g) blue cheese (such as Roquefort or Stilton)
Salt and pepper?
5 egg whites, at room temperature
Pinch cream of tartar
To prepare pear-walnut sauce: Combine walnuts, cream, a pinch of salt, and vanilla pod and seeds in a saucepan and cook for 15 minutes over low heat until the liquid reduces by half. Strain mixture with a slotted spoon or through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl, pushing down to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard walnuts and pod.
In a small saucepan, cook pear, wine, vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, and water over low heat until the pear is very soft. When the liquid reduces by 75 percent and becomes thick and syrupy, remove from heat. Transfer mixture to a blender and blend until very smooth. Transfer sauce
To a bowl and whisk in the walnut cream. Cover and set aside until it reaches room temperature and is ready to use.
To prepare soufflé: Grease an 8-inch (20 cm) soufflé dish and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour, mix to combine, and continue to stir and cook for? 2 minutes. Add the milk, whisking to combine and cook, using a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides occasionally. Cook until the mixture is thick and smooth. Remove from heat and whisk in the egg yolks one at a time. Stir in the cheese, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
With the whisk attachment of a standing mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until thick, stiff and glossy. Add about one-quarter of the stiff egg whites to the cheese base and fold in gently. Add ?the remaining whites and carefully fold until just incorporated. Fill prepared soufflé dish and bake for 30 minutes until soufflé browns and rises. Serve immediately with pear-walnut sauce.
Yield: 4 servings
(Recipe from “The Flavorful Kitchen Cookbook,” Fair Winds Press, 2013)
Lemongrass + coconut + basil = Heavenly Thai-Inspired Mussels
The broth in this dish is like liquid heaven, so make sure you have something on hand to help you gobble it up — rice, bread, or even just a spoon will do.
1 can (14 fluid ounces, or 425 ml) coconut milk
1/2 inch (1 1/4 cm) fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and chopped into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces
1 fresh Thai chile, sliced lengthwise, seeds removed, divided
Zest of 1 lemon?
1 tablespoon (15 ml) fish sauce (optional)
?Juice of 1 lemon
2 cloves garlic, minced?
1 small shallot, minced?
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil (such as canola)?
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup (60 ml) dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc)
1 pound (455 g) mussels, washed
6 stems Thai basil, leaves only, chopped
Salt in a saucepan, combine coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass, half of the chile, lemon zest, and fish sauce (if using). Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let infuse for an additional 10 minutes. Strain, pushing down on the strainer to extract as much liquid as possible. Add lemon juice and set aside.
Finely mince the remaining half of the chile. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté chile, garlic, and shallot in vegetable and sesame oil until tender. Deglaze pan with white wine and cook until reduced by half. Increase the heat to high; add mussels, coconut-lemongrass milk, and basil. Season with salt and shake the pan to distribute the ingredients. Cook, shaking the skillet occasionally, just until the mussels open. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
Yield: 4 servings
Note: This recipe also works nicely with shrimp as a substitute for mussels.
(Recipe from “The Flavorful Kitchen Cookbook,” Fair Winds Press, 2013)