2 heads iceberg lettuce

2 cups Cabernet Buttermilk Dressing

2 tablespoons red onion, minced

3 ounce gorgonzola cheese

6 roma tomatoes

3 ounces caramelized bacon

1/4 cup parsley leaves

salt and pepper, to taste

Cut heads of iceberg in half and then cut each half into thirds. Plate two wedges per person and divide remaining ingredients evenly between salads.

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/8 Cabernet vinegar

1 teaspoon parsley leaves, chopped

1 teaspoon rosemary leaves, chopped

1 teaspoon thyme leaves, chopped

1/8 cup shallot, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients together until well incorporated.

6 roma tomatoes

2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

salt and pepper, to taste

Quarter tomatoes and toss with oil and seasoning. Roast at 350 for 15 minutes. Allow to cool. Remove skins and seeds and cut into strips.

3 ounces bacon

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Lay bacon in a single layer on a baking sheet. Distribute sugar evenly to cover. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Allow to cool and cut into strips.

6 pork chops brined

1 cup apple cider

3/4 cup apples, peeled and diced

1 cup demi glace

2 tablespoons butter

cooking oil, as needed

1/4 cup candied nuts

salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a large saute pan with oil until hot. Sear pork chops until golden brown and finish in oven. Pour out remaining fat but keeping the browned bits in the pan. Deglaze with cider and add apples. Coo until reduced to 1/8 cup liquid. Add in demi glace. While sauce is boiling stir in butter and season. Plate with brussels sprouts and garnish with the nuts. 

12 ounces brussels sprouts leaves

1 1/2 ounces shallots, sliced into rings

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Set a pot of heavily salted water to boil. Heat a saute pan with oil and begin to toast garlic and shallot until aromatic. Cook the leaves in the water and strain. Add to the saute pan and saute briefly, tossing all ingredients together. Set a pot of heavily salted water to boil. Heat a saute pan with oil and begin to toast garlic and shallot until aromatic. Cook the leaves in the water and strain. Add to the saute pan and saute briefly tossing all ingredients together.

3 cups water

1/4 cup salt

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup apple cider

2 tablespoons peppercorns

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

6 sprigs thyme

3 sprigs rosemary

Bring all ingredients to a boil. Stir to dissolve salt and sugar and remove from heat. Cool completely to refrigerator temperature and strain out solids. Cover the chops with the liquid and refrigerate for 6 hours.

1 quart heavy cream

6 1/2 ounces sugar

1 cup egg yolk

2 teaspoons lemon zest, minced

1 teaspoon lemon extract

Heat heavy cream until just before it simmers. Whip egg yolks until lightened and stir in sugar until dissolved. Slowly temper cream and egg together and return to heat. Stir over low heat until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in lemon zest and extract. Pour into ramekins and bake in a water bath at 300 until custard has set. Refrigerate brulees until cooled through. Pour enough sugar onto the brulee to cover. Carefully torch sugar to melt. Feel free to garnish the brulee with fresh blueberries and candied lemon zest.

¼ lb. All-Purpose flour

¼ lb. Semolina

2 whole eggs

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tablespoon Kosher salt

 

1 lb. of Pork Shoulder

1 lb. of Boneless Beef Chuck Short Rib

1 medium onion, small dice

1 stalk of celery, small dice

1 medium carrot, small dice

8 cloves of garlic, minced

4 or 5 bay leaves, depending on size

2 sprigs of rosemary

2 sprigs of thyme

1 cup of red wine

4 ½ cups of canned San Marzano tomatoes

1 cup veal stock

Vegetable oil for sautéing

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix the all-purpose flour and semolina together. Mound the flour on a flat, non-porous work surface and make a well in the center. In this well add the whole eggs, egg yolks, olive oil and salt. Use a fork to mix them together. As you whisk the liquids, slowly add flour from the outside of the well into the center until you have incorporated it all.

At this point the dough will be formed, and it will require kneading with your hands for 5 to 10 minutes. Once finished allow dough to rest by covering with a towel or plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, cut into 4 equal size pieces and follow the procedure for making pasta sheets with your pasta roller. Once sheets are formed, place on cutting board and cut into random triangles. Lightly flour the pieces after they are cut so they do not stick to one another.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Cut your pork shoulder and beef short rib into large chunks and season with salt and pepper as desired. Lightly oil a large sauté pan and heat to high. Place the meat into the pan, but do not crowd the pan. Sear the meat on all sides until golden. Remove from the pan and set aside. Reduce your heat to low. Place the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary and thyme into the same pan. When these items begin to be translucent (4 or 5 minutes) add the wine and reduce by 1/3 cup. Place the seared meat, the contents of the sauté pan, the canned tomatoes, and veal stock into a deep 8 x 8 baking dish. Lightly season and cover with saran wrap and then aluminum foil. Place the dish into your preheated oven and cook for 3 hours. When finished the meat should be very tender. After it has cooled shred the meat into edible pieces and gently smash any large tomato chunks.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While water is coming to a boil, reheat your sauce in a large sauté pan, allowing space to add in cooked pasta. Cook your pasta for 3-4 minutes, as fresh pasta will cook much faster than dried pasta. Drain pasta in a colander and place it directly in the sauce. Allow for pasta to cook in the sauce to absorb more of the flavor. Top with Parmesan cheese and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.

Cheesecake batter:

1/2 pound of cream cheese, softened

1 pound of mascarpone cheese

3 cups of granulated sugar

3 tablespoons of honey

2 whole eggs

Strawberry sauce:

2 cups frozen strawberries

½ cup water

½ cup sugar

10 fresh strawberries, sliced

3 large basil leaves, julienned

Balsamic Reduction:

2 cups balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

Pre-heat oven to 300°. Using an electronic mixer with a paddle attachment beat the softened cream cheese with sugar, occasionally scraping the sides with a spatula. When smooth, add the honey and mascarpone cheese. Slowly mix to incorporate, again stopping occasionally to scrape the sides. It is important to not over mix the mascarpone. Add the eggs one at a time until they are incorporated. Scoop the batter into individual oven proof ramekins, and place them into a larger baking dish. Fill the dish with water to reach half way up the ramekins, cover with aluminum foil and bake 35 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool before removing them from the baking dish. Refrigerate and serve cold.

In a small sauce pot place frozen strawberries, water, and sugar and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and gently simmer until the strawberries are soft. Remove from heat, place in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside to cool. After mixture has cooled, add fresh strawberries and the basil.

Place balsamic vinegar and sugar into a small sauce pot over low heat. Reduce until there is ½ cup of liquid. Serve room temperature. Serve individual cheesecakes with strawberry sauce and balsamic drizzle.

4 cups of tomato juice

2 cups of orange juice

1 ½ cups of light corn syrup

4 cloves of garlic, smashed

Red pepper flakes, as desired

4 roma tomatoes, cut in half

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons fresh oregano, finely chopped

2 tablespoons fresh basil, finely chopped

2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped

¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil

1 zucchini, cut ¼ inch thick slices

1 eggplant, cut ¼ inch thick slices

Salt and pepper to taste

1 lb. log of chevre goat cheese,

cut ½ inch thick round slices

3 medium eggs, scrambled

panko, as needed

flour, as needed

Place all ingredients into a small sauce pot and slowly bring to a simmer. Gently reduce the sauce by half. Strain liquid and cool. Sauce should be served at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 250°. In a medium bowl toss roma tomatoes, minced garlic and half of the chopped herbs with 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Place tomatoes skin side down on a wire rack, place it on a baking sheet and put in oven. Allow tomatoes to cook for 2 hours. In the same bowl toss the zucchini and eggplant with olive oil, the remaining herbs, and lightly season with salt and pepper. Place on grill and cook until they are just soft.

Place both the flour and the bread crumbs on separate plates while the scrambled eggs can stay in a bowl. Dredge the cheese disks one by one first in flour, then the egg mixture, then the bread crumbs.

In a very hot sauté pan add vegetable oil and cook the cheese until it becomes golden, then flip sides and do the same. Remove with spatula. On your plates layer the cheese with the vegetables and drizzle the sauce over and/or around your plate.

4 servings

6 oz. halibut filets

16 oz. tomato juice

6 oz. sweet white wine

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 fennel bulb, julienned

zest of 1 lemon

8 cups uncooked spinach

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

Season halibut filets with salt and pepper. Place tomato juice, wine, zest, fennel, salt and sugar in a deep pan, wide enough to hold filets. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for three minutes. Add halibut and cover. Cook over low heat, 12-15 minutes, or until fish is just cooked through.

Remove filets from pan with slotted spatula and keep warm. Raise heat to medium and add spinach to pan. Stir and turn continuously until spinach is just wilted. Adjust seasoning. Place a mound of spinach in four shallow bowls. Top with fish. Pour remaining broth over.