Butter Pie Dough
This simple, extraordinary all-purpose pie dough can be used in both your sweet and savory baking.
Ingredients:
2½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
14 tablespoons cold butter (salted or unsalted), cut into tablespoon-size pieces
½ cup ice water, plus 1 to 2 tablespoons more, as needed
Method:
1. In a large chilled bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Sprinkle butter over the flour. With a pastry blender, or your clean, cold hands, mix the butter into the flour mixture until the ingredients look like cracker crumbs with lumps the size of peas.
2. Sprinkle ½ cup ice water over the dough, and stir it in with a fork. Squeeze a handful of dough with your hand; it should keep together and feel moist. Add additional ice water as needed until dough holds together and you can gather it up to form a ball.
3. Place the ball on a lightly floured work surface and cut into two equal pieces. Form each into a chubby disk, and wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour.
4. To roll out the dough, remove from the fridge and place on a lightly floured work surface. Let the dough rest at room temperature for a few minutes, until soft and easy to roll. Dust the top of the dough with flour to prevent sticking, and roll the dough from the center in all directions, into a circle about 2 inches larger than your pie pan or tin. Carefully drape the dough over the rolling pin and gently fit it into the pan. (For a double crust pie, roll out the second disk of dough.) Follow your pie, tart or quiche recipe from there!
Potatoes à la Robuchon
Of all the haute cuisine in legendary chef Joël Robuchon’s repertoire, he was best known for these super-silky potatoes.
Ingredients:
2½ pounds fingerling potatoes, all of a similar size
1 pound unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes
¼ cup milk
Sea salt, to taste
Method:
1. Place unpeeled potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a rapid simmer and cook for 35 to 40 minutes or until tender. Drain and peel. Transfer to a bowl and let potatoes cool slightly.
2. Turn potatoes through a food mill on the finest setting, back into the cooking pot. Heat pot over medium heat stirring until heated through and steam begins to come off the bottom of the pot. Add butter in 5 additions, allowing each addition of butter to be almost melted before adding the next until it all has been incorporated.
3. Stir in warm milk until combined. Using a whisk, vigorously stir potatoes until fluffy. Season with salt. Transfer to a serving dish and smooth the top of the potatoes with the back of a spoon or an offset spatula.
Butter-Braised Turnips with Greens
Simmered in rich chicken stock, this dish is finished with lemon juice and thyme for fresh appeal.
Ingredients:
1 pound turnips, green tops reserved, washed and roughly chopped
1 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 peeled shallots
1 cup chicken stock
Juice from ½ lemon
3 tablespoons fresh thyme
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Wash and scrub the turnips, then cut into 1-inch-long pieces.
2. Heat butter and oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan, then add shallots and turnips. Sauté for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the turnips begin to caramelize.
3. Add chicken stock, and a dash each of salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and turn heat down to low. Let simmer for another 5 minutes, or until stock has started to be absorbed by turnips. Add the turnip greens and simmer for another 5 minutes, or until all the stock has been absorbed and the greens are wilted and tender. Add lemon juice and fresh thyme, then season to taste with more salt and pepper as needed. Serve warm.
