- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust to 1/4 teaspoon if you like it spicy)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
*Note: Useful tool – 2 inch biscuit cutter.
2)Crab & Brie Napoleons with Toasted Pistachios :
- 1/2 of a 17.3 ounces package of puff pastry (1 sheet, thawed)
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/3 cup Toasted Pistachios, coarsely chopped
- 3 ounces Brie, well chilled
- 8 ounces Lump Crab meat, picked over
- 1 tablespoon Vidalia onion, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3)French 75:
Makes 2 cocktails
- 2 ounces dry gin
- 2 ounces fresh lemon juice
- 2 ouces simple syrup
- Bottle of chilled brut champagne
- Maraschino cherries
Preparation:
Step 1: 1)Mini Crab and Brie Cakes with a Pistachio Crust:
To toast the pistachios, place the nuts in a small skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Shake and stir constantly to avoid burning the nuts. After about 5 minutes the nuts should be lightly brown. Immediately remove the nuts from the pan to stop the cooking process. Allow the nuts to cool completely before chopping. Once the nuts have cooled, place the nuts in a food processor and pulse several times. Place the nuts in a small shallow dish and set to the side. Cut the brie into ½ inch cubes. Place the cubed brie, crab meat, onion, lemon juice, salt and cayenne in a mixing bowl. Mix well with a fork but gently so as not to break up the crab too much. To make uniform crab and brie cakes. Fill the biscuit cutter with the crab mixture. Carefully remove the crab and brie cake and place it in the nut mixture. Carefully coat the crab cake in the toasted pistachios. Repeat until all of the crab mixture has been used. Chill for 1 hour. Heat the canola oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Make sure that the oil and pan are hot. Place the crab cakes in the pan and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Let the crab and brie cakes cool for a few minutes prior to serving.
Step 2: 2)Crab & Brie Napoleons with Toasted Pistachios :
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Beat the egg and water in a bowl. Unfold the pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface. You may need to roll it some until you have a 12 inch square. Cut the pastry into 24 rectangles (3?x2?). Place the rectangles on a baking sheet and brush with the egg mixture. Bake for 8 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Remove the pastry from the baking sheet and place on a wire rack until cool enough to handle. Split the pastries into 2 layers. You will have 48 halves. To toast the pistachios, place the nuts in a small skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Shake and stir constantly to avoid burning the nuts. After about 5 minutes the nuts should be lightly brown. Immediately remove the nuts from the pan to stop the cooking process. Allow the nuts to cool completely before chopping. Using a sharp knife, coarsely chop the nuts. Place the pistachios in a mixing bowl. Cut the brie into ½ inch cubes. Place the cubed brie, crab meat, onion, lemon juice, salt and cayenne in the mixing bowl with the pistachios. Mix well with a fork but gently so as not to break up the crab too much. Place a heaping tablespoon of the crab mixture on the bottom layer of the 24 napoleons. Top with the top pastry layers. Bake the napoleons for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve.
Step 3: 3)French 75:
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup. Shake until the ingredients are mixed and well chilled. Pour equal amounts of the gin mixture into two champagne glasses. Top each glass with 4 ounces of chilled champagne and garnish with a maraschino cherry.
Step 4: Simply syrup recipe: Put ¾ cup sugar and 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Heat over medium high heat. Stir until the sugar has melted completely. Cool completely and pour into a glass container. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Fonte autore:http://www.cocktailsandsmallbites.com/ Sunny401
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