Sunday, February 28, 2010

Foodbuzz 24,24,24: James Bond Meets the Toaster Oven



It's all thanks to Eric Ripert, the legendary chef behind NY's celebrated Le Bernardin. Some of you may know he starred  in a PBS show called "Avec Eric," where he travels to the source of his culinary inspirations to showcase where great ingredients comes from, but few know of his brief online series called "Get Toasted." With a handful of fresh ingredients, a single toaster oven and a few minutes, Eric produces simple, fast meals—it is pure brilliance... like MacGyver or Q of cooking!


So in true espionage fashion, here is the debriefing.

The mission: 
To create a sharp 6-course menu from Ripert's repertoire that requires little time or clean-up, but of a 4-star caliber quality. Test and rate Ripert's recipes according to taste and ease of preparation. Extra credit given to introduce our hands-off friends to take a more active role in cooking by having them help out with the preparation. 

The Menu:
1. Mission figs wrapped in bacon
2. Quail eggs and smoked salmon toasts
3. Tomatoes Provencal
4. Zucchini Carpaccio with Parmesan and Balsamic
5. Roasted Butterflied Garlic Shrimp
6. Mango foster with rum and vanilla ice cream

Special Gadgetry: 
• 2 toaster ovens
• point-and-shoot camera with holster

The drink: Vesper martini 

"3 measures of Gordon's (we used Tanqueray), one of vodka (Stoli), half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well unitl it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel." —James Bond


Course 1: Mission Figs wrapped in bacon


We quickly swapped out figs with plump Medjool dates, added parmesan cheese to create AOC's inspired bacon wrapped dates. With the savory bacon crisped by the toaster, contrasted by the sticky, sweet dates and nutty cheese center, course 1 became a major success. 

Bacon wrapped Medjool dates and parmesan (adapted from Ripert's Mission Figs Wrapped in Bacon)
Serves 4

12 Medjool dates, seeded
6 slices bacon, cut in half
12 tiny batons of parmesan
freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat toaster oven to Broil.
4. Season with black pepper and serve immediately.

Taste: Can't stop at one!

Course 2: Quail Egg and Smoked Salmon Toasts

A double whammy obstacle here.  Trader Joe's ran out of brioche and we couldn't find quail eggs anywhere in town—it seemed like we couldn't catch a break! A easy fix was at hand however—we replaced the quail eggs with medium eggs (smaller you can find, the better) and the brioche with a medium crumb filone bread. End product? Delicious and no one knew the better. 

Quail Egg and Smoked Salmon Toasts
Serves 4

8 quail eggs (or medium eggs)
4 ounces smoked salmon, cut into 8 pieces
1/2 teaspoon cut chives (optional)
Special Equipment: 1-inch cookie cutter, paring knife

1. Preheat toaster oven to 450°F.

Prep: Easy, yet looks impressive. 

Course 3: Tomatoes Provencal


Tomatoes Provencal
Serves 2

2 tomatoes, sliced into thirds
1 1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
1/4 cup olive oil
1 small clove garlic, sliced thin
fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
fresh basil

1. Heat toaster oven to broil.

Prep: So simple anyone can recreate this... with their eyes closed. Ok, maybe not for the slicing part though. 

Course 4: Parmesan Zucchini with Balsamic

This dish was a surprising crowd favorite, which is surprising when we had some major carnivores attending. The genius of this dish is the crystal clear flavors coming from the zucchini. Usually, zucchini's natural taste is covered in dishes as it's usually a accompaniment to a main dish or filler for breads. Yet, when it's simply roasted in good olive oil and paired with a sprinkling of parmesan, you get its true taste, which is light, yet comforting. We made 4 trays since we couldn't get enough of it. 

Parmesan Zucchini with Balsamic
Serves 2

1 large zucchini
1/4 cup olive oil
fine sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan
aged balsamic vinegar

1. Heat the toaster oven to Broil.
5. Bake for 3-4 minutes until just tender.
6. Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.

Taste: The perfect warm spring salad.
Prep: A bit time consuming having to arrange the zucchini slices in a perfect spiral, yet the final presentation paid off at the end, don't you think?

Course 5: Butterflied Garlic Shrimp


We were able extricate all of the tasty morsels, yet the table cloth was a goner and so were the dish's rich sauce. Fortunately, we had a spare 2nd tray to which we used up all the leftover bread to sop up every last drop of the butter sauce. 

Butterflied Garlic Shrimp
Serves 1

1 small clove garlic, minced
1/2 small shallot, minced
1/2 tablespoon parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons butter, softened
6 medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 lemon


Taste: Shrimp scampi taken to new heights. 

Course 6: Caramelized Mango with Rum

We ended the night with bang with the caramelized mango with rum. I've always loved desserts with temperature differences and this did not disappoint. The sweet mango gets a turbo boost, not unlike Bond's Aston Martin, with the deep flavors of rum, and a caramelized sugar crust. My accomplices and I actually let it go for an extra minute too long because of a fierce photoshoot. The end product was a bit more caramelized from Ripert's recipe, but the burnt top added a favorable coffee undertone. 

Caramelized Mango with Rum
Serves 2

1 mango
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon brown sugar 
1/4 cup dark rum
Vanilla ice cream (or a flavor of your choice)


Taste: Wonderful. The simple recipe got me thinking of  all the different variations possible... such as figs, peaches, bananas, apple. Might have to bust out the toaster oven soon!
Prep: Can't get simpler than this. The hardest part for us was scooping the ice cream.

Mission Accomplished. Thanks for reading!



  2. What a wonderful idea for a 24,24,24! You certainly accomplished your mission!

  3. Denise: Thanks! Try it sometime—I highly recommend all the recipes :)


  4. everything looks so delicious! definitely a creative dinner party idea! love it!

  5. I thought I already couldn't be more in love with my snazzy new toaster oven... but now I'm going to need to go ahead and make every single one of these recipes.


  7. Good looking toaster oven there. ;) Do you need one on your shopping list?

  8. Hehe, your oven is rather photogenic :) Mmmm... thinking about it, that and a sous vide machine, or a Kitchenaid!

  9. ooo.. congrats on the 24^3. Looks like a money-making good time!

  10. great idea and well done! see ya at ludos!

  11. Thanks! Give the dishes a try :)

    And yes, Ludo tonight! I'm so excited!!

  12. Choose a built-in toaster oven if you want to free up counter space in your kitchen.


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