Delicious no-meat recipes for your holiday table.
The long-awaited cookbook from Daniel Humm, celebrated chef of Eleven Madison Park in New York, becomes available this week, but it is, admittedly, not for the faint of heart.
The book, a lofty white tome weighing in at more than six pounds, is beautiful to explore, with tantalizing photos that will send you immediately to your phone to book a restaurant reservation. But will you be able to cook from it?
“The simple answer is yes-ish,” Mr. Humm writes in the book’s introduction:
If you never cook, this is probably a book that should stay on your coffee table. Many recipes require a significant time commitment, a certain level of skill, a reasonably equipped kitchen and a healthy dose of persistence.
Even so, Mr. Humm reassures readers that every recipe has been tested multiple times and if you follow them exactly, they will work — and your palate will be rewarded.
“We did not think about making it simpler,” Mr. Humm said in an interview. “It was our intention to make it exactly the way we serve it at the restaurant. It’s really doable and achievable. You need a decent kitchen, but mostly you need time. Cooking is time consuming.”
Mr. Humm’s gorgeous book is, in fact, suitable for the coffee table, but it would be a shame to not venture into the kitchen with it. The recipes are arranged by season, so we turned the pages to autumn to find three show-stopping vegetable recipes perfect for any Thanksgiving table: butternut squash cannoli; beet salad with chèvre frais and caraway; and cauliflower roasted with grapes, almonds and curry. And if you’re looking for more traditional Thanksgiving flavors, be sure to check out the contributions from Chef Humm last year, which included a simple cranberry chutney, a brioche and fig stuffing and a tantalizing mashed parsnip écrassé.
Visit Well’s interactive recipe collection to see more Vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes; we will be adding new dishes daily.
Eleven Madison Park’s
Butternut Squash Cannoli
Butternut Squash Mousse:
3 sheets gelatin (optional, or substitute 2 teaspoons powdered vegetarian kosher gelatin)
2 cups butternut squash juice (from 4 quarts peeled and diced butternut squash, juiced)
1 1/4 cups cream
Juice of 2 limes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon grated ginger
2 N2O cartridges
1. Bloom the gelatin*, if you are using it, by placing the sheets in a bowl of ice water for 10 minutes, until pliable. (If you are using vegetarian gelatin, soften in water according to directions.)
*Chef Humm notes that the recipe works fine without gelatin, though he adds gelatin at the restaurant so the mousse can hold up longer.
2. In the meantime, reduce the butternut squash juice by half in a small saucepan over low heat.
3. In a mixing bowl, whip the cream to soft peaks.
4. Stir softened gelatin into the warm reduced butternut squash juice. (If you are using gelatin sheets, squeeze to remove excess moisture.) Remove from the heat and season with lime juice, salt and ginger. Strain through a chinois into a mixing bowl. Cool over ice, stirring constantly, until the mixture is just below room temperature. Do not allow the gelatin to begin setting.
5. Fold the whipped cream in 3 parts into the butternut squash mixture and transfer to a whipped-cream canister. Charge the canister with the N2O cartridges and refrigerate until ready to use.
Roasted Butternut Squash:
2 medium butternut squash
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash halves, cut side up, in a roasting pan. Using a brush, coat with olive oil and season with salt.
3. Cover with aluminum foil and roast for 45 to 60 minutes, until tender. Cool to room temperature. Scoop out the flesh to yield 4 cups.
Butternut Squash Tuiles:
1 cup tapioca pearls
4 cups Roasted Butternut Squash
4 cups canola oil
1. Bring 8 cups water to a boil. Add the tapioca pearls and simmer for 30 to 35 minutes, until tender. Drain the tapioca and rinse under cold water.
2. In a blender, blend 1 1/2 cups cooked tapioca with the Roasted Butternut Squash until smooth.
3. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
4. Cut 32 rectangles of acetate, measuring 4 by 8 inches each. Using an offset spatula, thinly spread about 2 teaspoons of the tuile batter onto each sheet of acetate.
5. Place the rectangles on a baking sheet and bake for 2 hours to dehydrate the tuiles. Cool to room temperature before removing the acetate.
6. In a large saucepan, heat the oil to 325 degrees. Working quickly, fry the tuiles, one at a time, for 10 seconds. As you remove each tuile from the oil, immediately roll it around a copper tube measuring 1/2 inch in diameter and 3 inches in length to form a hollow cylinder. Drain off the excess oil and allow to cool. Remove the tube. Repeat this process until all 32 tuiles are fried and shaped. The tuiles can be kept in an airtight container for up to 6 hours.
To finish the crisps:
Butternut Squash Mousse
Butternut Squash Tuiles
1/4 cup sliced chives
1. Expel the mousse from the canister into a tuile until the tube is completely filled. Smooth the ends with a spatula and sprinkle each end with chopped chives. Repeat with the remaining ingredients, to make 32 crisps. Serve immediately after filling.
Yield: 32 cannolis.
Beet Salad With Chevre Frais and Caraway
Roasted Beets
1 1/2 to 2 pounds large red beets
1 1/2 to 2 pounds large Chioggia beets
1 1/2 to 2 pounds large golden beets
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup salt
4 tablespoons sugar
3 cups red wine vinegar
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash the beets thoroughly under running water. Trim off the top and bottom of each beet. Toss in the olive oil, salt and sugar, coating evenly.
3. Separate the beets by color, and place them in 3 individual roasting pans. Pour 1 cup red wine vinegar and 1 cup water in each pan. Cover the pans with aluminum foil and roast for 30 minutes.
4. Remove the beets from the oven, uncover and, using tongs, turn them over in their liquid. Cover them again and continue roasting for another 30 minutes, or until the beets are tender when pierced with a knife.
5. Once the beets are done, uncover them, and cool them in their cooking liquid. Peel the beets, cut them crosswise into 1/2- inch slices, and punch the slices with ring cutters of varying sizes.
Goat Cheese Mousse:
1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 cup chèvre
3/4 cup cream
2/3 cup sheep’s milk yogurt
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons salt
1 N2O charger
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, chèvre, cream and yogurt. Season with lime juice and salt and continue to whisk until thoroughly combined.
2. Transfer the mousse to a whipped-cream canister and charge with the N2O cartridge.
Caraway Tuiles:
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
2/3 cup rye flour
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup glucose syrup
4 egg whites
1. In a small sauté pan over medium heat, toast the caraway seeds for 1 minute, until fragrant. Allow to cool before grinding in a spice grinder.
2. Sift together the rye flour, flour, caraway seeds and baking soda. Place in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. With the mixer running on medium speed, slowly add the butter.
3. In a small saucepan over low heat, heat the glucose syrup so that it is runny and add it to the mixer ingredients.
4. Once the butter and glucose are thoroughly incorporated, pour in the egg whites. Whip until the batter becomes slightly puffy.
5. Pass the batter through a fine-mesh tamis and refrigerate for 1 hour.
6. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line an 18-by-26-inch baking sheet with a silicone baking mat. Spread the tuile batter evenly and thinly, using 3 different round stencils, measuring 1 1/4 inches, 1 1/2 inches and 2 inches in diameter, to create 10 tuiles of each size. You can create your own stencils from thin sheets of acetate. Bake for 10 minutes.
7. Allow the tuiles to cool completely at room temperature, and gently remove them with an offset spatula. Store in an airtight container.
Rye Crumble:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup rye flour
1 cup bread flour
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon milk
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth. Slowly incorporate the rye flour, bread flour, caraway seeds and salt. Add the milk and continue to mix until small clusters of dough begin to form.
3. Flatten out the dough to 1/2 inch thick on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Cool to room temperature. Grind to a powder in a spice grinder. Makes 4 cups.
Beet Vinaigrette:
2 cups red beet juice
1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 cup raspberries
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (0.6 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1. In a small saucepan over low heat, reduce the beet juice to 1 1/3 cups.
2. In another small saucepan, bring the vinegar to a boil, remove from heat and add the caraway seeds and black peppercorns. Steep in the vinegar for 20 minutes and strain.
3. Add the raspberries to the reduced beet juice, and muddle them with the back of a spoon. Steep for 10 minutes and strain.
4. Whisk together the vinegar mixture, reduced beet juice, salt and xanthan gum, whisking until the xanthan gum is completely dissolved. Refrigerate until ready to use.
5. Add the olive oil before serving to break the vinaigrette. Makes 2 cups.
To finish the salad:
Roasted Beets
2 tablespoons olive oil
Fleur de sel
Caraway Tuiles
Goat Cheese Mousse
3 tablespoons Beet Vinaigrette
3 teaspoons Rye Crumble
32 dill blossoms
1. Brush the roasted beet slices with olive oil and sprinkle with fleur de sel. Place 5 slices of varying colors and sizes on each plate.
2. Rest 1 of each size tuile on the beets. Expel 3 tablespoon-size dollops of Goat Cheese Mousse in between the beets.
3. Spoon the beet vinaigrette around, and finish with the Rye Crumble and dill blossoms. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
Yield: 8 servings.
Eleven Madison Park’s
Cauliflower Roasted With Grapes, Almonds and Curry
Curry Oil:
2 cups canola oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced Granny Smith apple
1/3 cup thinly sliced white onion
1/2 stalk lemongrass, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Madras curry powder
1 kaffir lime leaf
1. Heat 1 cup of the oil in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the apple, onion and lemongrass, sweating until translucent, without caramelizing, about 5 minutes. Add the curry powder, and lightly toast with the vegetables for 2 minutes.
2. Add the remaining oil and the kaffir lime leaf and heat the oil to 160 degrees.
3. Remove from the heat, cover and steep for 20 minutes. Strain through a coffee filter. Makes 2 cups.
Brown Butter:
1 pound butter
5 sprigs thyme
2 cloves garlic, crushed but kept whole
1. Place the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Simmer for about 40 minutes. At this point, the butter should be clear and a light caramel color.
2. Continue to simmer the butter, and whisk vigorously until the color is walnut brown. Place the thyme and garlic in a chinois lined with cheesecloth. Strain the Brown Butter over the thyme and garlic. Makes 1 1/2 cups.
Roasted Cauliflower:
1 head cauliflower
1/4 cup Curry Oil
1/4 cup Brown Butter
1 tablespoon salt
1. Slice 4 cross sections of the cauliflower, each 3/8 inch thick. The cross sections should have the florets intact.
2. Cut each slice in half lengthwise, yielding 8 pieces. Reserve the remainder of the cauliflower to use in the Cauliflower Purée (see below).
3. To roast the cauliflower, preheat oven to 300 degrees. Heat 2 large oven-safe sauté pans over high heat and divide the Curry Oil and Brown Butter between the 2 pans. Place 4 pieces of cauliflower in each pan and lower the heat to medium.
4. Sear the cauliflower for about 4 minutes on each side so that both sides are evenly browned, continuously basting the cauliflower with the hot Curry Oil and Brown Butter. Transfer the 2 pans to the oven and roast until the cauliflower is cooked through and dark golden brown, about 10 minutes. Season with the salt.
Sous Vide Cauliflower:
1 head cauliflower
1/4 cup Curry Oil
1/4 cup Brown Butter
1 teaspoon salt
1. Slice 4 cross sections of the cauliflower, each 3/8 inch thick. The cross sections should have the florets intact.
2. Use a 1 1/4-inch ring cutter to punch out 16 cauliflower rounds from the slices that include florets and stem. Trim 16 florets from the remaining cauliflower. Save all other trim for the Cauliflower Purée and the Cauliflower Couscous (see below).
3. Place the rounds and 2 tablespoons Curry Oil, 2 tablespoons Brown Butter and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a sous vide bag and vacuum-seal.
4. Place the cauliflower florets and the remaining 2 tablespoons Curry Oil, 2 tablespoons Brown Butter and 1/2 teaspoon salt in another sous vide bag and vacuum-seal.
5. Steam the bags of cauliflower in a combination steam oven at 185 degrees for 20 minutes, until tender. Transfer to a bowl of ice water.
Cauliflower Couscous:
2 cups cauliflower trim (from the heads used for the Roasted Cauliflower and Sous Vide Cauliflower)
1 tablespoon Brown Butter
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1. Finely chop the cauliflower trim so that it resembles the size and texture of couscous.
2. Place in a small mixing bowl and season with the Brown Butter, lemon juice and salt. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Curried Raisins:
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced Granny Smith apple
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
1 pod star anise
10 black peppercorns
1/3 cup white port
1 kaffir lime leaf
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup golden raisins
1. In a medium straight-sided sauté pan, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the apple and shallots and sweat until translucent, without caramelizing, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the curry powder, star anise and peppercorns, and toast with the apples and shallots for 1 minute.
3. Deglaze the pan with the port and reduce until the pan is almost dry.
4. Add 2 cups water and the kaffir lime leaf and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and steep for 10 minutes. Season with the salt.
5. Place the golden raisins in a heatproof container. Strain the hot liquid over the raisins. Cool to room temperature. Keep the raisins in their liquid until ready to serve.
Carrot Curry Sauce:
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 cups thinly sliced carrots
1 cup thinly sliced white onion
1 tablespoons thinly sliced ginger
1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup canned whole peeled tomatoes, drained
3 1/2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1. In a large saucepan, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion and ginger and sweat the vegetables until the carrots are fork-tender, about 15 minutes.
2. Add the curry powder and toast for 1 minute.
3. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and reduce until almost dry.
4. Add the tomatoes, cooking until they are almost dry, about 3 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, in a small sauté pan, toast the coriander and cumin until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the toasted spices and stock to the vegetables and bring to a slow simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes.
6. Strain the sauce and reduce it to 1 1/2 cups. Season with salt and chill over ice.
Dehydrated Grapes:
2 cups sugar
32 seedless red grapes
1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees, or set a dehydrator to 125 degrees.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a large straight-sided sauté pan, combine the sugar and 2 cups water and bring to a low simmer until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the grapes and remove from the heat. Steep for 5 minutes, remove from the syrup, and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet.
4. Dehydrate the sugared grapes in the oven for 2 hours or in the dehydrator for 4 hours.
Cauliflower Purée:
3 cups cauliflower (or cauliflower trim), 1/4-inch dice, about 11 ounces
2 cups half-and-half
2 tablespoons Brown Butter
2 teaspoons salt
1. Place the cauliflower in a large saucepan and cover with the half-and-half. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat and reduce the heat to low. Simmer the cauliflower until tender, about 25 minutes.
2. Drain the cauliflower, reserving the liquid. Purée in a blender, adding the cooking liquid, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the purée is smooth but not too loose. You should need about 4 tablespoons of liquid.
3. Blend in the Brown Butter and season with the salt. Pass through a fine-mesh tamis and cool over an ice bath, stirring constantly to quicken the cooling process and to prevent a film from forming on the purée. Makes 2 cups.
Curry Raisin Purée:
1 1/2 cups golden raisins
1/4 cup Curry Oil
1 teaspoon salt
1. Place the raisins in a bowl. Pour hot water over the raisins and bloom at room temperature until they are soft, 2 hours. Drain, discarding the water.
2. Purée in a blender until smooth, slowly incorporating the Curry Oil with the blender running. Season with the salt. Makes 2 cups.
To Finish:
8 tablespoons Cauliflower Purée
8 teaspoons Curry Raisin Purée
Carrot Curry Sauce
2 tablespoons Curry Oil
Sous Vide Cauliflower
2 tablespoons vegetable stock
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
Roasted Cauliflower
Curried Raisins
Dehydrated Grapes
32 Marcona almonds
Cauliflower Couscous
Madras curry powder
16 sprigs celery leaves
1. In 3 small pots over low heat, reheat the Cauliflower Purée, Curry Raisin Purée and Carrot Curry Sauce. Add the Curry Oil to the Carrot Curry Sauce.
2. Open the bags of Sous Vide Cauliflower, pour off the liquid, and reserve it. Using 2 medium sauté pans, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable stock in each over medium heat and add equal amounts of the cooking liquid from the Sous Vide Cauliflower. Bring to a simmer, and add the cauliflower discs to one pan and the florets to the other. Add 1 tablespoon butter to each pan and reduce to glaze, about 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
3. Spoon Cauliflower Purée and Curry Raisin Purée on a plate. Place a Roasted Cauliflower cross section on top of the purées. Arrange 2 cauliflower rounds, 2 cauliflower florets, 3 Curried Raisins, 4 Dehydrated Grapes, 4 Marcona almonds and a spoonful of Cauliflower Couscous around the Roasted Cauliflower. Finish the plate with 1 tablespoon Carrot Curry Sauce, a dusting of Madras curry powder and 2 sprigs celery leaves. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
Yield: 8 servings.
