Chef Daniel Angerer's Blog

SWISS CHEESE? - the blog

The first time I ordered a hero in NYC over a decade ago the guy behind the deli counter asked me if I wanted “Swiss cheese.”  I’m thinking at this point wow this is terrific I’m traveling many thousands of miles away and I get something offered which I’m totally familiar with - Swiss cheese. To my surprise the so-called “Swiss cheese” in my sandwich had nothing to do with the cheese I grew up with except for the holes in it (very much like the stereotypical Swiss were a mouse houses in the Tom & Jerry cartoon).

(really good Emmenthaler "Swiss" cheese) 

It took me a while – actually a couple of years -- to realize that Swiss cheese had nothing to do with cheese from Switzerland.  Growing up in Austria cheese from Switzerland such as Gruyere, Emmenthaler, Appenzeler was a staple on our cheese board. Many cheeses from Switzerland are raw milk cheese meaning the milk does not get pasteurized and only gently heated in the cheese making process.  This helps to retain the excellent milk flavor of the healthy cow, which absolutely shines in the cheese.

RICOLA
When I think of Swiss cheese I think of the Ricola candy commercial where a guy plays the alp horn with a beautiful mountainous alpine panorama in the background.  I can tell you from my own experience working in Switzerland for a brief stint it’s absolutely true. The “Schwyzer Braunvieh” or Swiss brown cows roamed and grazed on herb inflected saturated grass with their sonorous bells ringing gently.

Terroir of cheese
Small production cheese making is an art and needs relatively simple equipment - I have even made some at home myself.  The quality of the grass on which the cows feed infuses the flavor of the milk and this makes or break the flavor of the cheese. Another important factor is the cheese maker who may follow tradition and local customs and allows the surrounding air do the trick and age naturally in the caves.

In our restaurant Little Cheese Pub we often have people eyeing the Swiss cheeses selections, one of which is Gourmino Emmenthaler which is the original “Swiss” cheese aged at least 6 months allowing the flavors to peak.  This Gourmino Emmenthaler has a natural nuttiness with a spicy flavor and pleasant medium texture,  easy to cut.

(a serious layer of cheese made in Switzerland in this hero) 


It really is a hero
One of the counterparts produced here in the US is Sur Choix Gruyere which is similarly aged and made from raw cow’s milk cheese in a truthful artisan way.  I have been featuring these cheeses as daily specials in a hero between layers of freshly baked poppy seed buns which add a little texture and simply lettuce and tomatoes.  With these cheeses you can hold the salt, oil, pepper and mayo because the cheese is awesome and needs no additions. 

So come to Little Cheese Pub to get a real hero with Cheese from Switzerland. 

TIS THE SEASON TO GET UNDRESSED … LIKE YOUR SALAD - the blog

It’s a fact, once the conversation starts about going to the beach, showing off the season’s newest swimwear and getting ready for summer vacations, many folks start to watch the daily fat intake. It’s evident with people frequently ordering ‘SOS’ (dishes with sauce on the side). The rest of us, or people like me, just pig out and dig into the every day fat filled foods. Either way eating a little lighter is welcome this time of year because of the heat alone!
The biggest culprit this time of year seems to be salad dressings perhaps because as we eat these delicious summer salads in the hopes of eating lighter folks realize the fat and calories are sneaking in when we ladle dressings over the greens. So we need to dress lighter and indulge in these beautiful tender greens that are hard to overlook at the local farmer’s market right now so abundant and at their peak. I wrapped my brains around this subject and came up with some tasty dressings with the beach figure in mind. And even if eating lighter is not your goal “Summer Dressing” is a perfect understated match for these perfect summer greens whose flavors need no heavy make-up.
 
(testing different kinds of fat less yogurt - Fage was my favorite) 

Summer Dressing
Fat is one of the key ingredients in dressings and I have yet to try a good fatless one yet so this fatless thing went right out the door.  Fat carries most flavor and we’re happily very accustomed to it – think of bacon for breakfast or foie gras -- so flavorful because of their fat content, which is upwards of 50%. 
I wanted to create a light dressing but without sacrificing flavor as I took apart a simple yoghurt dressing recipe from an old cookbook that was made with whole milk yoghurt. I decided to fat free yoghurt instead and added extra virgin olive oil for richness, which also boosted the flavor.  You may think “but you added the fat right back in.”  Not exactly, I replaced the milk fat with a vegetable oil which your body generally breaks down quicker.  I added fresh cucumber pieces and juice and a decent heap of fresh minced parsley to inject a fresh, cool summery feel to the dressing and I think it’s delicious.

(yogurt-cucumber dressing)

Summery Cucumber Dressing
(recipe dresses four salads)
1 cucumber
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped fine
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cups fat free yoghurt
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
sea salt, to taste
fresh black pepper grindings

1.    Peel cucumber then cut in half . With a kitchen spoon scrape seeds out of cucumber middle. Put cucumber seeds in a fine mesh sieve then press juice with back of spoon through sieve - catching juices into a bowl. Chop seeded cucumber small (approximately 1/8-inch pieces).
2.    Peel garlic then chop roughly. Combine chopped garlic and olive oil in a small pot then cook on low heat setting for 3-4 minutes or until garlic is cooked throughout.
3.    Rinse parsley with water then chop fine (discard thick parsley stems if they’re too rough for you).
4.    With a kitchen spoon combine cucumber juice with garlic/oil mixture, parsley, yoghurt,  red wine vinegar salt and pepper then add cut cucumbers.
5.    Refrigerate dressing

Chef’s Tip: add fresh chopped dill to above recipe which is a terrific flavor companion to cucumbers.

(striped bass - a big boy getting ready on the grill - a match for the yogurt sauce)

Serving Suggestions
My favorite salad for this yoghurt dressing is iceberg  cut into large wedges which stands up strong to the somewhat weighty dressing and delivers a welcoming crunch.  Serve this salad next to a charred steak or fish from the grill which doesn’t even need a sauce on its own since the yoghurt dressing is substantial and delivers flavor balance.

DOES A CARROT COME WITH MILEAGE? the blog

Local carrots are becoming larger by the week -- now baby carrot sized, bunch carrots in a week or two, and much later in the season they’ll be gigantic! Last week I was still working with not-so-local carrots in a big bag left by my restaurant’s vegetable guy. I had a head scratching moment when I read where the carrots came from -- on the very bottom of the 50 lb bag it read “product of Israel.”  The flavor -- or what was left in these elephant carrots that had been shipped ages ago from across an ocean – was like a freshly sharpened pencil. Comparing these big boys to the locally harvested little carrots dug a few hours or days ago from fertile close-by Hudson Valley soil … well they are not even relatives.  In a recent conversation with some farmers I learned that the Hudson Valley has amazing terroir because of prehistoric lava eruptions creating an ideal environment for growing root vegetables.

(carrot tops)

Have you ever traveled to Hawaii and eaten a pineapple from South America?  Or look in local grocery stores here in NY – the apple state – and you’ll often find Washington apples.  In the food world things are not always what they appear to be – carrots apparently often come from far away and I’m eager to find out why they have to travel all those miles to come to a consumer like me.   In the meantime let’s cook them.

(fresh bunch carrots)

Spiced Carrots
(recipe yields four portions)

10 bunch carrots
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 pinches of cayenne
2 bay leaf
1 teaspoon sea salt
black pepper grindings, to taste
2 tablespoons parsley, thinly sliced  

1.     Preheat the oven to 380 degrees Fahrenheit
2.     Peel carrots then cut green tops off
3.     Combine carrots and spices in a deep heat-proof dish then add 1 cup of water. Cover dish with aluminum foil tightly
4.     Cook carrots in hot oven for two hours or until carrots are soft then add parsley.

Chef’s note: serve carrots whole or cut in mouth-sized pieces

Serving Suggestions: serve the above carrots with saucy dishes such as braised beef

SUMMER VEGETABLE STEW

I’m enamored with this summer Farmer’s market. I don’t think much can compete with local fruits and vegetables at this moment. A few days ago on my visit to the market the vegetables and fruits were so beautiful and abundant. Amazing flavors and colors took over reason and my palate overtook my mind and I bought way too many greens – I got excited. I feel fortunate to live in a city with where I can pick-up fruits and vegetables a few minutes away that are terrific quality, almost daily. Even growing up in a small village in Austria it was not that easy to get so much of your food from one spot.  At the Union Square market in NY leather skin farmers, dairy workers, cheese philosophers, shepherds, micro green hobbyists, tomato fanatics and writers with pickle and pretzel passions meet and offer their goods to us city people.

(cod crusted with millet served with Summer vegetable stew)

I can’t stress the importance of a freshly dug salad!  Bibb lettuce is amazing right now and has a rose scent which I can’t explain myself, the lettuce is plump and heavy in weight with gorgeous pale green leaves and just perfect right now. Other vegetables I came across are sweet candy-like peppers which made it into a jalapeno/pepper sorbet, and the least bitter eggplants which did wonders in my mother-in-law’s favorite eggplant parmigiana.
In the restaurant we showcased a summery vegetable stew. Simple and quick cooking methods are the most ideal right now – it’s about making these vegetables palatable  not cooking them to a mush.

The following Summer vegetable stew recipe shows off the current local offerings and reminds me of Italian minestrone.

(market vegetables for the stew)
 
Summer Vegetable Stew
(recipe yields four portions)

2 zucchini, yellow, green
1 eggplant
1 red pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon tomato paste
sea salt, to taste
fresh black pepper, to taste
1 bunch/cup scallions, sliced thinly
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1 tablespoon parsley leaves, sliced thinly

1.     rinse all vegetables with warm water then cut in mouth-sized pieces, discard pepper seeds
2.     in a pot (1-gallon sized) heat olive oil on medium heat setting then add cut vegetables, tomato paste salt and pepper – cook for 20 minutes stirring with a wooden spoon every once in a while
3.     add herbs to vegetable mixture continue to cook five more minutes then add 4 cups water – bring mixture to boil then steep on low heat setting for 20 minutes.

Chef’s Tip: add rosemary for extra fragrance and/or lovage an herb known for it’s intense parsley like flavor 

The day after
I loved this soup when I had leftovers the next day after it was chilled in the refrigerator. I did not even heat it up – just enjoyed it chilled which made the vegetables in the soup more intense.