Talk Takeaway: Cooking with Chef Robert Irvine

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Posted on Nov 5, 2012 10:45am

Nowadays everyone is juggling hectic schedules and it can be difficult to find the time to create delicious home-cooked meals. In today's "Talk Takeaway," Chef Robert Irvine showed us how to make a quick, simple and beautiful family-style dinner. Here are the recipes.

Salmon with Black Bean salsa
Salmon Salmon
12-2-3 oz.   Salmon medallions
1 tbsp       Sea Salt
1 tsp       Pepper
1 tsp       Coriander
Grapeseed oil to cook

Salsa
3 cups       Black beans - cooked and well rinsed with water
1/2 cup       Bell pepper- cored and small dice
1/2 cup       Red onion- small dice
1/4 cup       Red wine vinegar
1 cup       Tomatoes- small dice
2 tbsp       Grapeseed oil
2 tbsp       Parsley- minced
1/4 cup       Cilantro- minced

BBQ sauce
1 cup       Catsup
1/4 cup            Brown sugar
1/4 cup            Rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp       Worchester sauce
1/2 cup       Stone ground mustard
2 tbsp       Hot sauce of choice

Method:
BBQ
In a bowl whisk together all ingredients, then is a sauce over low heat, cook for 5-6 minutes to blend flavors. Remove from heat and hold.

Black Bean Salsa
In a saucepan over medium high heat, add oil and allow to heat until verge of smoking then add onions and continue to cook with a stirring method, until onions are slightly translucent. Reduce heat to medium, then add peppers, tomatoes, beans, salt and pepper and cook for additional 9-10 minutes, then remove from heat.
Once removed add vinegar, parsley and cilantro, stir well and hold for plating.

Salmon cooking TOFU
Season salmon medallions with salt, pepper and coriander then in a sauté pan over high heat add 1 tbsp grapeseed oil and heat to verge of smoking then add season salmon fillets and cook on first side for 2-3 minutes, turn fish to second side glaze with BBQ and repeat cooking for 2-3 minutes.
Portion black bean compote in center of plate and top with salmon and serve.

Vegan Alternative
Substitute grilled and bbq glazed Tofu for Salmon

CHOCOLATE RIDICULOUS
Yields- 14 orders
Shelf life- 5 days

Flourless Chocolate Torte
Yields- 2 cakes

Shopping List
3/4 lb.   Unsalted butter CAKE
3.25 lb.   Semi- sweet chocolate
12          Egg whites
12              Egg yolks
1 cup       Granulated sugar
10 inch   Pie pan

Method
Step 1
Pre heat oven to 350 degrees

Step 2
Spray cake pan or spring form with non- stick and hold

Step 3
In bain-marie heat chocolate and butter until well mixed and melted
Remove from heat, whisk in egg yolks and let cool

Step 4
Whisk sugar and eggs together until medium peaks are achieved.
Next, in mixing bowl, fold egg/ sugar mixture into chocolate and pour into pan.

Step 5
Bake in oven with a water bath for 30 - 40 minutes or until set. Cool and serve

Ganache
Shopping list
8 oz.       Heavy cream
10 oz.        Semi sweet or dark chocolate chunks

Method
In saucepan, over medium heat, bring cream to a heavy simmer, remove from heat
After removing from heat, transfer to small mixing bowl and stir either type of chocolate in cream. Stir until chocolate is totally dissolved and hold in reserve until use for icing

Cookie Crust
Shopping List
2 cups       Chocolate cream cookies- crushed
1/2 cup       Clarified* butter

Method
Crush cookies in food processor until fine grains of cookies, then
In bowl add crushed cookies and 1/4 cup butter and mix into cookies. Then slowly add remaining butter, ensuring that mix does not become too wet. Crust should not release butter when squeezed in hand. Build flat crust on spring form or cake plate bottom.
Hold for layering

Devil's Food and Brownie Cake
Shopping List
Box Recipe
1 round cake- each

Chocolate Cream Cheese
Shopping List
3 lbs.       Cream Cheese- Softened
2 cups       Chocolate Ganache- cooled

Method
In mixer with whisk attachment, blend cream cheese and chocolate until well mixed, scrap sides and re-peat, remove from bowl and hold for assembly.

Construction
First build the Oreo base and place in freezer for 20 minutes to stiffen base. Next add 1 1/2 cup cream cheese to base and spread evenly then top with baked Devil's Food Cake, then again add cream cheese. For next layer add fudge cake then another layer of icing then finish with torte layer. Finally ice whole exterior of cake with remaining cream cheese and again cool for 20 minutes. After cooling ice cake with prepared ganache, keeping 1/2 cup ganache in reserve.