ASIC VINAIGRETTE
1 cup olive oil
1 cup salad oil
% cup Cabernet Sauvignon vinegar
Ч2 cup gin
3 bay leaves Pinch of cayenne Pinch of salt
3or4 cloves crushed garlic, in a sachet bag (see Note)
10 to 12 juniper berries
1. Mix all the ingredients together until well combined and serve with carpaccio.
Note: A sachet bag is simply a piece of cheesecloth in which you assemble ingredients whose flavor, but not presence, you want in a dish. You tie the cloth snugly and put it in the mixture, but remove it before serving.
VSARDONNAY-HAZELNUT VINAIGRETTE
An easy but wonderful dressing-the ingredients are terrific. Try using it very simply with a bowl of different greens, or with cold poached salmon and finely cut vegetables.
2 cups hazelnut oil 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup sqfflower oil Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1 cup Chardonnay vinegar
1. Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl and chill.
SAUCE MIGNONETTE
The fascinating writer and sportsman A. J. McClane is a world-class authority on many, if not all, matters relating to the creatures of the sea. I have a dog-eared collection of his work, which has answered many questions for me. In his volume The Encyclopedia of Fish Cookery, he states that "there are ten species of oysters which enter the world's markets in volume, but only four are found along the shores of North America." You will hear many, many names for oysters, but there are only ten species-it is their locality that identifies them. McClane adds an important fact: "Northern oysters are at their best in the fall and winter months, while Gulf bivalves are firm and ripe from December onward"
Spanking fresh oysters need no sauce, except for the spark of freshly squeezed lemon. But I confess that even if they are fresh, I like the option of doing a dozen with this sauce, anyway.
Makes 1 cup
Ч2 cup Champagne vinegar Ч2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons sliced shallots Cracked black pepper to taste
1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and serve in a small crock with oysters.
ARM BACON DRESSING
This is a simple vinaigrette that you can use on various salads. A spinach salad with the cooked bacon would obviously be a perfect choice. One visually stunning idea: Warm some of the vinaigrette in a saute pan. Quickly warm some spinach and croutons in the same pan and mound the mixture on plates. Top with a freshly soft-cooked 5-minute egg, peeled and then gently slashed open. The yolk will run onto the greens, adding a rich, creamy texture to the dish.
Makes approximately 2 cups
V2 pound slab bacon, rind removed, cut V2 cup virgin olive oil
into Ч4- by 42-inch dice Ч2 cup red wine vinegar
Bacon fat from cooking the bacon Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
Ч2 cup salad oil, preferably safflower 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1. Heat the bacon, salad oil, and olive oil in a large saute pan until bacon is just cooked.
2. Whisk in the vinegar, salt, cracked black pepper, and Dijon. Hold in a warm place.
•JETS-
AMARI-SESAME DRESSING
Makes 1 cup
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves Ч2 teaspoon salt
У4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Уз cup red wine vinegar Уз cup tamari, or soy sauce Уз cup sesame oil
1 tablespoon plus Hot Chili Oil (page 212)
1. Combine all the ingredients and refrigerate until needed.