Ice Cold Martinez Food

ICE-COLD MARTINEZ

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together the afternoon of your dinner party. Refrigerate.
• When guests arrive, pour the batched cocktail mixture over a large glass of ice. Stir well for 15 seconds, and strain into coupe glasses. Garnish each with an orange twist.

BIG-BATCH RANCHERO SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine everything in a large pot or rondeau, and simmer over gentle heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent any scorching on the bottom. Add a little water if it becomes any thicker than ketchup. Allow to cool before puréeing.
• Working in a blender in batches, purée until smooth. Check the salt seasoning. Let cool.
• Transfer to quart or pint containers, and stock your freezer, or put the sauce in something more attractive - rubber-sealed jars with hinged lids? - to make gifts of the stuff. Ranchero sauce keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 1 year. (It may separate a little, in which case you can simply reheat and give a new buzz in a blender to reunify.)

ROASTED GARLIC OIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• In a small ovenproof deep dish - a pie plate would work - combine all ingredients, and set in oven for about 20 minutes until the garlic is softened and golden and the oil is fragrant. We don't remove the cloves.

LE GRAND AIOLI

Steps:

• On the night before you serve the grand aioli, gently season the cod with kosher salt on both sides; cover, and refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat oven to 400. Place beets in a small roasting pan. Coat the beets in 4 tablespoons of olive oil, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the red-wine vinegar and 4 tablespoons water to the pan. Cover with foil, and roast until beets are tender, approximately 1 hour. Check beets halfway through cooking, and add more olive oil and water if the roasting pan looks dry. Remove beets from oven, and uncover the pan. Cover the beets with a clean kitchen towel, and let them stand at room temperature until cool enough to handle. Using the kitchen towel (or paper towels) to help you, rub off the outer skin of the beets. Peeling the beets while they are still quite warm makes the otherwise difficult task easy. Set aside the peeled beets until completely cool, then halve or quarter, depending on the size.
• Meanwhile, fill a large pot with water, and bring to a boil. Season aggressively with salt. In this case you want the water even saltier than the sea. It should nearly make you pucker when you taste it. Be sure to taste it!
• Lower the heat so that the water is at an energetic simmer. Add the potatoes, and cook until easily pierced with a skewer, approximately 12 minutes. Remove from the simmering water with a slotted spoon, and transfer to a sheet tray lined with a clean kitchen towel to cool.
• Add the green beans and wax beans to the simmering water, and cook until tender, 4 to 5 minutes, depending on thickness. Remove using a slotted spoon, and transfer to the sheet tray to cool.
• Add the zucchini to the simmering water, and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon, and transfer to the sheet tray to cool.
• Turn the heat up on the pot of water, returning it to an aggressive boil. Gently lower the eggs into the boiling water using a slotted spoon, being careful not to crack their shells. Cook 10 minutes. Remove the eggs from the water, and peel them quickly under cool running tap water. Cut them in half lengthwise.
• Once the vegetables are cool, slice the potatoes in half. If the zucchini are very small, you can leave them whole, otherwise halve or quarter them lengthwise.
• Fill a large bowl with cold water, and drop in the radishes. Agitate the radishes to help shake loose any sand, then let it settle on the bottom of the bowl. Lift the radishes out, and set aside. Repeat this process 2 or 3 more times, using fresh water each time, until the radishes are clean and free of sand. Let dry, then halve or quarter, depending on their size.
• Cut the little gem lettuces in half, and drop into a large bowl of cold water. There should be enough room in the bowl so that the lettuces float easily in a single layer. Let stand for 5 minutes so that any sand drops to the bottom of the bowl, then gently lift the lettuces out, and set aside. Repeat this process 2 more times, using fresh water each time, until the lettuces are clean and free of sand. Pat dry or spin gently in a salad spinner.
• Scrub the mussels under running water, and debeard them. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high in a pot large enough to hold the mussels in a single layer. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the garlic, shallot, thyme sprigs and chile flakes. Let the aromatics toast, but not brown, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes.
• Add the mussels, then pour in the wine. Cover the pot with a tightfitting lid, and steam 2 minutes. Check the mussels, and remove any that have opened to a platter. Continue cooking, removing each mussel as it opens so they do not overcook. Discard any that do not open after 10 minutes. Set mussels aside to cool.
• Arrange a steamer basket in a large pot, and fill with 1/2 inch of water; bring to a simmer. Arrange cod in steamer (cut into large pieces, if necessary), and cover with the lid or foil. Gently steam until just cooked through, about 7 minutes. Remove the cod from the steamer, and set aside to cool.
• Grate the garlic into the bowl of a food processor using a microplane. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of water and a generous pinch of kosher salt. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil. The aioli will start to thicken and emulsify after a few minutes. If the aioli is too thick, add another tablespoon of water to loosen. Taste the aioli, and adjust for seasoning, adding more salt, lemon juice or microplaned garlic, as needed.
• On several large platters arrange all the beautiful ingredients in neat but loose bundles. Serve with the aioli for dipping.

ANCHOVY-GARLIC DRESSING

Steps:

• Place lemon juice, anchovies, garlic, kosher salt and red-pepper flakes in a medium bowl.
• Stir (don't whisk) in the olive oil.
• Season to taste with salt and several good grinds on the pepper mill for a bright, bracing dressing. Cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

FRIED SALTINES WITH CHEDDAR AND ONION

Steps:

• Slice the Cheddar in neat tablets slightly smaller than the saltines. Slice the onion into thin crescent moons (not half-moons), cutting from root to shoot ends so the ribs fall apart more easily, are shorter and, therefore, more manageable to chew and swallow.
• Heat the oil in a deep-sided sauté pan over medium-high to 350 degrees. Stick a wooden chopstick in the oil to see if it sizzles. If it does, it's ready. Fry the saltines in 3 quick batches, adjusting the heat as needed, using a spider or a slotted spoon to swirl them around a little and to make sure they cook evenly to golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per batch. Drain on a wire rack until cool. They keep for a week in an airtight container.
• Set the crackers, cheese and onion on a platter to serve with mustard in a ramekin.

GRILLED SWISS-CHARD STEMS WITH ROASTED GARLIC OIL

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Strip the chard leaves from the stems using a knife, scissors or simply your hands. Reserve the leaves for another use.
• Trim the bottom 1/8 inch of the chard stem, to remove the dry, discolored bit. Clean the stems by submerging in cold water and rinsing thoroughly.
• Aggressively season your boiling water with kosher salt.
• Working in batches, blanch the chard stems until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and let cool on a baker's rack or in a colander to continue draining.
• Grill blanched, dry chard stems evenly on both sides until charred and blistered here and there, like perfect pizza crust looks from a wood oven.
• Cut the stems into batons, and thoroughly dress the stems with roasted garlic oil (see recipe), a few drops of lemon juice and a few flakes of Maldon salt.