Leeks With Walnut Vinaigrette Food

GRILLED LEEKS WITH TARRAGON VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• In a bowl or jar, combine the vinegar, mustard and some salt and pepper. Whisk to combine, and then slowly pour in the olive oil while whisking. Set aside.
• Trim the roots off the leeks, leaving some of the root end intact so the leeks hold together. Cut the leeks in half lengthwise and rinse very well--they are usually pretty sandy and dirty.
• Add about 1 inch of water to a large pot over medium-high heat. Insert a steamer basket and set the leeks into the steamer. Cover and cook until softened and tender when the white end is pierced with a paring knife, about 5 minutes. Remove the leeks from the steamer, pat dry and transfer to a shallow dish. Brush with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper.
• Heat a grill pan or grill to medium-high heat. Add the leeks, cut-side down, and cook until grill marks form, about 3 minutes. Flip and repeat. Remove to a serving platter, drizzle over some of the vinaigrette and sprinkle with the hazelnuts.

LEEKS WITH DIJON VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Game Plan: Make the vinaigrette while the leeks cook.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat, then salt it generously. Trim the root end of the leeks, leaving enough to hold the leaves together, and halve lengthwise. Rinse very well under running water to flush out any grit trapped between the leaves. Add the leeks to the boiling water and cook until tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer the leeks to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Pat dry and lay them on a serving platter.
• Meanwhile, whisk the vinegar, mustard, water, and the 3/4 teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in the olive oil, starting with a few drops and then adding the rest in a steady stream to make a smooth, slightly thick dressing. Drizzle the vinaigrette evenly over leeks, turn them to coat, and scatter the parsley and the tarragon, if using, over the top. Serve immediately or up to 2 hours later at room temperature.

LEEKS WITH WALNUT VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Trim the tough dark green tops and stem ends of 12 leeks, but keep the bases intact. Halve lengthwise and rinse well. Boil in salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and cool in a bowl of salted ice water, then drain and pat dry. Whisk 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Whisk in 1/3 cup walnut oil and drizzle over the leeks. Top with chopped toasted walnuts and chopped parsley.

LEEKS VINAIGRETTE WITH SIEVED EGG

Steps:

• Slice off the tangled root end and the thick, woody dark green top of each leek at the approximate same length. Wash the leeks vigorously under slow-running cold water, using your hands and fingers to scrape away insistent dirt and sand. Arrange them on a cutting board, and in one confident move, stab the tip of a sharp chef's knife into the leek 1/2 inch from the root end, and run it the rest of the length to the green top, in essence cleaving the leek starting from the white pale root, making two legs and a crotch, where only one thick column was to start. Back at the sink, wash again and again, keeping the leeks intact, but removing every single last grain of sand.
• Place the leeks in a shallow heatproof dish large enough to hold all of them snugly in a single layer. Barely cover leeks with water, leaving them, as we often say, bobbing in the water like crocodiles submerged at the river's edge. Season with salt, and scatter with the black peppercorns. Cover with parchment, being sure that the parchment is tucked in around all the edges of your casserole dish. Add a few spoonfuls of water evenly on top of the parchment - allowing the weight of the water to help hold down the parchment, which will start to dome from heat and condensation once the cooking starts. Bring the water to a gentle simmer, and hold it there until the leeks are tender without being mushy, with no raw, crunchy quality at all. The color will be drab on the exterior and still attractive halcyon at the centers. This may take 10 minutes, or even 20; you have to watch them.
• Remove the leeks from the water with a slotted spoon, and transfer to a clean rack, draining all of their cooking water. Once they have cooled completely, remove the outermost papery, inedible layers of the leek to reveal the tender interiors. Also pick out any black peppercorns that may be clinging inside the layers. Cut into quarters on a bias, and arrange attractively on a serving platter.
• For the vinaigrette, place the grated garlic, mustard and red wine vinegar in bowl. Add in a pinch of kosher salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Whisk in the olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• To assemble, dress the leeks generously with the vinaigrette. Push the egg whites through a fine-mesh sieve, followed by the yolks, over the leeks - exploiting the color contrast. Scatter with chopped parsley. And finish with a solid few grinds of black pepper. Serve at room temperature.

WALNUT VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Place all of the ingredients, except the oils, in a blender and process on high speed. With the machine running, gradually add the olive and walnut oils until the vinaigrette is emulsified, about 1 minute. Refrigerate until ready to serve. (The vinaigrette can be prepared up to 1 week in advance, covered and refrigerated.)
• Note: To toast walnuts, place the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F. oven, stirring occasionally, until toasted, 8 to 12 minutes. Cool completely.

TRUFFLE-STEAMED HALIBUT ON MELTED LEEKS WITH TRUFFLE VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Combine the truffle peelings and Madeira in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, separately reserving the liquid and peelings.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the same saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, 1/4 cup of the chopped carrot, celery, and sachet. Saute for about 4 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Add the reserved Madeira liquid and stir to de-glaze the pan. Continue to cook for about 3 minutes or until the pan is almost dry. Add the rich chicken stock and cook about 4 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by half. Immediately strain through a fine sieve into a medium size, heat-proof bowl. Discard the solids. Set the liquid aside to cool.
• When the liquid is cool, whisk in the vinegar, 1/2 cup of the remaining olive oil, and the truffle oil. Season the truffle vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Remove the green part from the leeks (you may want to reserve this for making stock). Split leeks in half, lengthwise, down to but not through the root ends. Holding the leeks together by the root, rinse thoroughly under cold running water to remove all the grit. Pat dry.
• Place the leeks in a medium saucepan along with the chicken stock, butter, minced parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the leeks are soft. Add the 1/2 cup of remaining diced carrots and simmer for 3 minutes. Cover and turn off the heat, but leave the pan on the burner to keep the leeks warm until ready to serve.
• While the leeks are cooking, prepare the halibut.
• Lightly season each piece of halibut with salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste. Place 2 truffle slices and 1 tarragon leaf on each side of the halibut. Using a large pastry brush, very lightly coat one side of 6 10-inch by 10-inch squares of plastic wrap with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Securely wrap each piece of fish in an oiled plastic wrap square. Place the halibut in the top half of a steamer over lightly simmering water. Cover and steam for 8 minutes per inch, or until the fish is just firm but slightly underdone in the center. Remove the fish from the steamer.
• Whisk the fines herbs into the reserved truffle vinaigrette.
• Spoon equal portions of the melted leeks into the center of each 6 warm dinner plates. Unwrap the fish and place one piece on top of the leeks. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the fish and around the edge of the plate. Garnish top with crispy leeks and serve.
• Add oil to deep fryer, or a 3-inch deep saute pan. Heat over medium-high until very hot but not smoking, and add the leeks. Quickly fry until the leeks are crisp, about 30 seconds. Remove leeks from oil immediately. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.

LEEKS VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a vigorous boil and season liberally with salt.
• Trim the leeks at the root ends, keeping the leeks intact. Cut the leeks where the light green meets the darker green. Save the darker green section for stock. Split the leeks in half lengthwise, again leaving the roots intact. Put the leeks in a large bowl of water and let it sit for a minute. Rinse the dirt from the insides of the leeks by lightly separating the layers and allowing the water to wash the dirt out. Tie the leeks in 3 places with butcher's twine to hold shut.
• Add the leeks to the pot of water and let it come back to a simmer. Boil the leeks until they are very tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer them to paper towels and remove the twine. Separate each leek into 2 halves.
• In a small bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, mustards, garlic, shallots and salt and pepper. Spread some of the vinaigrette on the bottom of an 8-inch square dish.
• While the leeks are still warm, remove the outer layer of each; lay the leeks cut-side down in the vinaigrette in the dish. Spoon the remaining vinaigrette over the leeks. Cover and chill the leeks in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
• Arrange the leeks on a platter and drizzle with the vinaigrette. Garnish with the hazelnuts, eggs and chives. Drizzle more vinaigrette over the leeks and serve.

LEEKS WITH SHALLOT CAPER VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Trim leeks to about 5 inches and trim root ends, leaving them intact. Cut each leek in half lengthwise and wash well, discarding any tough outer leaves.
• In a skillet just large enough to hold them in one layer arrange leek halves, cut sides down, and add enough water to reach halfway up sides of leeks. Simmer leeks, covered, until tender, 5 to 10 minutes, and immediately plunge into a bowl of ice and cold water.
• In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, shallot, mustard, and salt and pepper to taste and add oil in a stream, whisking. Whisk vinaigrette until emulsified and whisk in capers and parsley.
• Transfer leeks to paper towels. Pat and gently squeeze leeks until dry and divide between 2 plates. Spoon vinaigrette over each serving.