Porcini Dusted Scallops with Poached Bosc Pear Diamonds and Vanilla Riesling Butter

by Chef Scott Szekretar, H2O Seafood Grill, Smithtown, NY

Serves 4.

Poached Pears

4 ripe Bosc pears
Juice of half lemon
2 cups Riesling wine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean

Scallops

20 large sea scallops (about 2 lb)
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
Oil for sautéing
2 tablespoons cold butter, cut in pieces
2 tablespoons snipped fresh chives

Do ahead…

Slice pears across the widest part into 3/4-inch slices. Each pear should make 3 slices. (Eat scraps.) Cut each slice into a diamond shape as large as slice allows. Carefully cut out the core to form a diamond within a diamond. To prevent browning, place in a bowl with the lemon juice and enough water to cover.

In a saucepan combine wine and sugar. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean and add with pod to the pan. Bring to a boil. Add drained pears and simmer 10 minutes until pears are just tender. Cool pears in wine mixture.

Pat scallops dry. Grind mushrooms to a powder using a spice grinder or food processor. Mix in salt and pepper. Dip flat sides of scallops in mushroom powder.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly coat pan with oil; cook scallops in a single layer without crowding in pan, about 3 minutes per side or to desired doneness. Repeat to cook all the scallops. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, remove pear diamonds from syrup and place 3 on each serving plate. There should be about 2/3 cup wine syrup remaining, or add additional Riesling if needed. Bring to a simmer. Whisk in pieces of cold butter until sauce is slightly thickened.

To serve…

Arrange 5 scallops next to pears. Drizzle with wine sauce and garnish with chives.

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When H2O Seafood Grill and Sushi Bar’s Executive Chef, Scott Szekretar, thinks about food, he thinks freely. He likes to experiment with traditional and new techniques while using the freshest ingredients to yield the best results.

Szekretar combines the traditional with the new. Capitalizing on the local bounty from Long Island, he builds on H2O’s extensive seafood and sushi menu. A saffron sauce accompanies flounder stuffed with scallops, shrimp and crabmeat. An amaretto butter sauce and lavender rice accompany pecan-crusted salmon. And pears, of course, pop up in creative recipes such as the one featured here on Pear Panache.

The graduate of the Culinary Institute of America knows what Long Islanders like to eat. Born in Mineola, he worked at Huntington’s Red Bar & Restaurant and Coco’s. On Fire Island at Maguire’s, he came full circle from washing dishes as a 14-year-old to head chef eleven years later. In addition to these shore front posts, Szekretar spent five winters in Colorado’s ski resorts. There he finely tuned his fine-dining skills in the kitchens of Terre Bistro, Tramonti and Dandelions and had a chance to show his oyster shucking skills at the raw bar of the trendy Jax Fish House. In 2002, Szekretar joined Tellers Chophouse in Islip. He rose through the ranks from sauté cook to chef de cuisine and in 2004 moved to another Bohlsen family-owned restaurant, H2O Seafood Grill and Sushi Bar, where he is now executive chef.

Pear Dauphiné

by Kelley Swenson, Ten 01, Portland, Oregon

You Will Need…

3/4 oz pear liqueur, such as Clear Creek Pear Brandy or Aqua Perfecta Pear Eau de Vie
3/4 oz elderflower liqueur, such as St. Germain or Belvoir
3/4 oz gin
1/2 oz puree of fresh Bartlett or Anjou pear
1/2 oz fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Ice

Pour ingredients in shaker and fill with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a cocktail glass of your choosing. Garnish with a pear blossom or other edible flower, if desired.

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Kelley Swenson serves as Spirits Director at Portland, Oregon’s renowned Ten 01 Restaurant & Bar, where his seasonal cocktail creations have created quite a stir in the popular Pearl District neighborhood. His bartending style is a blend of gracious hospitality and quality mixology, making use of fresh ingredients, unique spirits and seasonal fruit such as pears.

Kelley specializes in an oeuvre of forgotten classic cocktails that he feels exemplify the craft at its best, including what he refers to as the “pre-prohibition” era of cocktails. He also has a knack for working with artisan gins, American rye whiskey, flower water, bitters, European herbals and house-made syrups, grenadines and liqueurs (many of which he makes in-house at Ten 01).

Even when he’s not behind the bar, Kelley is promoting his craft. He is a founding member of the Bartender’s Guild, through which he shares his knowledge and passion, and he has been featured in Northwest Palate, Cocktails Atlas, Imbibe Magazine and Willamette Week. He also recently took third place in the “Great American Distillers Festival” mixology contest and was named one of Portland’s best bartenders by Willamette Week in 2007. Kelley holds a Bachelor’s of Arts in History from Lewis & Clark College.

Braised Bartlett Pear and Chicken Pastilla

by Mark Poccaro, Top Of The Hub Restaurant

Makes one 9-inch pie, serves 6-8.

You Will Need…

1 tablespoon coriander seeds, or 1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, or 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/4 teaspoon each salt and black pepper
3 cups diced Bartlett pears (1 pound)
2 large onions, chopped (1 pound)
3 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1/4 cup mild olive oil
10 13 x 17-inch phyllo leaves
1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Prepare Chicken Filling

If using whole seeds, grind coriander and cumin in a spice grinder, or crush in a mortar and pestle. Add cinnamon, ginger and allspice. Set aside.

Heat canola oil in a deep skillet. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and brown on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside.

Add pears and onion to pan and sauté until lightly caramelized, about 10 minutes. Stir in spice mixture and cook 1-2 minutes until spices are fragrant.

Return chicken to pan. Add broth and cream. Cover and simmer over low heat about 30 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Transfer chicken to a plate to cool.

Continue to simmer sauce until thickened and reduced by half. Beat eggs and yolk; stir into sauce and cook on low heat about 10 minutes until sauce thickens again.

Shred chicken into bite-size pieces and return to pear mixture. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Assemble Pastilla

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly oil a 9-inch round springform pan. Fold one phyllo leaf in half and place on bottom of pan. Brush with oil. Evenly arrange 8 overlapping phyllo leaves in pan draping ends over sides, lightly brushing each leaf with olive oil.

Spoon chicken-pear mixture into pan. Top evenly with almonds. Fold ends of phyllo over filling. Brush top with oil. Bake 45 minutes until golden brown.

Let stand 10 minutes. Combine powdered sugar and cinnamon and sift over top of Pastilla. Remove sides of pan and cut into wedges.

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Chef Mark J. Porcaro is the creative force behind the menu of fine American Cuisine at Top of the Hub Restaurant & Skywalk in Boston, Massachusetts. As Executive Chef, he’s devised a carefully conceived array of dishes that combine the freshest seasonal flavors with eclectic presentation.

“We love to work with pears at Top of the Hub,” says Porcaro. “They’re versatile and elegant, pairing wonderfully with many dishes on our seasonally changing menu.”

The award-winning Top of the Hub is one of Boston’s finest dining destinations, featuring outstanding cuisine, impeccable service and a sophisticated ambiance. Soaring 52 floors above the Back Bay, the restaurant and its lounge, as well as the adjoining Skywalk Observatory on the 50th floor, offer every guest spectacular, panoramic views of the Boston skyline and Metropolitan area.

Prior to dazzling diners at Top of the Hub, Porcaro served as Executive Sous Chef at the luxuriant 250 room Manele Bay Hotel in Lanai City, Hawaii, and held culinary positions at Boston’s Le Meridien Hotel, the Lodge at Koele in Hawaii, Chatham Bars Inn in Chatham, MA, the Regatta of Cotuit in Centerville, MA, and the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge, MA. Porcaro has also assisted in planning and executing menus for numerous events at Manhattan’s prestigious James Beard House.

Chef John Van House is the Executive Chef of Murray’s Restaurant in downtown Minneapolis. A veritable institution of classic steakhouse fare, Van House has the giant task of living up to 61 years of Murray’s culinary tradition and memories.

“We’re known for our steaks, but we also take great pride in some of the more flamboyant items on our menu,” says Van House. “For example, we serve a popular tableside pear flambé with tequila and Pernod, served over ice cream-stuffed crepes.”

Van House’s featured Pear Panache recipe is equally delightful: red wine poached pear with mascarpone almond filling and candied almonds. “That one is so impressive, we served it at a recent James Beard House dinner! It’s easy enough for amateur chefs to try, however,” assures Van House.

Chef Van House comes from an extensive culinary background and is a graduate of the Le Cordon Bleu culinary program. He enjoys working with his own homegrown produce and lives by the motto: “A chef’s job is to never stop learning.”