Indiana Alumni Magazine
Slow Food recipes
- Pan-Roasted Sea Scallops with Pommes Anna and Chanterelle Mushroom Succotash
- Roasted Venison Loin with Creamy Grits and Braised Red Cabbage
- Banana Tart
The recipes on this page are from Restaurant Tallent in Bloomington, Ind., and are included in the book Indiana Cooks! Great Restaurant Recipes for the Home Kitchen (Indiana University Press), by Christine Barbour, BA’79, MA’80, PhD’90, and Scott Feickert, MA’96, with photographs by Tom Stio, MA’77.
To learn about the Slow Food Movement, read “The Slow Life,” from the November/December 2005 issue of the Indiana Alumni Magazine.
Pan-roasted sea scallops. Photo by Tom Stio.
Pan-Roasted Sea Scallops with Pommes Anna and Chanterelle Mushroom Succotash
David Tallent, Restaurant Tallent (Bloomington, Ind.)
Pommes Anna
3 medium potatoes
4 tablespoons clarified butter or extra virgin olive oil, or more or less as needed
Salt and pepper, to taste
Succotash
1/4 cup salt
4 ears corn
1 small zucchini
1 small yellow squash
1/2 cup shell beans (e.g., fava, lima, cranberry, great northern), cooked or frozen
1/2 pound chanterelle mushrooms
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 red onion
4 to 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 shallots, minced
1 tablespoon (1/8 stick) butter
Scallops
1 1/2 pounds scallops (dry, untreated scallops if available)
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
For pommes Anna: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash and peel potatoes. Cut to 1/8-inch thick using mandoline or sharp knife. Hold slices in water.
Dry potatoes well with towel. Brush either non-stick pan or silicone baking sheet with clarified butter or olive oil. Arrange potatoes in 6 individual circles, overlapping slices in each circle. Drizzle each circle with butter or oil.
Place potatoes in oven for about 30 to 35 minutes. When browned and crispy, pull them out and season with salt and pepper. Hold on paper towel-lined plate in warm place.
For succotash: Boil large pot of water with 1/4 cup of salt. Drop corn in water for about 4 minutes. Remove and place on plate. Let cool for 10 minutes, then cut corn off cob. (Reserve cobs for soup, stock, or sauce.) Drop zucchini and yellow squash in water for about 3 minutes. Remove and plunge in ice water until cool. If using frozen beans, drop them in water for 3 to 4 minutes, then place in ice water.
Clean mushrooms with damp cloth or pastry brush. Slice medium and large mushrooms in half. Dice red bell pepper, onion, zucchini, and yellow squash about size of corn kernels. Hold each separately.
Heat large sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add mushrooms, and let sit for 3 minutes. Stir and let sit for 3 more minutes. If pan looks dry, add another tablespoon olive oil. After another minute or so, salt and pepper mushrooms and add shallots. Cook until shallots are translucent. Drain on paper towel-lined plate. Separate chanterelles and shallots and set aside.
Heat large sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sauté onions for 3 minutes with salt and pepper. Add red bell pepper and a little more salt and pepper, and cook for 3 more minutes. Add corn and cook 2 more minutes. Add zucchini, yellow squash, and beans and cook for about 4 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add butter and chanterelles; cook until warm.
For scallops: Dry scallops with towel, while heating large sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, then place the scallops in pan, being careful not to overcrowd. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, and then turn and cook for 2 to 5 minutes more, depending on desired doneness. Remove scallops from pan and keep warm. Repeat with remaining scallops, as needed.
Add sherry vinegar and reserved shallots to cooking juices in hot pan. Cook for 3 minutes. Add salt and pepper and whisk in enough of remaining olive oil to create sauce.
To serve, place one pommes Anna on warm plate and arrange scallops on top of potatoes. Spoon some of succotash over top, and finish with tablespoon of pan sauce.
Serves 6
Roasted venison loin. Photo by Tom Stio.
Roasted Venison Loin with Creamy Grits and Braised Red Cabbage
David Tallent, Restaurant Tallent (Bloomington, Ind.)
Creamy Grits
2 cups Wib’s Stone Ground Grits
12 1/2 cups water, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
Salt and pepper, to taste
Braised Red Cabbage
1/2 large head red cabbage
1 Granny Smith apple
1/2 red onion
2 tablespoons butter, or more or less as needed
1 cups red wine vinegar
1 cup apple cider
2 cups chicken stock or broth
1/2 sprig rosemary
1/2 sprig thyme
1 stem parsley
1/2 bay leaf
2 peppercorns
2 juniper berries
Venison Loin
1 tablespoon olive oil, or more as needed
2 1/2 to 3 pounds venison tenderloin, divided into 6 equal portions
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 shallot, minced
1/2 sprig rosemary
1/2 sprig thyme
1 stem parsley
1/2 bay leaf
2 peppercorns
2 juniper berries
1/2 cup zinfandel
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon butter, cold
For creamy grits: Cover grits with 6 cups water in large bowl and stir for several minutes. Drain in fine mesh strainer. Put remaining water and salt in 3-quart, heavy-bottomed casserole and dissolve salt over medium heat. Whisk in grits in fine stream so no lumps form.
Gradually increase temperature to 180 degrees and hold it there for 20 minutes. Mixture will remain separated; stir every 2 to 3 minutes to prevent sticking. When water is absorbed, stir every 15 minutes, scraping down sides and bottom. Cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. When done, stir in 6 tablespoons butter. Keep warm, covered with plastic wrap.
For braised red cabbage: Peel off outer leaves from 1/2 head of cabbage and slice in half again. Slice into thin shreds; wash and reserve. Thinly slice apple (leaving skin on) and onion.
Warm butter in large casserole or wide pot over low to medium heat. Add onions and sweat for 3 minutes. Add apples and cabbage and cook for 6 minutes, stirring often. Add vinegar and cider and let reduce by 1/2, then add stock and reduce by 1/4.
In cheesecloth or coffee filter, tie up herbs and spices and place in pot. Cook 10 minutes or until cabbage is soft and liquid reduces to glaze on cabbage. Remove herbs and spices and discard.
For venison loin: Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil. When oil shimmers, salt and pepper venison well. Waiting 45 seconds between each addition to allow pan to recover heat, place 3 pieces of venison in pan. Cook meat on one side for 3 minutes then roll a little and cook 3 more minutes, until all sides are seared. Repeat with remaining pieces, adding oil to pan as needed.
At this point temperature of meat should be rare. To bring it to medium rare, place in 350 degree oven for about 4 minutes; add 2 to 3 minutes for each additional degree of doneness. (Note: Venison cooked beyond medium may be dry and chewy.) When meat is done, set on plate in warm place to rest.
Return pan to stovetop over medium heat and add shallot, herbs, spices, and wine and reduce by 3/4. Add chicken stock and reduce by 1/2. Be sure to scrape browned bits off bottom of pan. When properly reduced, sauce should almost coat back of spoon. Add butter over high heat, whisking vigorously. Adjust salt and pepper and strain through fine sieve.
To serve, slice venison against grain into 4 or 5 slices and arrange on plate with cabbage and grits. Cover with sauce.
Serves 6
Banana Tart
Kristen Tallent, Restaurant Tallent (Bloomington, Ind.)
Tart Dough
22 tablespoons (2 3/4 sticks) butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
3 1/4 cups flour, sifted
Nut Filling
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
10 ounces ground pecans
1/2 cup flour, sifted
4 to 6 bananas
Sugar, as needed
For tart dough: Combine butter and sugar in bowl of electric mixer. Cream until mixture is pale yellow and sugar has dissolved. Add egg and lemon juice. Add sifted flour, mixing until flour is just combined. Chill dough in refrigerator for at least 35 to 40 minutes.
For filling: Cream together butter and sugar until mixture is pale yellow and sugar has dissolved. Add eggs, extracts, pecans, and sifted flour. Mix until just combined.
Roll out chilled tart dough to 1/6- to 1/4-inch inch thickness. Using knife, cut out circles of dough large enough to cover inside of 4-inch tart shells. Place dough in tart shells, settling it in with your fingers and cutting off any excess dough hanging over sides. Place tart shells in freezer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Fill chilled tart shells with nut filling to just below edge of tart dough. Bake tarts for 25 to 30 minutes or until filling is golden brown and completely set. Let tarts cool until they can be removed from tart shells.
Before serving, cut banana on bias into 1/4-inch slices. Arrange slices in concentric circles on top of filling, and cover with thin layer of sugar. Using kitchen torch or oven broiler, caramelize sugar on top of bananas. Sugar should be golden brown, but not burnt.
Serve with your favorite ice cream. Restaurant Tallent recommends butter pecan.
Serves 12