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Fun with summer fondue

Chef Tom Colicchio shows how to make this ’70s hit into a healthy favorite everyone will love.
/ Source: msnbc.com

The number of farmers markets in this country has increased by an astonishing 63 percent since 1994. And what better way to celebrate the summer harvest than to make a summer vegetable fondue. Chef Tom Colicchio shows how to make this ’70s hit into a healthy favorite everyone will love. Check out the recipe below.

SUMMER VEGETABLE FONDUE

THE KEY TO making this recipe and the following one is that the ingredients invariably change depending on availability and the time of the season. Use what’s at the farmers market and blanch your selection of vegetables as if they were the same.

Yield: 4 appetizer servings

Ingredients

VEGETABLES

» pound each of the following or other seasonal vegetables (or 4-6 cups of cut vegetables in all):

Green beans

Fava beans

Asparagus

Yellow wax beans

Snap peas

Kosher salt

1 spring onion or leek, white part only, diced

2 Tablespoons mixed chopped chives, flat leaf parsley, and chervil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

BEURRE FONDUE

Water to reach 1/2-inch high

1/2 stick sweet butter

DIRECTIONS

Clean, trim, then cut each vegetable so each type is consistently cut but not necessarily cut the same size as any other vegetable.

To blanch, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Have a large bowl of ice water standing by. Add the vegetables to the boiling water. Do not cover the pot, as it will make the vegetables lose their color. Blanch all of the vegetables individually, cooking the yellow wax beans first since they are the lightest in color and would get stained from the green vegetables.

Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon when they are just cooked through — a couple of minutes at the most — and plunge into the ice water to arrest the cooking. Drain the vegetables as soon as they have cooled down. Place in a bowl, adding each cooled vegetable to the mix, and refrigerate until ready to cook the fondue.

To make the beurre fondue, bring about 1/2 inch of water to a simmer in a small saucepan. Start adding the butter, about a tablespoon at a time, whisking to melt. As it reaches a gentle simmer, you may notice small oil droplets starting to form. This is a sign that the water is beginning to evaporate, so add a small amount of warm water to compensate.

Keep adding butter until all is incorporated into the sauce, making sure not to add too much too quickly, as this will lower the temperature in the pot and cause the sauce to solidify.

To finish and serve, transfer the beurre fondue to a medium saucepan to finish the ragout. Maintain a low simmer. Add the vegetables, gently mixing and coating with the beurre fondue. Add the herbs, salt, pepper, and the spring onion and simmer until the vegetables are just heated through. Divide into bowls and serve.

SUMMER VEGETABLES WITH HERB VINAIGRETTE

Yield: 4 appetizer servings

Ingredients

VEGETABLES

» pound each of the following or other seasonal vegetables (or 4-6 cups of cut vegetables in all):

Green beans/Yellow wax beans

Fava beans

Zucchini

Radishes

Snap peas

Kosher salt

HERB VINAIGRETTE

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup canola oil

» cup white wine vinegar

1 Shallot, peeled and diced

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

3 tablespoons mixed chopped herbs (such as basil, parsley, chives, chervil)

DIRECTIONS

For the vinaigrette, combine the shallot, vinegar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl.

Whisking constantly, gradually add the olive and canola oil. Using the identical blanching technique as in the recipe above, cook the vegetables. Once cooled, place in a bowl and toss with the herb vinaigrette.

Divide onto plates or bowls and garnish with herb sprigs.


Copyright © 2001 by Tom Colicchio.