Living Sous Vide Loca - Perfectly Poached Eggs

Food. Obsession. Pretty much covers how I feel about sous vide cooking, which I've been doing for a couple of months now. Got an early Christmas present just before Thanksgiving and I haven't been the same since.

Sous vide has been around for quite a while and I've been longing for a sous vide device for years after seeing it done on the original Iron Chef. Sous vide is a French technique of cooking using vacuum sealed bags of ingredients in a temperature controlled water bath. Pure precision without all the fuss.

It controls the speed, texture and moisture of your ingredients. It's a rather low maintenance, slow cooking process that makes a crock pot look outdated and clumsy, although don't get me wrong, I love crock pot cooking.

This however, takes slow cooking to a whole other level... upscale, classy, perfection.

Now, we all know you do not need any fancy device to poach or scramble eggs. But if you want perfection, replicable perfection, every single time, while you do laundry, set the table, putz in the garden or finish watching your favorite marathon tv adventures, this is almost certainly a cooking technique you will appreciate.

I have an Anova digital sous vide device with a cool little app for android that connects my sous vide device to my phone via Wi-Fi. It also has a great user contributed recipe database where I can search (or upload) recipes and select them to set the sous vide temperature and timer for my device remotely. Geeky, I know.  I just love it; without any apology.  A perfect present for a gastro-geek like myself.

It is precise; so forgiving. It is divine. It is so low maintenance and beautiful, you will want to run it in your kitchen 24/7, just like a chef, so it's always ready when you are.

But, I don't do that, although it is almost a permanent fixture now in my kitchen.

Today, I had a craving for eggs. I get gorgeous free range eggs from the organic farm next door and what better way to do them justice? Plain and luscious and beautiful. I will likely serve mine with a tuna nicoise salad or maybe with a hollandaise.  The hollandaise I will make first because it cooks at a lower temperature than the eggs and the eggs will cook in 15 minutes giving me plenty of time to emulsify the sauce before serving with my eggs.

Sous Vide Hollandaise (149F/69C  45 minutes- 1hr):

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 stick (8 tablespoons/114 g) butter
• 3 egg yolks (large), well-beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt
• 1 pinch (1 ml) dry mustard

I put everything in a mason jar, sealed it with a cap and put it in the water bath with everything else.  Once it's done, I will use my immersion blender to emulsify it into a beautiful sauce.

Wish... I.... Would... Have...Tightened...The...Lid.... lol! Next time, I will put it in a baggie and then transfer it to a bowl to emulsify. So needless to say my recipe didn't quite work this time, but there's always next time.

Today I am doing both poached eggs and scrambled at 167 degrees F, for 15 minutes.  The eggs are poached right in their shells.  My poached eggs will come out of the water bath and into a cup of ice water until cool to touch. Crack the shells and the poachies will come right out in a perfect little ball. 

The scrambled eggs are done in a ziplock bag with the air removed. That's it, no real skill to it just be sure to remove the air out of the bag when you seal it.  Some massage the bag every so often but I find that unnecessary. I push it around the water bath with a big wooden spoon and that works just fine. I also add a little heavy cream and a little milk to the beaten eggs, but that is entirely optional. A little salt and pepper and then just drop the sealed bag in the water bath and step away. 

If after 15 minutes, the scrambled eggs are still a little moist for you liking, just keep cooking in the water bath until you are pleased with the texture. Remember, it is really difficult to overcook or dry out your food when using sous vide, which makes it perfect if you happen to lose track of time on the scrambled eggs. And worse case with the poached eggs, you will simply get hard boiled eggs. But do try to remove the poached eggs at or before the 15 minute mark until you get the hang of what you like in a poached egg texture.

I have been saving my egg shells for the tomato garden as this adds calcium back to the soil (along with banana peels) which helps prevent blossom end rot in the rainy season. You may not care about that, but hey, if you check out RoofGrown, my gardening blog, then you'll know that it all matters to me! 

I am serving my poached eggs today over some gorgeous locally grown (as in 5 minutes from my house) beefsteak tomatoes that I will slice thickly in lieu of english muffins. Which I have on hand, but these tomatoes are the bomb, so I am craving those instead. Topped of course, with the hollandaise, it would have been even better. 

My breakfast buddy wanted a more traditional poached experience so I made his with a little homemade garlic hummus, fresh Florida avocado, arugula from the garden and one of our favorite condiments, garlic aioli. Since I messed up the hollandaise... lol! but oh jeez this version was so delicious, too! I will post a recipe for that next because it is truly delicious and Tsunami's mother absolutely adores it so next time we make it, we will make extra for her.

Alas, even without the hollandaise the eggs were so good that I ate them without anything but salt and pepper. The poached eggs, once out of their shells, were the perfect soft boiled poached egg. A couple of minutes shy of 15 and it would have been runny enough while still having a set white. I'll continue to update this post once I find my sous vide zen as I could write an entire post just on temps and timing.

The scrambled eggs, well, they had a fluffy custard-like texture that was so delicious. You can never get this out of a pan and with a little of your favorite cheese or fillings, it would make your regular omelette cry out in a jealous rage. Serious competition for pan scrambled eggs or an omelette. Just can't beat it. And if you happen to be entertaining for breakfast or just a big hungry family, this is the perfect way to make a large batch of scrambled eggs without letting them get too dry. Just in case you have sleepy monsters that wake at all hours of the morning or, as is sometimes the case in my house... well into the afternoon.

Tuna Nicoise, you'll just have to wait for another day... I guess all I can say about that is that if you want to serve your poachies a certain way, you should get everything else prepared ahead so they go right onto your dish once they're ready. Otherwise, they are just too good not to pop into your mouth and gobble up as they are. And I actually had my beautiful tomatoes all on the ready so I ended up serving those with the scrambled eggs instead. Divine.

***Update - Made the Hollandaise sauce today (Feb 3, 2016) and not only did the Hollandaise sauce turn out perfectly, but the poached eggs I did at the same time and they too were perfect. That means you don't need a higher temp/short cooking time when you do them together. That gives you perfect time to remove the eggs when the timer goes off, put them in an ice water bath while you emulsify the sauce so they can be served together warm. It was such a gorgeous sauce without any fuss! Talk about a great go to for company! Really doesn't get more luxurious or delicious with so little effort. I also added a dash of garlic powder, which turned out lovely but you could also do a dash of garlic oil. :)

Best American Cheesecake I have EVER Made

Ok, so if one has to be on a quest, might as well be something truly earth shaking like how to make the perfect cheesecake, right? I mean, the world won't stop just because you make cheesecake, but if you make the PERFECT cheesecake, trust me, worlds stop. At least mine. For a few minutes... which is sometimes saying an awful lot if you have busy lives like I'm sure you must have...

It's these little indulgences that make life sweet.  I'm the ultimate student in the kitchen and while not exactly methodical, to some people, there is a method to my madness and it centers around education. I want to know... I HAVE TO UNDERSTAND.  I don't burden others with my quests other than to ask their indulgence of me when I have an abundance in the kitchen and gardens. I grow what I like to eat and I cook what I like to grow. If it's possible for me to make it or grow it myself, I will inevitably try to do just that. Pretty simple. And I'm not afraid to try and try and try and try and well, you get it. I'm not afraid to fail, I suppose.  Which makes me a pretty darn good cook once I get the hang of what I'm pursuing. And, it's always a pursuit. Full of love and passion for the ingredients and more importantly, what it takes to create and grow the finest ingredients. I'm an ingredient snob and proud of it.

So, in the pursuit of the perfect cheesecake, I started out to perfect the recipe but that is harder for me than most because this is where my "creative license" usually gets me off track. If I were more scientific, it would probably go quicker and I'd be a little skinnier, but the understanding would be elusive, I suspect.  

So this recipe was a good one to begin with, but it wasn't perfect. There is a technique to baking a cheesecake and it isn't no willy nilly affair; it's precise if what you are after is perfection.  The big secret, which I have resisted for years after one miserable failed attempt, is the water bath, friends.  I'm no scientist but my palate is pretty particular. The water bath ensures even, s-l-l-l-low and even baking.  It affects the rise of the batter, the evenness of the baking, the TEXTURE.  I do not lie when I say it makes or breaks the perfection of your recipe. But how does one do this?

Well, Alton Browne knows.  I DVR'd his show about cheesecakes and he had the solution, as he almost always does, to a clever technique that any cook at home can use to produce this textural magic.  Alton's secret was in how to do a water bath without a springform, WITHOUT getting water into your cheesecake and turning it into cheesecake pudding.  It's pretty simple, takes a little patience and time, but well worth the effort, you'll see.

My Cheesecake Recipe:

• 20 oz cream cheese (homemade if you are curious! you can do it, too!)
• 1 c sugar
• 1 1/4 c sour cream (homemade, too, but store bought is just fine)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/3 c heavy cream

Crust:

• 2 packages of Graham crackers, crushed into crumbs
• 1 tbsp sugar, melted or soft
• 1 stick butter

Make your crust in a food processor or smash it real well in a sealed plastic baggie. 

Add about half of the crust mix on bottom only of your 9", parchment lined round pan, gently pressing into place. Save the rest of the crust as we will use that for the sides once we take it out of the pan.  Isn't that sly? :)

Blind bake at 300 degrees for 10 minutes to set the crust so it doesn't get too soggy.

Tricky Equipment Needed:
(1) 9" x 3" round cake pan fitted with parchment on the bottom and sides (go ahead, cut parchment? Kids do it, its easy)
10" x 3" round cake pan or larger for the water bath
Technique:
All you really do is grease your 9" pan. BUT! Don't flour it. That isn't the purpose of the grease here. Instead, the grease acts as an adhesive that will help you keep your parchment lining in place. Cut a circle for the bottom of the pan using your actua 9" pan as a template to draw a circle on a square of parchment larger than the cake pan. Cut out the circle and lay it on the bottom of your greased pan. There. The bottom is done.

Do the same thing with parchment strips cut wider than the sides of your cake pan. Adhere the strips to the greased sides of the pan. It doesn't have to look like Martha Stewart, just stick them on as best as you can, keeping it wrinkle free if you can. I use two smaller strips to line the sides so it's easier to get them in place, but do what you need to do so that the bottom and sides are lined.

After you put the batter into the 9", set it gently inside the larger cake pan and put the whole "nest" into a cold oven. With a measuring cup or something with control, add very hot tap water to the larger cake pan being careful not to drip into your cake batter pan. You only need the water to go halfway up the sides (1 1/2" if using a 9x3 round pan).

Baking:
Bake at 250 degrees for an hour. Turn off oven open oven door for a full minute and leave to cool in oven for one more hour. 

Cooling:
Refrigerate until cold. This will help us get the cheesecake out of the pan with minimal damage. Trust me, I was leery, but the cake will literally come out easily if you are gentle by flipping it out onto a large plate or platter and then flipping it back out onto the serving dish or plate. It will not harm the top, much to my total surprise. Just make sure the cake is thoroughly chilled. I let it rest in the fridge overnight before trying this part.

Final Touches:
Once you have gotten the cake out, gently peel off the strips of parchment. Don't worry about the one on the bottom. That will actually help the pieces come out nicely once you cut it and it will help protect your serving tray or platter.

Using the rest of the crust crumbs, just pat it all around the sides, pressing gently to adhere it to the "naked" sides of the cheesecake.  This gives a crust that is tender, easy to cut and looks quite beautiful. It also helps cover up any blemishes that may have happened during the "un-panning" process.It sounds like a lot of work, but really it was quite easy as long as you just go slow and don't freak out because there are seemingly, a lot of steps to this. Perfection, after all, is and should be a slow and steady pursuit. Happy Baking!

Fa-la-la-la-la Pumpkin Cheesecake

The Filling:
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp Ginger
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 c sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
Juice of one lemon
Zest of one lemon
Zest of one orange
3 eggs
1 can (15 oz) of pumpkin purée
36 oz of cream cheese (4 1/2, 8 oz packages)

The Crust:
2 packages cinnamon Graham crackers, pulsed to crumbs in a blender or food processor
1/4 c sugar
1 stick of melted butter

Oven temp:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

For the crust:
Make the crust by combining all ingredients of for the crust into a food processor and pulse just to combine. You can crush the crackers by putting them into a ziplock bag and beating the crap out of it or just roll a rolling pin over the top in a civilized manner, depending on your mood. Once the butter and sugar are incorporated, dump it all into a large 10" spring form pan or use whatever you have handy. You will want to form the crust so that it is even in thickness, starting from the bottom of your pan and slowly working all the way up the sides. Once it's formed, set it aside. We will par bake this crust for 5-10 minutes before we add the filling.

For the filling:
Everyone in the pool! Yes, just put all ingredients into a large bowl and whip it until your satisfied or at least until the lumps are gone. If you let your cream cheese soften at room temperature this will be a breeze even if you have to do this part by hand. A handheld emersion blender works well, a blender, stand or handheld mixer.

Bake:
1st, par bake the crust at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 5-10 minutes. This is the temp we will later use for baking the cheesecake. We aren't trying to brown it, but rather firm it up before we put the wet ingredients in so it isn't some soggy, sorry mess. :)

2nd, once the crust has cooled from this quick bake exercise, add your filling and smooth it out, tapping it gently to remove any bubbles from the batter. Go easy, you don't want to dislodge your crust!

Now, bake this big beast for about an hour at 375 degrees Fahrenheit if you are using a deep spring form. The deeper your pan, the longer it will take. If you are using a regular pie pan and splitting your batter into two smaller cheese-pies, bake at the same temperature and start checking on them after 25 -30 minutes. When done, the center should be set and the whole "cake" will start to shrink away from the sides, but the cake should not wobble in the center at all or you will have pumpkin cheesecake mudslide... :) no one wants this, speaking from experience.

This recipe is for my family! My sister resorted to threats and said this was the third and final request before phone stalking begins in earnest. I hear ya loud and clear, sis. Hope it turns out awesome for you. Take pics and we will use the for this blog. Big hugs! Happy Thanksgiving from Minnesota!

*** Update: to keep it from cracking like the one in this picture, use the water bath technique I talk about in my American Cheesecake post. :)