Chef Vanessa Bathfield Phone: (310) 479-
Personal Chef and Catering Services
Chef Vanessa Bathfield
Gotta have Guacamole
Ingredients:
6 large just ripe hass avocados
2 large tomatoes, finely diced
2 tablespoon spring onion, finely diced
1 garlic clove, mashed to a paste
2 dashes Tobasco
Lemon juice – to taste
salt
Method:
In a small bowl mash the Avocado until chunky. Add tomato, spring onion, garlic, tobasco. Add lemon juice and salt to taste. Stir and mash the ingredients together until mostly smooth but a few little chunks are fine.
This should be the last thing prepared right before your guests arrive so it doesn’t go brown. Serve with tortilla chips.
This will be the best guacamole you’ve ever tasted!
Smoked salmon on a potato cake with crème fraiche
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons shallots, finely diced
2 eggs
3 large Idaho potatoes
salt and pepper
4 tablespoons Canola oil
½ pound fine smoked salmon, Scottish is my favorite
1 package crème fraiche
3 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
Method:
In a small bowl whisk eggs. Add shallots, pinch of salt and pepper.
Peel potatoes and quickly grate them. Place grated potato onto a pile of paper towels and squeeze liquid out of the potatoes. Once squeezed, quickly place into egg mixture. Raw potatoes will brown so you need to work quickly.
In a large shallow pan heat the oil. When the oil is hot (not smoking) place teaspoon sized drops of the potato/egg mixture into the pan. You are creating bite size potato pancakes. Brown the pancakes on each side and then remove from the pan onto a paper towel. Work in batches until all the potato mixture is used. Place the browned pancakes into a 350 F oven to finish cooking through (about 15 minutes).
Remove pancakes from the oven and lay onto a serving platter. Top with a bite sized piece of smoked salmon, a little crème fraiche and sprinkle of dill. Sprinkle with freshly cracked pepper.
Serves 8
Petite lamb chops with mint pistachio pesto
Ingredients:
2 racks of French rack of lamb (8 chops on each rack)
4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
1 ½ cups mint leaves
½ cup salted and roasted pistachios (shells removed)
½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 garlic clove, finely diced
olive oil – approx. ¼ cup
salt
Method:
Heat oven to 400 F.
Line a baking tray with foil.
Rinse and pat dry the lamb racks and place onto baking tray. These racks can be found at Trader Joes and Wholefoods but I’ve also found very reasonable racks at Costco.
Trim remaining fat off the lamb racks so that you have almost no fat and just the nugget of meat remains on the chops.
Spread a thin layer of mustard on the racks (one side only) and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Roast in oven for about 20 minutes until medium rare.
While lamb is cooking you can make the pesto.
In a food processor place the mint leaves, pistachio, parmesan cheese, garlic and pulse until finely chopped. Drizzle in olive oil until you get a smooth pesto consistency.
To serve, slice each chop off the rack between the bones, place on a platter and either place a half a teaspoon of the pesto on each lamb nugget, or use the pesto as a dip.
Serves 8