RezClick - Chef's Inc

JUNE - BLACK BEAN CAKES

WITH SPICY LIME CILANTRO SAUCE

Black Bean Cakes

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 2/3 cups cooked black beans
2/3 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped fine
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
1 cup yellow cornmeal
Vegetable oil, for frying
Spicy Cilantro Sauce, recipe follows

Instructions
Heat the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. In a bowl, mash 1/3 of the beans
with a fork and stir in the remaining beans, onion mixture, bread crumbs, and cilantro and season
with salt and pepper. Stir in the eggs.

Form bean mixture into 8 (4-inch) patties (mixture will be wet and soft.). Gently dredge patties in
cornmeal and transfer to a large plate lined with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the cakes for 30 minutes
and up to 12 hours.

Pour enough oil into a heavy skillet to reach 1/4-inch up the side. Heat the oil over medium heat
until hot but not smoking. Working in batches, cook the patties, turning once, until well browned,
about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Transfer the cakes to paper towels to drain.

Divide the cakes among plates and serve with the sauce.

Spicy Cilantro Sauce:
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 jalapeno chile, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Stir together cilantro, vegetable oil, soy sauce, garlic, lime juice, and chile. Season with salt
and pepper.

Yield: about 1 cup

MAY - CITRUS TILAPIA

Citrus Tilapia
Total Prep Time 30 minutes
Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
2 navel oranges
1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tilapia fillets
cup water
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons cornstarch
teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoon chopped fresh chives, divided

METHOD
Zest the oranges and lemon. Set aside. Remove the pith (white membrane) and cut the lemon and oranges into segments. Work over a bowl to catch the juice. Set aside. In the large skillet, heat oil over a medium heat. Add the fillets and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the saved orange and lemon juices. Saut for about 5 minutes. Remove fish from pan and cover with foil. In the pan combine the remaining citrus juices, stir in water, honey, cornstarch, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until it thickens. Gently stir in the citrus segments, 1 tablespoon of the zest and 1 tablespoon of the chives. Spoon the sauce over the fish and garnish with the remaining zest and chives.

APRIL - A SPRING BRUNCH

Stuffed French Toast with Banana Filling

Serves 10 to 12

6 thick slices Challah, French or Italian bread, 1 inch thick
filling, recipe follows
8 large eggs
4 egg whites
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 Tb. butter
1 Tb. canola oil

Make a pocket in each slice of bread horizontally. Spoon in 2 to 3 Tb. of filling until pocket is full.

Whisk the eggs, whites, milk and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Dip the bread in the mixture and soak for a minute. Place in a baking dish and repeat with remaining bread. Pour any remaining milk mixture over the bread and refrigerate. Can be kept in the fridge overnight if desired.

Heat the oven to 375. Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet. Saute the bread for 2 minutes on each side over medium-hi heat. Transfer to the baking sheet and bake until filling is heated through, about 5 minutes. Cut in half on a diagonal and serve with warm maple syrup. Garnish with sprinkled powdered sugar or brown sugar (optional).

Banana Filling

3 Tb. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup sour cream
5 bananas sliced

In a mixing bowl combine the sugar, cinnamon and sour cream and mix until smooth. Gently stir in bananas.