A Taste of France: Burgundy Wine Country Cuisine

Serves many

1. Slice the baguette; brush with olive oil and broil in the oven (only one side is okay).
2. Prep fruit and veggies: wash, cut or slice (if needed).
3. Prep meats: slice (if needed).
4. Arrange all ingredients on a wood board or large platter; make use of similar dishes for preserves and pickled things.
5. Provide toothpicks, butter knives, and small plates for self-service.

Serves 6

1. Boil potatoes and carrots in salted water for 20 minutes, drain, and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, cook the bacon until slightly crisp.
3. Remove the bacon, but reserve the grease.
4. Cut bacon into 1/2-inch chunks, set aside.
5. In the same saucepan, add the beef and brown on all sides (about 10 minutes).
6. Transfer the browned beef to a pressure cooker, but reserve the grease and pan drippings.
7. Add red wine and salt to the pressure cooker and cook under pressure for at least 30 minutes (or until meat is fork tender).
8. While the beef is cooking, make the sauce: add onions and saute until soft.
9. Add the butter and mushrooms, saute until mushrooms start to secrete their juices.
10. Add the minced garlic, saute briefly (about 1 minute).
11. Slowly sprinkle in the flour a little at at time and cook under low heat stirring constantly for about 2 minutes (do not let the flour burn); turn off heat.
12. When the beef is done, transfer the meat to the bowl; reserve the wine broth.
13. Add beef base, tomato paste, and 3 cups of the reserved wine broth to the skillet; mix thoroughly.
14. Adjust the seasoning; add salt, black pepper and more beef base to taste (if needed).
15. Adjust the thickness: add more wine broth to thin the sauce (if needed); add more tomato paste to thicken the sauce (if needed).
16. Adjust color: add Kitchen Bouquet to darken the broth.
17. Transfer cooked beef, carrots, potatoes, and bacon into the skillet and warm the stew under low heat while stirring constantly (about 5 minutes).
18. Finish the stew with a splash of cognac.
19. To serve: garnish with chopped parsley.

Serves 4

1. Prep the eggs for poaching: combine 1 cup of water with 1 cup of white vinegar; crack eggs and carefully slide the raw egg into the bowl; let sit for 10 minutes max (or until whites have turned opaque).
2. Poach the eggs: add enough water to a saucepan to cover the eggs (about 3-4 inches); bring water to a boil, then lower the heat so that the water is barely simmering; using a ladle, transfer eggs one at a time from bowl to saucepan, simmer for about 2-3 minutes (or until whites have set but the yolk is still soft); tip: do NOT swirl the water (see video).
3. Scoop out each poached egg with a slotted spoon, blot briefly on a towel, then transfer to a plate (or transfer to a covered pan with a little bit of water and warm later in 350F for 3-4 minutes).
4. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp all over (about 10 minutes); transfer cooked bacon to paper towels to drain; reserve about 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease, discard the rest; when the bacon has cooled, chop into 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
5. Make the dressing: add onions to the same skillet with the reserved grease and cook until softened (about 1-2 minutes); stir in vinegar and mustard and bring just to a boil; turn off heat.
6. Add lemon juice, salt, and pepper; while whisking, slowly drizzle in olive oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified.
7. Add reserved bacon and the frisee; toss and divide between 4 plates.
8. Top each portion with an egg, garnish with more black pepper and serve immediately.

Serves 3-4

1. Make the batter: in a mixing bowl, whisk together egg, 2 tablespoons melted butter, milk, salt; slowly add flour and mix until smooth.
2. Test the batter: Heat 8-inch nonstick skillet, spray with coconut oil; when pan is hot, pour in a small amount of batter, then tilt immediately to make a thinner crepe; if the crepe is too thick, add more milk to the batter; if the crepe is too thin, add more flour; discard test crepe.
3. Make the crepes: repeat above, but this time pour in about 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) of the batter, tilt immediately and swirl to allow batter to coat the entire bottom of the pan; let the crepe cook over medium-high what until the edges start to curl up (about 1 minute); flip the crepe with a spatula and cook for 10 seconds longer or until a few brown spots appear on the bottom; repeat until batter is gone (you should end up with about 8-12 crepes).
4. Transfer each finished crepe to a large plate, layer each crepe with parchment or waxed paper; allow to cool before serving (or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed).
5. Make the sauce: in a small saucepan, add orange juice, orange zest, sugar; cook over high heat until boiling, then add 10 tablespoons of butter, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until syrupy (about 10-15 minutes); remove from heat and set aside.
6. Fold each crepe into quarters, arrange folded crepes in circular pattern in a large nonstick skillet (overlapping is okay, this can be done in batches); pour warm syrup on top, then heat over low heat until crepes are warm (about 2 minutes).
7. Pour liqueur on top; carefully touch a flame to surface to light it; serve immediately, spooning crepes and sauce onto each plate.
8. Optional: add a scoop of vanilla ice cream to each serving.