Crystal Beurre Blanc Recipes

CRAB CAKES WITH CRYSTAL BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• For the crab cakes: In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for crab cakes. Gently mix to combine. Using an ice cream scoop, make 8 balls and place on a baking sheet or large plate. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. (If crab is very fresh, this may be done a day ahead of time.)
• For the Crystal beurre blanc: In a small saucepan, combine hot sauce, lemon and wine. Bring to boil over high heat, then simmer until reduced by a third, 3 to 4 minutes. Add cream and again reduce by a third, about 5 minutes. Lower heat and whisk in butter a few pieces at a time, making sure each addition is incorporated before adding next. Pour sauce through a fine-mesh strainer and add salt to taste. If desired, keep warm over a double-boiler.
• For the spinach base: For the spinach base: Place a large skillet over medium heat, and heat butter and olive oil in it. Add onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add spinach in batches, stirring and adding more until it all cooks down. Season to taste with salt and pepper, set aside and keep warm.
• For frying: Line up three shallow bowls. Place flour in one and season to taste with salt and pepper. Place eggs and milk in the second bowl; beat until mixed. Put bread crumbs in the third. Pat crab cakes into thick disks, like oversize scallops. Dip each into flour mixture, then egg mixture, then roll in bread crumbs. Set on a plate and chill for 30 minutes.
• Place a large sauté pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Pour in enough oil to come 1/2 inch up side of pan. When oil shimmers, add crab cakes. Cook, turning once, until light golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes a side. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
• To serve, place a mound of spinach on each of four serving plates. Place 2 crab cakes next to spinach and pour sauce around them. If desired, serve with more hot sauce.

BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• In small saucepan, combine shallots, wine, and vinegar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until liquid is reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 10 minutes.
• Turn down heat to lowest possible flame. Whisk in butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, adding a piece as previous one melts. Don't allow sauce to become too hot. For a more smooth sauce, strain through a fine sieve, if desired.
• Season with salt and pepper and keep over a bain-marie. Just before serving, stir in herbs.

BEURRE BLANC SAUCE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Cut the butter into medium (1/2-inch) cubes and return them to the refrigerator to keep them cold.
• Heat the wine, vinegar, and shallot in a saucepan over high heat until the liquid boils. Continue boiling until the liquid has reduced down to about 2 tablespoons, about 30 to 40 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to low, take the cubes of butter out of the fridge and start rapidly whisking them in, 1 or 2 at a time, to the reduction. As the butter melts and incorporates, add more and keep whisking. Continue until you only have 2 to 3 cubes remaining. This process should take about 25 to 30 minutes.
• Remove from the heat while whisking in the last few cubes, and whisk for a moment or two more. The finished sauce should be thick and smooth.​
• Season to taste with kosher salt.
• Traditionally, the chopped shallot would be strained out before serving but doing so is optional. Serve right away. Enjoy.

CHEF JOHN'S BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• Place wine, lemon juice, cream, shallots, and cream in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and let simmer until liquid is reduced by about 75%, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to the lowest setting and whisk in about 2 cubes of butter. Keep butter moving until it melts. When melted, add a few more cubes, whisking continuously so butter emulsifies into the wine/lemon juice mixture.
• Continue to add butter, a few cubes at a time until all of it has been incorporated and the sauce has a thick, luxurious texture, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Taste for seasonings and add a pinch of salt and cayenne, if desired. Serve immediately.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH HOT SAUCE BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• Mix shallot, fennel fronds, cherry tomatoes, olive oil and vinegar in a small bowl and set aside.
• Pat scallops dry on both sides with a paper towel; they must be extremely dry. Sprinkle one side with kosher salt and a small grind of black pepper.
• Heat oil in a good-quality, nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. When oil is very hot and begins to shimmer and release a slight amount of smoke, place scallops in the pan in a single layer and reduce heat to medium. (Depending on the size of the pan, scallops may have to be cooked in two batches.) Let cook undisturbed for approximately 2 minutes or until bottoms begin to brown and caramelize. Flip scallops, cook for another minute and then remove to a warm plate.
• Turn heat back to medium-high and add wine, lemon juice and hot sauce, stirring to remove browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce for a minute or 2, then turn heat to low. Whisk in butter, a tablespoon at a time, until sauce becomes emulsified and glossy. Stir in any juices from the scallops, then remove from heat.
• To serve, spoon sauce onto four individual plates or a platter, place scallops on sauce and top each with a spoonful of salsa.

CRYSTAL BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• Cook the hot sauce in a saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to a syrupy consistency, whisking constantly to avoid burning.
• Whisk in the cream and reduce the heat to low.
• Add the butter a few pieces at a time, whisking constantly to incorporate completely after each addition.
• Cook until completely smooth, whisking constantly to keep the mixture from breaking.
• Serve.

SOY BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the wine, vinegar, peppercorns, and soy sauce, bring to a simmer, and cook until the liquid is syrupy and reduced to about 1/4 cup, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer, discard the shallots and return the liquid to the pan. Return to medium-low heat and bring to a low simmer, allowing the liquid to reduce a bit more. While whisking constantly, slowly add about 3/4 of the cold butter cubes, a couple at a time, until emulsified. Turn off the heat and continue whisking while slowly adding the remaining butter cubes; whisk very well until thick and creamy.
• Use immediately or store in a warmed thermos bottle or covered in a glass bowl set over warm water until ready to serve. Refrigerate leftovers.

CLASSIC BEURRE BLANC: WHITE BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, combine vinegar, wine, shallots, lemon, and bay leaves to make an infusion. Simmer over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes until the mixture is reduced to a wet paste, about 2 tablespoons. Add the cream and continue to simmer until reduced again to about 2 tablespoons. Cream is added to make the sauce more stable and less likely to separate.
• Reduce the heat to low and remove the bay leaves. Whisk in the chunks of butter in small batches. The butter should melt without the sauce getting too hot, producing a creamy emulsified sauce. Do not let the sauce go over 130 degrees F, where it will separate. If the sauce starts to break, remove from heat, add 2 ice cubes and whisk until it cools down and comes back together. Season with salt and pepper, fold in the chives, and serve immediately. Keep covered in a warm place for a few hours, if needed.
• Serve with fish or vegetables.

BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• Bring to a boil in a small heavy-bottomed pot: 2 shallots, diced fine, 1/4 cup white wine vinegar, 1/2 cup dry white wine, A few black peppercorns, A pinch of salt.
• Cook until the liquid is almost completely gone (as the liquid gets low, reduce the heat). Remove from the heat when the shallots are still moist but not floating in liquid. (This step can be done far in advance.) Put the pan over a very low heat. Bit by bit, whisk in: 14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) butter, cut into small pieces.
• Wait until each addition is mostly melted and incorporated before adding more. Monitor the heat; the sauce should be warm while the butter is being added but not hot or the sauce will separate. Oddly enough it will also separate if the sauce gets too cool while the butter is being added. Once all the butter has been incorporated, taste for salt and add more as needed. Thin with a splash of fresh wine, some broth, or even water; the added liquid helps keep the sauce from breaking or separating and makes it lighter. Strain if desired. Serve immediately or keep warm in a double boiler over warm, but not hot, water, or in a warmed thermos.
• Flavor the sauce with chopped herbs, capers, or nasturtiums.
• Add whole spices, such as coriander or fennel seeds, along with the peppercorns.
• A simpler sauce can be made by putting 3 table spoons wine, lemon juice, or even water in a pan, bringing to a boil, and swirling or whisking in 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, cut into small pieces, and a pinch of salt.

ALMOND-CRUSTED HALIBUT CRYSTAL SYMPHONY

Steps:

• Make beurre blanc: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine wine, vinegar, shallots, thyme and bay leaf. Boil until liquid has evaporated. Stir in cream, and boil until liquid is reduced by half; decrease heat to low. Whisk in butter, 1 piece at a time, adding each new piece before previous one has melted completely. Do not allow sauce to simmer, or it may separate.
• Strain sauce through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl. Stir in chives, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Keep warm by setting bowl in a larger container of hot water.
• Preheat oven on broiler setting. Pat fillets dry, and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute halibut fillets for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned, and just cooked through. Transfer to a baking sheet, and cool 5 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together bread crumbs, almonds and 1 tablespoon melted butter. Brush tops of fillets with egg, and spread with almond mixture.
• Broil fillets 1 to 2 minutes, or until browned (watch closely - every broiler has its own personality!). Place fillets on individual plates, and spoon beurre blanc around it.