Continued from last week…

Another secret I learned is that the aging process not only intensifies flavor but also shrinks the meat. So after the meat is cut and prepared by the butcher it will only reduce a small amount when cooked. Most meats can shrink by 50% in the cooking process. This aged meat is already reduced so you are getting much more for your money. Jose and Dominique have created unique cuts of meat at Le Marais like their “surprise” (top of the rib eye) and “tournedo” (middle of the rib eye, used for pepper steak, steak au poive or as a roast).

Today, Le Marais’s aged meats, served in the restaurant and also sold behind the butcher counter, are some of the most tender and delicious cuts of meat found in the kosher world.

Jose gave us some tips on how to make sure your meat is flavorful.
1. First, buy aged meat
2. Never cook meat more than medium rare. Well-done meat is tough to chew and loses its flavor.
3. Let your meat rest after cooking and before slicing and serving. This ensures that the flavorful juices stay in the meat and does not run off as you cut the meat. Ten minutes is plenty of time for meat to rest before slicing.
4. Don’t be afraid of fat. Fat gives meat flavor. The marbleizing in meat will add flavor.
5. Use second cut brisket, it has more flavor.

Jose also gave me some information on the best ways to cook certain cuts of meat.
Best for Braising: minute steak, short ribs, and brisket
Best for Stew: Veal or Beef Shank
Best for Grilling: anything lean, Le Marais Surprise, silver tip
Best for Pan Searing: Le Marais Tournedo, rib eye, prime rib

Today, Jose loves to cook for his family and friends big one-pot meals and he says his fridge is always stocked with good meat. But what else can he not live without?? Fresh Parmesan and good chocolate. No wonder we all love Le Marais. He clearly has a good palate.

Try the recipes from Le Marais, at www.gourmetpassovercooking.com. They are amazing! Imagine restaurant quality food for Passover at home too, remarkable.

Le Marais is located at 150 West 46th Street in NYC, 212 869-0900

Their butcher is Kosher for Passover starting March 8th. They are open for Passover, for complete schedule and menu, go to Lemarais.net. They ship nationally.

Also, try The Clubhouse, owned by Jose Meirelles, at 155 West 46th Street in NYC, 212 354-3838

How to choose the best cuts of meat? An exclusive with Le Marais

I was really beginning to question my sanity. The streets of NYC were covered in snow and frozen slush, and at every curb there were ice-filled puddles that looked like they were at high tide. Yet there I was, leaping over them, trying to get to one of my favorite restaurants, Le Marais , to learn “How to Choose the Best Cuts of Meat” – and on a Friday no less! Anything for my readers and a good story; at least that’s what I told myself. And, as I turned the corner on 46th Street (right into a gust of Nordic blast), I saw the famed iconic sign for Le Marais and all thoughts of turning back disappeared. I’m glad I hung in there, because the frigid weather outside was no match for the warm greetings awaiting me as soon as I walked in the door and was greeted by chef and owner, Jose Meirelles, and the butcher, Dominique Courbe. After offering me a cup of tea, Jose and Dominique sat down to talk to me and tell me their secrets to consistent great food.

Jose, pronounced Joe-say, now a very successful chef and restaurateur came to the United States from Portugal over thirty years ago. His first job in America was as a private driver for a family in NY. It turned out the family also needed someone to cook for them so he began cooking their meals and discovered that he was not only a good cook but that he enjoyed it. Jose then pursued his culinary passion at the French Culinary Institute. He has subsequently owned a number of successful restaurants in the non-kosher world. With all the challenges that come with opening a kosher restaurant, I asked him what made him explore the kosher option.

He had been approached many times to consider opening a kosher restaurant, he explained, but he resisted. The tipping point came when he discovered that kosher butchers were not aging the meat properly (or at all), creating meat cuts that were tougher and had less flavor. That was more than he could bear and gave him the opening he needed. If Jose knew anything, it was how to age meat and what that meant to the flavor of a meal. The second ingredient in creating success at Le Marais was partnering with Dominique, his butcher extraordinaire. Dominique comes from a large family of butchers and uses French techniques in cutting each piece into the gorgeous cuts you see behind the counter at Le Marais (GKC can’t wait to share the video we created with Jose and Dominique on cutting the perfect pieces of meat and selecting the right type to prepare- it’s coming soon).

Le Marais uses both dry and wet aging techniques to intensify the meat flavor and ensure a perfect texture. I got to see first-hand the stages of aging that the large racks of meat rest on. The longer the meat is aged, the more intense the flavor. In the aging process, the outer parts of the meat become extremely dry creating a cocoon for the flavorful piece on the inside. The dried exterior becomes the most amazing beef jerky you have ever had (buy it at Le Marais and taste for yourself) and the interior is cut into extraordinary pieces ready for grilling, braising, pan-searing, or any easy preparation. Jose recommends simple pan-searing with olive oil, garlic and kosher salt or very slow braising in wine, shallots, and chicken stock.

Another secret I learned…well, you’ll have to tune in to next week’s blog to discover it! In the meantime, try the recipes from Le Marais at www.gourmetpassovercooking.com

What to do with leftover Purim candy? If hiding it, consuming it all in 24 hours, or sending it with your husband to work are not your strategies, then we have a few ideas to help make good use of the ingredients. (Remember the local schools love wrapped, marked candy donations to use as treats for the kids – check with your local school. In New York, JEP (the Jewish Enrichment Program) collects the wrapped, marked candy at many of the schools in the tri-state area to use for their kiruv programs. If you do not have a collection at your school you can mail it to them at JEP 110 Rockaway Turnpike, Lawrence, NY 11559.)

If your pantries are too full and you would like to make good use of some of the candy, try these recipes.

Candy Bar Blondies
Tootsie Roll Cheesecake
Hershey Bar Banana Treat
Potato Chip Baked Chicken

1 cup butter or margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
6 (1 3/4 ounce) chocolate covered candy bars, chopped and divided (any kind of candy bar is fine, or m & m’s)

Beat margarine or butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Blend in eggs. Mix in flour, baking soda and salt.
Reserve 1/2 cup chopped candy for topping; stir remaining candy into flour mixture. Spread into 13 x 9-inch baking pan; sprinkle with reserved 1/2 cup candy.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares.

1 2/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
1/4 cup butter, softened
32 ounces cream cheese, softened
6 eggs
1 cup dairy sour cream
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces Tootsie Rolls
1/3 cup whipping cream

Combine graham cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup of sugar and the butter; mix well. Lightly butter a 1O-inch round, 2-inch deep cake pan (do not use spring-form pan as the batter is too thin). Press crumb mixture evenly into bottom of pan.

Beat cream cheese with remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar until smooth, scraping sides of bowl often. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla extract, beating well until smooth.

Melt Tootsie Rolls in top of a double boiler; stir in cream, then add to cream cheese mixture, mixing well. Pour over crust. Place cake pan in another large, deep pan; pour water around cake pan to a depth of about 1 1/2 inches. Bake in a 300 degree F oven for about 2 hours or until center is set and a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool, then chill several hours or overnight.

To remove from pan, heat outside of pan slightly and cake will drop out. Re-invert onto serving platter.

1 banana
1/2 Hershey candy bar
2 large marshmallows
Aluminum foil

Cut bananas from one end to the other but not all the way through the bottom skin. Cut marshmallows in half and put into the cut banana. Put the half of candy bar in between the marshmallows. Wrap with aluminum foil and place in oven (or on hot coals in a barbecue for about 5 minutes).

Serve with a spoon and eat right out of the peel.

1 chicken, cut in 1/8’s
1/2 cup margarine
Garlic salt
Potato chips, crushed

Melt the margarine in a baking pan and add the garlic salt. Roll the chicken pieces in the margarine and place in a baking dish. Sprinkle with crushed potato chips (fully coating the chicken). Bake uncovered for 1 hour at 350 degrees.