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Recipe, Roasted Scallops with Cauliflower Puree, Roasted Hen-of-the-Woods Mushrooms, and Truffle Vinaigrette, Berkshire Pork Loin + Wild Mushrooms, Favas + Yukon Gold Potatoes , Mezze Restaurant, Williamstown, MA, Mass, Massachusetts, Nancy Thomas, owner, Joji Sumi, chef, Mezze Bistro + Bar, Allium, Great Barrington, MA, Contemporary American, 01267, 01230, where to eat in Massachusetts, where to eat in the Berkshires, Berkshires dining guide, recommendations, restaurateur, chef recommendations, local sustainable, farmers, farm, local produce, meat, vegetables, cheese recommendations, where to buy cheese

Two recipes from Mezze Bistro + Bar in Williamstown, MA. A recipe for Roasted Scallops with Cauliflower Puree, Roasted Hen-of-the-Woods Mushrooms, and Truffle Vinaigrette and a recipe for Berkshire Pork Loin with Wild Mushrooms, Favas, and Yukon Gold Potatoes.

Mezze Bistro + Bar | Recipes

October 19, 2010

- ROASTED SCALLOPS

- BERKSHIRE PORK LOIN

Roasted Scallops with Cauliflower Puree, Roasted Hen-of-the-Woods Mushrooms, and Truffle Vinaigrette

Recipe courtesy of Chef Joji Sumi of Mezze Bistro + Bar

Chef Joji Sumi of brings his signature style to this Japanese-influenced dish with palate-pleasing textures and taste.

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

Truffle Vinaigrette

- 1 oz. truffle peelings

- 1 oz. Banyuls vinegar

- 4 oz. white truffle oil

- Salt

Cauliflower Puree

- 1 head cauliflower

- 4 cups half-and-half

- Salt

Scallops

- 4 to 5 large (U-10) diver sea scallops per person (about 20 total)

- Salt

- Grapeseed oil

Roasted Hen-of-the-Woods Mushrooms

- 6 oz. mushrooms

- 4 tablespoons butter

- Salt and pepper

Directions

Truffle Vinaigrette

1. Place the truffle peelings into a bowl, add all the vinegar.

2. Slowly whisk in the white truffle oil.

3. Add salt to taste.

Cauliflower Puree

1. Break the cauliflower into pieces and discard stalks.

2. Put the cauliflower in a large saucepan over low heat, season with salt, and cover with half-and-half.

3. Cook the cauliflower until tender.

4. Strain off 3 cups of the half-and-half and discard.

5. Put the warm cauliflower in a blender with just enough of the remaining half-and-half to puree to a very smooth consistency (like apple sauce.)

Scallops

1. Pat the scallops dry with a paper towel and salt on both sides.

2. Coat the bottom of a heavy skillet with grapeseed oil.

3. Over very high heat, sear the scallops in batches (being careful not to overcrowd the pan) for 3 minutes per side.

Roasted Hen-of-the-Woods Mushrooms

1. Slice the mushrooms into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

2. In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the mushrooms.

3. Saute until browned.

4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Assembly

1. Place about 1/2 ounce of the vinaigrette onto each plate to be used as a sauce.

2. Top with 2 or 3 ounces of cauliflower puree.

3. Arrange the 4 or 5 scallops and 1 ounce of the mushrooms on the plate.

Berkshire Pork Loin + Wild Mushrooms, Favas + Yukon Gold Potatoes

Recipe courtesy of Chef Joji Sumi of Mezze Bistro + Bar

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

- 2 lbs. quality local pork loin or Berkshire pork (Berkshire pork is a breed not necessarily from our county)

- 8 oz. veal stock

- 2 Yukon Gold potatoes

- 8 oz. wild mushrooms (as available in your area) -- we are currently serving chanterelle mushrooms (October)

- 8 oz. fresh fava beans

- 1 oz. + 2 tablespoons butter

- 1 teaspoon fresh tarragon

- 1 teaspoon fresh chervil

- 1 teaspoon fresh chive

- 1 teaspoon celery leaves (from the top of celery)

- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Potatoes

1. Cut potatoes into small dice and rinse thoroughly to rinse of the starch.

2. Place potatoes in a sauce pan and cover with 8oz veal stock.

3. When you can pierce potatoes with toothpick easily, drain off veal stock and set stock aside and potatoes aside.

Fava Beans

1. Buy fresh fava beans in spring at your local grocer. Fava bean pods are pulled open to reveal individual beans.

2. Blanch beans in heavily salted water to brighten color and cooked through, approximately 8 minutes.

3. Peel each fava bean from the outer shell that surrounds each bean and set aside. The bright green fava beans will be added to the final sauce at the end.

Veal Stock

1. Reduce the above veal stock by half (to 4ounces) after cooking potatoes.

2. When reduced this will become your finished sauce for the final preparation of the dish.

Pork

1. Slice 4 portions of pork from a 2 lb. whole piece. Approximately 1 1/2" pieces.

2. Season with salt, pepper, and finely chopped fresh thyme.

3. Place large heavy bottom pan on high heat.

4. Use 2 teaspoons of Canola Oil or Grape Seed Oil to coat bottom of pan.

5. Just before the pan begins to smoke add pork and sear on one side turn pork and then place the pan with pork in the oven and cook for approximately 8 - 10 minutes.

6. Pork should be just cooked through (note: a slight amount of pink to the pork is not harmful to healthy people.)

7. Take pan out of the oven and remove pork onto a wire rack on a bakers sheet to rest for approximately 5 minutes.

Mushrooms

Note: mushrooms can be cooked in the pan that the Pork was cooked in prior. This will develop layers of flavor.

1. Depending upon the type of mushroom, clean with a brush or paper towel and de-stem (note: do not clean with water.)

2. Saute mushrooms in a medium heat saute pan with 2 tablespoons of butter.

3. Salt mushrooms in pan to taste.

4. Cook mushrooms until they begin to have caramelized, brown bits, approximately 8 - 10 minutes.

Prepare Herbs

1. Finely chop tarragon, chevil, chives and celery leaves.

2. Set aside to add to sauce.

Building The Final Sauce

1. Add reduced veal stock (demi-glace) 4oz - to the caramelized mushrooms.

2. Add potatoes and bring all ingredients up to temperature to be served hot.

3. Turn down the heat add fava beans, chopped herbs, final 1 oz. of butter, and swirl into the pan to incorporate butter into the sauce.

Build The Final Plate:

1. With a soup spoon, spoon portion of the sauce with vegetables onto the center of each plate.

2. Add rested pork to the top (if the pork has become to cool re-heat for 2 - 3 minutes in oven.)

Nancy Thomas is the owner and Joji Sumi is the executive chef of Mezze Bistro + Bar in Williamstown, MA. They are committed to supporting independent local, independent farmers and artisan producers using sustainable practices.

We asked them about the farmers they love in the Berkshires and where to eat, drink and shop in the area.