Houston Restaurants & Food

Chef David Denis’ restaurant, Le Mistral Restaurant, is rated as the top Houston eatery for food in 2010 by Zagat. Denis shows the diva of dish and radio talk show host Cleverley Stone how to make a luscious dessert for Mother’s Day using ingredients that many of us may already have in our kitchens like eggs, milk, cream and sugar.

For more information about food, wine and dining in Houston, catch Cleverley’s radio show, Saturdays at Noon on KIKK 650 AM. (PS: She gives out free restaurant gift certificates on every radio show!)

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Raspberry Gratin, Sauternes Wine Sabayon, Raspberry Sorbet
Source: Chef David Denis, Le Mistral Restaurant
(Serves 6 people)

This dish two main components: ice cream and sabayon.
Each one by itself is delicious or combine them, as shown below, for one grand dessert.
The raspberry coulis is a delicious sauce that’s also optional.
Torching the sabayon is also optional. This method is similar to what’s done
to crème brûlée to make the hardened sugar topping.

Ice Cream Ingredients:

• 10 egg yolks
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 cups milk
• 7 oz sugar
• 1 cup raspberry coulis

Ice Cream Preparation:

1. Beat eggs with sugar, set aside.
2. Warm cream and milk in a saucepan.
3. When the mixture is hot, pour half of the liquid into the yolk mixture, whisking to blend and then put in back into the saucepan on the stove and cook slowly over a low heat, stirring with a wooden spatula for 10 minutes.
4. Let it cool and then add raspberry coulis (optional).
5. Cook mixture over low heat for 7 minutes while stirring with a spatula.
6. Remove from heat and let the mixture cool overnight.
7. Pass it through an ice cream machine.

Raspberry Coulis Ingredients:

• 3 cups fresh raspberries, washed
• ½ cup sugar
• Mint to garnish

Raspberry Coulis Preparation:

1. Place raspberries in a bowl with sugar on top and blend together.
2. Pass it through a fine sieve.

Sauternes Sabayon Ingredients:

• 5 egg yolks
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ cup Sauternes wine (optional)

Sauternes Sabayon Preparation:

1. Place egg yolks, sugar and Sauternes wine in a bowl.
2. Place it on the top of a double boiler on stove and slowly whip with a whisk until fluffy.

Finishing Touch – Building the dish

1. Pour the raspberry coulis on the bottom of the dish, place fresh raspberries on top of the coulis, top with Sabayon, sprinkle sugar on top of the Sabayon. Optional: torch to make it gratinée. (Mini torches are available at kitchen supply stores like Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table)
2. Optional: place raspberry ice cream on top and some mint leaves for decoration.

Source: Chef David Denis of Le Mistral, Houston

Contrary to popular opinion, French food is not all about heavy sauces.

Chef David Denis, owner of Le Mistral, shows restaurant journalist Cleverley Stone how to make an authentic French fish dish from his brunch menu.

Watch Chef Denis and Cleverley prepare the King Salmon recipe on FOX 26 Morning News.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 4 six-ounce pieces King Salmon
• 6 full hands of baby spinach
• 4 jumbo asparagus stalks, sliced extremely thin, diagonally
• 1 head fennel, sliced extremely thin, diagonally
• 2 soup spoons of olive oil
• ½ pound chervil, blanched
• 1 cup fish stock
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 soup spoons roasted sesame seeds
• Ground powdered ginger to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Chervil Vinaigrette

1. Blend together blanched chervil, butter, salt & pepper and fish stock.
2. Put in blender for 2-3 minutes.
3. Put the mixture in a saucepan and cook for three minutes on low heat.
4. Strain.
5. Set aside and prepare salmon and spinach.

Salmon & Spinach

1. Blend ginger and olive oil to make a marinade.
2. Pour marinade over salmon in glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. Turn salmon over once while marinating.
3. Pan sear salmon in olive oil to desired doneness.
4. In a separate pan, sautee baby leaf spinach in olive oil with fennel and asparagus.
5. In a bowl, toss the baby spinach mixture with chervil vinaigrette, add roasted sesame seeds.
6. To serve: Place baby leaf spinach on a plate and put King Salmon on top of the spinach and
   surround with the chervil vinaigrette.
7. Plating decoration suggestions: add fried beets for color and fresh chervil.

From French food to wild salmon to cupcakes, Cleverley Stone has some delicious dining suggestions.

If you Crave cupcakes, Houston restaurant journalist and radio talk show host Cleverley
has the perfect place for you.

Would you like to increase your Omega-3 levels? Wild Alaskan salmon at McCormick & Schmick’s is the place for you.

For fine French food, Le Mistral has a beautiful new home on the west side of Houston.

Click here to watch Cleverley present the Independence Day weekend dining picks on FOX 26 Morning News.