Sealed Off

Greek Style Lamb Chops Sous Vide

Because the title of the book is Sealed Off, I thought it would be clever to include a sous vide recipe, since food cooked sous vide is sealed in a plastic bag. Get it? The question was who should cook it? The answer had to be Julia’s sister, Livvie, and her husband, Sonny. Livvie is an accomplished cook and Sonny is the grill master, though Chris might have been an equally good choice as the chef. My husband developed this absolutely delicious recipe.

4 thick-cut lamb chops (rib chops—1½ to 2 inches, or shoulder chops—1 to 1½ inches)
Olive oil for rubbing chops and drizzling
Salt
Black pepper
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
16 sprigs fresh oregano
16 sprigs fresh marjoram
8 thinly cut slices of lemon
2 1-gallon size or 4 1-quart size sealable food storage bags or vacuum sealer bags

Keep chops refrigerated until ready to use; some people even like to freeze for 20 minutes before beginning.

Set up your sous vide unit according to manufacturer instructions and preheat water bath to 134 degrees.

Rub the chops all over with olive oil. Generously salt and pepper on both sides.

Preheat a gas grill on high for at least 10 minutes or heat a heavy-bottomed fry pan on high, then add a Tablespoon of olive oil until it begins to smoke.

Sear the chops 1 minute on each side and set aside to cool briefly.

When ready to handle, drizzle chops on one side with olive oil and sprinkle with some garlic. Repeat on other side of chops.

Place chops in bags.

Put 2 sprigs of oregano and marjoram on each side of chop. Add 1 slice of lemon to each side.

Vacuum seal bags or, if using food storage bags, seal ¾ of the way across the top and slide gently into the water bath, allowing the water to push out the air, and then completely seal to prevent water seeping inside.

Cook for 2 hours.

15 minutes before serving, preheat grill or fry pan again. Remove chops from bag, discarding herbs and lemon. Sear chops for 1 minute on each side. Set on a platter and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Halibut Pizzaiola

Fee Snugg, another great cook in the series, makes the halibut pizzaiola in the book. She, Livvie, and Chris have gotten into quite a little cooking competition, and all the Snowden clan are the beneficiaries.

3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 6-ounce filets halibut

teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 anchovy filets, chopped (optional)
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 28-ounce can ground peeled tomatoes

Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a sauté pan over high heat. Season the halibut filets with salt and pepper and sear 1 minute on each side. Remove from pan and set aside.

Turn the burner to medium, and using the same pan, add the remaining olive oil and red pepper flakes, if using. Add the anchovy, if using, and stir, crushing, with a wooden spoon until the anchovy melts into the oil. Add the garlic and oregano and stir together for 2 minutes. Add the tomato, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add the halibut and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Plate the halibut, spooning some of the sauce over the top.

Slow Cooker Cioppino

This recipe wasn’t meant to be in the book. My husband Bill made it for me and I decided it had to be. It’s an East Coast take on a West Coast dish. I gave this one to Chris to make for Julia’s family. The comforting food expresses the comfort he’s found with them.

2 medium onions, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
4 cups seafood stock
½ cup white wine
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
6 sprigs of fresh thyme
4 sprigs of fresh oregano
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 or 2 cooked lobster bodies (no tails, no claws, heads removed)
1½ pounds flaky white fish like haddock or cod, cut into 1-inch pieces
1½ pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 6-ounce cans chopped clams with their juice
8 ounces lump crabmeat
8 ounces cooked lobster meat

Stir together onions, celery, garlic, tomatoes, stock, wine, and tomato paste, herbs, and seasonings in slow cooker pot. Add lobster bodies. Set to high and cook for 4 hours. Remove lobster bodies, herb sprigs, and bay leaves. Add fish and cook on low for 30 minutes longer. Serve with crusty bread.

Olga’s Brownies

My mother-in-law used to make these brownies for her young family, and they are the first thing my husband recalls making by himself. Over the years the recipe fell out of use in the family and we thought it was lost. Bill searched the Internet to no avail. After his mom died, we found the recipe among her effects and Bill has shared it with his siblings. In Sealed Off, Vee makes the brownies and brings them to dinner at the Snowdens’, which is entirely appropriate because, like Vee, my mother-in-law ran a B and B in Maine and was an excellent cook and baker.

1 cup butter
1 cup cocoa
2 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 Tablespoon cooking oil of your choice to grease the pan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large saucepan, melt butter. Remove from heat. Stir in cocoa until it mixes completely, then stir in sugar until it mixes completely. Add the 5 eggs one at a time, stirring each in before you add the next. Add the vanilla, flour, baking powder and salt, stirring each one before adding the next. Stir in the nuts, if desired.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a greased, 9” x 13” pan.

Ma’s Pot Roast

In Sealed Off I attribute Jacqueline’s pot roast recipe to a German housekeeper who helped raise her. In reality it was one of my maternal grandmother, Ethel McKim’s, best dishes, often served on the first day of an extended visit to my grandparents’ home on the Jersey shore. She always said, “It’s better the second day.”

3 pounds beef rump
2 large onions, cut up
2 Tablespoons catsup
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
6 drops Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Flour to thicken gravy

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. On stove, brown meat on all sides in an oven-ready pan. Add remaining ingredients. Add water to come halfway up the side of the meat.

Bake for 3 hours until meat is soft.

Remove meat from pan. Skim fat off gravy and thicken with flour.

Hint: Prepare the day before serving. Take meat out of gravy and wrap in foil. Pour gravy in bowl. Refrigerate overnight. On day of serving, slice meat and place in an 8” x 8” baking dish, cover with gravy, and heat in oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.