Southern Comfort (11 page)

To make the marinated tomatoes, combine the olive oil, thyme leaves, and cherry tomatoes in a small bowl and let them marinate for about 30 minutes. In a small saucepan, reduce the balsamic vinegar over medium heat, keeping a close eye not to burn it, until it is syrupy. Set aside.

To make the goat cheese mixture, in a small bowl, using a rubber spatula, mix the goat cheese with the cream and pepper until it is smooth and creamy. Divide the mixture into eight equal portions and roll each with your hands into a log shape.

Cut the ends off of the English cucumbers (as they are thin-skinned, they don’t need to be peeled, but peel the cucumbers if using a thicker-skinned variety). Halve both cucumbers crosswise at their midsections, so you end up with 4 equal-size pieces of cucumber. With a mandoline, slice each cucumber lengthwise into ribbons about ⅛ inch thick. For each “cannelloni,” place one cucumber ribbon on the work surface. Lay one slice of cucumber down, then another slice of cucumber halfway down. Repeat two more “shingles” for four slices total.

Place one log of goat cheese mixture on the left of the shingled cucumbers and roll it to the right until you have a cannelloni shape with the seam on the bottom; you end up with a cucumber-covered log. Repeat with the remaining sliced cucumbers and goat cheese logs. You should end up with eight logs.

To serve, place two “cannelloni” in the center of each plate. Top each serving with five marinated tomato halves and a sprinkling of fleur de sel. Using a spoon, garnish the plate with a circle of balsamic reduction around the “cannelloni.” Garnish each plate with a few small basil leaves.

To prepare the lettuce, pick away all of the tough outer green leaves of the head of romaine. Break apart the lettuce hearts into individual leaves. Place the leaves in a bath of clean cold water to rinse away any grit; dry in a salad spinner. Keep the lettuce leaves in the refrigerator in a plastic bag until you are ready to serve the salad.

To make the dressing, in a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt, pepper, mustard, lemon zest and juice, vinegar, shallots, and olive oil until thoroughly combined. Reserve.

To cook the shrimp, heat a large sauté pan with the olive oil over high heat until it is barely smoking. Season the shrimp liberally with Creole spice and add them to the hot pan. Cook the shrimp for 2 minutes, then flip them and cook on the other side for an additional 2 minutes. Remove from the pan.

Place the hot shrimp in the bowl of dressing along with the tomatoes, hearts of palm, and the crisped romaine leaves and toss all together until everything is coated well. Slice each avocado quarter into four slices.

To serve, place the romaine leaves down first on a large platter, then top with the tomatoes, hearts of palm, shrimp, and sliced avocado. Spoon the remaining vinaigrette over the salad and garnish with the chives.

To make the dressing, in a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, mayonnaise, sour cream, honey, vinegar, garlic, chives, cayenne, salt, and black pepper. Fold in the blue cheese and chill until needed.

Fill a heavy, deep saucepan with at least 6 inches of oil. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it registers 350°F on a deep-fry thermometer.

To prepare the salad, with kitchen scissors, trim off and discard all of the dark green edges from the frisée. Separate the tender yellow heart of the frisée into small clusters and wash and dry them in a salad spinner. Reserve.

Remove the cores from the green tomatoes using a small knife or a melon baller. Cut the tomatoes into ½-inch dice. Reserve.

Line a plate or tray with paper towels and have nearby. Slice the shallots on a mandoline into paper-thin rings. In a bowl, mix together the flour with ½ teaspoon of the salt. Add the shallot rings to the bowl, coating them well in the flour mixture. Transfer the shallots to a wire strainer and shake off all of the excess flour. Place the shallots in the hot oil and fry until golden and crispy, about 1 minute. Transfer them to the prepared plate and season again with the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt.

To finish the salad, toss the tomatoes and frisée with the chilled dressing. Top the salad with the fried shallots and, if desired, the coarsely cracked pepper.

Serve right away.