Welcome!

Award-winning Chef Phyllis Segura has cooked for people in all walks of life both in the U.S. and E.U. Chef Phyllis has been cooking for special people since 2000.
She attended the Apicius Cooking School of Lorenzo de’Medici in Florence, Italy; received a James Beard Foundation scholarship; attended various New York cooking schools; and watched her grandmother very carefully.
As a personal and private chef Phyllis cooks for individual clients and offers cooking demonstrations regularly. She specializes in small elegant dinner parties, and intimate dinners - plated or buffet, weekday meals and private and group culinary instructions.
The chef prepares a wide variety of cuisines. Whereas a restaurant chef might have a specialty that is served daily, as a personal or private chef Segura applies her skills to the requirements and palates of her clients. Fresh and seasonal ingredients make the best dishes. She is not shy with herbs and spices and will go out of her way to source ingredients.

Vegetarian, Vegan, Macrobiotic, Kosher, grain-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, blood type, diabetic and other special diets are available. Chef prefers to use organic, pesticide and antibiotic free, non-GMO and local products as much as possible.
Consultations with nutritionists are recommended for special needs and diets for proper guidelines.

References and a rate sheet are available. She currently lives in Saugerties, NY.
In 2013 she offered cooking classes in her home kitchen in Spencertown,NY www.reddoorcookingworkshop.blogspot.com

Send an email: info@cookingontheriver.com

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Saturday, October 29, 2022

BENEFIT FOR SAUGERTIES FARMERS MARKET

 Harvest Home Dinner Menu

October 2022


Piquillo Peppers stuffed with Shrimp Vinaigrette

Fried Oysters with Remoulade Sauce


Pumpkin Gratin with Leeks and Brie

Puff Pastry Garnish

Crispy Salad of Belgian Endive & Radicchio

with Raspberry Vinaigrette


Poulet au Vinaigre with Red Wine Vinegar,

Capers, and Dijon Mustard

Brown Butter Brussels Sprouts  with Pancetta

Wild Rice Medley with Butter


Wine-poached Pears stuffed with

whipped cream and Mascarpone, Chocolate drizzle,

fresh mint

Pistachio Financier



Saturday, April 30, 2022

ROMESCO SAUCE

 ROMESCO SAUCE

Have you ever made it? The Americanized version uses red bell peppers but that is not how it's supposed to be. You can do that of course but you aren't going to get the real deal and there is a huge difference in taste. Romesco was originally devised to be used on fish, grilled fish, but its usage has widened to other foods, including chicken and steak. It is more broadly used when Calçot onions are available. They are similar to scallions but the white part is much larger. They are eaten grilled with Romesco sauce. You can grill other vegetables as well. Instead of red bell peppers chilis are used. The traditional ones are the small Nõra chilies. I couldn't find them so the Ancho is what is recommended and what I used. There are several steps to make this and well worth doing.

5-6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
3 large ripe tomatoes, cored, halved horizontally, seeded
3 Ancho chilies, stems and seeds removed
½ cup red wine or sherry vinegar
5 tablespoons (2 ounces) or 36 blanched almonds and/or hazelnuts, lightly toasted
2 slices crusty bread, crust removed, broken in pieces
6 tablespoons (¾ cup) extra virgin olive oil
1-¾ teaspoons salt


Place the garlic and tomatoes, skin side up, on a foil covered sheet pan. Broil 4-5 inches from the heat. Turn over when charred and well roasted. Place in a bowl, then cover with a towel or plastic wrap.

Put the vinegar and a ¼ cup of water into a saucepan with the Ancho chilies and bring to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes to soften the chilies. Remove from the heat and let sit another 5 minutes covered. When cool remove them and scrape the soft inner meat off leaving the skins. Save the liquid. Use the back side of a knife to do this scraping.  It is a little bit of a delicate operation.Save the paste. Discard the skins.

Toast the bread slices with the blanched almonds in a cast iron pan over medium heat. When toasted, remove and grind to a powder using a mortar and pestle or a blender.

Peel the garlic. Remove the skins from the tomatoes. After steaming they will come off easily.

Put everything into a blender or food processor: the Ancho chili paste, tomatoes, garlic, ground almonds, vinegar, oil, and salt. Process to a puree. 

Taste to see if you want to add more salt. It will be slightly vinegary but an hour or so in the refrigerator will mellow the flavors and bring them together. It needs that resting time. Serve it chilled or room temperature. 





Saturday, November 27, 2021

TURKEY TETRAZZINI (OR MUSHROOM TETRAZZINI)



½-¾ pound spaghetti, broken in half 
sea salt 
white pepper 
4 tablespoons unsalted butter 
1 clove garlic, minced 
½ onion or shallot, finely chopped 
 ½ - 1 cup sliced mushrooms, 
optional 1 rib celery, small cubes 
2 tablespoons flour 
1-½ cup turkey, chicken or veg broth 
⅓ cup dry sherry 
⅓ cup heavy cream 
nutmeg 
3-5 cups cubed turkey 
¼ cup frozen peas, optional 
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley  
1 cup panko ½ cup parmesan or pecorino romano 
2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 
sweet paprika 

Heat the oven to 350°F Prepare an 8 x 8 inch pan smeared with butter. 

Cook spaghetti in salted boiling water until al dente. Remove and drain. 

Melt 2 tablespoons butter then sauté garlic, onion , celery, and mushrooms. Cook about 5 minutes, stir occasionally. 

 Make the Velouté sauce: Melt 2 tablespoons butter, add 2 tablespoons flour, stir to make a tan roux. Add 1 cup broth, sherry, and the heavy cream. Simmer until thickened. Add salt and white pepper. Nutmeg. Add turkey, mushroom and celery mixture, peas, oregano, and parsley. Taste for salt and pepper. If too thick add more liquid. You need 2-½ cups of sauce.  

 Turn the spaghetti into the prepared pan and top with the sauce, mix lightly. The spaghetti will soak up the sauce. If you like it really creamy you could even double the sauce so that the spaghetti seems to be swimming in it. 

 Mix the panko with parmesan and oil. Sprinkle on top. Tap down gently. 

 Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes until bubbly and slightly brown on top. Cool 10 

 Cut portions with a knife, especially if the spaghetti is long. 

 You can freeze this recipe before baking. 

To make it vegetarian use more mushrooms and use a mushroom broth and eliminate the turkey.





Monday, November 01, 2021

RED BELL PEPPER KETCHUP

 



RED BELL PEPPER KETCHUP

© Phyllis Segura 2021

8 red bell peppers, roasted
½ cup apple cider vinegar
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder or dust
½ cup brown sugar, plus
2 tablespoons Tamarind concentrate
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
1 tablespoon honey
1/3 cup cane sugar
black pepper
salt
cayenne pepper, optional
small handful of dark raisins, optional

Makes 1-1/2 cups

Start with the red peppers. Broil them to blacken and blister. Cover a large sheet pan with aluminum foil and broil, turning frequently with tongs, to blacken and roast all sides. When the peppers are blackened all around place them in a large bowl and cover it with a cloth. Leave to cool. When cool, take out the seeds and take off the skins. Don’t do it under running water because you will lose all the nice oils. You do have to run some water on some of the persistent seeds, and for your hands. You do this peeling and seeding with your hands.

Put all the cleaned peppers into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients up to the honey. Tomatoes have a lot of sugars, but bell peppers don't, so I added more brown sugar as I tasted. Once you have that done take out your blender.

Put the concoction into the blender in batches and pour the cold puree into a pot. Heat the puree slowly. If it starts to bubble and spit, lower the heat. Stir now and then. Once it gets hot and the spices start to meld together, start tasting it. I added a small handful of raisins at the end to cook in. They melted nicely. You will probably want to add more sweetness so at that point add the honey and some cane sugar. You’re trying to approximate the aftertaste of ketchup here. Probably if you follow the measurements here you will be alright, but everyone has different taste…so little by little adjust the brew to yours. Cook until it thickens to your satisfaction.
        Taste and see if it has the right ratio of sweet to sour – agrodolce. Remember that once the finished product sits for a day or so in the refrigerator the flavors will meld and taste slightly differently than what it is now. I added some cayenne a few times and once at the end. Probably just the slightest amount works best. Pour the hot ketchup into a pourable container. I used a Pyrex 4 cup measuring cup and it worked well.

Pour the ketchup back into the blender for a final spin and mix.

Find some nice jars and boil them with their caps to sanitize. Leave in the hot water for a    few minutes. Or use whatever technique you know. Using a funnel, fill the jars.

Cover the jars and let the ketchup cool before storing in the refrigerator. It’s always a good idea to label and date the final product. There are too many times I take an unlabeled jar            out of the fridge and ponder what it is. I don’t always figure it out. 

It’s all guesswork. I’m wondering if it will come out the same the next time. Since this isn’t a commercial venture, it doesn’t really matter all that much because it would get close.

###



Thursday, October 28, 2021

THANKSGIVING SUGGESTIONS



Hor D'oeuvres:

Stuffed Mushrooms *
Spiced Walnuts *
Crudites and Dip
Radish, peppers, carrot, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber,
Cherry tomatoes, celery, asparagus
Dip: Walnut Garlic Potato
Red pepper
Artichoke Garlic
Smoked Salmon Horseradish
Onion Spinach
Shrimp or Scallops with Bacon *
Shrimp on Bread Rounds with Curried Mayo
Coconut Shrimp
Crabcakes with Remoulade Sauce
Pissaladiere (onion, anchovy, tomato on puff pastry)
Prosciutto with fig, salad or fruit or mozzarella
Fried Oysters with Remoulade Sauce
Crostini: Liver Pate
Mushroom Pate
Caponata
Seafood
Artichoke
Black Olive Tapenade
Roast Goat Cheese w/honey walnut
Corn cakes with sour cream and lox *
Smoked Salmon with horseradish and dill on dark bread *
Buckwheat Blini with crème fraiche and caviar

Soups:
Pumpkin/Squash (served in a pumpkin if available) *
Roasted Root Vegetable
Corn Chowder *
Mushroom and Leek
Oyster and Ginger
Corn and Lobster Chowder
 
Salads:
Mixed Greens with Raspberry Vinaigrette
Fennel, Radicchio, Parmigiano with Pear Vinaigrette
Beet and Fennel
Waldorf
Pear, Endive and Gorgonzola

Main Dishes:
                Roasted Turkey or other fowl 
                ( Capon, Goose, Pheasant, Quail, Moscovy Duck, 
                Cornish Game Hens, Squab, Guinea Hen, Poussin)
                Rubbed with Sage and Parsley Butter or Butter and Fresh Truffles
                Giblet Gravy
Stuffing:
Sausage and Sage *
Sausage and Chestnut
Sausage and Apple
Chestnut
Sage and Chestnut *
Cornbread and Oyster
Giblet and Mushroom
Walnuts and Currants
Wild Rice and Hazelnuts *
Wild Rice and Dried Cherry

Vegetables:
Mashed Potatoes
In Skins - Twice Baked *
Plain Mashed
Garlic Mashed
Sweet Squash Pudding
Sweet Potatoes
Maple Whipped *
Roasted with Ginger and Maple Syrup
Candied with (marshmallows)
Celery Root  and Potato Puree
Diced Roasted Vegetables with herbs
Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Chestnuts *
Corn Pudding with Roasted Garlic *
Succotash
Broccoli with Roasted Garlic Oil
Steamed Rutabaga with Butter
Green Beans with Almonds
Peas and Pearl Onions
Baked Rosemary Onions au Gratin
Turnip Puree with orange and nutmeg
Root Vegetable Puree (potato, parsnip, celery root, carrot) *
Braised Fennel with Parmigiano
Wild Rice Cakes
Red Cabbage with Blueberries
Other: Turnips, Rutabaga, Jerusalem Artichokes, Acorn Squash, Butternut Squash,
Beets, Carrots, Fennel, Endive, Corn, Brussels Sprouts
Cranberry Sauce:
Sweet Traditional
With Orange Zest and Ginger
With Grand Marnier
With Pineapple
                        With Red Wine
Etc.
Gelatin Mold

Breads:
Sweet Loaves::
Maple-Pecan Cornbread
Pumpkin Chutney
Cranberry Walnut
Tropical Banana
Mocha Pecan
Iron Skillet Cornbread
Carrot Walnut

Savory Loaves:
Parmigiano Herb
Dill and Cheese

Popovers


Sorbets:
Pear Lime
Pear Ginger
Lemon Apple
Persimmon
Pomegranate

Desserts:
Apple or other seasonal fruit Crisp
Apple Pie with Cheese Crust or Standard *
Apple or Pear Cake with Chocolate Disc
Pumpkin Pie *
Chocolate Cake
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Southern Sweet Potato Pie
Whipped Cream


























Tuesday, October 26, 2021

BIRTHDAY DINNER FOR TWO

 


                                         I loved my birthday celebration. I enjoyed your cooking so much!


Vegan/Carnivore Birthday Menu for Two 

Sunday, August 15, 2021

LE GRAND AIOLI BACHELORETTE PARTY

AUGUST 2021
LE GRAND AIOLI
MENU

Caprese Skewers with Balsamic Glaze Drizzle

LE GRAND AIOLI
Vast array of assorted fresh & poached vegetables
Cod, Shrimp, Chicken
Garlic Aioli
Sundried Tomato Aioli
Basil Aioli

Berry Compote 
Vanilla Ice cream
Banana Whipped Cream
Fruit Sauce
Savoiardi















 

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