Bouley's 'Clean Cuisine' in Practice: Recipes That Feature Distinct, Light Flavors

EGGPLANT TERRINE WITH ITALIAN PARSLEY SAUCEDavid Bouley's eggplant terrine, like all terrines, makes enough for a large dinner party or buffet. Bouley uses a beurre blanc, or wine-based reduction, where we have added lime juice for the parsley sauce. 5 large eggplants, peeled, sliced in 1/4-inch rounds 8 ounces goat cheese (two 4-ounce logs) 4 large eggs 1/4 cup heavy cream 4 tablespoon gelatin (4 envelopes) 13-ounce can chicken broth (for pepper puree and gelatin) 1/4 cup fresh herbs -- thyme, tarragon, rosemary, and chives -- chopped salt and pepper

Red Pepper Puree

2 large red peppers 1 pound tomatoes, peeled and chopped 1 large onion, chopped 1 rib celery, chopped 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup chicken broth

Roast peppers whole until skin crinkles and flesh softens, let cool; remove skin, stem, and seeds; chop coarsely. Saute onion and celery in the olive oil, until wilted and very tender; add tomatoes, peppers, and 1 cup chicken broth. Cook together 5 minutes, then puree in processor or blender and reserve. Yield: about four cups.

Garlic Puree

6 heads garlic 4 tablespoons olive oil

Leaving heads of garlic intact, slice off top of skin (opposite root end). Immerse heads in small pot of cold water and bring to boil. Simmer 5 minutes and remove from heat. Drain when heads are cool enough to handle. Remove garlic cloves from skin; put in small baking pan, toss with oil, and bake until tender. (Peppers and garlic can be roasted together in 375-degree F. oven, about 30 to 45 minutes.) Puree garlic in food processor or blender until smooth; reserve.

Basil Puree

1 bunch basil, leaves only (about 1 cup) 4 tablespoons olive oil

Puree basil and oil together in processor or blender until smooth; reserve.

Assembly

Saute eggplant slices in olive oil until well browned, drain on paper towels and reserve. In a measuring cup set in warm water, dissolve gelatin in remaining 3/4 cup chicken broth. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons melted gelatin to garlic puree, 1 1/2 tablespoons to basil puree, and remaining gelatin to red pepper puree. Line bottom of 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan or terrine with parchment or waxed paper. Layer 1/2-inch thick slices of goat cheese. Beat together the eggs and heavy cream, pour over goat cheese and bake in bain marie at 300 degrees F. for 20 minutes; remove from oven and cool. Sprinkle custard with chopped fresh herbs, spread 1/4-inch layer of red pepper puree, cover with overlapping slices of eggplant, season with salt and pepper. Layer basil puree, red pepper puree, eggplant, garlic, red pepper puree, eggpl ant, until terrine is filled, ending with eggplant. (Remaining red pepper puree and eggplant can be used for other purposes.) Cover terrine with plastic wrap, refrigerate 24 hours on a tray. Weight top with a heavy plate.

Italian Parsley Sauce

1 cup parsley leaves 2 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 cup chicken broth juice of two limes 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons chives, chopped

Heat olive oil until hot in skillet. Add parsley, and cook briefly, just until wilted and color sets. Place in food processor or blender and puree with two tablespoons lime juice. Using same skillet, reduce 1/2 cup chicken broth and 1/2 of remaining lime juice to 1/4 cup; stir in 1 tablespoon butter, turn off heat. Whisk in parsley puree, remaining tablespoon butter, and remaining lime juice. Season. Puree should be smooth. Add touch of water if needed. To serve: Unmold terrine, remove paper, slice into 1/2-inch slices. Serve with 1 or 2 tablespoons of parsley sauce. Serves 12.

SALMON WITH TOMATO WATER Bouley declined to give us his recipe for the salmon, so we devised it ourselves. The "water" that can be caught by draining tomato pulp is widely used by young chefs today, for example as a side drink with a touch of citrus juice, or -- in Bouley's case -- flavored with verbena and served as a broth for the salmon.

2 salmon steaks sesame seeds juice from 1 lb. of tomatoes (peeled, seeded, and chopped; pulp reserved in strainer to reserve "water") 2 tablespoons olive oil

Remove skin and bones from salmon steaks, separating the two sides of the salmon; roll to make ovals and secure each with two toothpicks. Coat one side with sesame seeds. Heat olive oil in skillet, saute seeded side of salmon first, covered, and turn (about 4 minutes each side, medium high heat). Remove toothpicks, and serve seeded side up. Serve 1 tablespoon of reserved tomato water with each salmon steak on platter, or in shallow broth dish if enough tomato water (heated) has been reserved. Garnish wit h thin slices of small green and red tomatoes. Serves 4.

HOT VALRHONA CHOCOLATE SOUFFLE The Valrhona chocolate has a unique and complex flavor, but other quality French bittersweet chocolates can also be used for the souffles.

For the base: 2 ounces extra bitter Valrhona chocolate 2 ounces butter 2 ounces heavy cream 1 ounce cocoa powder 3 egg yolks For the meringue: 3 egg whites 1 ounce sugar butter and sugar for four 4-ounce souffle molds powdered sugar for dusting

Melt chocolate and butter in double boiler. Stir in cocoa powder, remove from heat. Combine cream and egg yolks. Add small amount of chocolate mixture to egg yolks and cream before adding it to the rest of the melted chocolate. Set aside. For the meringue, whip egg whites until firm, adding sugar in small amounts until whites are stiff and shiny and meringue holds peaks. Fold small amount of meringue into reserved chocolate mixture; fold in remaining egg whites. Pour into molds that have been buttered and sprinkled with sugar. Place a cookie sheet on lowest rack and preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Bake souffles on cookie sheet for seven minutes. Unmold onto plates, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve immediately, with chocolate sauce and ice cream.