David Ross

I think that Richard has established himself as one of the leaders in the competition. Of course it is only week one so a lot will develop over the course of coming weeks and Richard may fall. But he did display some creativity and skill with his crab cake dish-less that silly bit on "smoked mayonnaise." When he mentioned in his on-camera interview that he was going to use a "smoked mayonnaise" I wondered how the hell he was going to pull that off. Then I saw the answer when Andrew asked Richard what that gadget was he was using. It looked like some sort of plastic toy gun we used to buy with Green Stamps. He pulled back some plastic wrap that was covering a bowl and gave the food a shot of smoke. I'm not really sure how the thing works, but I suspect you load it with wood chips and the heating element inside the "gun" creates smoke, which you then "shoot" over the food. I thought it looked pretty silly when he brought his bowl of crab cakes to the judges table and it was wrapped with plastic film. Very tacky presentation. I would think that the Top Chef kitchen includes stylized bowls that come with matching lids. Pulling off a ceramic lid at the table to release a wisp of scented smoke would have looked more professional. When Richard pulled back the plastic film he gave the crab a shot out of his little smoking gun. Did you catch Collichio's comment? "The smoke gives the crab a meatier flavor." Was it Collichio or Rocco that said that? Hmm, smoke gives crab a meatier flavor? Could be, but that plastic red gun was a pretty sophmoric way to pull it off in my opinion.

My, my, it feels like it has been so long since Hung presented us with that wonderful dish of Black Chicken with Geoduck. (No, I'm not making fun of Hung, Black Chickens or Geoduck. I thought that dish was one of the most creative and delicious looking presentations from Top Chef Season 3). Yet here we are again, with Padma, Tom, the contestants and what I suspect will be a painfully long season of listening to the musings of Rocco. But I am glad to be back in your fine company reporting on my views of the 4th season of Top Chef. So with a strong Gin and Tonic at my side, off I go with some thoughts on the bottom four chefs from Episode #1. I find it quite incredible that these four even got to this point. As in incredibly confusing. I am sure one of our fellow eGullet friends can explain the screening process for Top Chef in depth. That explanation would help me understand, or confuse me more, as to how these four even got selected for the show. Based on the bios I have read on the Top Chef site, all of the chefs have impressive resumes. But I guess an impressive resume and a poor-quality, amateur video submission can get you through the Top Chef selection maze. I just found the efforts of the bottom four disappointing for a number of reasons and I guess I would expect more from a young chef fortunate enough to be in the position of competing on Top Chef. The failures of the bottom four chefs seemed to focus on the areas of technique, (not knowing or respecting the classic tradition of a dish), presentation (not everything these days should be "deconstructed"), and not choosing a dish that lends itself to the constraints of the competition ("I have a lot going on, I'm making gnocchi, what was I thinking, I hope I can do it in 90 minutes"). Of course, taste is the ultimate measure of the success of a dish, not the simple observations of a guy watching from Eastern Washington. As I mentioned last year, my opinions are merely based on what I see on television, so I am not in the position to give an intellectual opinion based on the ultimate judge of a dish which is the taste. Mark-I probably am forgetting the details of Mark's dish, but did he serve a "Wasabi Martini" with his dish of "Deconstructed Duck a L'Orange?" Huh. I understand taking a turn to Asia in stylizing the dish, but a Wasabi Martini? Maybe I was the one drinking the Martini's. Mark looked absolutley crushed when the judges said his dish was a mess. It was. I don't know about you, but I personally think this trend of "deconstructing" a dish is getting tired. If it is done for the right reasons and makes sense, and the diner experiences new taste sensations for a classic dish, o.k. But I am getting tired of this little thimbel of a milkshake, a shot of vodka, or a teacup of espresso at the end of a "three-ways" plate. That's the first thing I thought of when I saw Mark's dish. He was trying to do something trendy and he didn't pull it off. He should use the feedback of the judges as a positive catalyst to pull it together next week. Ryan-the man who knew he was going to be in the weeds when the stove was turned on. During a brief on-camera interview, Mark said "I have a lot of ingredients, I'm making gnocchi, what was I thinking, I don't think I can pull it off." Yeah Mark. I'll stay out of the egg and flour vs. egg, flour, bread crumb debate over how Mark's chicken should have been prepared. I just think the guy is funny and if he doesn't win Top Chef, he has a career in politics. Padma was literally without words after Mark's tongue twisting, speak in tongues, circle the wagons answer to the judges questions about his dish. "What did he say?" I don't know Padma, but it was funny. Erick-I sort of like the Gilligan's Island retro hat and the star tattoo on Erick's neck. It's the intense, angry, hip, young chef look. If only Erick had applied the same intensity to his souffle. I do give him credit for admitting he "hadn't cooked a souffle in 20 years." But Erick, why did you discredit a classic dish by creating what in your own words was "a bad dish of nachos?" His plate was a mess with that gloppy spread of avocado on the dish. Listen to Bourdain, "a souffle is supposed to rise, so don't weigh it down with all that other stuff." Like tortilla strips and what I think Erick said was salsa. It looked like some black sort of relish to me. Nimma-Poor, poor Nimma. Rather than show some small measure of interest in her fellow chefs, Nimma's self-imposed exile to the bedroom was only a precursor of the loneliness that would raise its ugly head once again in her feeble attempt at "Shrimp Scampi." I did note that the shrimp looked plump and had bright red tails-credit probably going to the crew behind the scenes that bought good quality, fresh shrimp. But the poor little devils, sitting all alone off to the side of the plate. It looked as though they were trying to swim away from that pallid pool of cauliflower mush. That's what it looked like, white cornmeal mush. Now I like cornmeal mush, or grits, with my shrimp, but this was supposed to be a dish of "Shrimp Scampi." I may be wrong, I often am, but it has always been my understanding that Shrimp Scampi sings with copious amounts of garlic and butter and is accompanied by a nest of spaghetti or linguine. What I saw were two shrimp and a spreading pool of pureed cauliflower. I do not give Nimma points for realizing the planned "Cauliflower Custard" was not setting properly so she made a change-up at the last minute and served an apparent runny version of Cauliflower Custard. Does Nimma believe in the "minimalist" art of cuisine? Did you happen to see any garnishes on her plate? Any sprinkle of snipped chives or a sprig of fresh oregano? I didn't. I saw white prawns with little red tails and white cauliflower on a white plate. Goodbye and Good Luck.

Thanks. The cabbage is easy. I used basic green cabbage but I think Savoy cabbage would also work. I sliced it very thin and then blanched it in boiling salted water for just a few minutes. The blanching helps to soften the cabbage yet still retain a bit of texture. Then I added a pat of butter and some olive oil to a hot skillet and added the cabbage. I stirred in a bit of heavy cream and a couple of tablespoons of Dijon mustard. I seasoned the cabbage with salt, pepper and a bit of caraway seed. I went fairly easy on the mustard and caraway seeds because I wanted the flavor of the cabbage to stand out. The mustard is a nice spicy/bitter element that helps cut through the richness of the cream in the cabbage and the fatty bacon around the pork. I garnished the cabbage with some fresh thyme.

I've heard several people here say good things about Sensi in the Bellagio http://bellagio.com/restaurants/sensi.aspx ← I'll second the vote for lunch at Sensi. The kitchen is centered in the middle of the restaurant and surrounded by glass walls that allow you to see the chefs at work. If they are in season, order the Santa Barbara Spot Prawns. They are taken straight out of the live seafood tank, then butterflied and grilled. Sweet and delicious. Don't forget to suck all those delectable prawn juices out of the heads. Another choice for lunch would be the Country Club overlooking the golf course at Wynn. Avoid the rubbery steaks and fake French accents of the waiters at Mon Ami Gabi at Paris. Personally I find it a very poor imitation of a French steakhouse.

I had a good lunch at Noodles at Bellagio last May. It's sort of forgotten because it doesn't get the press of the more prestigious restaurants at Bellagio. And the location in a back corner of the casino keeps Noodles a bit hidden from the walk-in crowd. They have good Dim Sum, served traditionally by waitresses pushing trolleys, along with good noodle and barbecue dishes. I found the service quick and accomodating.

The vibe of the strip certainly plays a part in creating an exciting atmosphere for people when they go out to dinner in Las Vegas. But the chefs and their staffs have to absolutely back up what's on stage out front with what they produce behind the curtain-skilled craftsmanship in the kitchen delivering quality cuisine that meets the high expectations of their customers. (And the high prices they are paying). I'm intrigued by this question of who is behind the truth of the great kitchens of Las Vegas. That's going to be the question I'll be exploring when I attend the events in May. My experiences so far have told me that their is a growing pool of talented people who are creating exciting cuisine in Las Vegas.

Very odd. I can get to the Palazzo site with no problems at all. On the first try. If it makes you feel better, there's not much info on the dining page--just a brief overview of each of the restaurants. I wonder how long Jay-Z's place will last. Is a sports bar really necessary in Vegas? ← Take a look at the April issue of Bon Appetit for more information on "Vegas Uncork'd." There is a four-page spread that lists all of the events and prices for each, along with a number to call for reservations. So if the pesky computer is acting up, you can still make reservations to join us in Las Vegas by calling in. I know that the city is excited to host the events and have those of us who are serious about food and dining come to visit. It's just loads of dining fun. As for Jay-Z and his nightclub only time will tell. He apparently has had some public arguments with Cristal Champagne and their desire to be associated with other bars. I'm not the expert on the ins and out of that fight. The Venetian is already home to TAO, which is one of the bigger and more popular clubs in Las Vegas right now, so I'm not so sure another club next door at The Palazzo will do well. I'm really not the expert on that because after a nice dinner at one of the better restaurants in town, I'm in bed long before most people enter those clubs-as in 1-2 a.m. I believe Charlie Trotter's place is now open for business at The Palazzo.

Yes, they harvest the mint with a sort of combine/cutter. It's not nearly as big and imposing as a combine for wheat since mint is a much more delicate crop than wheat. After my Grandparents died about 25 years ago we leased our ranch to a farmer and he was the one who we contracted to put in the mint. I don't know the exact variety of mint, but I do know it was spearmint, which has a very concentrated mint flavor in the oil. The mint oil is used for everything from candy to chewing gum. We also took out another field of wheat about 10 years ago when the price was depressed and we put in garlic for seed. In other words, garlic that is used for seeds to plant more garlic. Pretty odd when traditional farms in Prineville, Oregon went from growing wheat, alfalfa and potatoes to growing mint and garlic. (On a side note, we raised Angus cattle years ago, years ago, before there was this silly talk of "certified Angus beef." We laugh now, because our cattle were always "certified." I guess it wasn't until a few years ago that the beef marketing folk realized calling something "certified" meant it was "better." I thought it was pretty darn good back then!) I have to agree with what others have said about the price of flour in this discussion. While the per bushel price of wheat will rise and fall as it always has, the big drivers of cost to the consumer, like fuel, apparently will never come back down to a reasonable level. We can adapt the types of flour we use in our bakeries and take a harder look at the breads we buy in the market so we get the best deal. But in the end, I think we will all have to accept that our flour prices will continue to be high.

Thank you for pointing out the other side of the coin. We farm wheat on our two farms. It's been quite a struggle for years. In fact, we switched to sunflowers and soybeans for a few years due to the declining wheat prices. We lost money when wheat was in the soil. Believe me, I feel for those affected by the higher costs, but don't forget how many years those with farms have struggled, too. And, it will turn around back the other way soon ← My family history in ranching and farming goes back to the 1860's in Oregon and Washington so I have a lot of history and tradition to draw from. I feel the pain of the people whose businesses use wheat products and for the consumer who buys the products, but it's important to also remember that the farmer is also affected when we discuss this issue. We sold one of our family farms in Oregon last year. It had been in our family since 1863. Wheat was a staple crop on that farm for decades until the price dropped in the 1980's and we had to replace a wheat field with mint. Mint wasn't a crop normally grown in that part of the country, but we didn't have a choice. The price we could get for mint oil was much higher than the price of wheat. In simple terms-the price of bread was cheap at the time while the American taste for peppermint candy was rising, making mint oil for candy a more profitable commodity. Like consumers, farmers struggle with the issue of high prices and low prices and have to adapt or else they are forced out of farming. We have family members in the beef industry in Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington and right now they are enjoying the high prices for cattle-but the downside for them right now is the high cost of feed and the fuel it takes to bring the feed to the cattle and the fuel it takes to bring the cattle to market. Difficult economic times for the food industry.

Interesting topic for sure. I happen to live in Eastern Washington and just South of my home are the rolling plains we call the "Palouse"-acres and acres of rolling wheat fields. I can only speak from the perspective of living among the wheat farmers and what I read in our local news. Many of our farmers brought in large profits from our last harvest-the price per bushel of wheat was much larger in 06 and 07 than in previous years. But realize that some of these same farmers were practically broke for a number of years due to poor wheat prices. Eastern Washington is dotted with small farming communities-many of them are on the brink of vanishing in bad farming years. Those same small farming communities are coming back as a result of better harvests and higher wheat prices in the past couple of years. Our paper, the Spokesman-Review, ran a series of articles this summer about farm families that are finally seeing some extra money coming into their homes and communities. Those stories read like a bit of American history-the rise and fall of small farming communities based on the fate or fortunes of the agricultural industry. As some of you have said, any number of factors are affecting the price of wheat and that ultimately is affecting your bakeries and businesses, and ultimately the consumer. It isn't an easy situation to address. What we are hearing locally is that some of the factors that caused a rise in wheat futures included bad weather in Russia that hurt their wheat crop as opposed to good weather and yield from our crops in Eastern Washington. As a result, we saw an increase in the price of the wheat that we export. Of course, the price of fuel for a farmer to gas up his tractors, trucks and combines has had a huge impact on the increase of the price of a bushel of wheat. This is definately a tough situation for many, many people. While some are seeing a negative impact on the price of wheat, others, like the wheat farmers that live near my home, are seeing a positive impact as a result of the price of wheat. I thought you might find my perspective a bit different since I live among the farmers producing a large portion of America's wheat.

That looks phenomenal. How did you cook the tenderloin, stovetop or oven? ← Actually a combination of both. I seasoned the tenderloin and then wrapped it with basic bacon, nothing fancy like prosciutto. Then I tied the little roast with string. I sauteed each side on the stove in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat to start the bacon browning. I would say the total time in the skillet over the stove was about 10 minutes. Then it went into a 425 oven. I always turn the meat in the oven a couple of times to make sure it browns even. I think the total time roasting in the oven was about 15 minutes. So total cooking time was about 25 minutes. I know it doesn't sound like I cooked the pork long enough, lots of people still have that fear of getting sick if pork isn't cooked enough. You'll see the pork is a bit pink in the middle, but today's pork is very lean and so you can cook it medium rare to keep it juicy without a fear of getting sick. The bacon adds moisture, crispy texture and a smoky flavor.

Try my recipe for using canned lychees to make a fruit conserve. It's a wonderful condiment to roast pork, but it would also be very good with roasted duck, chicken or lamb. I"m not sure that my recipe would work with the fresh lychee you are finding in your market but I think it will. I would probably just add a bit more liquid to the conserve if you are using fresh fruit. Let me know if you try the recipe how it works for you. Lychee--Plum Conserve- 5 large litchee fruit, from canned in heavy syrup, roughly chopped 2 large black plums, roughly chopped ½ cup fresh squeezed mandarin orange juice, (substitute with tangerine juice) ¼ tsp. cinnamon ¼ tsp. Chinese five-spice powder ½ cup sugar 2 tsp. mandarin orange zest In a saucepan over medium heat, add lychee fruit, plums, orange juice, cinnamon, five-spice powder and sugar. Cook until sugar is dissolved and mixture begins to bubble, about 10 minutes. Transfer mixture to a blender. Process until roughly pureed. Pour mixture back into saucepan. Add orange zest. Keep sauce warm until service.

French Bistro dishes last night. "Pissaladiere"-Caramalized Onion Tart with lots of caramalized onions, anchovy paste, anchovies, roasted red peppers and black olives. Served with arugula dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. Then Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin on Sauteed Mustard Cabbage.

Dr J-Your photos and plating are looking more delicious all the time. I especially like your idea of using tonkatsu sauce as a accent. I might have to try that. I've only thought of tonkatsu as a sauce for breaded cutlets but now I'm going to try your suggestion of using it as a sauce for other meats. Great idea.

Last night I made a Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Whipped Cream and Crystallized Ginger. Great tasting but it was a testy little tart to make. The dang shortbread crust got stuck in the tart pan and so rather than mess up the whole thing by forcing it out of the tart ring I decided to cut a round out of the middle of the tart. I used Lindt Bittersweet Chocolate, 70% Cacao. As you can see in the photo, the chocolate filling had some air bubbles in it-didn't affect the taste but doesn't give the tart the shiny, smooth look I wanted. The crystallized ginger was a bit old. I think the package of ginger was past its prime. It didn't have that zingy, ginger taste I was expecting. In the end, good concept, only fair execution, excellent taste. Especially with a small glass of Cointreau!

Your baking always looks so delicious. But what makes it REALLY look delectable are your wonderful photos. How do you get them so perfectly clear? What kind of camera are you using and do you set it on digital macro to get such close-up clarity?

My guess is that Las Vegas has a much, much higher concentration of visitors with money to blow than L.A. For it to work in L.A., the places would have to be largely supported by locals. It's not really that way in Vegas. The dining there has become another attraction, along with the shows, the casinos, etc. ← I agree with both of you. I think it's a combination of both money and a steady stream of full dining rooms every night of the week that makes Las Vegas such an attractive city for some of the chefs to open outposts of their namesake restaurants. In Las Vegas, the local diner makes up a very small percentage of the revenue that is brought into the restaurants on the strip. Those restaurants rely on the tourist and convention trade to pack them in every night. That's an advantage most other cities don't have. Another aspect that I think attracts big-name chefs to Las Vegas is the fact that the large casino/resort companies can support these restaurants with a revenue source that other cities don't have-i.e., revenue from gaming. That revenue gives a chef a steady account for ordering foie gras and Wagyu beef. Again, I don't think many other cities have that advantage. So just those two aspects alone I think are what may be factors that attract chefs to Las Vegas. And of course, there may be a bit of wicked, playfulness that influences their personal decision to open in Las Vegas.

I know it's frustrating. If you are interested in attending the events in Las Vegas, just give Bon Appetit a call. I know the operator at the main number can connect you to someone that will make reservations for you for the events-I know because that's how I made my reservations. I got to the website for BA Uncork'd, but then couldn't order tickets online so I just did it the old fashioned way and called.

Sorry you are having trouble getting to the site. The only other suggestion I have is to start with the Bon Appetit main site. On the left is a block called "Events." Click that and it opens a window on all their events. Click "BA Uncork'd" Las Vegas and hopefully it will open for you. I have a couple of open nights when I am in Las Vegas and I am hoping Charlie Trotter's is open by then. Can't wait to try it.

Your impression is somewhat correct-but I'd say that more often than not, the quality stays at a consistently high level at most of the better restaurants even if the namesake chef is not in town. But you do have to choose your restaurants carefully. You'll find many of the chefs are in fact in the kitchen every night-including every restaurant at the Wynn with the exception of Daniel Boulud Brasserie. Chef Julian Serrano is in the kitchen every night at Picasso at Bellagio, and Chef Bryan Ogden is in the kitchens at his Father's restaurant, Bradley Ogden at Caesar's. The list goes on, so if you feel that the meal may be better if "Chef" is in the kitchen, let us know in the Las Vegas forum before you make your reservation. There are lots of eGullet members who are up to the moment in what is going on in Las Vegas and we'll direct you to a restaurant where the "big name" guy is always cooking. An example of your question can be answered by looking at Guy Savoy restaurant in Caesar's Palace. Guy Savoy is obviously not in town that often. But he settles for no less than exceptionally high standards every single night whether he is in the kitchen or not, and he has the executive chefs, sous chefs and pastry chefs to carry through on that goal. His son Frank runs the front of the house and keeps watch to insure his Father's objectives are met. But trust me, I understand your skepticism. There are restaurants in Las Vegas with a "big name" at the top of the menu that don't meet the customers objectives of what a "celebrity chef" restaurant should be. That tends to happen with the chefs whose empires of restaurants, sauces, rubs, cookware, cookbooks and aprons just stretch them so thin that they physically don't have the time to get to Las Vegas as often as they probably should. As a result, the details get lost in a muddle of commercialism and that can be a disastrous mix for any restaurant in the long run.

Try this link for The Palazzo. I am also anxious to try the restaurants at The Palazzo. We have a couple of open nights when we go for the Vegas Uncork'd events in May and one of my choices for dinner is Charlie Trotter's new place at The Palazzo: http://www.palazzolasvegas.com/PINT.aspx?KNC-PAGOOGLESEARCH

I have a sense that some who are serious about dining may have doubts about the authenticity or substance behind the Las Vegas dining scene? Am I right? Whether you've been to Las Vegas or not, I'd like to hear your thoughts on how you perceive the Las Vegas dining scene? Do you view Las Vegas as a top dining destination in the same vein as New York or San Francisco? What are your thoughts? As you may know, I am one of the biggest fans and supporters of the Las Vegas dining community. In support of my argument that Las Vegas deserves a spot in the upper realms of America's top dining destinations, I'm going to be travelling to Las Vegas in May to attend some special culinary events. I'll be reporting back to everyone as to what I find is the 'truth' behind the Las Vegas dining scene. A truth that I hope will bolster my position that Las Vegas deserves to be in the top echelon of America's great restaurant cities. Bon Appetit is sponsoring "Vegas Uncork'd: A Bon Appetit Epicurean Experience" from May 8-11. I attended last year and will be going again this year. My fellow eGullet and Las Vegas dining aficianado, Russell Wong, will also be attending, as will another eGullet friend, John Curtas, the top restaurant and dining journalist in Las Vegas, (and one of the most recognized American food journalists). You may want to check the schedule of events at their website: http://www.bavegasuncorked.com/ I added the subtitle "Experience the 'truth' of Las Vegas dining" to this topic because I encourage serious diners to experience the true substance behind the rhinestone-studded curtains of the Las Vegas dining scene by attending this series of culinary events. I think you will find that there are a number of chefs like Alex Stratta at "Alex" at Wynn, who are passionately yet quietly working behind the scenes every night to elevate Las Vegas to the top levels of America's great dining destinations. While there will be plenty of celebrity chef photo ops, you will also have time in private, intimate settings, to spend personal time with masters like Guy Savoy and Daniel Boulud and listen to them tell us why they have staked their reputations on the success of their Las Vegas restaurants. I am especially excited to attend a private dinner on Thursday, May 8 at Bradley Ogden restaurant in Caesar's Palace-hosted by Alan Richman and Chefs Bradley and Bryan Ogden. Excited because I consider Bradley Ogden and his son Bryan to be two of the top American chefs today-without some of the baggage we often associate with 'celebrity chef' dining rooms. Chef Bradley or his son Bryan are at the stoves in Las Vegas every single night and they have found a number of local producers to supply them with the fruits and vegetables that are an important part of the foundation of their 'market-fresh' cuisine. Now that is what I call the 'truth' behind the Las Vegas dining scene. While there are some restaurants in Las Vegas that are all glitz and glamour yet without any depth of flavor behind the appearance of the food, there are a number of great Las Vegas restaurants that are crafting truthful food for their guests. Do you think dining in Las Vegas is 'true' and worthy of standing in the same company with New York and San Francisco as a top dining destination?

I'm known for not always following standard conventional methods in my recipes-and my recipe for chicken stock probably fits in that category. I don't roast the bones and I don't worry a lot about spending hours skimming the gunk off the top of the stockpot. I chuck a whole dang chicken into a stewpot and let it go. I end up with wonderfully tender and moist chicken meat along with a good chicken stock. For that gelatinous quality we've been talking about, I add chicken wings and chicken or duck feet, along with a pigs foot cut in half. This recipe makes a basic chicken stock. You can further reduce it and use it to make a glace or demi-glace sauce. This recipe for making chicken stock by stewing a whole chicken first came to my attention in a story in Saveur magazine about Chicken Pie Dinners at New England Church Suppers. Apparently this particular method for making chicken stock is something farm cooks used to do years ago-both to make stock and to have cooked chicken meat on hand for making Chicken Pies and Chicken and Dumplings. I changed up the recipe by changing the ratio of herbs and adding the chicken feet and pigs foot. Last year in the Cooking Forum, we had an interesting discussion about the "Classic Glace Recipe" that some of you might find interesting. Our discussions about Escoffier's Glace recipes have somewhat of an application to this discussion today about chicken feet in chicken stock and the reasons for doing so. Here's the link: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=107858 1 whole, large stewing chicken, about 6-8 lbs., thawed 4-5 chicken wings 5-6 chicken or duck feet 1 pigs foot, split in half 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and cut in chunks 2 large carrots, cut in chunks 3 ribs celery, tops on, cut in chunks 5-6 sprigs curly leaf parsley 1 tbsp. whole black peppercorns 2 sprigs fresh thyme 2 sprigs fresh sage Remove and discard the giblets from the chicken. Place the whole chicken, chicken wings, chicken feet and pigs foot into a large, deep stockpot. I use a stockpot that holds 5 gallons of liquid. Pour in enough water to fully cover the chicken, about 12-14 cups. Add the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, peppercorns, thyme and sage to the stockpot. Cover the stockpot and turn the heat to high. Once the water starts to boil, remove the cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Skim any grey foam that rises to the surface of the water. Continue to simmer the chicken, uncovered, in the stock, for 2 hours or until the chicken meat begins to fall off the bones. Remove the stockpot from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Gently remove the chicken from the stock. Pull the meat off the chicken bones and cover and refrigerate. Discard the skin from the chicken and reserve the bones. Return the chicken bones to the stock and place the stockpot back on the stove. Bring the heat to medium and let the stock simmer for another two hours. Remove the stockpot from the heat and remove the vegetable chunks and chicken bones. Strain the stock through a fine mesh sieve into a large bowl. I simmer the stock for a couple of more hours to further concentrate the flavors. Let the stock cool to room temperature and then cover and refrigerate the stock overnight.

Kim one more thing I thought of is the type of dish you are using. Maybe the pros that are reading this thread can chime in on this point-I see you used a glass dish for your Clafoutis? I am wondering if a glass dish can be a factor in the fruit being overly 'wet?' Chef Robuchon advises using a porcelain dish for his Clafoutis. Since I bake mine in a pastry shell, I use a metal tart pan, but you can see in the photo from kbjesq that she used a porcelain dish using my recipe.

Kim you may want to try it with fresh cherries to see the difference in the finished Clafoutis. I think what may have happened is that when the cherries froze they collected little ice particles which in turn became extra cherry juice when you baked the Clafoutis-thus your result of too much juice in ratio to the custard. You may need to just wait until the fresh cherries are ripe in your area sometime in the Summer. Last weekend I made a cherry cobbler using frozen bing cherries and the dessert turned out just fine-but the cherry base for a cobbler is much more forgiving than the cherries baked in a custard for a Clafoutis. I'm thinking Chef Robuchon is right when he suggests that we resist the temptation of making a Clafoutis in the Winter and that we only use fresh cherries in season for our Clafoutis.