Haggen chef’s Anjou pear ravioli tops in nation
Published 5:13 pm Monday, December 8, 2008
James Valentine creates original recipes all the time.
Part of his job as corporate executive chef for Top Food &Drug and Haggen Food &Pharmacy stores includes formulating tasty salads, sandwiches and catering menus.
You may have tried his signature cashew chicken salad with rotisserie chicken or the fresh spinach salad with pine nuts and pasta in one of the local chain’s delis.
Valentine, however, isn’t just a regional culinary star.
He recently won the 2008 USA Pears recipe competition, earning him a ticket to cook at the Epcot International Food &Wine Festival at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., in October.
Valentine’s recipe — Northwest Anjou pear ravioli with vanilla chardonnay beurre blanc — was chosen from about 200 entries from chefs representing grocery stores.
The 50-year-old Bellingham man happened to be making handmade ravioli at home one evening when he came up with the idea.
“I had a pear on the counter and I thought, ‘You know, this might be kind of fun.’ I love using local products,” said Valentine, who incorporated hazelnuts and watercress from Western Washington and pears and chardonnay from Eastern Washington into his winning recipe.
How does this dish taste?
“Your taste buds just kind of go crazy,” Valentine said. “Sauteeing the pear beforehand is really what brings out the flavor.”
Valentine suspects that his recipe stood out because it wasn’t a dessert or salad, but a savory entree.
Pear Bureau Northwest sponsored the contest to promote pears from Washington and Oregon, which produce 84 percent of all fresh pears grown in the United States.
Valentine’s recipe was immediately a contender in the inaugural contest featuring green Anjou pears, especially when judges tested the recipe by cooking it, said Cristie Mather a Pear Bureau Northwest spokeswoman.
“His recipe was hands down the winner,” Mather said. “He was really amazing at giving green Anjou pears in particular a sense of place and a sense of flavor.”
Valentine admits that his elegant recipe, which also includes ricotta and mascarpone cheese, is a bit elaborate for a home cook. That’s why he’s trying to find a pasta company to create the ravioli for resale in local Haggen and Top stores.
Valentine, a graduate of the Western Culinary Institute in Portland, Ore., has worked in food service for Haggen for 20 years.
“It was an opportunity of a lifetime. I was kind of king for the day,” he said of his time at Epcot. “To top it all off, all of this happened on my 50th birthday. It’s something that I’ll always cherish.”
Sarah Jackson, 425-339-3037 or sjackson@heraldnet.com
How to pick a pear
Pears, which are typically sold green at the grocery store, ripen best off the tree. Try the “Check the Neck” technique from Pear Bureau Northwest:
1. Place hard pears in a paper bag or a covered fruit bowl at room temperature for a few days.
2. Every day, apply gentle pressure to the stem end of the pear with your thumb. When it yields to the pressure, it’s ready to eat.
3. Eat immediately or store them in the fridge, where they will stay fresh for about five days.
Source: See www.usapears.com/pears
James Valentine’s winning ravioli recipe
This recipe from James Valentine, corporate executive chef for Top Food &Drug and Haggen Food &Pharmacy stores, won the 2008 USA Pears recipe contest.
If you have questions about this recipe, you may call James Valentine’s message line at 360-650-8373.
NORTHWEST ANJOU PEAR RAVIOLI WITH VANILLA CHARDONNAY BEURRE BLANC
Ravioli pasta
1cup semolina flour
1cup all-purpose flour
1/4teaspoon salt
2large eggs
1teaspoon olive oil
1-2tablespoons water
Filling
2ripe Anjou pears
1tablespoon olive oil
1/2cup ricotta cheese
1/2cup mascarpone cheese
1/4cup watercress, chopped
1/4cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped
1teaspoon salt
1/4teaspoon black pepper
1egg
2tablespoons water for eggwash
Vanilla chardonnay beurre blanc
1cup Chateau Ste. Michelle Chardonnay
1large shallot, finely diced
1whole vanilla bean, split in half
3/4cup heavy cream
1/4pound butter, softened
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish
1/4cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped
1cup watercress leaves
8Anjou pear slices
To make ravioli pasta: Sift together flours and salt in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, olive oil and water. Form the sifted flour mixture into a mound on a flat surface and form a well in the center.
Pour half of the egg mixture into the well and begin mixing with two fingers while supporting the mound of flour with your other hand. When egg begins to incorporate, add the remaining egg mixture.
When all egg mixture is incorporated, kneed dough for eight to 10 minutes until smooth, dusting the surface with semolina flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking.
Form dough into a ball and tightly wrap with plastic wrap. Let dough rest in refrigerator for two hours.
Make the filling while the dough is resting.
Cut dough into two pieces and roll it into thin strips, about 1/16th inch thick, using semolina flour for dusting. Place small dollops of filling on the strips, spaced so you’re able to close and completely seal each dollop with dough.
Whisk together one egg and two tablespoons of water for egg wash. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush egg wash on outer edge and in between each ravioli. This is the glue that will seal each ravioli.
Fold over the outer half of pasta and seal each ravioli, making sure there is no air trapped inside with filling. Press edges down for a tight seal.
Cut strips into individual raviolis, which can be frozen until ready to use.
When ready to cook, place ravioli into a pot of rapidly boiling water for four to six minutes until tender but still firm.
Drain and rinse ravioli and gently toss with vanilla chardonnay beurre blanc.
Place in serving dish, garnish with watercress, Anjou pear slices and toasted hazelnuts.
To make filling: Peel pears, remove seeds and dice.
Heat olive oil in a saute pan, add pears and saute over medium heat until they begin to soften slightly, about two minutes. Remove from heat and chill.
Once pears have chilled down, combine pears with ricotta, mascarpone, watercress, toasted hazelnuts, salt and pepper.
To make sauce: Combine the chardonnay, diced shallot and vanilla bean in sauce pan. Heat over medium heat, reduce the heat by half, add cream and reduce heat by half again and remove the bean and set aside.
Reduce heat and whisk in butter in small pieces until it thickens. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean and add to sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
Be careful not to boil the sauce as this will cause it to separate and break down.
Serves four.
Recipe by James Valentine
