Anise Carrots Recipes

Steps:

• Cook/steam carrots in salted water until crisp-tender (or desired tenderness); drain.
• Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, saute onion in the butter until they are soft and translucent.
• Return cooked, drained carrots to saucepan with the sauteed onions.
• Add anise and preserves. Toss to coat well.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Steps:

• For the chicken: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Clean the chicken and sprinkle the entire bird, inside and out, with salt and pepper. Stuff the bird with the oranges, garlic, onions, celery, rosemary and thyme. Place the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan and bake for 20 minutes. If the chicken is browning too quickly, turn the oven down to 375 degrees F and cook until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165 degrees, about 1 hour 20 minutes.
• Remove the chicken from the oven, tent with foil and let rest 30 minutes. While the chicken is cooking, work on the garnishes.
• For the snow peas and carrots: Fill a large pot with water, season with salt and bring to a boil. Prepare an ice bath by placing ice cubes and water in a bowl. Set aside. Dump the snap peas into the boiling water and cook until al dente. Be sure to test the peas as they are cooking to prevent them from overcooking. Use a slotted spoon to remove the snow peas from the water and plunge into the ice bath. Remove from the ice when cool and reserve until service.
• Put the carrots, ginger, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons butter and brown sugar in a saute pan and add water until the carrots are barely covered. The carrots should be in a single layer. Put on high heat and cook until all the water is nearly evaporated. Cover and set aside for service.
• For the star anise sauce: Combine the stock, soy sauce, anise seeds, honey, vinegar, sesame oil and thyme and reduce until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.
• Once the chicken has rested, carve the bird by removing the legs from the thighs and slicing the breasts in half. Pour any juices that have collected in the pan into the sauce and hold warm over low heat.
• To finish the snap peas, heat a saute pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon butter. Once it is bubbly, add the garlic and snap peas. Season with salt and pepper. To finish the carrots, gently reheat over medium heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter to moisten.
• Once everything is hot, serve a piece of white and dark meat garnished with the carrots, snap peas and drizzled with the sauce.

Steps:

• In a pot of very salty boiling water, blanch the spinach and basil for about 45 seconds. Immediately shock in an ice bath and squeeze out excess water. In a blender, blend at high speed while adding the oil. Season the puree. Take vegetarian risotto and place in large bowl. Make sure risotto is not too hot before adding puree. Fold in 1/2 of the green puree and 1/2 of the cheese. If risotto is not green, add more puree. Check for seasoning and add more cheese if necessary. Spread risotto into a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Risotto should be at least 2 inches high. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top and chill for at least 4 hours to overnight. Cut 2 1/2-inch circles of risotto and pan sear in a non-stick pan coated lightly with oil. Color both sides well. Toss spinach chiffonade with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place a small mound in the middle of a plate and top with risotto cake. Drizzle carrot syrup and garnish with chive batons.
• In a stainless steel casserole, reduce carrot juice with star anise until all of the water is evaporated. There will be a carrot. Remove the star anise and scrape the "scum" to a blender. Blend at high speed while slowly adding oil to emulsify. Check for seasoning. Store at room temperature.

Steps:

• Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Saute chopped carrots and onion in the hot oil, 10 to 15 minutes. Add water slowly, adjusting so that the vegetables are just covered. Add star anise, chicken bouillon, and coriander and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer, about 40 minutes.
• Remove star anise. Puree soup with an immersion blender to desired consistency. Garnish with thyme and marjoram and serve hot.

Steps:

• In large stock pot over medium heat melt the butter. Add chopped onion, 3 star anise, bay leaves and garlic. Saute until the onion starts to soften and glisten, about 5 minutes.
• Add the carrots and fresh stock. Cover, bring to boil and simmer until carrots are very tender, approximately 30 minutes.
• Remove star anise and bay leaves. Using an immersion blender puree the soup until very smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Take the remaining star anise and grind to a fine powder. Stir a little into the soup. Adjust seasoning and add more star anise to taste. Stir in the fresh minced chives.
• Serve hot.

Steps:

• Make the semifreddo
• 1. Put the chocolate in a heatproof glass bowl and melt slowly in the microwave. Alternatively, you can set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (don't let the bowl touch the water) and stir until the chocolate is completely melted and just warm. Set aside.
• 2. Using a handheld electric mixer, whip the cream in a medium bowl until it forms soft peaks; set aside.
• 3. Combine the egg whites and sugar in a heat-proof bowl and place over a pan of simmering water. Whisk continually until the whites are just hot, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a large bowl. Beat the egg white-sugar mixture with a handheld electric mixer until stiff peaks form and the egg whites are shiny and glossy, 3 to 5 minutes.
• 4. Fold the cream into the melted chocolate, then carefully fold the meringue into the chocolate mixture. Pour the chocolate mixture into a 9 x 13-inch pan and put in the freezer until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight until frozen.
• Make the cake
• 1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Combine the eggs, oil, sugar, salt, flour, star anise, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Mix until just incorporated; add the carrots.
• 2. Line an 8 X 4-inch (or 4-cup) loaf pan with parchment or use a nonstick baking pan. Pour the cake batter into the pan and bake for 45 minutes, or until the center springs back when lightly touched.
• 3. When cool enough to handle, unmold onto a baking rack (run a small knife around the edges if necessary to release the cake from the pan) and let cool. Cut into 2-inch slices then cut each slice in half and set aside.
• Make the soup
• In a small saucepan, heat the carrot juice over medium heat, then add the cornstarch, and whisk until the carrot juice mixture thickens, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Chill for 1 hour or until cold. Season with sugar and salt to taste.
• To serve
• Ladle a small amount of carrot soup in a shallow bowl. Place 5 to 8 carrot cake pieces on top of the carrot soup. Place 3 to 4 small scoops of the chocolate semifreddo on top the carrot cake. Garnish with carrot greens, if desired.

Steps:

• Melt butter in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, thyme, 3 star anise, bay leaves, and garlic. Sauté until onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add carrots and broth. Bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes.
• Remove and discard thyme sprigs, star anise, and bay leaves. Working in small batches, puree soup in blender until very smooth; return to same pot. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool slightly, cover, and chill. Rewarm over low heat before continuing.)
• Finely grind remaining star anise in spice mill or coffee grinder. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with ground star anise.
• *Brown, star-shaped seedpods; available at some supermarkets, Asian markets, and specialty foods stores.

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large, shallow pan. Add the carrots, tarragon and star anise. Slowly cook for 10 mins until the carrots are glazed and starting to soften. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil, then simmer everything for 20 mins until cooked and the stock has reduced.
• Pour in the cream, bring back to the boil and simmer for 1 min more. Remove from the heat, take out the star anise and stir through the lemon juice. Season to taste, then blitz with a hand blender until as smooth as possible. The purée can now be chilled or frozen, then gently reheated before serving.

Steps:

• Heat the butter in a deep saucepan over a medium heat until just starting to sizzle, then fry the cumin seeds until toasted and crackling.
• Add the onion, leek, garlic, star anise, carrots and a pinch of salt. Stir to coat. Cover, reduce the heat to low and cook gently for 15-20 mins, stirring occasionally until the vegetables have softened in their own steam.
• Pour over the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer, then continue to cook for 10 mins until the carrots are tender. Spoon 2 tbsp of the cream into a small dish and set aside, then pour the rest into the pan and bring back to the boil. Remove the star anise and use a hand blender to blitz the mixture until smooth and silky. Or, tip into a standard blender in batches and blitz before returning to the pan. For a really smooth soup, push through a sieve into a saucepan. At this stage, the soup can be cooled completely and chilled for up to three days or frozen for six months. Defrost fully before reheating. Reheat until piping hot over a low heat, then pour into bowls, drizzle with the reserved cream and scatter the extra cumin seeds on top. Serve with these cheese, cumin & onion seed cornbread muffins, if you like.