The Berghoff Family Cookbook

From Our Table to Yours, Celebrating a Century of Entertaining

by Carlyn Berghoff, Jan Berghoff, Nancy Ross Ryan

Price: $29.99
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-6362-5
ISBN-10: 0-7407-6362-8
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 x 10 in.
Page Count: 288 pages

“Overall, The Berghoff Family Cookbook is a really great find, and I am so glad I had to opportunity to try it out. This exceeded my expectations by a mile, and I really am looking forward to trying out more of their recipes. If the rest of the recipes are as enjoyable and authentic as those I have tried so far, then this will be a serious contender for my keeper shelf for sure. Highly recommended.” ––Lavender Blue http://heatherfeather-lavenderblue.blogspot.com/2009/08/cookbook-review-berghoff-family.html

Makes 5 cups/Serves 8

One of the dishes that made Berghoff’s famous, Creamed Spinach was put on the menu around 1945 by our Swiss then-executive chef Karl Hertenstein, and has been there ever since. Up until now, the recipe, although simple, has been our secret. We made everything “from scratch” in Berghoff’s kitchen—except the Creamed Spinach. Because spinach is so bulky when fresh and shrinks to almost nothing when cooked, we have always made our enormous daily quantity from frozen spinach. Frozen spinach is minimally processed: quickly blanched, drained of excess water, then flash frozen. If you want to try making our recipe from fresh spinach, we have included a recipe. But we bet that, side by side, you can’t taste the difference.

2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons chicken base, or 1 cube chicken bouillon
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/8 teaspoon celery salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 (10-ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (2 1/2 cups)
Salt and ground white pepper, if desired
Ground nutmeg, for garnish
Crisp, cooked, crumbled bacon, for garnish

In a medium-size saucepan, heat the half-and-half, milk, chicken base, Tabasco, and seasonings to a simmer. Remove from the heat and keep warm.

In another medium-size saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk well to combine. Cook this mixture for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often. Slowly whisk the heated milk mixture into the butter mixture, a little at a time, whisking constantly until smooth. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until it thickens. The sauce will be very thick.

Stir in the spinach and simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings. Serve while hot.

To serve: Place the hot creamed spinach in a bowl, sprinkled with an extra touch of ground nutmeg on top. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon of crisp, cooked, crumbled bacon, if desired.

Serves 8

If Grapes Rolled in Goat Cheese is one of Paul Larson’s biggest hits, this is his biggest claim to fame. Paul is the executive chef for Carlyn’s catering company, Artistic Events. When the mashed potato fad of the ’90s was in full swing, and fine dining restaurants were serving skin-on lumpy mashed potatoes, this was his answer. At family parties, we serve it in plastic martini glasses.

Mashed potatoes

4 large Idaho potatoes
1/2 cup half-and-half
3 tablespoons salted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

White wine sauce

1 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, softened
Ground white pepper

Shrimp

2 tablespoons olive oil
16 medium-size shrimp, peeled, deveined, and chopped, or lobster may be substituted
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives, for garnish

Make the mashed potatoes: Peel and dice the potatoes. Place in a medium-size saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a simmer, and simmer until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain. Using an electric mixer, whip the potatoes to a thick puree with the half-and-half, butter, salt, and pepper. Set aside the potatoes in a warm place until ready to serve.

Make the sauce: In a 1-quart saucepan, heat the white wine over medium heat and simmer until reduced by two-thirds to 1/3 cup. Add the heavy cream and continue to simmer until reduced again by half to about 1/2 cup. Remove from the heat and gently whisk in the butter, a little at a time, until thickened. Season with white pepper, and set aside in a warm place until ready to serve. This recipe makes about 1 cup of sauce. Make the shrimp: In a 10-inch skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the shrimp and sauté until tender and almost cooked through. Add the chopped garlic and sauté for another minute. Do not allow the garlic to brown or burn. Remove from the heat immediately.

Assemble the martinis: Divide the hot mashed potatoes among eight martini glasses. Place two cooked shrimp on top of the potatoes in each glass and drizzle each martini with 2 tablespoons of the wine sauce. Garnish with the chopped chives and serve immediately.