Email
PrintAh, Spa!
As much a state of mind and soul as it is a state of body
EnlargeBecause spa is as much a state of mind and soul as it is a state of body, we want to help you keep all the bases covered till your next trip to one of the West’s great destination spas. Deliciously healthy recipes from master spa chef Terry Conlan at Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, Texas, and chef Marc LeDuc of Three Forks Ranch on the Colorado-Wyoming border and a blessing from the Inn and Spa at Loretto in Santa Fe should get you from here to making your reservations.
Watermelon Gazpacho
12 cups cubed, seeded watermelon
1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded cucumber, coarsely chopped¼ cup each red, yellow, and green bell pepper, chopped
½ cup fennel bulb, chopped
½ cup green onion, chopped
1/3 cup chopped mint
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cranberry juice
½ cup lime juice
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ teaspoons Tabasco
3 tablespoons olive oil
Pulse all together in a food processor, keeping some texture. Chill.
Courtesy Chef Terry Conlan. Get his cookbook Fresh: Healthy Cooking and Living from Lake Austin Spa Resort (a finalist for the 2004 International Association of Culinary Professionals Cookbook Awards) through the resort: wwwlakeaustin.com.
Limoncello Tiramisu
6 large lemons
2 tablespoons honey
½ cup confectionary sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons Limoncello liqueur, divided 1 tablespoon, 5 tablespoons
8 ounces fat-free cream cheese
8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
½ teaspoon salt
12 ounces fat-free whipped topping
16- – 20 ladyfingers
Cut the peel from two of the lemons. Juice all lemons. Cut the peel into thin strips, and then blanch in boiling water for 1 minute. Repeat blanching with fresh water, two more times. Combine ¼ cup water with the confectionary sugar and simmer the peels for 5 – 6 minutes. Strain, reserving syrup. Roll the lemon peel in the granulated sugar and set on parchment paper to dry.
Combine the lemon juice with the honey and 1 tablespoon of the Limoncello in a flat-bottomed dish. Pulse the cream cheeses, salt, reserved lemon syrup, and remaining liqueur in a food processor until smooth. Pulse in the whipped topping. Dip half the ladyfingers in the lemon juice mixture and use to line the bottom of an 8-by–12-inch casserole dish. Spread with half of the topping. Repeat. Chill.
To serve, scoop out portions and top with a little candied peel.
Enlarge(Serves 10)
Courtesy Chef Terry Conlan, Lake Austin Spa Resort: www.lakeaustin.com.
Coffee-Crusted Texas Beef Tenderloin with Jalape"o Red-Eye Gravy and Goat Cheese Crema
2 ounces Pure Luck Dairy chèvre (goat cheese), softened
2 ounces Mexican crema
4 4-ounce all-natural beef tenderloin steaks, trimmed of all visible fat
½ cup ground coffee beans
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon canola oil
Nonstick pan spray
1 cup brewed coffee
1 cup beef stock
¼ cup jalape"o jelly
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in a little additional coffee
Whisk the chèvre and crema together. Hold, chilled, in a tipped squeeze bottle.
Combine the ground coffee beans and seasonings. Dredge the steaks in this mix; then spray them lightly with nonstick spray, before searing one side in a hot cast-iron skillet with the oil. Turn the steaks over and finish to desired doneness in a 450-degree oven.
Set the steaks aside, covered, while you deglaze the hot skillet with the coffee and stock. Reduce the liquid to one cup. Add remaining ingredients and cook to sauce consistency. Add any juices accumulated with the meat. To serve, divide the sauce over the steaks; then zip with the crema.
(Serves 4)
Courtesy Chef Terry Conlan, Lake Austin Spa Resort: www.lakeaustin.com.
Elk Brine
1/2 gallon water
1/2 cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons honey
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup black currants
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 elk tenderloin, cleaned
Bring all brine ingredients to a boil then simmer for 3 minutes. Chill and keep refrigerated till needed. Will keep up to 1 week. Brine elk tenderloin for 4 hours before grilling.
Courtesy Chef Marc LeDuc, Three Forks Ranch: www.threeforksranch.com.
From the blessing of fresh food at Lake Austin Spa Resort and Three Forks Ranch, we turn to a blessing written by Suzanne Chavez, director of the Spa at Loretto in Santa Fe, New Mexico, for use in the spa’s Native Reflections treatment.
Spirit of the East, source of the Light
And of the Element of Fire
Bring enlightenment into our Lives.
Spirit of the South, where the sun burns brightly
The source of feelings and the Element of Water
Bring strength into our lives.
Spirit of the West and place of the setting Sun
Place of the Element of Earth
Bring transformation into our Lives.
Spirit of the North, resting place of the sun
And of the Element of Air
Inform and educate us.
Mysterious Creative Force behind All That Is
Great Spirit
Nurture us.
Courtesy Suzanne Chavez, Inn and Spa at Loretto: www.innatloretto.com.
Read the “Spa Getaway” feature in the January 2011 issue of C&I.
