A weekly Column by Chef Daniel Orr

Daniel Orr is Executive Chef at Kitchen Stadium, Santorini Restaurant, Famiglia and the Tapas Lounge and Rum Bar at CuisinArt Resort & Spa and is working on “A Chef’s Diet” Cookbook and Cooking in Paradise.

TEMPTATIONS

Chef Daniel Orr

I often feel that I am weak. Why is it so hard for me to say no? Why am I always hungry? Why do I have to eat it all instead of being happy with a taste? Why is everything so damn tempting? I’ve been thinking about this and believe the answer lies in the past. Food has always been important to me and I often console myself with it during hard times, sad times, stressful times, as well as celebratory times. I’m tempted because it makes me feel taken care of, satisfied and free to indulge in something I find pleasurable. Good food is pleasurable in a sensual way. Temptation leads us to indulge in these sensual experiences. But like the devil in disguise, food can seduce us into disregarding what may be better for our health, resulting in a sinful mockery of what food should be - a balance of seductive experience for all of our senses and nourishment for our physical well-being.

You can still have a pleasurable eating experience without those French fries, that midnight pint of ice cream after a busy dinner service, or that double cheeseburger on the weekend. As a chef I don’t have to eat a whole portion of foie gras terrine or crème brûlée to know if it is perfectly prepared. A tiny taste is truly all I need, for more than that I have no excuse.

If you don’t respect yourself enough to care about what you allow to go into your mouth, you will need to do some self-examination, and this can be painful. The best way to start is to think back and see where your yo-yo-ing stops and starts. You will be surprised to see that there is always a pattern. Choosing junk food or overeating good quality food is basically the same thing - a misuse of what food should be. These temptations are triggered in many ways. For some it’s a reaction to disappointing news, depression, or fear, but for others it can be as simple as seductive television ads, a lack of cooking experience and just general lack of knowledge of good food and eating habits.
People think eating healthfully means eating like a bird. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Just think of the huge variety there is of delicious foods to choose from. Picture a produce aisle with its rainbow of colors.

From orange squashes to green and red cabbage, to yellow peppers, purple-tipped artichokes, bright green Granny Smith apples, berries of all colors, black and maroon eggplant, red and golden beets, rusty brown mushrooms, dark green poblano peppers, white cauliflower, crispy green kale, speckled yellow bananas, the garnet-skinned yams. Even dried legumes, fruits and nuts are inspiring. The range of colors and textures and flavors is infinite. Black beans, red lentils, lima beans, black-eyed peas, Brazil nuts, ruby red olives, and hundreds of other tasty and healthy foods are part of a healthy diet and taste much better than lots of the stuff we allow to seduce us.

My recipe this week is a simple last-minute sorbet that you can prepare at a moment’s notice. Prepare two or three with different fruits for a lovely presentation of many colors. Add to it a flower from your garden, or slices of fresh fruit in contrasting colors. When you add to nature’s gifts of delicious foods a little love in the cooking and serving of them, you have something not only tempting but something very sexy indeed.

Instant mango sorbet

Use on fruit salad for a weekend brunch or for that late-night snack - you’ll love this refreshing addition to your culinary repertoire.

I keep pint containers of prepared fruit in the freezer so I can whip up a smooth sorbet, one-two-three!!!

Remember - recipes are guidelines. So adapt to your own taste and have fun!

Don’t be afraid of flavor!

1 pound frozen mango flesh (peeled and pitted mango cut into chunks and frozen)
juice of 2 limes
_ cup vodka (optional)
small pinch of salt

Place the ingredients in the bowl of a Cuisinart® blender or food processor
and blend until smooth. Quickly scoop out into a chilled bowl and return it to the freezer to allow it to become firm, about 1 hour. Keep frozen until needed. Remove from freezer 5 to 10 minutes before scooping, depending on how hard it sets up. If the sorbet becomes too hard to scoop, simply put it back in the processor and run until smooth.

Note:
Try with peaches, papaya, strawberries and other fresh or frozen fruit.
The vodka helps the sorbet keep from getting too hard but may be left out if you desire.

I’d love to hear from you. I am collecting recipes and stories for future articles and books and would love to include your favorite family recipes and food memories from the kitchen, the garden or the sea. You can reach me at dorr@cuisinart.aior stop me on the road if you see the CuisinArt Chef Mobile.

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