|
|
Chef Sean Gallagher |
|
Professional, talented, dependable team player with a positive attitude. Proven ability to produce quickly under pressure, without sacrificing quality. Mastery of cooking philosophy and technique with desire to constantly learn more and perfect his craft. Well-versed in international cuisine. Strong interpersonal and leadership skills.
In charge of all production. Quality control, sanitation, scheduling, ordering, client tastings, menu development.
• Prepare cuisine for small and large groups including cocktail parties, 7-course meals, special events, and family gatherings
• Perform the following duties: menu design, food ordering, event planning, event set-up, server hiring and training, food preparation, clean up, and engagement of clients and guests to enhance overall service experience
• Serve clients ranging from doctors to lawyers to high profile individuals in fashion primarily in Connecticut and New York (Manhattan)
• Served as assistant food stylist for Bobby Flay’s Hellman’s satellite media tour by buying products, preparing food items for the shoot, overseeing interns, styling dishes, and monitoring overall cleanliness of the site
• Assistant food stylist for Electrolux satellite media tour with Kelly Ripa. Styled refrigerator, contents, set kitchen, prepared all items for shoot, kept set tidy.
• Serve as freelance caterer and on-premise chef for a variety of large and small events including corporate functions and fundraisers of up to 500 people as well as private dinner parties, weddings, and graduations
• Assist with special occasions including themed and holiday events as well as events for high profile clients including Coach, Donna Karen, Cast of GLEE, AOL, Marc Jacobs, Bank of America, and the New York Symphony
• Leverage diverse talents to support both pre- and day-of-event activities including client consultation, menu design, ordering, foraging, event planning, event set-up, finishing and/or cooking from scratch, plating, tasking out servers, and client and service management
• Managed on-site café operations and daily production of gourmet sandwiches for sale on-site and delivery to other locations
• Designed and implemented a variety of new café menu items to revitalize café
• Supervised and managed team of 7-14 employees with solid organizational, communication, and time management skills
• Delivered all aspects of Chef services including consultation, planning, preparation, and event execution
• “& Grains”: Managed concept and recipe development including creation, testing, and implementation
• “Aroma31”: Reopened a restaurant in 3 months: project management, concept development, recipe/menu design, staff hiring and training, vendor selection, order management, kitchen and restaurant design, and marketing. Set standards for culinary, pastry, front of the house, and sanitation
• Prepared wide range of premium quality cuisine under strict time constraints for high-profile clients –breakfast, lunch and dinner, domestic and int’l flavors, batch and mass-production, and included hor d’oeurves, buffet-style items and pastry
• Handled diverse set of responsibilities ranging from meat butchering to recipe testing for pastry product development to working every station in the kitchen including hotline, fruits/salads, and prepared foods
• Supported Sous Chef with inventory management, daily opening of kitchen, establishing daily production schedule/priorities, and prioritizing tickets and assigning to team in alignment with team members skill and speed
• Provided consultative services to facilitate the transformation of operations of former bakery into full-service restaurant and café focused on producing items from scratch using locally sourced and organic ingredients
• Facilitated ongoing operations by designing and producing daily specials, managing and training staff in the front and back of the house, managing inventory and ordering, preparing food, and tracking/reconciling sales
• Helped to establish menu for restaurant launch and set quality/health standards for food storage and preparation
• Prepared all breakfast and lunch items for historic hotel serving both its café and higher-end tavern
• Performed prep work for all shifts including daily butchering of all meat and fish
• Cooked daily meals for 60+ employees and helped with event catering including banquets and brunch
Worked all stations, primarily Garde Manger
Worked Weddings, Business Functions, Private Parties
Trained under Executive Chef David Haviland
Compiled wine and liquor inventory
Completed an 18 week externship on site
- Set up line, prepared lunch and dinner items
- Prepared all desserts for showcase and service
- Prepped for several stations
- Bussed and waited on tables during lunch and dinner services
- Prepared mise en place for service
- Prepared various plated desserts
I’ve had a roasting chicken in my freezer for a few weeks and decided, since there is literally nothing better than roast chicken, to defrost, brine, and roast off the little bird.
When roasting chicken I like to make sure the skin is completely dry. Dry skin, with pats of butter underneath will lead to deliciously crisp chicken skin. Cooking the chicken at a high temperature to start off the browning, and then lowering it for the rest of the cooking period will make a perfectly crisp and tender-juicy bird.
Orange and Marjoram Roast Chicken
3 pound whole chicken, brined (recipe below)
1 bunch carrots (with tops if you prefer)
2 shallots, quartered
4 cloves garlic
1 Orange, cut in quarters
Herb butter
Herb Butter
1 stick butter, softened
1 T finely chopped fresh marjoram (Oregano is a fine substitute as well)
2 T finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 T finely chopped fresh thyme
1 T orange zest
1/2 t kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
Brine
8 cups water
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 T herbs de provence
2 T Mustard seeds
1 Orange, juiced and peel
Herb Butter Roasted Asparagus
1 bu Asparagus
2 T herb butter
Sprinkle salt
Dash ground black pepper
Homemade Tagliatelle Pasta
3 whole large eggs
2 cups durum flour (If you can’t find specialty flours I’ve made it with AP flour at its just delish)
2 T olive oil
1 pinch kosher salt
*At this point I had taken all the juices from the chicken and scraped the bottom of the roasting pan for all the flavor. Add this to a sauté pan and started to reduce.
As the hot pasta came out of the pot, I added it to the reducing chicken juices. The result was a deliciously flavorful pasta. At the end before serving I added 2 T of leftover herb butter to pan and mixed it together. The flavor of the chicken jus with the pasta and herb butter was incredible and I recommend if you make this dish to do it the same way.
This meal is a little more involved than the recipes I normally post, but I guarantee that the reward is worth the effort. Delish!
Try it out!
Cheers
Sean Patrick Gallagher
We always bought these strawberry-rhubarb pies from a local farm when I was growing up. I remember the beautiful balance of sweet and sour. In Connecticut as a kid, my neighbor grew rhubarb and I would pick it with her and make strawberry-rhubarb jellies.
Right now is primetime for rhubarb, and when I saw it at the Amish market I had to grab some up. It is truly versatile. You can add it to savory dishes to add a sour element or balance the sweetness is dessert applications. I made a delish strawberry rhubarb filling to put inside some tart shells. You could use the same filling on waffles, french toast, biscuits, ice cream, pudding, or yogurt.
Here’s what I made and how I did it.
Strawberry Rhubarb Oat Tartlets
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Oat crust -
8 tartlets
3/4 cup quick cooking oats
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 t cinnamon
1/8 t ground ginger
pinch salt
1 stick butter, softened
1 T water
Filling
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1 2 inch piece orange peel
1 pint strawberries, quartered
1 cup small dice rhubarb
1 vanilla bean, scraped
2 T orange juice
1 cinnamon stick
1 t cornstarch, dissolved in the orange juice
1 T fresh lemon juice
Whipped Cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 T confectionary sugar
1/8 t vanilla extract
Plating – Take an oat tart and fill it with 2 T of strawberry-rhubarb filling, top with a tablespoon of whipped cream, garnish the top with oat crumbles.
This dessert is honestly one of the best things i’ve ever made. I highly recommend trying to make them, you can make all different sizes depending on your molds. I made little 3 in tarts in molds. They would be great as a plated dessert, on a brunch buffet, or dessert bar, or just make them for a romantic dinner at home for two.
Enjoy!
Cheers
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I bought a 5 pound pork shoulder last week and have trying to think what to make. I love pork because of its versatility, you can give it any kind of flavoring, and cook it multiple ways.
In the kitchen, I would make 50-100 pounds of roast pork in a day. I would cover the pork shoulders in a dry rub of brown sugar, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne, onion powder, a ton of salt and pepper. Then cover it with mustard and ketchup (Weird I know, but a delish tip from Daryl – Thanks Daryl!). Cover the whole lot of them in chicken stock and let them braise for 6 hours. The result, the most delicious, decadent.. salty, fatty pulled pork.
Today I am trying something different, I’m cutting the cooking time by 1/2 by cutting the meat smaller, and boiling, then roasting it.
Carnitas
Prep: 15-20 minutes
Cook time: 2.5 hours
5 pound Boneless pork shoulder, cut into 3 inch cubes
2 cups chopped vegetables: I say use whatever you have on its way out in the crisper, I had some celery, onion, carrots, and bell pepper scraps.
8 cloves garlic
2 limes, cut in half
1 jalapeño, cut in half
1 cup orange juice
1 bottle light beer, I used corona
1 T Mexican oregano
1 T ground cumin
2 T kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups water
This meal was really easy to prepare and a hit! The texture of the meat is different than pulled pork, its more sticky and chewy, and after broiling, crispy. I love it, and its definitely a meal I will make time and time again.
Thank you.
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I hate lugging groceries from the store, it’s one of the inevitable tasks you must do every week. Fortunately companies like Fresh Direct exist and can deliver whatever you need to your home with the click of a button. Browsing through their online lists, I saw papaya and thought back to Dean & DeLuca where I would eat the the scraps from the papaya for fruit salad and platters. Delish. I ordered two, because generally they are pretty small. What was delivered was larger than a football and no matter how much I love them, after eating several pounds of fresh papaya you get sick of it.
So I decided to challenge myself and make two recipes with papaya. I remember hearing of a papaya cake before, so I looked it up and there is a Bahamian Rum Papaya cake that looked to die for. I played off that one by adding coconut and caramelizing the papaya. As I was making the cake I decided I wanted to add more coconut flavor, so I added half a can of coconut milk. I think it made a really moist delish cake.
The frosting is a light coconut flavored buttercream with large toasted coconut curls.
Here’s how I did it.
Caramelized Papaya Cupcakes with Toasted Coconut
2 cups AP flour
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/8 t baking soda
pinch salt
2 eggs
1 stick softened butter
2 T dark rum
1/2 can coconut milk
1 T orange zest
1/2 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened/chipped)
1.5 cups caramelized papaya (Recipe follows)
Caramelized Papaya
1 large papaya, diced
2 T brown sugar
2 T butter
Coconut Buttercream
1 stick softened unsalted butter
1/8 t ground ginger
2 cups confectionary sugar
1/2 coconut milk
1/8 t good vanilla extract
This recipe produces a cupcake that is a little denser more like a teacake. It is honestly one of the best things I have ever made up! Absolutely delish, you are not going to be able to stop eating the coconut buttercream.
I hope you try this one! Enjoy!
Cheers,
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I know how tough it is to come home and cook. I cook all day long! If it’s a work night and I’m cooking dinner, it has to be quick or I don’t really have the motivation. Especially when you live in NYC and you can get any cuisine you can think up delivered to your door in 15-30 minutes.
I have to admit that I am a sucker for comfort food, and my number one is pasta. Of course I love to make fresh pasta, and if I’m feeling really up to it – make delish raviolis filled with all sorts of decadent things.
Nonetheless, at least once a week I make a pasta dish and I have to tell you its oh-so-satisfying and couldn’t be simpler. Last night I made a beefy Bolognese. Beautiful fat laden ground beef browned and stewed with onions, garlic, hot pepper flake, and San Marzano tomatoes.
Here’s one for your recipe book – the most simple weeknight dinner.
Fettuccine Bolognese
Prep time: 5-7 minutes
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
1 box fettuccine pasta
1 pound ground beef – (I like 80/20 for the fat content)
1 can San Marzano tomatoes
2 T tomato paste
Splash red wine – (If you have some open)
1 large white onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
1/2 t hot pepper flake (or 1 T if you like it hot!)
1/2 t dried oregano
2 T grated parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste
Easy weeknight dinner done! I served it with roasted broccoli and garlic, a glass of wine, a hunk of rustic bread, and great company – all in 30 minutes!
Enjoy!
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I was recently inspired by phenomenal Mexican Chef Roberto Santibanez of Fonda restaurants while watching him work in the Saveur test kitchen, and then working at Creative Edge and collaborating to create the Happy Hearts Foundation event this past year. Ever since then I have been on a Mexican kick, slicing the needles off nopales, toasting chilis, and charring and pureeing various vegetables.
One of my favorite meals in life are traditional enchiladas. Not the heavy American version stuffed with all kinds of meat and beans and smothered in cheddar cheese… the lighter, more flavorful Mexican version where corn tortillas are dredged through a delicious sauce made from dried arbol chilis and love, filled with a little meat, raw white onion, and cotija cheese, rolled and topped with more sauce, crema, chopped onion and cilantro.
I love to take that same red chili sauce and braise large chunks of marbled beef until tender and falling apart. The flavor is so rich and balanced with the sweet heat of chilies and the buttery fat of the beef. I made this dish at my parents a few months ago and they were in love. I served them this dish with fried plantains. Deliciously sweet and sprinkled with large flakes of salt, the perfect accompaniment to this rich dish.
Fried plantains are a nice change from the norm, and a great side dish to many different meals. They are extremely inexpensive and are filling. The perfect side dish on a budget.
Fried Plantains
2-4 Ripe/Firm Plantains, peeled and sliced into 1/8 in thick slices
Vegetable oil, for frying
Salt, to taste
I hope you enjoy this delish side dish and don’t be afraid of frying at home, as long as you are careful, you have nothing to fear!
Cheers,
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I’ve always felt blessed to have a mother that was more than just a parent, she’s my best friend.
This mother’s day I wanted more than ever to make her feel special, and what is a better way to do that then make my mother her own brunch!
The Menu:
Brunch for Mama
Fresh Pineapple or Orange Mimosas
Turkey Bacon, Breakfast Sausage, Fresh Fruit
Breakfast Potatoes
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Blueberry Compote
Leek, Asparagus, Mushroom Frittata with Boursin and Parmesan Cheese
All in all it was a delightful afternoon, surrounded by family and delicious food.
Best Breakfast Potatoes (Homefries)
5# Red skin potatoes, washed and diced
1 large vidalia onion, thinly sliced
1 T spanish smoked paprika
1 t granulated garlic
1 t dried oregano
1/2 t cayenne powder
2 T olive oil
2 T butter
Enjoy!
Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing ladies out there!
Cheers!
Sean Patrick Gallagher
Nopales can appear scary, (as a rule, I pretty much wouldn’t eat anything with thorns on it!) but they are a versatile and delicious ingredient that can be added to stews, sautés, or made into a salad.
Once you get through the thorns it’s an easy process!
Remove the thorns of the nopale (Cactus petal) with a small paring knife, or if you are really comfortable, carefully use your chefs knife to remove many at once. I like to boil the nopales to remove some of the viscous liquid inside them. After that I sauté and chill them to add to salads, or keep the nopales in the sauté pan and add in some julienne zucchini, summer squash, snap peas, also caramelized onions, and fennel. Cook until tender, add a squeeze of lime, a dash of ground cumin, and top with chopped cilantro and cotija cheese. DELISH!
I hope you pick up Nopales next time you’re at the grocery and are feeling adventurous!
Cheers
Sean Patrick Gallagher
I can say that I have always loved brunch. As a teen, I worked in a family restaurant where every sunday we all worked the crazed 8am to 3pm brunch shift where I bused tables, my mother and sister took orders, and my cousin flipped corn-cakes in the back. It was a tiny place with 10-15 tables. The walls were covered in copper pots and the table cloths were blue and yellow pinstriped and matched the awning outside. The floors were made of creaky old wood that ran along to the tiny kitchen in the back which could hold one chef and a prep cook/dishwasher. It was charming, and I spent most of my childhood there. On Sundays, I’d come in early and mix together some muffins flavored with whatever we had available. Blueberry-peach, strawberry-poppy, and banana chocolate chip were crowd favorites so I made them often. When the muffins cooled, I would put them on a cake stand on the counter and when we people came in, the restaurant smelled of freshly baked goods. After culinary school I worked in an historic hotel where brunch was at the forefront of their business. My muffin making days were over and on came 300 poached eggs and gallons of hollandaise. Brunch was no longer endearing but exhausting, and my love affair was lost. Eventually I moved on to a quaint organic bakery with a side dining room with 20 tables. I started the first brunches there, bringing back all of what I loved about it. I created hand-crafted menus, where I would make a different type of french toast every week. I would make a cherries jubilee, a nod to the classic dish with beautiful pitted cherries in a luscious sauce of Grand Marnier (cooked out!) and orange zest. On occasion I would make a “pain perdu,” just a fancy Francois version, which I would make with baguettes, caramelizing the bottom to produce a toothsome crust. When I moved to New York City, I worked for Dean and DeLuca, where I made breakfast for hundreds of companies and private homes daily in a large scale production kitchen. Fancy batons of brioche were soaked in a custard style batter, baked until golden brown and placed inside a silver tray, cooled and shipped out to be devoured by one of New York City’s elites.
My history of brunch aside, I have always loved the service of brunch and the joy that it brings to people. When I moved to Astoria a few years I ago, I brought my large early 1900′s clawfoot table, lugged it up the stairs, and cluttered my apartment for one reason; entertaining. Every sunday that I wasn’t working, and some where I got off early enough to make it home and cook, I would have a brunch party. I would pull over every chair in the apartment, put the two leaves into the table, and invite 20 people over. Large platters filled the table and elegant serving ware went out. Champagne flutes spilled over with fresh squeezed orange juice and champagne. It was a celebration of food and friends and a time to appreciate one another. I’ve always carried on the steps and art of service into my own personal parties. I feel that the table should be full and have many options, and that each item should have its own service ware.
What I have learned now over the years is that you need to take the time to celebrate with food but it doesn’t have to take all day. Take help where you need it without sacrificing quality.
Today I wanted to create a small brunch for my partner and I to celebrate our Sunday together. I woke up about an hour before him and got to work. I also love brunch because you can always utilize things you have in the fridge and not break the bank. I created a frittata with yellow, red, and orange bell peppers, caramelized onions, baby arugula, and parmesan. Frittatas are the best of both worlds, so simple to produce yet appear and taste sophisticated. If I had the time I would make homemade pastries, but with my schedule I will from time to time just buy them ahead of time. Today I took some help and bought a par-baked item that is finished in the oven and glazed. Presented on a beautiful platter, hot out of the oven – no one will care if you took 5 hours to make them or 30 minutes to bake them off. Some crispy bacon, whole wheat english muffins, a quick cut of some fresh mango and strawberries, and the meal was together. Plated with matching white and silver dinner ware, with pops of color in spring time miss matched serving pieces. I served lattes and Pellegrino. All done within an hour.
Here’s how I did it.
Arugula, Caramelized onion and Pepper, Parmesan Frittata
Prep time: 8 minutes
Cook time 15-20 minutes
Preferred: Oven safe skillet – I love the Le Creuset Signature Fry Pan
6 jumbo eggs
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons parmesan
pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Fillings
1 Red bell pepper, seeds and pulp removed, finely diced
1 Orange bell pepper, seeds and pulp removed, finely diced
1 Yellow bell pepper, seeds and pulp removed, finely diced
1 Large white onion, thinly sliced
1 glove garlic, minced
1 large beefsteak tomato, finely diced
1 cup baby arugula
2 tablespoons parmesan
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until egg is set and golden brown.
Serve either hot or warm depending on preference.
While your Frittata is baking, lay strips of bacon on a sheet pan in a flat even layer and bake until golden brown and crispy. About 10-12 minutes.
While the bacon and frittata are baking, clean and prep some fresh fruit. I had some mangoes and fresh strawberries on hand so I washed and hulled the strawberries.
Sliced them in half and peeled and diced the mango. I love the flavor combination and its perfect to serve with eggs and baked goods to break up some of the heaviness.
If you choose to serve a par-baked good, follow the instructions listed and time it correctly to serve them warm.
Have your toaster and coffee machine/espresso machine next to each other and have them be the last things you make. Make one latte while the english muffins are toasting and alternate until done.
Have the table set ahead of time, all serving platters laid out to go, and you are ready to have a beautiful brunch for two.
I hope you take time to celebrate the ones around you, and there is no better way than an effortless Sunday brunch.
Thank you!
Cheers,
Sean Patrick Gallagher
Feta stuffed turkey meatballs, roasted tomato sauce, spaghetti squash (Taken with Instagram)
Recipe testing with Rebecca Foxman. Kale slaw with tarragon, yogurt dressing, toasted almonds. (Taken with Instagram)
Sage and Jasmine infused feta skewers with green olive, mint, and cucumber
www.anaphoto.net ©Ana Schechter 2012
Walnut crusted fried chicken, mashed potatoes, kale slaw, buttermilk cheddar biscuits, gravy (Taken with Instagram)