Celebrate the 2021 Top Female Achievers

Celebrate this year’s Top Female Achievers with New Orleans Magazine Wednesday, May 12, at 7 p.m. on our Facebook page.

Before you tune in, make sure to grab yourself a cocktail and a snack with these recipes provided by honoree Chef Nina Compton from her restaurant Compere Lapin.

TURF CLUB COCKTAIL

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz Hamilton St. Lucian Pot Still 8yr
• 0.5 oz Bounty Spiced Rum
• .25 oz Rich Demerara Syrup
• 2 dash El Guapo Cuban Bitters
• Mint

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a shaker tin and pack with ice cubes. Shake hard for 20 seconds, then strain through tea strainer over pebbled. Garnish with mint floret.

CONCH CROQUETTES AND PICKLED PINEAPPLE TARTAR SAUCE 

Ingredients:

• 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• ½ Spanish onion, peeled & finely chopped (about ½ cup)
• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 4 cups whole milk warm
• 1 bell pepper diced
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. cayenne
• 8 oz. conch poached (see recipe below)
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 cup breadcrumbs

Method:

Heat the butter in a medium sauté pan over a medium flame. Add the onions and peppers and cook until they are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add 1½ cups of the flour and mix energetically. Cook for 5 minutes to make sure the flour is cooked through; it should start to take on a golden color. Pour the milk into the flour mixture and cook, stirring continuously, for about 2 minutes; add the spices, until you have a thick béchamel.

Add the conch and sprinkle in the salt and nutmeg. Cook for another 2 minutes. The mixture should be thick enough that you can mold in your hands. Carefully pick up a bit and try to ball it with your hands. It shouldn’t be too sticky. If it does stick to your hands, cook it a little longer. Then, spread the mixture on a cookie sheet and let it cool to room temperature.

Take a spoonful of the cooled béchamel mixture and roll it in your hands to make a small cylinder the size of a wine cork. Roll the cylinder in the remaining 1 cup of flour, then in the eggs, and then in the breadcrumbs. Repeat with all the croquettes.

In a small, deep frying pan, heat the olive oil to 375°F (190°C – measured with a candy thermometer). Add the croquettes in small batches, making sure they are covered completely in oil. Fry until they have a nice golden color, about 1-2 minutes; then transfer them to paper towels to drain. Repeat with all the croquettes and serve hot with some tartar sauce and lemon wedges.  Enjoy!

CONCH

Ingredients:

• 1 onion julienned
• ½ bunch rosemary
• 8 oz. conch
• Olive oil
• 3 qt. water

Method:

Caramelize the onions in a sauté pan and add the rosemary. Add the water and bring to a boil. Add the conch and simmer for 45 minutes. Take off heat and cover with plastic wrap and let cool completely in liquid.

TARTAR SAUCE

Ingredients: 

• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped red onion
• 1 tsp. chopped capers and 2 Tbsp. juice (from jar)
• 1 Tbsp. jalapeño or Calabrese chili, chopped finely
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, plus wedges, for serving/garnish
• 2 Tbsp. pickled pineapple, small diced or mango
• Salt to taste
• Cayenne pepper, pinch (or to taste)

Method: 

Combine all ingredients and serve.