Ever wonder what to do with those empty egg cartons -- read on!

Recipes for Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, adapted from a new  favorite cookbook authored by Thomas Keller, chef at The French Laundry Restaurant in Yountville, CA.  Guess the title?  

Recently took a couple dozen Crisps to a party, just flat, no filling.  They really disappeared quickly.

Parmesan Crisps

½ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat 325° F.  Line a baking sheet with a Silpat. (see note below)
Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the cheese in one corner of the Silpat.
Use your fingers to spread the cheese into a 2-inch circle.  Repeat with the remaining cheese; you should have about 12 rounds.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are golden brown.  Use a small spatula to transfer them to paper towels.  They will be soft when they are removed but will stiffen as they cool.  Store the crisps in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Thomas Keller, chef at The French Laundry Restaurant in Yountville, CA. notes:

These crisps can be made in any size, but it’s important to use freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.  These are easy and have many uses—serve them with salads or soups, or use them to hold a small dollop of a filling such as . . . goat cheese mousse. . . .

Parmigiano-Reggiano Crisps with Goat Cheese Mousse

1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (from a moist piece of cheese)
Goat Cheese Mousse
6 ounces fresh goat cheese (or other soft goat cheese)
4 to 6 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon minced Italian parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
A clean egg carton

It’s best to bake only half the crisps at a time, because they may harden while you’re working with them.

Preheat the oven to 325° F.

For the Parmesan Crisps:  Line a baking sheet with a Silpat (see explanation of this item at bottom of page),  parchment paper, or use a nonstick baking sheet.
Place a 2 ½-inch ring mold in one corner of the Silpat and fill it with one tablespoon of the grated cheese.  Using your finger, spread the cheese into an even layer.  Repeat to make 8 rounds, leaving at least one inch between them.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the crisps are a rich golden brown.  Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for about 30 seconds to firm the crisps enough so you can remove them with a spatula.  
One by one, remove the crisps and gently press each one into a hollow in the egg carton to form a tulip shape.  After a few minutes, remove the cooled crisps from the carton and make 8 more crisps
For the Goat Cheese Mousse:  Place the goat cheese in a food processor and process (depending on the cheese used, it may look smooth or crumbly).  Pour ¼ cup of the cream through the feed tube and continue to process until the mixture is smooth but will hold a shape when piped; if necessary, add a little more cream.  Add the parsley and salt and pepper to tast and mix just to combine.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  The mousse can be refrigerated for 2 to 3 days; let stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes to soften slightly before piping.
            Place the mousse in a pastry bag fitted with a medium star tip.  Pipe 2 to 3 tablespoons of mousse into each Parmesan crisp and serve.

Parmigiano-Reggiano Custards with Romaine Lettuce, Anchovy Dressing, and Parmesan Crisps

. . . a Parmesan custard set on croutons, a chiffonade of romaine, and a Parmesan crisp, with a classic Caesar dressing.

Anchovy Dressing (Makes 2 cups.)

1 ½ tablespoons chopped garlic
1 ½ tablespoons chopped shallots
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 salt-packed anchovy fillets, deboned, soaked in milk to cover for 30 minutes, drained, and patted dry
1 large egg yolk
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup canola oil
Freshly ground white pepper

Custards

⅔ cup heavy cream
⅔ cup milk
3 ½ ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, cut into ½-inch pieces
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper
3 cups chiffonade, or long narrow strips, romaine lettuce (cut from the “hearts,” or small inner leaves)
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Freshly ground black pepper
12 Croutons (from a baguette), about ¼ inch thick (page 238)
Twelve 1-inch (or the diameter of the molds) Parmesan crisps (page 37)
Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings for garnish (made with a vegetable peeler)
Balsamic Glaze (page 238), in a squeeze bottle

For the Anchovy Dressing:  Purée the garlic, shallot, vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, and anchovies in a blender until smooth.  Transfer to a mixer with the paddle attachment and beat in the egg yolk.  With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the oils.  Season with white pepper.  Cover and refrigerate.  There will be more dressing than you need for this recipe, but the extra can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

For the Custard:  Place the cream, milk, and Parmigiano-Reggiano in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let the flavors infuse for 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 250° F.
Whisk the eggs and yolk together in a medium bowl.  Reheat the cream mixture until it is hot.  While whisking, gradually strain the cream and milk onto the eggs to temper them.  Season with salt and white pepper.
Ladle 2 tablespoons of the custard mixture into each of twelve 1- to 2-ounce aluminum foil baking molds, timbale molds, or other small molds.  Place the molds in a roasting pan and add hot water to come about halfway up the sides of the molds.  If you are using foil cups and they float, place a baking sheet or pan over them to hold them down.  Cover the roasting pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until the custards are just set; the edges should look set, but the very centers may not be.  Remove the molds from the water bath and refrigerate the custards for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.

To Complete:  Toss the romaine with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and just enough dressing to lightly coat the lettuce.  Season with pepper to taste.
Place a spoonful of dressing on each plate.  Run a small paring knife around the edge of each custard, dip the molds briefly into hot water, and unmold each custard on a crouton.  Center one crouton in each pool of dressing.  Lay a Parmesan crisp over each custard and top with a stack of the salad.  Place shavings of cheese over the romaine and garnish each plate with a ring or a small pool of the balsamic glaze.
Croutons (p. 238)
Baguette or other bread, cut into thin slices, or Brioche (page 258) rounds or triangles, cut ¼ inch thick
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Preheat the oven to 300° F.
For Croutons for Cheese Courses and Other Dishes:  Place the slices of bread on a baking sheet and drizzle or brush with a little olive oil.  Sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.  Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until an even golden brown.

For Brioche Croutons for Foie Gras:  Arrange the croutons (without any oil) on a baking sheet and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until an even golden brown.
Store all croutons in airtight containers.

Balsamic Glaze: (p. 238)

2 cups balsamic vinegar or port wine

When making a vinegar or wine glaze, reduce it slowly, almost as if you were letting it evaporate. If you boil it too hard, the acid will remain and make the glaze too sharp.  Reducing it slowly and gently results in a much softer tasting glaze.  It’s easier to control the heat with the aid of a heat diffuser.
Beat the vinegar or port in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until steam rises from the liquid.  Place the saucepan on a heat diffuser and let the liquid reduce very slowly (it shouldn’t simmer) for 2 to 3 hours, until it has reduced and thickened to a syrupy glaze.  There should be approximately ½ cup of balsamic glaze or ¼ cup of port wine glaze.  Keep the glaze in a squeeze bottle at room temperature for garnishing plates, if the glaze is too thick, warm the bottle in hot water to loosen the glaze.

Yield:  Makes about ½ cup when using vinegar, ¼ cup when using port.

Seriously consider investing in this cookbook -- as the perfect coffee table book, it will always be readily at hand.  Beautiful photos, inspiring prose, mouth-watering recipes -- what more could you want.  

The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller (publ. Artisan, 1999) www.workmanweb.com

Silpat:  This was a brand new item of kitchen equipment, which I heard about on a spring '01 trip to visit Anson and Jenny in Seattle.  A Silpat is is a flexible silicon-coated, nonstick fabric sold in sized to fit commercial baking sheets and available from such places as Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table. I actually bought one and trimmed it to fit my own baking pan.  The silpat is especially handy for baking something like the Parmesan crisps. Just rinse and dry and its ready to go again. This is the sort of thing which needs to be baked on a nonstick surface but you would not want to grease a pan; the cheese has enough fat in it already. Tom Keller says in his cookbook that you can use parchment paper or a non-stick baking pan if you do not have a silpat. I got one in my favorite local kitchen store, Everything for the Kitchen in East Hartford, Connecticut.  Williams-Sonoma sells them in our local mall; other kitchen supply stores sell them too. I do not know if they are available from the catalog for Williams-Sonoma.