Saturday, March 12th, 2011

Franglais: Whole-Apple Pies

RECIPE: Whole-Apple Pies
Whole-Apple Pies

Whole-Apple Pies

Get the whole story at The Huffington Post.

There’s nothing as American as apple pie.  And nothing so French as apple tart.  And that’s what food is about: finding the common ground, and bringing people together.  Because we all have to eat.  And it’s so much more fun when there’s someone besides the television sitting across the table.

I love those strings that seem to run through the entire cloth of humanity.  Like when a word sounds the same in so many languages.  Or how the humble apple is the basis of so many comfort desserts.  We think of the apple as being so American.   But apple tarts are so iconically French.  I’ve never seen so much apple juice as when I was in Argentina.  And I first discovered the Pink Lady while in England.  Let’s face it.  The apple isn’t ours.  It’s everyone’s.  Because it’s great. Continue reading …

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Categories: 60 Minutes, Cheap, Desserts, Easy, Eat, Franglais, Fruit, Pastry, Recipes, Series, Vegetarian
 
Friday, March 11th, 2011

French in a Flash: Moroccan Baked Scallops

RECIPE: Moroccan Baked Scallops
Moroccan Baked Scallops

Moroccan Baked Scallops

Get the whole story at Serious Eats.

Is this weird?  I often think about how there’s not much left to be discovered.  I remember thinking in high school math class, how hard could it be to figure out that a squared plus b squared equals c squared?  If I were alive in 500 BC, would it have be called the Saretsky theorem?

So, I was really excited a few weeks ago when I discovered something that I didn’t know: how beautifully ras-el-hanout pairs with shellfish.  Okay, it may not be the Pythagorean theorem, but I was pretty excited.  My jar of ras-el-hanout says it goes great with chicken, lamb, rice, and veggies.  And my grandmother never uses it on seafood.  Was this a new thing?  Had I made a kitchen discovery? Continue reading …

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Categories: 15 Minutes, Easy, Eat, Fish, French in a Flash, Main Courses, Recipes, Series
 
Tuesday, March 8th, 2011

NEW SERIES! French Food Mags: Le Gâteau Porte-Bonheur

RECIPE: Le Gâteau Porte-Bonheur

Le Gâteau Porte-Bonheur

Le Gâteau Porte-Bonheur

I spend too much money subscribing to French magazines.  But I can’t help it.  I love that they help keep me up to date with my French, sure.  But every time they show up in my mailbox, I rip the plastic off, and turn right to the recipes.  They’re even in the back of the fashion magazines.  How can I describe these recipes?  Effortless, and beautiful.  And inventive.  I spend a lot of my time re-doing French classics.  But here, in these magazines, the French culinary sensibility is alive and well focusing on, often, everything but traditional French food.  I loved the article about American whoopie pies, and how they were a cross between the American cupcake and the French macaron.  Brilliant.  These magazines show how the French really let their hair down in cuisine, but as with all things, they let their hair down with elegance.

The magazines that are devoted to recipes are like a holiday for me.  I retire to my bed, and lie over the covers, reading nothing, just looking at the pictures.  Pictures of hachis parmentier with a purple potato top.  And pot de crèmes in old jam jars.  Or leaf-shaped bites of puff pastry tossed on top of a salad instead of croutons.  It’s my special heaven.

Gâteau Porte Bonheur Closeup

Since these magazines are hard to get your hands on, I thought it would be fun to recreate some of the most enticing recipes from my favorite French food mags.  Which, to be honest, is something I rarely do.  It was fun to finally get in the kitchen with this Gâteau Porte-Bonheur, and test a recipe.  Usually I just stare blindly at them with adulation.

The Gâteau Porte-Bonheur, in a holiday article about how to cook with kids, caught my eye not only because it was so beautiful, and dainty, and delicate.  But also because it was made with Petit Beurre cookies.  Maman RAISED me on Petit Beurre cookies.  They are single-handedly responsible for my height and stature, and my continued desperate affinity for all butter cookies.  When I was little, we used to tuck into her bed and watch Eighties classics like The Cosby Show and Wheel of Fortune nibbling on the scalloped edges of Petits Beurres, so much that I would find myself sprinkled with cookie crumb detritus, and maman would have to fetch the dustbuster before she went to sleep. Continue reading …

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Categories: 60 Minutes, Desserts, Easy, Eat, French Food Mags, Pastry, Recipes, Series, Vegetarian
 
Monday, March 7th, 2011

The Secret Ingredient (Saffron) Part II: Saffron and Orange Rice Pilaf with Orzo and Pine Nuts

RECIPE: Saffron and Orange Rice Pilaf with Orzo and Pine Nuts
Saffron Rice Pilaf

Saffron Rice Pilaf

Get the whole story at Serious Eats.

I know that when someone calls you yellow, you’re a coward.  But as far as spices go, I think the yellowest, saffron, is very brave.  It is subtle, floral, aromatic, almost bitter–and extremely bold.  It makes its presence known, shouts it from the rooftops, dying everything it comes into contact with a bright marigold hue.  And something that tastes of saffron, well, it only tastes of saffron.  It’s a force to be reckoned with.

I first starting mixing orange and saffron in bouillabaisse.  It works so well together, the aromatic bitterness of saffron with the bright sweetness of orange.  This is a very simple rice, based on my favorite yellow rice that I get in Spanish and Mexican restaurants, that is glammed up with some ritzy ingredients.  I toast orzo and shallots and add white rice, and then cook it with saffron-infused stock for color and a deep, heady flavor.  Stud it with toasted pine nuts and orange zest at the last minute, and you have a very simple-to-make side that is very elegant and impressive.  I would serve this with roasted bone-in chicken, or jumbo shell-on prawns.
Saffron and Orange Rice Pilaf with Orzo and Pine Nuts
serves 4

Saffron Rice PilafINGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup low-sodium organic chicken stock
  • 1/2 teaspoon saffron
  • 2 teaspoons unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup orzo
  • 1 shallot, finely diced
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 cup parboiled rice
  • Zest of 1/4 orange
  • 3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
  • Freshly cracked black pepper

PROCEDURE

In a medium saucepot, heat the water and stock with the saffron over medium heat.

In a large saucepot, melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the orzo, and toast until golden brown, about 90 seconds.  Add the shallot, and season with salt.  Sauté on low heat until the shallot is translucent, about 2 1/2 minutes.  Add the rice, and stir to coat in the butter.  Add the water, stock, and saffron, and raise the heat to high to bring the mixture to a boil.  Lower the heat to low, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, 16 to 18 minutes.  Fluff with a fork, and stir in orange zest, pine nuts, and pepper.  Serve hot or at room temperature, especially alongside a juicy roast chicken or jumbo roast shrimp.

 

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Categories: 30 Minutes, Eat, Recipes, Series, Sides, Starches, The Secret Ingredient, Vegetarian
 
Monday, March 7th, 2011

Working Girl Dinners: The Easiest Thai Green Shrimp Curry

RECIPE: Thai Green Shrimp Curry
Thai Green Shrimp Curry

Thai Green Shrimp Curry

It was great to be back in London last week with all my friends, and Mr. English.  My best girlfriends took me to the best Thai restaurant I’ve ever been to: Patara, on Beauchamp Place.  The pad Thai was just shrimp, which is how I like it.  We had beef slow cooked in coconut milk.  Prawns seared with lemongrass and chili.  And a chicken curry.  And coconut ice cream.  And glutinous rice–seriously, that’s what it was called on the menu.  It was so good.

When I’m home, I order Thai delivery a lot.  Too often.  And frankly, my empty pad Thai tin always looks a little greasy.  And for one person, I can wind up spending $15.  No thank you!  We can Working Girl this issue.  This week, we are making Thai shrimp curry in 10 minutes, with 4 ingredients, and 1 pot.

It’s so simple.  I poach zucchini and shrimp in a broth made from coconut milk and Thai green curry paste.  You can get coconut milk and curry paste at regular grocery stores these days, and if you have leftover curry paste, lucky you.  It keeps for a good while in the fridge, and you will be making all kinds of varieties of this curry once you see how easy it is.  Broccoli and chicken, squash and salmon.  You name it.

The coconut milk is creamy and exotic.  The curry paste is spicy and fragrant and potent.  I pour the curry over rice or mai fun noodles to soak it all up.  It’s so easy, and so good, that you’ll make it again tomorrow.  Promise.

Thai Green Shrimp Curry
serves 2

Thai Green Shrimp CurryINGREDIENTS

  • 1 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
  • 2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
  • 2 small to medium zucchini or summer squash (or 1 of each), cut into chunks
  • 1 pound 11-15 count shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 1 lime, quartered

Optional Toppings

  • 1 handful cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
  • 1 long green chili, sliced into thin rings
  • 2 scallions, thinly sliced

PROCEDURE

In a large saucepot, combine the coconut milk and curry paste over medium heat.  Bring the mixture to a bubble, and add the zucchini and squash.  Cook 7 minutes, then add the shrimp, and cook another 4 minutes, until the shrimp are pink, opaque, and curled.  The curry is done!

Put some rice or cellophane noodles in the bottom of a bowl, and top with the curry.  To gild the lily, add lime wedges, chopped fresh cilantro, and sliced chili on top of the curry.

On the Side

Cook ½ cup parboiled rice in ¾ cup boiling water with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of canola or vegetable oil.  Bring to a boil on high heat, stir once, then cover, and cook on the lowest heat for 16 to 18 minutes.  Fluff the rice with a fork.

Or, pour boiling water to cover 3 ounces Maifun (rice sticks or thin rice noodles) in a large metal bowl, and let sit for 10 minutes.  Drain.

Tips

I always keep raw, peeled, and deveined shrimp in my freezer.  I buy them at Costco.  I defrost them quickly in a bowl of room temperature water.

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Categories: 15 Minutes, Easy, Eat, Fish, Main Courses, Recipes, Series, Watch, Working Girl Dinners
 
Saturday, March 5th, 2011

HEALTHY WEEKEND BREAKFAST: Sweet Blueberry Greek Yogurt Sundaes

RECIPE: Sweet Blueberry Greek Yogurt Sundaes
Blueberry Greek Yogurt Sundae

Sweet Blueberry Greek Yogurt Sundaes

I am one of those girls who believes with all my heart that skipping breakfast and not eating until 4 in the afternoon will make me skinnier, even though I know with all my head that eating breakfast would definitely prevent that 4 o’clock meal’s being a slice of Starbuck’s coffee cake.  I just got back from Europe, and the combination of being with Mr. English (because being with a boy is about as fattening as the binge from breaking up with one), being in London, and being in Paris has made me feel like the world’s most irresponsible eater.  I’m lethargic, dehydrated, and my face looks mottled.  As much as I love eating nothing but cheese, sugar, and beef stew, I’m a mess.  It’s time to get my house in order.

So, because I’m not seeing Mr. English again until next week, I’m taking this week to refresh and replenish.  That starts with forcing myself to eat breakfast.  Normally, I’ll make an exception for cinnamon rolls or a bagel, but that’s not really what I’m going for right now.  I always keep a tub of Greek yogurt in the fridge for marinades and dips.  But even though its pro-digestive powers are supposed to be miraculous, and it’s filling and full of calcium, I have only rarely eaten it for breakfast.  Then I had this amazing idea.  I love the idea of fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt, but they’re expensive, and they kind of scare me.  Where has that fruit been?  How long has it been hiding out under all that yogurt?  And most importantly, what is it hiding from?

So, to go with my extra large tub of 2% Greek yogurt, I’m making an extra large batch of two-ingredient blueberry compote.  Fruit-on-the-top yogurt this time.  I start with a bag of frozen organic blueberries, and stew it for seven minutes with some agave, which is better for you than refined sugar.  Pour that oven plain, thick, tangy Greek yogurt, and you have this blueberry pie yogurt sundae parfait perfection, that I top with a sprinkling of puffed brown rice cereal (like brown Rice Krispies) for crunch.  It was good, and I’m full, and I’m proud of myself.  So proud that I can’t wait to open up that yogurt tub again tomorrow morning.

Sweet Blueberry Greek Yogurt Sundaes
makes about 6 (all at once, or over the week)

Blueberry Greek Yogurt SundaeINGREDIENTS

  • 1 1-pound bag frozen organic blueberries, thawed or frozen
  • 2 tablespoon agave nectar
  • 2% Greek yogurt
  • Puffed brown rice cereal (like brown Rice Krispies, optional)

PROCEDURE

Put the blueberries and agave in a saucepot over high heat.  Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and bubble for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Chill completely, pour over a cup full of yogurt, and top with rice cereal.

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Categories: 15 Minutes, Breakfast & Brunch, Easy, Eat, Recipes, Vegetarian
 
Saturday, March 5th, 2011

French in a Flash: Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary Asparagus

RECIPE: Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary Asparagus
Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary Asparagus

Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary Asparagus

Get the whole story at Serious Eats.

I really appreciate anything that comes complete in a box, every part you will ever or could ever need already included.  Ikea furniture, Liberty needlepoint sets, and Itsu’s bento lunches in London.  Everything I need is already accounted for, included, and sealed in the packaging.  I have no fears or worries; everything I need to assemble, stitch, or eat is right in front of me.  It’s a vacation from thought and planning that I really appreciate.
The French culinary answer to the Ikea box, or Bento box, is the “en croûte.”  Consider puff pastry your packing material.  Then pack everything you need for your meal–your protein, your vegetable, your sauce–inside, with the package doubling as your carb.  Foolproof.  Genius, even.
In this version, I pair the traditional salmon en croûte with rosemary, whose hearty woodsiness pairs perfectly with strident salmon.  Asparagus also works beautifully with rosemary, so that became the veg.  Crème fraîche binds everything together in a light, lemony sauce, and it is all contained in the perfectly golden and puffed pastry.  You look extremely accomplished, and all you did was wrap some ingredients in puff pastry you picked up in the freezer section.  But shh, no one needs to know that a vacation from thought and planning can apply as much to the cooker as to the eater!
Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary Asparagus
serves 4

Salmon en Croûte with Rosemary AsparagusINGREDIENTS

  • 16 medium-stalked asparagus (about 3/4 pound), trimmed and peeled
  • 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • 2 tablespoons crème fraîche
  • The zest of 1/4 lemon
  • 2 sheets (1 box) frozen puff pastry, thawed but very cold
  • 2 1/2-pound boneless, skinless salmon fillets

PROCEDURE

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Bring a pot of water to boil, and salt the water.  Drop the asparagus in the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes.  Transfer the asparagus to an ice bath, and cool completely.  Dry on a paper towel, then slice into thin coins on a bias.  Mix the asparagus pieces with rosemary, garlic, crème fraîche, and lemon zest in a small bowl.

Unfold both sheets of puff pastry, and lay them separately on a counter or cutting board.  Place one piece of salmon on one side of each sheet of puff pastry.  Top each salmon fillet with half the asparagus mixture.  Then, fold the pastry over the salmon, and press the pastry together to form a seal.  Trim any pastry border in excess of 1 inch, and then crimp the edge of the pastry.  Cut 2 or 3 steam vents in the top of the pastry, and place the two parcels on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet.  Bake until puffed and golden, about 35 minutes.  Slice each parcel in half, and serve immediately.

 

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Categories: 60 Minutes, Easy, Eat, Fish, French in a Flash, Main Courses, Recipes, Series
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