luxurious finger food (well, that you eat with your fingers)

This recipe will demand some time to make but none of the step are complicated. You can prepare everything in advance and put everything together at the last minutes. If you do so, the avocado cream has to be covered with film  and you shoulf put the avocado stone in the cream until it’s time to serve. The stone is helping to keep the green colour. If you like fishy flavor, you can add a few salmon eggs on top.  The base will inflate while cooking but, like a soufflé, it will come down while it cools. Which is good as it leaves a little place to put the filling! Don’t over cook the base as it will be too dry and not as good wether for the texture or the taste.

Soft nibbles, avocado cream, grapefruit and fresh herbs 

For the base :

2 egg yolk + 2 whole eggs

salt and pepper

1 tsp of grounded cumin

100ml of sour cream

40g of grated parmesan

1 tbsp of freshly minced dill

To garnish :

2 pink grapefruit

1 avocado

1 tsp of minced mint

1 tsp of minced dill

a few very small leaves of mint

a few leaves of dill

some Espelette pepper

• Turn on the oven at 180°C.
• To make the base: Beat the eggs and the yolks, salt and pepper. Add the cumin, the sour cream, the grated parmesan, and the dill. Mix until it’s smooth. Cook a little tsp of the mix on a pan so you can taste and rectify the seasoning if necessary.
• Pour the mix onto silicone mould (diameter of about 4 cm) and cook in the oven for 10 minutes without over cooking.
• Leave the base to cool on a rack.
• Press one of the pink grapefruit and mix part of this juice with the avocado. You should get a soft cream that holds. It shouldn’t “melt”. It’s better to have a too thick cream in which you can add more juice than the opposite (unless you have more avocado to rectify!). Add salt and the Espelette pepper to taste.
• Peel the other grapefruit to get into the meat. Separate the segments and cut them in triangles.
• On each base, place a small spoon of the avocado cream, a grapefruit triangle, a bit of Espelette pepper, a small mint leave and one of dill.
• Serve and enjoy!

fresh and crunchy raw vegetables for all next semester!

When I think about it salad doesn’t appeal to me. I imagine somme watery and old lettuce or unrecognisable veggie under tons of mayonnaise. Of course nothing compares to a freshly picked lettuce with some great seasoning; not what you find in supermarkets! I’m more tempted by raw vegetables that would be crunchy and fresh. It always satisfy my appetite.

Today, two examples very simple to make and delicious right now that the days are beginning to shorten, the evening are becoming chilly and nights and mornings are getting cold.

But I’m not yet ready to dive into auutumn just yet, so to accompany a bowl of miso soup, a plate of steamy risotto or a slice of very good bread with a bit of salty butter, I choose those two ideas.

The first one is inspired by a friend from Chili. She makes it with white cabbage, lime and fresh coriander. Here is my version with what I had on hand!

Press 1 pink grapefruit and keep the meat that detaches from it (although try to leave the little inside skin away) and press 2 lemons . Thinly cut 1 pointed cabbage, either with a mandoline (vegetable slicer) or a very good knife. Cut 2 avocados in half, take the pit out and peel the fruits as you would oranges. Cut the avocados in thin slices then in chunks.

In a salad bowl, put the grapefruit meat, the avocados, then pour a generous amount of the citrus juice. Add the cabbage, a bit of olive oil and some salt. Mix delicately.

It’s delicious with grilled meat on a BBQ, slow cooked fish, hot tofu… For the version from Chili, use lime instead of lemon and grapefruit and add minced fresh coriander.

The second recipe:

I recieved about 2 kilos of beetroot from generous friends who have a very beautiful garden. Beetroot seem to have enjoy the summer weather, so there are a LOT af it! I need to find ways to cook them that won’t bore the family after two meals. I prefer raw beetroot as the cooked version (except in a red velvet chocolatey cake) as I find it less earthy and more sugary. besides I love the crunchy feel of beets under my teeth.

With a mandoline (vegetable slicer), I make very thin and supple slices of beetroot. I sesaon it simply:                                         2-3 tbsp of olive oil                                                                                                                                                                     1 tbsp of apple vinegar                                                                                                                                                               a dozen roughly minced hazelnut                                                                                                                                                some salt 

Yesterday that salad accompanied some patties made with tuna, goat cheese and oat flakes. It’s great with a piece of cheese like Comté or with quinoa mixed with fresh herbs such as young spinach, parsley and chervil. You can replace half the olive oil with hazelnut oil.

May those two easy recipes accompany you through autumn and winter!

Spring rolls

SPRING ROLLS WITH CUCUMBER

This fresh recipe is also crunchy and full of layers of flavors that awakens the taste buds. You can change it to make it a salad. 

The sauce works on steamed vegetables, slow cooked poultry, white fish or silken tofu… You can prepare a lot of the sauce and keep it in the fridge for a few days. Take those rolls for a pic-nic or lunch but wrap them separately so they don’t stick together and stay humid. 

For 12

Sauce & marinade :

150ml soy sauce

120ml lemon juice

4 tbsp fresh peeled and grated ginger

1 peeled, minced garlic clove

1 deseeded Thaï red pepper, thinly minced (use gloves while working with hot peppers)

2 tsp of sugar

freshly ground pepper

• Put everything in a bowl, mix well and put aside.

The rolls :

2 cucumbers, peeled to makes stripes, deseeded and cut in thin julienne

1 avocado cut in thin stripes

1 carrot, peeled and cut in julienne about  7,5 to 10cm long

1 red pepper, deseeded and cut in thin stripes

200g thin rice noodles (prepared as said on the package)

1 dozen fresh coriander branches, minced

2 tbsp of sesame oil

12 rice paper sheets

• First marinate the cucumber. Prepare all the other ingredients then sieve the cucumber but keep the sauce for service.
• Put the rice sheets, one by one, in warm (but not hot) water so it softens.
• Garnish the soften sheets with the noodles, then with a little of each ingredients. Roll, folowing the instructions on the rice paper package.

Garnish :

1 small handful of grilled and salted peanuts, coarsely minced

To serve:

• Cut each roll in two, put on a plate, pour some sauce and sprinkle with the peanuts.
• 

This is a recipe that makes me travel. I also forget the weather, if it’s a bit too warm to be comfortable or a bit cold for the season. There is some sweetness, some acidity, some salt, a bit of umami. It’s quite balanced and the meat eater won’t miss the meat here although you can add some chicken or shrimp in each roll. Actually, I find it more whole when prepared this way. I guess I could add some crunchy onions but I don’t really miss it here.

I think spring rolls are a great way to eat lots of veggie and to adapt to each season although you might want to change the name then!

What is your favorite spring roll recipe?

eggs and breakfast

Sometimes, simplicity is all that the body and mind are asking for. When it’s cold and I have to get away from a warm and comfy bed, my taste buds are asking for something warm and comfy!

Like everybody else, I don’t have hours ahead of me in the morning.

 I love a simple egg with some melted cheddar cheese, espelette hot red pepper, sprouts and fresh basil.

It’s quick and nourishing. It’s filling and the colours are helping to start the day!

So it’s not always necessary to spen hours in the kitchen in order to eat well and you don’t need a cupboard or a fridge full of fancy stuffs.

Sometimes I skip the cheese and the green but the only thing I can’t do without is the espelette red hot pepper.

It comes from some part of France (pays Basque in the South East near Spain) and for me it’s like a magic powder that brings some depth to a simple meal.

Try it next time you taste like the sauce is missing something. Often, it’s either a few drops of lemon juice or a pinch of red hot pepper. It’s a light red pepper, not too hot but subtle in flavor. But if you like it spicy, don’t hesitate to use another one!

Tapioca pearls

Hello everyone!

I’ve been resting at home with a strict diet (last trimester of pregnancy) so I read more cookbooks then made recipes although I fond simple and easy meals to make compatible with the said diet.

As I had to rest and as standing up became harder, I had to find ways to cook quickly. I had fun but I was often frustrated not to be able to do more. Tha’s why I’ve been away for so long! And also because my had is elsewhere, I can’t help it!

I did test an ingredient that was in my cupboard for some time. I had read about it but never found the time to make anything with it. Until my mother-in-law came back with an easy recipe and praise about the thing.

I had all the ingredients needed to make an easy dessert. And a way to use those tapioca pearls, at last! Tapioca pearls can also be called Japanese’s pearls. It’s really pretty! Uncooked, the pearl are very small and white. It looks a bit like some washing powder but a bit larger. When there are in contact with water and heat, it becomes translucent and bigger. It doesn’t taste much but it give a good texture to the cream made with it and it’s filling (so you can also serve it in the middle of the afternoon if supper will be late!).

Some people use it to thicken soup when there’s no time for a real meal (or when our great-grand-mothers wanted everyone to feel full and they hadn’t much else to fill everyone’s stomach).

And the great thing about it it’s that it suits every diet (vegan or not, gluten-free or not, lactose-free or not…)!

Here is the easy and delicious way to use tapioca pearls:

Coco and pineapple tapioca cream for 4: 

60g of tapioca pearls

30cl water

30g rapadura or muscovado sugar (unrefine sugar)

25cl coconut cream or milk

1 pinch of salt

4 unsweetened pineapple slices with the juice

 Rince the tapioca pearl in a sieve and leave to rest for 5 minutes in the said sieve. 

Bring the water to boil and add the pearls. As soon as it boils again, add sugar and salt. Lower the heat, mix and leave to cook for 5 minutes.

Then, add the coconut milk or cream, mix and wait for the next boiling bubble. 

Cover and leave to cool for an hour. Pour into individual bowls and leave in the fridge arount 45 to 60 minutes.

 Mix the pineapple to get a thick coulis, add the juice as you like it. Serve over the pearls just before eating! 

 If you prepare it the day before, you’ll need to add more liquid as it tends to thickens with time.

 As said before, it is a filling dessert so serve it after a light meal.

It works really well with any vegan milk (almond, coco+rice, chestnut…) and with any other fruit especially the tangy type like citrus, mango and raspberries. 

 

 

a summer’s menu

It has been a while that I didn’t share my cooking trials. Don’t worry, I haven’t stop cooking! But time flew by without me noticing!

So to get your taste buds excited again, here is a seasonal menu (here, we’ve welcomed summer with open arms; too much rain gets on everyone’s temper!).

Of course, nothing’s better than a meal shared with good company, a light wind to cool down the atmosphere when the sun goes down, some fireflies to reflect the stars when it’s time for dessert…

For the amuse-bouche, I made maki sushi with mango and cod liver, served with wasabi and tamari.

I don’t say that the sushi contain cod liver as some had the terrible experience to have to drink cod liver oil to prevent any winter diseases (I was one of them!). But even those with this memory love these sushi!

Then I served tomato and espelette hot pepper custard.

To serve really cold!

 For me, the tomato lover, this custard is perfect! 

Here is the recipe:

Mix 100g of tomato purée with 40 to 50g of tomato paste. Add 1/4 tsp of baking soda if some are sensitive to tomato’s acidity.

Add 2 eggs, 5 tbsp of milk (I chose rice milk but do as you like), a good 1 tbsp of espelette hot pepper, salt and minced fresh basil.

Pour into container and cook at 200°C for 10 minutes.

Well if you make bigger portion then me, adjust the time!

Leave to cool then place in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

To accompany the rest of the meal, I made my classic bread cooked in a cast iron pot but I added a goof quantity of butter (coconut will work greatly). As the pot was a bit too big, the bread spread and we had a great golden crust. It reminded me of the ciabatta we used to buy by my grand-father’s place but I’m sure they used olive oil instead of butter!

The first course was a tatin pie with caramelized tomatoes and eggplants, served with fresh cheese mixed with honey and thyme. The crust contained parmesan.

The eggplants are ready to be caramelized!

And the result:

The second course was a mix of France and Japan. I make it often with salmon but this time I used colley. Cooked at low temperature, covered with white miso and sake, I served the fish on top of rice paper rolls, minced snow peas and I poured some homemade dashi kombu broth on top then sprinkle the plate with basil, fresh chives onions, and some espelette hot pepper.

Eat it with a fork, grabing the fish with the dashi broth. The white miso will mix with the dashi and the combination will be delicious.

For dessert: the acidity of mango and passion fruit cur, the freshness of mint cream and… 

 … the crustiness of coconut sablés!

Serve bubbles for the starters, some fresh white French wine (Loire or Languedoc) for the courses and coffe, tea or infusion with the dessert.

It had been a while sinds I last made such a meal but I had great fun!

I hope you have a delicious and fragrant summer!

 

sheet zucchini pie

The more time passes, the more the process of making pies please me. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always loved eating blueberry or cherry pies but making them seemed boring.

Now I’m enjoying it more.

Even though I’ve started with the salty stuff, I’m growing founder of the sweet homemade pies!

So here is a savory pie. I find ti delicious, cheap, easy to make and nourishing. And super easy to adapt to all seasons.

I’m imagining this pie with sheets of butternut instead of zucchini!

When I say sheets I mean really thin slices of the vegetable cut with a mandolin.

You can decline this recipe with any vegetable coming your way: fennel, tomatoes, parsnip, turnip, carrot,…

Usually, I make pies with a gluten free crust. Why? I find it more interesting for my taste buds, it varies my diet and it suits this kind of recipe really well. You get more flavor from one simple dish.

Ingredients for a 24cm pie:

100g buckwheat flour

50g rice flour

30g quinoa flour

1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

85g cold butter cut in cubes or thin slices*

1 small egg (optional)

3 tbsp of cold water or 4,5 tbsp if not using the egg 

1 firm zucchini

1 fresh goat cheese or 200g of ewe ricotta

2 tbsp of mustard

With a pastry blender or with your hand, mix the flours with the butter. When the mix is sandy, add the egg and/or the water.

Add the water little by little to get the right consistency. You need to form a ball.

Wrap the dough in plastic film and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Turn the oven on at 180°C.

Roll the dough on parchment paper and transfer in your pie tin.

You can skip the parchment paper by oiling the tin then cover the bottom with flour.

Prick the dough with a fork and cut as is in the oven for 15 minutes.

In the meantime, cut thin slices of zucchini (almost translucent slices). The best way to do it is to use a mandolin: the slices will have the same thickness and you’ll gain time. Watch your fingers though!

On the precooked dough, spread the mustard with the back of a spoon then crumble the cheese on top. Add the zucchini slices. I add them in spiral starting from the outside and I make several layers until all the slices are on the pie. Add salt and pepper. Be careful with the salt as there are some in the cheese already.

Cook the pie in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes. The more the pie cooks the dryer it will be. To get a softer texture, cut the slices a bit thicker or cook for a shorter time.

Don’t hesitate to add basil, mint, rosemary, thyme or any fresh herbs you have in your garden.

You have the base, you can have fun now.

* For the vegan and lactose intolerant, replace butter with coconut or olive oil. 

Replace the cheese with:

1,5 cup of cashew nuts: soaked 12 hours in fresh water, rinsed and drained 

1 organic and cleaned lemon: finely grate the zest and juice the fruit

2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

Mix the cashew nuts. Add the zest and lemon juice, the nutritional yeast and the salt. Mix for one more minute and taste to rectify seasoning. Use as you would the cheese.

 

Quick! some raw sauce to enjoy before the sun’s gone again!

Quick, quick, before the sun disapears again… a sudden need for raw food!

If you have great quality and in season ingredients, it’s almost enough by itself! Like my own best of (although I should be patient and wait for a while, though knowing August will be the best time): tomatoes with just a few drops of great olive oil, a bit of sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper.

I try all the tomatoes I can get my hands on: ancient varieties, green, yellow, Italian, heart shaped, big, small, cherry… I can’t get enough!

But today, as I have to be quick about enjoying the weather (tomorrow it’ll rain again), I decided to make a delicious raw sauce in which I will dip the vegetables I have on hand. Maybe I’ll put a teaspoon or two inside an halved avocado. If I can stop myself from eating it directly from the bowl 

It would be wonderfull with cabbage rolls or California style rolls (I just roll a nori sheet around some julienned vegetables and spread this sauce before I wrap the sheet and can’t wait to taste!). For the meat and fish eaters, it would be very good with chicken, turkey or any fish, either raw (for the fish) or steamed (for meat and fish).

Just blend:

4 tsp of white miso 

2cm fresh ginger roughly chopped

4 tsp of lime juice

2 tsp of almond butter

4 tsp of water

It’s great with tahini instead of almond.

I would suggest you make more of the sauce, respecting the ratios. It keeps for a few days in the fridge (I can’t help spooning in the bowl every time I pass by the fridge…).

I add the water carefully to get the right texture. You don’t want it to be too liquid.

So, if in your part of the world, spring has a hard time showing up, give it a hint with this recipe!

beetroot patties, lemon pesto and mushrooms confit

 For 5 patties

About 450g raw, cleaned, peeled beetroot

50 to 100g of sheep’s hard cheese

1 peeled shallot

1/2 tsp) of dry thyme

1/4 bunch of flat leaf parsley

1 tsp fennel seeds freshly grounded

20g of chickpea flour

20g of oat flakes

2 beaten eggs

salt, pepper 

Separate the leaves from the parsley branches.

Grate the beetroot.

Cut the cheese in pieces. 

Mince the shallot and the parsley leaves. Discard parsley branches opr use it in homemade stock.

Mix all the ingredients and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Don’t oversalt as the cheese is already salty. 

I skip the salt as the pesto is salty enough.

Turn the oven on at 180°C.

With a stainless steel cutter, form the beetroot patties on a baking sheet covering an oven dish. Press with a spoon and cook for 20 to 30 minutes.

For the mushrooms :

1 small Paris mushrooms punnet

1 oyster mushrooms punnet

1 small minced peeled onion.

Brush the mushrooms to clean them and mince it.

Melt the onion in olive oil on a warm frying pan. After 3 minutes, add the mushrooms and leave to confit with salt and pepper. Mix in gently from time to time. It’ll take 30 minutes. The mushrooms should be dry and golden.

For the quinoa:

Cover the quinoa with water and leave to rest for 12 hours. Rinse well and drain. Pour in a pan, add salt, pepper and the grounded fennel seeds. Cover with water and cook for about 15 minutes.

In a frying pan, heat a little olive oil and add the quinoa to dry it and obtain a light golden tone.

Rectify the seasonig to taste.

For the pesto:

1 peeled garlic clove

60g walnuts

1/2 bunch of flat leaf parsley

1 pinch of sea salt flakes

4 tbsp olive oil

the zest of 1 lemon

2 fresh goat cheeses

In a blender or a mixer, mix the garlic, walnuts, parsley leaves (discard the branches), lemon zest and sea salt flakes.

Add the olive oil and mix again then combine with the goat cheeses.

On the plate, dress the quinoa with a stainless steel cutter. Put the beetroot patties on top and decorate with the pesto.

Add the mushrooms on the side.

Leave the remaining pesto in a bowl for each guest to get more !

olives & artichoke hearts quiche

 Here the winter is back… Just a few days before Spring is suppose to arrive! Well, no strawberries or crunchy salad yet so why not prepare a nourishing and comforting quiche?

I chose olives and artichokes hearts as it’s easy to find the preserved kind any time of the year and it gives a little taste of the Spring.

I am longing for new vegetables and fruits! Especially eggplants and tomatoes! But seeing the snow falling again, the dim light that it gives, the silenced city, almost asleep, and having my hands around a warm bowl of homemade soup, I find it rather nice!

For this quiche, I made the dough with chestnut and buckwheat flour. It’s a lot more interesting then wheat and I find the quiche to be lighter and more balanced in taste. With the olives’ acidity and the soft artichoke’s hearts, I have to take another bite!

Buckwheat and chestnut dough:

60g chestnut flour
150g buckwheat flour
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp salt
100g butter (in cubes or thin slices)
1 egg

cold water if necessary

Mix the flours wit the salt.

Add the butter and mix until sandy.

Add the egg. If the dough sticks to the bowl, add a little cold water to form a ball. Wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for abour an hour.
Turn the oven on at 180°C.

Spread the dough.

Line a tin with parchment paper and cover with the dough. Prick it with a fork and cook for 15 minutes in the oven. Reserve.

Turn the oven at 200°C.
Mix 3 tbsp of minced dill, 10 minced mint leaves, 200g of hard goat cheese, 1 can of artichokes hearts, 20 pitted green olives. 

In a bit of olive oil, in a pan, on middle fire, cook 2 small onions with a pinch of salt. Add the previous mix.

Beat 4 eggs with 1/2 liter of buttermilk, salt and pepper.
Spread the vegetables on the precooked dough and pour the eggs on top. Cook in the oven for 35 to 45 minutes.