The Art of French Cooking- Week 8- Salade Nicoise

Thank you for the SWEET 16 birthday wishes for my daughter yesterday!

She was touched to read the notes from each of you!

What wonderfully SWEET girls you all are!

I am happy to know you!

This week, we made an EASY, PEASY salad 

and included 3 things from our organic garden!

Salade Niçoise

[Mediterranean Combination Salad]

• 3 cups cold, blanched Green Beans
• 3 or 4 quartered Tomatoes (these came from our garden)
• 1 cup FRENCH VINAIGRETTE DRESSING:

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon sherry or red wine vinegar

1/2 small shallot or green onion, peeled and minced (about 1 tablespoon)

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3T to 4T olive oil

fresh herbs, if desired

• 1 head Boston Lettuce (I used 1/2 of a 10 oz. package of organic baby greens)
• 3 cups cooked, cooled, red Potatoes, cut into 2" chunks
• Lg. can white Tuna, drained, flaked
• 1/2 c. pitted black Olives
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, cold, peeled, quartered
• (6-12 canned anchovy filets-we did not use these-Miss A likes them, but the rest of us don't)
• 2-3 TSBP. minced, fresh herbs (we used scallions and thyme from the garden)

Blanching Green Beans:

Drop beans into boiling water for one minute.

Rinse with cool water.

Refrigerate until ready to assemble the salad.

I LOVE black olives! Do you?

Thyme, green onions.

The salade is beautiful!

Drizzle with Vinaigrette Dressing.

We added a loaf of bread w/BUTTER (yum)

and blueberries in (whipped) cream w/mint (from the garden) garnish,

and called it dinner!

Review:

This is one wonderful salade!

This is not the first time we have had it,

nor will it be the last.

It is wonderful with the vinaigrette dressing!

Light, crunchy, tangy.

What wonderful summer fare.

Did I mention it was wonderful?

YOU. MUST. MAKE. IT!

We give this:

* * * * *

out of

* * * * *

Till next time,

Bon Appetit, y'all!

The Art Of French Cooking- Week 7 - Filets de Poisson Poches a Vin Blanc

This week, I decided to make salmon,

which our family loves the most of all fish choices.

If you are like I was when we decided to add more fish 

to our diet,

you didn't know how to prepare it

so it would not taste too "fishy".

Salmon, to us, is a wonderfully not-as-fishy-tasting choice.

Filets de Poisson Poches au Vin Blanc

[Fish Fillets Poached in White Wine]

The French use sole, or flounder, but that's not what I had in my freezer.

• 2 TBSP minced green onions (these came from the garden!)
• 4 salmon fillets
• salt and pepper
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 1/2 cup white wine or 2/3 cup white vermouth (what I used)
• water

Sprinkle half the onions in the bottom of a skillet.

Season fillets lightly with salt and pepper and lay them over the onions.

Sprinkle fillets with remaining onions and drizzle olive oil over the fillets.

Pour in the wine or vermouth, and add water so fish is barely covered.

Bring to a simmer for 8-12 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets.

The fish is done when a fork pierces the flesh easily.

Place a cover over the pan, and drain off the liquid.

Serve.

We had "squish" (as my girls call it) and zucchini from the garden, too.

I sauteed them with English Thyme from my herb garden.

Added brown rice, and called it a meal.

Review:

We thought the fish was "all right",

it definitely smelled good, like most French dishes we've tried so far, 

while cooking.

We could taste the vermouth, and that was okay

because it gave it a fancy restaurant flavor,

like those sauces that accompany expensive fare.

The fillets were flaky, yet slightly dry.

The cookbook gave us an option to make a white sauce 

with the liquid that got drained off,

but that involved butter and we were trying to make the dish lighter.

As far as having a "fishy" flavor, it DID NOT.

This was THE EASIEST recipe to make.

I will be making it again, 

only with a white sauce.

We give this:

***

out of

* * * * *

Till next Saturday,

Bon Appetit, y'all!

The Art Of French Cooking- Week 6 -Ratatouille

Click here to enter my Cottage Charm Giveaway. 

(Giveaway ends tonight-- Saturday, the 29th, at midnight EST)

This week, Miss S actually made Ratatouille,

while I was watching the movie.
Your eyes are fine--
that's just a glare down the center of our TV screen.

Ratatouille

[Eggplant Casserole--with tomatoes, onions, peppers and zucchini]

Ratatouille perfumes the kitchen with the essence of Provence and is certainly one of the great Mediterranean dishes. As it is strongly flavored, it is best when it accompanies plain roast or broiled beef or lamb, or plain roast, broiled, or sauteed chicken. Equally good hot or cold, it also makes a fine accompaniment to cold meats, or may be served as a cold hors d'oeuvre.

A really good ratatouille is not one of the quicker dishes to make, as each element is cooked separately before it is arranged in the casserole to partake of a brief communal simmer. This recipe is the only one we know of which produces a ratatouille in which each vegetable retains its own shape and character. Happily, a ratatouille may be cooked completely the day before it is to be served, and it seems to gain in flavor when reheated.

• 1 lb. eggplant
• 1 lb. zucchini
• A 3 quart mixing bowl
• 1 tsp. salt
• 10-12-inch skillet
• 4 TBSP. Olive oil, more if needed
• 1/2 lb. (about 1 1/2 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions
• 2 (about 1 cup) sliced green bell peppers
• 2 cloves mashed garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb. firm, ripe, red tomatoes, peeled, seeded and juiced
• 2 1/2 quart oven-proof casserole dish with lid
• 3 TBSP minced parsley

Peel eggplant and cut into lengthwise slices 3/8" thick/3" long/1" wide.

Slice ends off zucchini and cut zucchini into slices 

the same size as eggplant.

Place vegetables into bowl and toss with salt.

Let stand 30 minutes. Drain and dry slices.

One layer at a time, saute' the eggplant, then zucchini in hot oil 

for one minute on each side to brown lightly. 

Remove to a side dish.

In the same skillet, cook the onions and peppers, 

slowly for 10 minutes, until tender, not browned. 

Stir in garlic and salt and pepper to taste.

To peel tomatoes, hold tomatoes in boiling water for 10 seconds.

Tomato skin loosens,

and is peeled off easily.

Set oven to 450 degrees.
Cut peeled tomatoes in half crosswise, not through the stem.
Squeeze each half gently to extract the seeds and juices.

Slice tomato pulp into 3/8" strips, lay them over the onions/peppers. 
Cover skillet and cook over low for 5 minutes.
Uncover and raise heat and boil until juice has almost entirely evaporated.

Layer amounts in thirds into the casserole dish: 
tomato mixture
then
parsley
then
eggplant/zucchini.
Repeat twice more, top with parsley.

Cover casserole, and bake for 15 minutes.
Set aside, uncovered until ready to serve,
or let cool, refrigerate and serve cold.

Review:

We had high expectations from this dish.
After all, a movie had been named after it!


We anticipated tasting this famous Provence fare.


Miss S prepared this dish, 
and it took her almost the whole length of the movie to make.
So, we figured, with something that took this long,
it was bound to be good.


The scents of onion, garlic and parsley wafted throughout our home,
our tummies growled and our mouths watered.
We could NOT wait till it came out of the oven.


We all sat down, 
placed our hands together and gave thanks,
placed our napkins on our laps,
placed a forkful of French happiness to our lips.


We were not happy.
In fact, we were disappointed.
The recipe had been followed exactly, 
so we know it wasn't Miss S' fault.


This dish was boring, 
it tasted like Fajita veggies that someone 
forgot to put the cumin and chicken in.


Maybe we are too Americanized (what else would we be, right)?
But we decided that we wouldn't make this ever again.
I am sorry if I am hurting any of my European home maker friends' feelings,
especially if you love the dish!


We are veggie lovers,
but maybe not this combination of veggies.

We give this:

*

out of

* * * * *

Till next Saturday,

Bon Appetit, y'all!

The Art Of French Cooking- Week 5 -Reine de Saba

This week's recipe was for the quintessential French chocolate cake.

It was divine and each home maker reading this

should make it at least once in her lifetime.

Reine de Saba

[Chocolate and Almond Cake]

This extremely good chocolate cake is baked so that its center remains slightly underdone; overcooked, the cake loses its special creamy quality. It is covered with a chocolate-butter icing, and decorated with almonds. Because of its creamy center it needs no filling.

For an 8-inch cake serving 6 to 8 people

(I doubled the recipe and used three cake pans).

• A round cake pan 8 inches in diameter and 1 ½ inches deep
• 4 ounces or squares semi-sweet chocolate melted with a Tb rum or coffee
• A 3-quart mixing bowl
• A wooden spoon or an electric beater
• ¼ lb. or 1 stick softened butter
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 3 egg whites
• Pinch of salt
• 1 Tb granulated sugar
• A rubber spatula
• 1/3 cup pulverized almonds
• ¼ tsp almond extract
• ½ cup cake flour (scooped and leveled), turned into a sifter
• A cake rack

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter and flour the cake pan. 

Set the chocolate and rum or coffee in a small pan, melt chocolate on low heat, set aside.

Measure out the rest of the ingredients.

Cream the butter and sugar together for several minutes until they form a pale yellow, fluffy mixture.

Beat in the egg yolks until well blended.

Beat the egg whites and salt in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.

With a rubber spatula, blend the melted chocolate into the butter and sugar mixture, then stir in the almonds, and almond extract. Immediately stir in one fourth of the beaten egg whites to lighten the batter. 

Delicately fold in a third of the remaining egg whites and when partially blended, sift on one third of the flour and continue folding. Alternate rapidly with more egg whites and more flour until all egg whites and flour are incorporated.

Turn the batter into a cake pan, pushing the batter up to its rim with a rubber spatula. Bake in middle level of preheated oven for about 25 minutes. Cake is done when it has puffed, and 2 ½ to 3 inches around the circumference are set so that a needle plunged into that area comes out clean; the center should move slightly if the pan is shaken, and a needle comes out oily.

Allow cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan, and reverse cake on the rack. Allow it to cool for an hour or two; it must be thoroughly cold if it is to be iced.

To Serve:

Use the chocolate-butter icing, and press a design of almonds over the icing.

Glaçage au Chocolat

[Chocolate-butter Icing]

This simple chocolate icing is butter beaten into melted chocolate, and forms a tender coating over a white or chocolate cake, or over a thoroughly chilled butter-cream icing.

For an 8-inch cake.

I doubled the recipe.

• 2 ounces (2 squares) semi-sweet baking chocolate
• 2 Tb rum or coffee
• A small covered pan
• A larger pan of almost simmering water
• 5 to 6 Tb unsalted butter
• A wooden spoon
• A bowl with a tray of ice cubes and water to cover them
• A small flexible-blade metal spatula or a table knife

Place and chocolate and rum or coffee in the small pan, cover, and set in the larger pan of almost simmering water. 

Remove pans from heat and let chocolate melt for 5 minutes or so, until perfectly smooth. 

Lift chocolate pan out of the hot water, and beat in the butter a tablespoon at a time. 

Then beat over the ice and water until chocolate mixture has cooled to spreading consistency. 

At once spread it over your cake with spatula or knife.

(To divide batter evenly, I use a cookie scoop and add one scoop at a time to each pan till the batter is gone)

Review:

This cake is tasted as good as it looked.
It was not like one of our American cakes: light and airy and crumbly.

No, this was dense, chocolatey, not-too-sweet, with a hint of almond flavor.
I am a Wilton Cake decorator and have made and eaten my share of cake slices, 
but this was different, this is a French cake,
with a batter made of mostly almonds
and fluffy egg whites,
with frosting/icing with NO powdered sugar in it.
Definitely in a class all by itself.
When I die and go to heaven,
St. Peter will be standing at the Pearly Gates 
welcoming us in with slices of this cake.
But you should make it before you die!

We give this:

* * * * *

out of

* * * * *

Till next Saturday,

Bon Appetit, y'all!


Click here to enter my Cottage Charm Giveaway.