1.22.2008

2007: Year of the Log


I will remember 2007 for many reasons. However, with respect to my culinary endeavors, I will remember it as "The year I made my first Bûche de Noël". Daunting as I thought the task would be I had such a ball I made a second one a handful of days later. Yellow cake, crème de marrons and chocolate ganache. A beautiful trio that goes something like this...

Ingredients:

3/4 c. flour
1 c. hazelnuts or almonds, finely chopped
1/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. sugar
7 eggs, separated
pinch of salt
2 tbsp. butter, melted

Oven: 400 degrees Farenheit
Line a shallow 9 x 12 baking pan with aluminum foil.
Butter or oil the aluminum foil.

The Cake:
1) Mix together 1/4 c. sugar with the cup of chopped nuts. Add 2 tbsp. of melted butter and a shot glass of liquor if you wish.
2) In another bowl blend together, until pale yellow, 6 egg yolks with 1/3 c. sugar
3) Combine bowls 1 and 2 together and add 3/4 c. of flour
3) In another bowl add a pinch of salt to egg whites and foam until stiff
4) Fold egg whites into cake batter, reserving about 3/4 c. to 1 cup of egg whites to make the mushroom meringues for decoration.
5) Pour into baking pan and bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 30 minutes

The Filling:
500 g can of Clement Faugier Crème de Marrons vanillée

The icing:
Whip all of these together, incorporating the sugar and cocoa gradually so as to control the sweetness and/or bitterness desired.
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
1/2 c.- 1 c. cocoa powder
1/4 c. - 1/2 c. sugar

Assembling the cake:
Remove the cake from the pan by flipping it upside down. The cake will fall out of the pan with the aluminum foil facing upwards. Remove the aluminum foil. Spread marron cream over the cake. Roll into a log. Place onto a serving dish. Spread icing and decorate with grated chocolate, powdered sugar and mushroom meringues.

Mushroom meringues? To be continued...

1.17.2008

(Scallops en Papillote)





Ingredients: 1 lb. of bay scallops, 1 bunch of asparagus, 3 or 4 handfuls of cherry tomatoes, 1 can of cannellini beans, 1/4 c. fresh dill, 3 tbsp. of olive oil, salt & pepper, to taste. **Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Scoop out handfuls of the mixture onto individual sheets of parchment paper. Make little packages and cook in oven for 15-30 minutes (depending on how done you like your scallops) at 350 degrees . **As delicious as it is good for you. Serve with rice, quinoa or by itself for an extra low calorie feast. Backstory: This recipe was introduced to me by Miss A. Williams - doctor by day, chef and master knitter by night - at a dinner party last week, where sommelier Maciek D. kept our glasses brimming with ice cold Vinho Verde - a perfect match for the dish - and Watercolor/Acrylic powerhouse K. Jacobson set the mood by dimming the light switches and playing the tunes of Don Covay.

1.05.2008

Talking Country




The grive (a kind of thrush) is a coveted bird of the terroir that people in the south of France have been eating for generations in the months of winter...when the men go hunting in the hillsides. Their preparation goes something like this, for those with weak stomachs spare yourselves from reading past the colon: we pluck them, hang them in a dark closet with their innards intact (upside down) and allow them to ferment for two to three weeks or until a droplet forms on their beaks. This "goutte" as we call it indicates that the birds are ready to be wrapped in lard and roasted in the fireplace. After the 20 or so minutes it takes to cook them, we open a bottle of red and eat every part of them with toast. A salad of frisette with garlic dressing usually accompanies the meal as well as banter about whose grive ate a juniper berry (a berry which heightens the taste of the meat). A delicacy of Provence, author P. Labonté might call this dish, "real talk". I just hope I haven't hurt anyone's stomach...