Tarte aux poires Bourdaloue
A taste of France: Tarte aux poires Bourdaloue
The first written record of this confection was in “Larousse Gastronomique” written by Proper Montagne who noted that it was created by Fasquelle, a patissier along rue Bourdaloue in the middle of the 19th century who named it after Louis Bourdaloue, a famous French Jesuit from late 17th century.
The bourdaloue is also the name of a chamberpot designed specifically for women :read story here:
http://twonerdyhistorygirls.blogspot.com.au/2010/06/useful-necessary-bourdaloue.html
The recipe is quite simple: first you have to make the "frangipane"Velvety almond cream, warmed up with just a hint of vanilla, the 'frangipane" gives any pastry delicious added richness and texture.
You will need:
The bourdaloue is also the name of a chamberpot designed specifically for women :read story here:
http://twonerdyhistorygirls.blogspot.com.au/2010/06/useful-necessary-bourdaloue.html
The recipe is quite simple: first you have to make the "frangipane"Velvety almond cream, warmed up with just a hint of vanilla, the 'frangipane" gives any pastry delicious added richness and texture.
You will need:
- 1/2 cup ground almond meal
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons butter, softened
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extractEt voila!
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
Tatin of Scallops with Rhubard and Lime - inspired by Jean-Pierre Crouzil
This is quite a simple recipe and rather unusual as well, but well worth it.
For 4 persons, you will need: 12 large scallops (ideally from Tasmania or South Australia if you live "Down Under") 4 12cm rond pieces of puff pastry 250g of rhubarb, pealed and blanched 1 table spoon of raw sugar 4 slices of lime 60g of butter salt & pepper, cinnamon Make a compote with the rhubarb and sugar, add a pich of cinnamon and refrigerate. Butter 4 moulds to fit the 12cm pieces of puff pastry Install the lime slice in the middle, and dispose the slices of scallops as an outer circle Top up with the rhubarb compote Cover with the pastry. Cook for 8mns in an oven at 180deg . Wait 4mns and unmould on your serving plates. Et voila! No need for sauce as the rhubarb and the lime will give you the sweet and sour taste and juices that are the trademark of this recipe. Serve an italian inspired salad afterwards (like spring onions, rocket, cherry tomatoes with a balsamic vinaigrette) Drink a robust white wine, like the Riesling of Hospices de Strasbourg I chose. Maybe an oaked Chardonnay might work as well. Why not sharing your experiments via our comments page here? We would love to hear from you! Tuna, Pork Belly and English Spinach
Got the inspiration from a recipe in Wine by Gourmet Traveller (WGT), but had different ingredients, so just used the method to prepare the pork belly.
Ideally, you want to marinate the pork belly in advance with fennel seeds, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. Season with sea salt and ground pepper. I replaced the fennel seeds with cumin and cardamon, and rubbed the meat into ihe spices with salt and pepper than generously poured lime juice and olive oil over it in a bowl, and left to marinate until the oven was ready. Asked later as he was serving some in his restaurant the other day, Maitre Karl told me how it is prepared there: first baked in a steam oven then under the gill until the fat layer becomes crackling. In absence of a steam oven, I used my grill instead, and turn the meat over several times until the meat was cooked and the skin crackled. WGT recommends to start on the BBQ and then finish in the oven...your choice! Just make sure the meat is well and truly cooked. Five minutes before the pork belly is ready, let's say about 45mn after the meat has been in the oven, put some olive oil in a pan, and cook the tuna to your liking. In my opinion it should still be pink in the middle, then when cooked on one side, throw the spinach that you would have washed before in the pan, turn the tuna over and then cover and turn the heat off. Cut two nice cubes of pork belly, set them on the plate, add the tuna opposite and the spinach in the middle and serve immediately I drank my favourite red with it, but you could have a nice Chardonnay as well. Bon appetit! |
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Valentine Lunch: Scallops in Colombo Spice with Cauliflower Bulgur and Mango
This is a simplified version of a recipe by Eric Briffard. His name might not ring a bell immediately, as Eric is media shy but certainly not unknown: he trained with Joel Robuchon at Jamin, and now runs the show at the George V in Paris.
So, you get the simplified version, because I could not master the real one, and I had my Valentine of 25 years waiting to be impressed! There are five steps in the preparation of this dish: Prepare the Cauliflower Bulgur Prepare the fruity base for the scallops Prepare the sauce, which is an elaborate fish stock Cook the scallops - that's the quickest step - 30 seconds - but obviously critical... Plate up - challenging! I will start with a list of ingredients and I will refer you to somebody else for the Colombo Spice recipe (click here...) 100g cauliflower florets 1 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar 4 pinches of Colombo powder 4 pinches of curry powder Salt and white pepper (I recommend Sel de Guerande from "Le Pain Quotidien" - I have not tried their pepper mix yet...) Olive Oil 100g of mango (I used an entire one) 2 soft dried apricots (you could use more...) 1 tomato peeled, seeded and cut in small cubes - I would not use the tomato if I were to make this dish again... A bunch of fresh cilantro leaves (coriander) Fresh chives 50g of blanched Corinth grapes 3 prawns per person, plus some more for the stock 3 scallops per person 1 lemongrass stalk Zest and juice of 1 lime 25 g of unsalted butter I will now walk you through the five steps mentioned above. And it will not be in the same order as I did it - which was messy to say the least - but in a more logical order, as if I were to prepare this dish with my first experiment in mind. A few hours before you start, put the raisins into warm water for them to regain plumpness and moisture. Just before using them, blanch them for 5mn.Set aside. In the meantime, prepare the Colombo spice as per link above. I would probably start with the sauce: First thing to do is to remove the scallops from their shells and separate the meat from the red part, called the roe. Then, peel the prawns and reserve the heads. Simmer the heads in just enough water to cover them for 10mns. Set aside. In a sauce pan, pour a little olive oil, fry the roes, add 1 or 2 pinches of curry powder, lemongrass, lime zest, prawn jus and top up with 100ml of water. reduce by half, add butter and reduce again to a syrupy consistency. Strain the sauce into a small pot, add the roes, the prawns, half of the raisins, the juice of a lime and plenty fresh coriander. If your sauce is warm enough, the prawns will cook gently without further heat. You can simmer for 5mns more if uncertain. Set aside. Now onto the cauliflower couscous: With a sharp knife, cut the cauliflower florets in very small pieces to look like a coarse couscous. Season with white balsamic vinegar, Colombo spice, salt and pepper and olive oil. Set aside. Now onto the fruity base: Peel the mango(es) and cut as many round pieces as you have scallops. It is easier said than done! Set aside. Chop the remaining fruit into small cubes. Cut the dried apricots in small cubes too. In a bowl, mix the mango, the apricots, the raisins, some coriander leaves chopped finely. It might be useful for the presentation to add a little bit of geltine - soaked into water previously, so the mixture keeps a certain consistency, but you do not want to make a jelly! I have not tried that, but I am sure it would help the next process. You need to get some rings - same number and size as scallops. On a tray or a flat dish, pour the fruit mix into the rings and press down. Put a slice of mango on top on each ring, brush with olive oil. Before your guests arrive, plate up the fruit mix(remove the rings, obviously, and that's when the gelatine might be handy...) and the couscous. You might want to use a tall small glass to form the couscous onto the plate (like if you were building a sand castle - just tinier...) Make sure your guests have a starter before this, as you will need about 10mns to finish: Now it is time to cook the scallops in a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of curry powder - you could also use some saffron - no more than 30 seconds on each side unless they are particularly big and thick, but make sure you don't overcook them, as they would become rubbery and ruin the whole exercise! When cooked, quickly put a scallop on each fruit mix, add a prawn and tuck a long stick of dill in the middle of the prawn, like a little antenna. Pour some of the fish stock than you have just warmed up in the microwave for 30 seconds or so on the fishy tower and serve immediately. Bathe yourself in the well deserved applause!!! Don't forget to serve the Chateau Carbonieux in your best glasses...Enjoy with no moderation. Well done! Aumonieres of Figs with Willoubrae Goat Curd CheeseCut a sheet of puff pastry in 4 , cut four figs in four, place them in the middle of each piece of pastry, fill in the middle of the fig with a dollop of cheese, season with pepper, and then enclose the lot in the pastry, forming a bag
(like an old purse, called an "aumoniere" in French) Place into a tray sprayed with olive oil and bake in the oven at 220 degrees for 20mns et voila! Perfect for a light meal or for the kids lunch boxes...    Figs, Prosciutto, Bocconcini and Rocket s 
On a large plate, lay some roquette, place some trevise in the middle, place three thin slices of prosciutto at 120 degrees from each other, place a cherry tomato in the middle.
Then, cut figs in two and place them in each space between the slices of prosciutto together with a bocconcino. Prepare a vinaigrette with sea salt (we use sel de Guerande available from Le Pain Quotidien), pepper, Chardonnay vinegar and olive oil. Pour the vinaigrette on the salad and serve! Sunday Lunch: Snapper fillets coated with home made pesto and zucchini flowers
When possible, I like to cook fish for Sunday lunch .
It is quite a ritual: First going to our fabulous Sydney Fish Market, wandering the de Costi and Claudio's stalls to get an inspiration and pick a whole fish or some fillets or, if a lighter meal is the order of the day, maybe some oysters, prawns or mussels. I would also normally check out cheese, olives and other treats at the Deli and maybe some herbs, avocados, figs or other exotic fruits and vegetables at the Waterside Fruit Connection. Today, I bought some snapper fillets at De Costi and some basil and zucchini flowers at BFC. On the way back, I stop at the Moana Bakery in Rozelle and possibly at Vintage Cellars in Hunters Hill, where the owner Tomi or his crew will always have a nice chat or recommendation. Today is a Sauvignon Blanc day, Selaks from New Zealand. Then, back home to prepare a nice table and start cooking. So, here is the recipe: Ingredients for 2 people (multiply by 2 for 4...ah, ah!!) 2 fillets of snapper, skinless, 150 g each 1 small spanish onion a dozen zucchini flowers a bunch of basil leaves 100g of pine nuts 200g f pecorino romano Olive oil Sea Salt and Pepper Total preparation time: 30mns In a large pan, drop a little olive oil, thin slice the onion, heat the oil and when sizzling, drop the onions in, add salt and pepper. Then cut the ends of zucchinis and when the onions start to melt, add the zucchinis on top, season and cover. Turn the zucchini over every five minutes to cook evenly. Start your grill, so it is very ht when you are ready to cook the fish. It is now time to prepare the pesto: In a food processor, grate the pecorino, add the pine nuts, install the blade, add the basil leaves and start the motor until all ingredients are coarsely ground. At this stage, start adding the olive oil until the pesto is at the consistency you like. Don't over use the oil though, as you don't want the pesto to be runny. Take a baking tray, spray with olive oil. and lay the snapper fillets down, spray the top of the fillets with some more olive oil and add a thick layer of pesto on top. Now, your grill should be hot, your zucchinis half way through cooked. Put the tray under the grill and leave unattended for ten minutes. During that time, turn the zucchinis over twice. When the ten minutes are over, decorate your plates with some basil leaves, spread the zucchinis on top and share the onions that should be like a jam by now. Place the fish fillets next and serve immediately. Very healthy and tasty! Bon appetit... Mother's Day Dinner - Angus Steak au poivre with Red Wine Butter & Sauteed Potatoes
One of the best food magazine in the World comes from...no, not France, but from this tiny country in the backyard of Australia, New Zealand.
Cuisine - thta's its name - has won several times over the Best Food Magazine of the World Award. And more recently Cuisine Wine Country 2009 has been judged Best Drink Magazine in the world at the 2010 Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Awards in Adelaide. I discovered it about 10 years ago, when it was still privately owned and unknown outside of KiwiLand. They happened to have their officesin the same building (Axis) as one of my business contact in Parnell, an interesting suburb of Auckland. Conveniently, this building hosts also one of my favourite restaurant: Cibo. What struck me about this publication was that, unlike their Australian counterparts, they are not trying to say "our produce and our wines are the best in the world" and in the process not necessarily succeeding as been merely more than "different", but rather articulated respect for Italian and French culinary traditions, and tried to be inventive within the confines of traditional Haute Cuisine or simply elaborate home cooking. And by emulating tradition, New Zealand now is famous worldwide for their food and wine. Agreed, Lord of The Rings certainly helped the publicity machine... So, my children's Mum (yes, she is still my wife after 25 years...) asked for steak and sauteed potatoes, one of my staples. But, being Mother's Day, I thought I would go out of my way and produce something of MasterChef quality. So back to "Cuisine", as they have this fantastic tool on their website called "recipe search" in which you type your two or three major ingredients and they return a sample of appropriate recipes. So I typed : beef, potatoes" and here is the result: Angus Steak au Poivre with Red Wine Butter & Sauteed Potatoes - Original recipe by Celia Harvey Method: Red Wine Butter Simmer the shallots in the red wine until they are a deep-red colour and there is no liquid left. Cool completely. Beat the butter until thick and creamy in a food processor. Add the cold shallots, and salt and pepper. Roll into a cylinder in plastic wrap and freeze until needed. Sautéed Potatoes - My recipe differs from yours, Celia - and I believe the result is much better! So here is my method: Take 4 mid sized Desiree potatoes (This is actually quite important). Peel and cut the potatoes in cubes of about 7-8mm each. Place some olive oil in a large, heavy pan and heat. Finely cut a spanish onion and add to the oil. It should sizzle if the temperature is right. when they are starting to colour,add the potatoes , season with salt and pepper and cover. Every five minutes or so, toss the pan with a wooden spatula, so nothing stick together or to the pan (if you don't have a fancy Teflon+ Aluminium, hence Tefal, the original - French - invention) It should take about 20mn to have the potatoes cooked, roasted outside and still creamy inside - delicious! Angus Steak au Poivre Grind the peppercorns coarsely in a mortar or coffee grinder then tip into a sieve and shake off the powder, keeping the crushed peppercorns. Season the steaks with salt and firmly press the peppercorns into the steaks. But not any steaks: I used the occasion as an excuse to visit the quintessential butcher in Sydney. It has been in all the design magazines, as this is more theater than butchery thanks to my good friends at Dreamtime Australia Design. It has also been featured on MasterChef recently. Owned by the founders of Vic's Premium Quality Meats, arguably one of the best butchers in Australia, you can find there all the meat you can dream of in a decor which is mind boggling. And I am talking about Victor Churchill in Woollahra. Once you have understood that there is no formal queue ( sounds like home...) and you have grabbed the attention of the next available young female assistant, she will walk you through all the options and empty your bank account in less than five minutes. I settled for 500gms of Aged Marbled Sirloin worth every penny spent and a can of French Cornichons absolutely not worth the 15 dollars asking price.(Whoever is importing Maille mustards should import their cornichons as well - no match! - Monsieur Victor, can you talk to them, please? I discovered recently that Maille is now a US product, as it is owned by Unilever..., but relax, it is still made in France). I am very particular for my cornichons because my patrenal great-grandmother and then my grandmother used to grow them in their garden in Vendee and prepare them themselves. Back to the preparation: Heat some oil in a heavy-based frying pan, add some olive oil - I never use butter in my cooking - let it heat and then add the steaks. Cook gently until each is done as you like. Rest the meat for as long as you cooked it and serve topped with a slice of red wine butter and the sautéed potatoes. Drink a Pinot Noir with it. Find out what we drank here Baked zucchini with ricotta filling and pecorino as per Carmel's Kitchen recipe (Zav's wife...and zucchini flowers grower "extraordinaire")
Remove the pistils from the flowers and fill with ricotta
Spray olive oil in a baking tray, lay the flowers into tray, season and sprinkle with grated pecorino Bake for 15mn in oven at 180 degrees Celsius Serve as an entree.  Scallops with duck magret, asparagus and endivesThis is not difficult to prepare, but difficult to serve hot and still rose for the duck, and warm for the scallops...
So, here we go: Braise the endives until transparent but not fully cooked to keep them almost crunchy. I achieve that in a pan with a little olive oil, the endives shredded, seasoned and covering the pan with a lid on low heat for 15/20mn. Keep warm in a bowl. In the same pan, cook the small asparagus and the duck sliced in 3mm thick morsels. Warm your oven to 120 degrees, place your plates on different trays for 10mn until lukewarm Plate up the endives in the middle, the aspatragus next to the duck slices and leave enough space in between for the scallops. Put back in the oven after covering with aluminium foil or baking paper to prevent the duck to dry. Go and enjoy your entree with your guests and a glass of wine. Then, pan fry the scallops in a large pan with olive oil and some butter, as you want them to cook in a similar way. 30 seconds on one side until brown, then turn them over for another 30 seconds. Sprinkle with the juice of half a kaffir lime to deglaze the pan. Remove plates from the oven, plate up the scallops, and serve immediately...yum! Serve with your favourite Chardonnay and enjoy with no moderation, you are done for the day! Serve goat cheese with nuts and raisins bread to finish. And enjoy the company of your happy guests!  Garlic prawns, vermicelli and cherry tomato
Peel the prawns, crush some garlic, put into a bowl with some olive oil, sea salt and crack pepper and let to marinate for as long as you can, or buy packaged garlic prawns from your favourite supermarket (as the MasterChefs do...)
Put some water to boil with salt and a dash of olive oil (sorry, George...) and when boiling, drop a few nests of vermicelli in the water. Cook for 7-8mn, and let them cook without stirring, so they keep together. Two nests per person is more than enough with 125 grms of prawns (about 7 0r 8 prawns). Cut some cherry tomatoes in two and reserve. 3mn before the pasta is due to be ready, put some olive oil in a pan, and cook the prawns 90 seconds on each side or more if you prefer them a bit more cooked. Once the pasta is cooked, remove from the water with a slotted spoon (ecumoire...) and plate up with the prawns on the side and the cherry tomatoes on top of the nest(s). Add crack pepper generously and a dash of olive oil, et voila! Dinner is ready in less than 10mns if you use packaged prawns. |
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