Green Beans w/ Hazelnuts & Creme Fraiche

Now that the weather is getting a bit cooler, it's time to put away the tomatoes, corn and zucchini and think of some other vegetables. I like to think of green beans. They are ready and at the farmers markets now.
(It will be butternut squash time before you know it.......but I am not ready yet).

Not much to say about this dish except that it was a great side to roast chicken the other night. Simple and fresh.

If you don't have creme fraiche, substitute sour cream.

Loved.



Green Beans with Hazelnuts & Creme Fraiche: (adapted from Laura Calder, the Canadian version of Martha Stewart!)

1/2 cup hazelnuts
1 lb. fresh green beans, ends trimmed
Kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pink shallot, minced
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons creme fraiche
small handful chopped fresh tarragon leaves
small handful chopped fresh parsley



Cook the beans in boiling salted water until tender. I cook mine for 5 minutes.

In a heavy skillet, heat some olive oil and saute the shallot for a minute or two and add the drained green beans into the pot and toss to coat.

Dump the beans and shallots into a large bowl and add the creme fraiche and a squeeze of lemon juice. Add the handful of fresh parsley and tarragon and top with the toasted hazelnuts.



Season with salt & pepper and serve.

Enjoy!

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Fall Salad: Roasted Fennel & Beets

This was part of our Jewish New Year feast. I bought everything at the farmer's market this week, not sure what I was going to make to go with my roast chickens and brisket.

I love the fall offerings at the markets as much as the summer selections. With every season, comes new things that I have forgotten all about!

Beets are plentiful, as are leeks, skinny green beans, potatoes and apples! Tons of squash and pumpkins are available around here and I can't wait to start cooking butternut squash when the weather gets cooler.

In this recipe, instead of roasting the beets whole, like I usually do, I peeled and cut them into wedges for a crispier texture, more like a potato.



Fennel is also beautiful roasted, it takes on a real anise flavor and pairs really well with the beets.

I served this along side roast chicken and meat, so I left out the goat cheese, but if you are making it for lunch, then some crumbled chevre would be great!

Roasted Beets & Fennel: (adapted from Food & Wine)

4 beets, (I used 2 red, and 2 yellow), peeled and cut into wedges
1 large fennel bulb, cut into wedges, (save the fronds)
fresh thyme leaves
kosher salt & pepper
olive oil
1 tsp sherry wine vinegar
crumbled goat cheese (optional)

Lay the beet wedges & fresh thyme leaves in a baking pan and drizzle with olive oil and kosher salt.



Do the same with the fennel wedges, but omit the thyme leaves.



Place both pans in a 400F oven. 40 minutes for the beets and 30 minutes for the fennel.

To make a dressing, use the beet juice that has accumulated in the pan and mix in a teaspoon of sherry wine vinegar. Pour over the warm vegetables.

Garnish with the fennel fronds and season with salt & pepper.



Serve warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy!

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Rosh Hashanah Snacks: Sardine Rillettes

I am serving this tonight as an appetizer for Rosh Hashanah, along with my smoked salmon on potato chips.

The definition of the word "rillettes" is a pâté of sorts, or a spread, made with minced pork or meat. You usually see duck or pork rillettes on the menu in France, so I liked this idea of sardine rillettes to make at home.

This is nothing fancy, more like an interesting tuna salad, if you ask me.
Dorie Greenspan has a recipe for sardine rillettes in her cookbook, however I adapted this one from Alain Ducasse. He uses butter along with Dijon mustard.

My addition was a drizzle of balsamic syrup, which makes everything better!

This is really nice for lunch with a salad, or makes an elegant appetizer for a party with wine.



Sardine Rillettes (adapted from Alain Ducasse & Tasty Diaries):

2 tbsp butter
2 small shallots
3 teaspoons chopped fresh herbs (parsley, cilantro, basil, dill or chervil mixed together is great)
2 cans of sardines in olive oil, drained
3 oz. fromage frais (hard to find in the U.S.) substitute light cream cheese or mild goat cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons mustard
juice of a lemon
salt and pepper
balsamic syrup (optional)

In a bowl, flake the sardines with the softened butter and herbs and add the rest of the ingredients.

Taste for seasoning and adjust to your liking.

Spread on warm crostini toasts and drizzle with balsamic syrup.



Yum!

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Tradition: Kasha Varnishkes

It's Rosh Hashanah tomorrow night at sundown, the Jewish new year of 5772.

Roast chicken and a brisket are always on the menu, along with a noodle kugel and if you're lucky, my Grandmother's chopped liver.

My grandmother has been gone for a while now, so I never get to eat this comforting dish called Kasha Varnishkes, which is a traditional dish served on this holiday.

Vegetarians love this dish because kasha (buckwheat groats) are a healthy addition to salads and side dishes, however, most people have never heard of kasha, but it's a staple in Eastern European Jewish cooking.



This is addictive and it brought back great memories.



If you can, try and use chicken fat, also known as schmaltz. It makes all the difference. I buy frozen chicken fat in the frozen section of my supermarket.

A little chicken fat never hurt anyone.



Kasha Varnishkes: (adapted from Joy of Cooking)

3 tablespoons chicken fat or vegetable oil
2 large onions, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups sliced mushrooms (optional but makes it so good!)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
ground black pepper
1/2 lb. bowtie pasta
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup whole kasha (whole roasted buckwheat groats)
2 cups hot chicken stock
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (for garnish)

Heat the schmaltz or vegetable oil in a large heavy skillet over a medium-high flame. Add the onions, mushrooms, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes until browning and remove to a large bowl.



Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until tender but firm. Drain and toss with the browned onions and mushrooms.

Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add the kasha and stir until all the grains are well coated. Wipe out the skillet and set it over a high flame. Add the egg-coated kasha to the skillet and cook, stirring, until the grains are toasted and separate, 2-3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the hot chicken stock. Stir, cover, and simmer until the stock is absorbed and the kasha is tender but not mushy, 7-8 minutes.



Stir the onion-mushroom-noodle mixture into the kasha. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.



The dish can be made 1-2 days in advance and reheated, uncovered, in a 350°F oven. If it seems dry, add 1/4 cup chicken stock and a little more chicken fat!

Delicious!



Enjoy and have a happy & healthy Jewish New Year!

September Salad: Goodbye Garden Lunch

We spent our Sunday dismantling the garden. I threw away all the basil & mint plants, took down the tomato plants and put the terra-cotta pots away for the inevitable cold weather.
I still have GORGEOUS Brussels sprouts that are waiting for a frost and asparagus that we will see in the spring, so it's not a total wasteland.

I had 2 measley tomatoes left on the vine and 2 figs, so decided to have a farewell garden lunch. It was finally NOT raining yesterday, so we were able to have an al fresco meal.

Fig & Mozzarella Salad w/ Tapenade Toasts:

a ball of fresh mozzarella, packed in water
a few fresh figs, quartered
2-3 vine ripe tomatoes, sliced
opal basil leaves
sea salt & pepper
arugula leaves for garnish

Tapenade Toasts:
a baguette, sliced & toasted
handful of green olives (Picholine is a good choice or Lucques)
1 anchovy, minced
1 clove garlic
tsp capers
squeeze of a lemon



Mix tapenade together in a chopper or with a mortar & pestle. Can be made a few days ahead. Spread on warm toasts and serve along side the salad.

Dressing:
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
5 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
salt & pepper



Lay out the salad components on a platter and drizzle w/ dressing. Serve with the tapenade toasts and say goodbye to summer.

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Pierre Hermé's Raspberry Lemon Ligurian Olive Oil Cake!

That's a mouthful.

This recipe was so easy, I could not believe that it was from Pierre Hermé, the famous Parisian baker.
His recipes are pretty intense on the difficulty scale, a 10. His shops in Paris are stunning, like little jewel boutiques with lines always waiting to get in.



I like plain and simple cakes with not much fuss, so when I saw this recipe on Martha's site, I did a double take. Hey, I can do that, and I LOVE my olive oil from Liguria (where pesto is from in Genoa).

This is the perfect summer cake, bright and sunny with the lemon flavors being the star, and I am not ready to give into fall yet. I am sure you can still find raspberries at the market, I was able to find them without a problem.
The raspberries make it just a little more special than your typical lemon cake.

The original recipe calls for a meringue on the top, but I was too scared to put my cake under the broiler, my luck, it would burn, so I opted for a lemon sugar icing which was just perfect!



Pierre Hermé's Ligurian Olive Oil Cake w/ Lemons & Raspberries: (adapted from Martha Stewart)

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more, room temperature, for pan
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 1/2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
Zest of 2 lemons
4 large eggs, room temperature
3 tablespoons milk, room temperature
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pint fresh raspberries

Butter a 10-inch round cake or springform pan, dust with flour, and tap out any excess.

In a large bowl, sift flour and baking powder; set aside.

Place sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of an electric mixer; rub the ingredients together between your fingers until the sugar is moist, grainy, and has absorbed as much of the zest as possible. Return bowl to mixer.

Using the whisk attachment, beat in eggs on medium high until the mixture is pale and thick, about 3 minutes.

With the mixer on lowest speed, beat in milk. Add reserved flour mixture; beat until incorporated. Add lemon juice, melted butter, and olive oil; beat until blended.



Pour about one third of the batter into the prepared pan; there should be just enough batter to form a thin, even layer. Arrange the raspberries on top of the batter. Pour the remaining batter over the raspberries, and use a rubber spatula to gently spread batter so that it runs down between the berries and just covers them (you'll have a very thin top layer of batter).

Bake cake until it's golden and pulling away from the sides of the pan, and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes.

Let cool for about 15 minutes before removing the cake ring.

Make the icing:
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 1/2 tbsp whole milk
1-2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Whisk the incing ingredients with a fork until it is a nice consistency.

With an icing spatula, spread the icing over the center of the cake and let it drip down the sides. Dot with some raspberries and let completely cool.



Serve at room temperature.



Lovely!

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Lavender Potatoes

Everything in Provence smells like lavender. It's beyond beautiful.

I love it all summer long in my garden, but I can not stand the smell inside my house! (Same goes for Gardenia, Narcissus, Lilies and Hyacinth! P.U.).

They sell dried bouquets and sachets everywhere and it is one of the ingredients in the dried mixture of herbs de Provence.

I still have lavender blooming on my driveway, so in keeping with the Provencal theme and before the first frost, I decided to finally cook with it.

You can use dried lavender, but I used the fresh flowers that still had some life left in them.

Cut up some small Yukon Gold or new potatoes into quarters and drizzle with some olive oil and kosher salt.



Roast on a baking sheet in a 400F oven for about 40 minutes.

In a small saucepan on low flame, heat 4 tablespoons of butter with a handful of lavender flowers.



Pour over the roasted potatoes and season w/ salt if desired.



Enjoy!

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Provencal Tart: Roasted Eggplant & Tomato

We're back from our wonderful trip.
I loved the food in sunny Provence. Everything was in season and local.

Provence is filled with tomatoes, good olives, tons of fragrant herbs, garlic and fresh fish. Very Mediterranean.

Eggplant is very popular here, and I loved all the beautiful dishes and stews that used aubergine. I loved it.

To keep summer going, I am using the last of the season's eggplants in my Tuesday tart and to keep me in the Provencal mood.

This is a simple tart using the last of my NJ produce and my basil plant.

*some notes: if you can, find eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes that are all equal in size so they are uniform and look nice together. (The original recipe does not use zucchini, but since I had some, why not throw it in too?).

**You could also prepare this like a tian, and skip the step of roasting the vegetables at a high temperature, but the garlic and the roasting gives the eggplant a fantastic taste, so if you have the time, I suggest roasting the vegetables first.

Provencal Tart w/ Roasted Eggplant & Tomato: (adapted from Once Upon a Tart)

1 recipe for 9" pie crust

2 Japanese or Italian eggplants, sliced into 1/4" slices
8 plum tomatoes, sliced into 1/4" slices
1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/4" slices
1/4 cup basil leaves
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
kosher salt & black pepper
2 eggs
1/4 cup light cream

In a food processor, pulse the cheese and the basil together to form a light green color paste. Lay the cheese mixture on the bottom of the prepared pie shell and keep in the fridge until ready to fill.



Place the eggplant slices in a colander in the sink and sprinkle liberally with kosher salt. Let rest for 20 minutes so the moisture and bitterness gets out. Press down with a plate on top of the slices to drain out the liquid.

Place the drained eggplant along with the zucchini slices in a bowl and drizzle with some olive oil. Add the garlic to the bowl and season with pepper. Toss the vegetables so they are all coated with the garlic and oil.

On a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet (you will probably need 2 pans), lay out the eggplant and zucchini slices and roast in a 450F oven for 10-12 minutes. Be careful that they don't burn, you want them just to be cooked. Set aside to cool.



While the vegetables are roasting, slice the tomatoes and drain them on paper towels for 15 minutes.

Make the custard by whisking together the eggs and cream with a pinch of salt. Set aside.

Ok, now you are ready to assemble the tart! (That seemed like a lot of work, didn't it?).

In an overlapping pattern, lay a slice of eggplant, zucchini and tomato around the basil cheese mixture until the entire pie shell is covered.



Carefully pour the custard over the tart and lower the oven to 350F. Bake 35-40 minutes. Let cool before serving.



The perfect end to summer. I hate to see it go.

Enjoy!

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A Few More Paris Bites

Here are a few more Paris bites before we fly back home to New Jersey tonight.

We ate at a great restaurant last night called Bistroy Les Papilles located in the 6th arrondisement.
The word Papilles translates to "taste buds".



The concept is that you dine inside the beautiful wine store/gourmet food shop.



You choose the bottle of wine from the shelf, and they offer a daily market menu.



It is a hard reservation to get, but they are open for lunch and you can take a chance and walk in, you may get lucky.

Last night's offerings was a cabbage soup with croutons, thyme & creme fraiche. AMAZING.



A magret de canard (duck breast) with seasonal legumes served in a copper pot.



Next course was a St. Nectaire cheese w/ a fig compote.....then dessert.



If you visit Paris, I hope you can try this special place. Bertrand the owner is the nicest guy (and married to a Jersey girl too, so how bad can he be?!).



Enjoy the rest of the photo tour and see you soon with some new recipes!


A proper Nicoise Salade.




The cutest kids I have ever seen.







I hope you have enjoyed the trip thru my eyes......thanks for coming along!

xo

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