The season has arrived for scallops and sea urchins. I have fixed scallops several times this week and just had another go at sea urchin. I will be trying the below mentioned bruschetta recipe myself this weekend. I thought it might be interesting to shed a little light on the well known and lesser known of seafood…..
Today, I enjoyed a fab meal with two very special friends at Christian Constant's Les Fables. I am sure I am not the first to eat and write about it. Although, I can say I worked here as a stagiare for 2 months while at school - ESCF (Ecole Superior de Cuisine Francaise in the 6th) and still wanted to eat in the front of the house. That does say a lot. After three hours of eating only three courses but chatting up a storm, I felt very satisfied physically and emotionally and think the new chef is doing a great job. I'll just cut to the chase and talk about our meals.
We started with an amuse bouche that arrived in a charming canning jar with fish rillettes and wedges of toasted baguette. The amuse bouche gets your eye and your palette warmed up and to me is the first display of the chef's ingenuity and talent. It can be very simple and very pleasing as this was and a nice change from the toasts with herbed oil......
Today I'm writing from Belle Plagne, a small ski village nestled among several in the French Alps about 3 hours east of Lyon. Here with my kids, 1/2 the british pop. and 1/2 the french population, we are all enjoying an afternoon of snow. Fortunately, a week of skiing almost balances out the innumerable caloric intake of the regional faire.
If you are a meat & potato lover, you would think you had died and gone to heaven.....
Continue reading "REGION SAVOIE: The EPITOME of COMFORT FOOD" »
I myself would be lying through my every last tooth if I said I didn't enjoy fois gras in all methods of cooking: mousse, terrine, pate and one of my favorite recipes from last fall...Seared fois gras de canard with carmelized fruits and a port reduction drizzled over.
Yes, I obviously do still eat it. Although, after visiting the southwest of France about two years ago on a field trip with my school, I took a long break....
Continue reading "FOIS GRAS: delicate food, delicate subject" »
FRESH FOIS GRAS WITH CARMELIZED FRUITS AND PORT REDUCTION:
from Helene Darroze
for 4 portions-
1 #(500g) lobe of fois gras
2 pears
2 apples
2 figs
4 small bunches of white grapes
4 small bunches of red grapes
2 oz (50g) duck fat
4 tsp(20g) sugar
sea salt / cracked black pepper to taste
PREP:
Slice the lobe of fois gras into four nice escalopes, set aside in a cool place
Peel and seed the apples and pears; cut into wedges
Cut figs into quarters (actually I just split the top and left whole)
Peel the grapes but try to leave them attached to the stem for presentation. I don't like seeds.
Melt duck fat in pan; saute apple and pear; add the grape bunces and finally figs. Let the fruit cook, stirring often and gently. The fruit juices will carmelize
Sprinkle with sugar the last minute
I set the fruit aside and warmed them up in the oven ( they don't need to be steaming hot) but be
careful not to overcook when reheating
Over low heat, reduce the port by 3/4 to obtain a syrupy reduction.
Season escalopes with salt and pepper and grill for 4-5 minutes (over a wood fire containing vine
branches in a perfect world) OR I did them in a very hot, dry saute pan. They will put off a lot of fat.
once cooked, place escalopes onto a paper towel.
ARRANGING:
As you desire - I placed the fruit aside the fois gras- a little seasoning with salt and pepper and drizzled on the syrup.
Serve immediately.
I thought of waiting for something brilliant and truly inspiring to hit me and then have it gracefully flow through my fingertips onto this little screen but.......how about some coconut ice cream with a gorgeous pink ginger syrup instead. I realized this is about what I like and what I want to share. It's not about how great a writer I am or not. And, I am a little nervous.....and usually when I am nervous I eat. So there you have it!
Our Sunday dinner this week started off as they often do with dessert. Well actually the chocolate macaroons I made for my daughter's(Chloe- BY the way..) friends. This was our thank you for having her visit the school which she will attend when we return to Orcas. Anyway.....macaroons begin with a meringue calling for egg whites leaving the poor yellows to fend for themselves. Thus ice cream screams to be made.....
Testing testing....in the beginning there was a woman who loved to cook.
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