ffwd – lyonnaise garlic herb cheese

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The stars aligned for me with this recipe. I was able to find something close to the fromage blanc called for in the recipe. I didn’t relish the idea of taking the time to drain ricotta. But there’s a fantastic market near my work, called Asiana Market. It’s an interesting mix of Asian (from Japanese to Indian) and Northern European. I always have fun going there, especially with friends because I always find new things to try! Amazing Hungarian sausages, seasonings in odd packages, fresh noodles, vegetables I can’t find anywhere else… the list goes on. It’s not fancy to look at,but it very much reminds me of markets I’ve been to in other parts of the world – so a great escape.

I thought that I’d remembered seeing some fresh cheeses, so when I stopped in, I bought some Farmer’s Cheese that’s actually made in PA. I guess that there are different  types, but this one seemed to be a soft consistency, so I thought I’d try it. The remaining ingredients are herbs (fresh from the garden up north), shallots, garlic, a bit of olive oil & vinegar and salt and pepper.

I usually just gather whatever herbs look good – I decided that it was in keeping with the general idea. I had winter savory, sage, rosemary, mint, parsley and chives. No tarragon, but I hoped that the others would be nice combination. And this is my new cool tool for garlic. It does a nice job of mincing and it’s super easy to use and clean.

Everything is simply mixed together and seasoned. Then it needs to chill for a bit. I did find that that made the flavors work together better. Also, the vinegar mellowed and really added to the combination.

Dorie suggests serving the cheese alongside vegetables, which turned out to be very good. Each type of vegetable brought out different flavors in the cheese. The same with crackers. And my friends thought that something simple, that had a bit of salt was perfect – though again, it just ended up tasting a bit different.

I will definitely make this again. Different herbs and seasonings would definitely change it up – I’m sure Dorie’s original tarragon would be great, but fresh basil… that would be good too. Plus, I felt a little virtuous, with the whole combination. Flavorful, but also good-for-you.

ffwd – double chocolate nutella tart

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Really, I shouldn’t do two things, well, maybe three. I shouldn’t wait until the last minute to start a recipe. I shouldn’t try to do too many things at once. And I really should make sure I read the recipe… but I guess I knew that already.

I started a series of pottery throwing classes this week. I used to throw years ago, and even have a wheel and kiln, but they’ve been gathering dust for a very long time (and I really don’t have the setup to have them out at this point). But a friend in my book club bought a Groupon for a beginning class and that reminded me of how much fun it is to throw. It’s such a great process – another one of those kind of get-in-the-zone zen things, very much like sewing. Just messier! In a good way :) .

So with that and some other things going on, I left making the chocolate tart until quite late (ok, last night!). I hadn’t really looked at the recipe, but saw enough to see the Nutella version. Since I’d be sharing this at work, I decided that that version made a bit more sense than the banana (though that sounded good too), since I’d be schlepping it around and it had to maintain its composure.

This is almost exactly like a tart that I’ve been making for years, and very similar to one that was part of the Tuesdays with Dorie recipes. I hadn’t really thought this through. I forgot that Dorie’s sweet tart dough can be pressed into the pan directly (what I would normally do), and that it didn’t really have to be chilled or frozen. So I finally realized that it wouldn’t take quite as long as I thought.

The crust is really simple. Just some cocoa added to the typical sweet pastry dough. Dorie’s is simple because you just whirl the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, powdered sugar and a touch of salt), then add the cold butter chunks, and finally an egg yolk. So easy!

This mixture can either be rolled out, or just pressed into the prepared pan (Dorie’s suggestion of spraying the pan with something like Pam is great!)

This crust is chilled (or not, but I did) in the freezer. I did use some oiled foil, and some pie weights, but as I understand it, they are not really mandatory if you freeze your crust first.

Once baked, I spread the bottom of the crust with Nutella. That gets chilled too, so that it doesn’t mix in with the ganache when it’s added. Once that’s chilling, it’s time for the ganache. This is really one of the easiest things in the world to make – well, as long as you can read! Um, I wasn’t paying attention too much. I had 2c cream, not 1. Oops! It didn’t really look right… not dark enough. So I had to re-check my recipe. And, oh, another trip to the store to get another half-pound of chocolate. The upside… extra ganache in the refrigerator for something else!

Here’s how I do this – I heat the cream until there are a few bubbles, take it off the heat and add the chocolate and stir. It really doesn’t take long, even if you’re like me and your chocolate is in chunks. The middle picture is where I knew I’d gone terribly wrong. So easy to tell when it really looks right – creamy and dark chocolaty!

The ganache is spread into the crust over the top of the Nutella. It gets chilled a bit before it gets its final topping. In this case, chopped hazelnuts (I should have toasted them) and some gray salt.

This is incredibly delicious. I like the addition of the Nutella and hazelnuts. And the gray salt really sets the flavors off. The one I normally (used to) make doesn’t have the nuts. but they are a nice addition.

Other ideas: I think that fresh raspberries would be amazing – maybe even more so with a layer of preserves on the bottom. I could see grated orange peel as an addition as well. I’m excited to see what others have done, and if they used the bananas (which I still think would be great). If you’d like to see what they’ve come up with, visit French Fridays with Dorie to see their posts.

ffwd – provencal olive fougasse

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This bread was surprisingly wonderful. I approached it with a little skepticism (for no good reason) and was a bit non-commital as I put the dough together. But when the first batch came out of the oven the next morning (to take it to work), it smelled heavenly! Then when we tore some off… wow! As a friend of mine noted – there’s a little burst of flavor in each bite. It didn’t need any dipping oil, and the combination of flavors was fabulous! The remaining half got baked after work for a bit more festivity – this time with some wine and nibbles to make for a nice, casual meal.

As I’ve been known to do, I actually got started on the recipe without thinking about photos… so the part you won’t see is me actually letting the yeast soften in the warm water, then adding the other ingredients. I’ll be honest, next time I will probably do what I normally would – put the dry ingredients together, and then add the warm water and oil. The yeast I buy today always works, so I don’t know that it needs to be proofed. Plus, it gets mixed/kneaded for a long time – I’m not worried about things not being incorporated. But it’s fun to follow the recipe at least once! Dorie tells us that this will be more a batter than a real dough, even after kneadinf 10 minutes.

The flavorings for this are olives (I used Kalamata), fresh rosemary and orange (or lemon) zest. I love bringing rosemary home from up north where it really grows almost wild – lots of “volunteers” grow around the property. I decided to go with the orange flavor because I thought it would be new for me, though I know that olives and oranges are a classic combination. These ingredients are chopped and then mixed into the dough.

The whole mixture is then placed in an oiled bowl and allowed to rise for an hour or tow, then it’s mixed down and refrigerated 6 hours, and up to 3 days – though Dorie suggests overnight.

When you’re ready to bake (and this is one of the truly great parts – you need less than an hour until you have freshly baked bread!), you take half of the dough, and put it on a floured board. It gets patted out into a rectangle, then shifted over to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Once there, they get their iconic leaf-like slashes, a 15-minute rest, and then a nice brushing of olive oil (something flavorful is best here) and some coarse salt – I used gray salt with its lovely flavor.

Finally, the bread is baked at 450 degrees for a total of 18 minutes. Dorie suggests re-arranging the baking sheets about halfway through the time. It is allowed to rest for a few minutes prior to serving.

I have to say, this was great first thing with coffee. As a snack later in the day… but we did do as Dorie suggested and enjoyed a glass of wine and “savory nibbles” with it as well.

I would definitely make this again. It was so easy, and it offers such great flexibility in timing. It was a perfect recipe for when you’re having friends over after work – something that you can’t always say about other fresh breads. Loved it!

 

 

ffwd – almond flounder meuniere

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I live in the desert southwest. There are many people who ask themselves when thinking about buying or ordering fish – am I on the coast? or near a large body of water? Alas, not the case here. Though there are wonderful trout to be had up north if you’re a good fisherman, and delightful shrimp somewhat far to the south – and of course the great Pacific Ocean a mere 5 hours away… here, no. Not so much.

That said, we live in a modern age where many things are possible. Flounder this week, however, was not one of them. I did find a nice Petrale Sole. Close enough for this desert dweller.

I have been out of the loop on my French Fridays for some time. By circumstance or other “stances”, I have missed my friends and the structure of my group. Hopefully this one will get me back on track.

So – on to the recipe. As you can see, my quest for flounder went unfulfilled. BUT, this was still a really great choice for once-again entering the ffwd fold. Very simple. On-hand ingredients  (with the exception of the fish!). And happily, something wonderfully good. So happy to be back.

The almond meal, flour lemon and seasonings are mixed together. Interestingly, the “skin side” of the fillet is brushed with the egg yolk, then pressed into the crumbs, creating a coating on one side.

I managed to get the sliced almonds toasted, but as you’ll see later… I forgot them! Oops!

It’s a nice quick saute in butter (browned a bit first). The tablespoon or so of butter is heated until a toasty-brown, then the fillet is placed in the pan – crust-side down for a couple of minutes.

The fillets are then turned over. A little additional butter can be added, and then the browned butter spooned over the top. I’ll admit that I didn’t have a lot of butter for “spooning”, but it made me feel more virtuous! To make this more meuniere, it probably needed a bit more butter – but that was ok! It only takes a couple of minutes on the second side to complete the dish.

This was a very (very) tasty dish. The fish was perfectly cooked, and the nutty crust was nice on the one side. I could easily see making this for guests. The coating was not overpowering, allowing the flavor of a subtly-flavored fish to come through. I could see this preparation working with other types of fish as well, since the one-sided approach was so balanced. I’m looking forward to making this again.

(OK, to be honest, I’m not a “cooking fish indoors” fan – where I live tends to retain aromas. And I’m not a huge fin-fish (particularly the oh-so-popular salmon) fan in general. So this was a super-nice preparation. Very nice flavor and texture, without the down-side. I have to say, it was even nice the next day for lunch! So as a not-in-love-with-cooking-fish-at-home-indoors person – this was even more amazing!)

TWD – Irish Soda Bread

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This is a “traditional” Irish soda bread. Though, I’m guessing that whole wheat might be even more-so. Apparently, in Ireland their flour is a bit softer – more like our cake flour in the US. Simply 4 ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda and buttermilk.

There’s really nothing to this recipe. You just stir together the dry ingredients, add the buttermilk, mix it together, give it a quick knead, and then form it, cut a cross into the top and bake!

I ended up making this twice. Both times, just making one-fourth of the recipe, since the cautions were menacing – who needs a brick after a few hours?

Full disclosure – I was in a hurry and used baking powder the first time. The second time, I switched to cake flour (one of my aspirational purchases that hasn’t actually panned out for the intended purpose) as well as the correct baking soda. The first dough was a bit denser, the second lighter – and seemed like it should be nicer.

The first one was actually nicer – it kept for more than a day, and was still tasty. The texture was better. The second (that I expected to be better), just ended up chewy, and not so much “bread-like”, though still good enough – but not nearly as pretty.

This was a fun little challenge. I don’t know if it will be something I make all of the time, but it was pretty yummy and a fun recipe to make.

ffwd – saint-germain-des-pres onion biscuits

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I’ve been planning to make some biscuits. I like them, as I like all things Southern (American). Though I’ll admit that, like some good friends in Georgia, I’ve even resorted to the ones found in the freezer case from time-to-time (yes, they are legit good!). But, I think there is nothing like something homemade to say “love”, and quick breads of all kinds fit the bill.

I’m a huge fan of King Aurthur Flour and their website. Down-to-earth homey bakers who create some truly amazing things. So one of my recent purchases was some Bakewell Cream baking powder. They also have a blog post about biscuits and freezing them un-baked, for later use. So, this was a timely recipe challenge.

Probably unlike a number of our French Friday crew, I happen to love onions, garlic and even raisins. I think this week we’ll have a few who opt out on the onion portion of this recipe. But it’s a nice change of pace and one that I wouldn’t have thought of on my own – so thanks, Dorie!

The reason so many people bake biscuits is because they are easy, take little time and only require pantry ingredients.

The onions are sauteed until soft (I think green onions would have been particularly pretty here – but I ended up using red instead), the dry ingredients are combined, the butter cut in, and then the onions and milk are added quickly to make a nice dough.

A couple of turns on the pastry board, and then the dough is cut into rounds. I didn’t have the smaller cutter available, so mine were closer to 2″. I’m not sure how you get to a count of 32 in any event, but that’s ok. Also, since I was going to freeze some, and bake some, I left the bits and pieces and baked them, instead of worrying over re-combining the dough for another round of cutting them (one trick to note – don’t “twist” the cutter – it reduces the rise of the biscuit as it bakes). I guess I’d have had close to a dozen biscuits if I were really being cranky about the whole thing. As it was, some for now, and some for later…

The biscuits get assembled on a baking sheet, then baked in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

These were delicious! With some country ham (or ham otherwise), sausage gravy, or alongside any other traditional breakfast items, these would be fantastic! While I haven’t tried it, I suspect a bit of sweet would make a great combination too (maybe a little jalapeno pepper jelly). The bits of onion added a nice touch of color, and the flavor – definitely yummy. Oh, and those others that went into the freezer… well, it won’t be long before they are coming out to make an appearance. I’m looking forward to proving that they will bake up nicely too!

ffwd – roasted salmon and lentils

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This recipe delivered on its promise. Delicious and easy.

I’ve not cooked with lentils much. I’m not really a huge fan of the texture, but I was looking forward to trying the French du Puy lentils. They were a bit difficult to find, and a bit of a surprise because they’re described as green. Well, ok, a deep forest green – at least before they are cooked.

The ingredient list is short and manageable. I was able to find some wild coho salmon and the rest of the ingredients are pretty standard. I also used my Penzey’s vegetable soup base so that the lentils would be a meatless version.

The lentils have a quick pre-boil, then are combined with the vegetables, stock and bay-leaf.

While that all cooks, it’s time for the salmon. There’s essentially nothing to it – a bit of olive oil, salt and freshly cracked pepper. One thing I did think worked well was that  the skin on the salmon as it’s baking keeps the salmon moist and also sticks to the foil so it’s easily removed for serving.

This all takes about an hour, with the lentils and salmon from start to finish. I did throw in a bit of an alternate that Dorie suggests – well, her suggestion is truffle oil. My choice – black truffle salt. This is one of those oh-so-amazing things, that makes many things better: a simple poached egg, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes… well, you can go on and on. A little goes a long way, but it also puts the dishes it’s used on over the top.

The salmon is plated over the lentils. I ended up not having any chives for garnish, which would have made the plate look that much better. But overall, a nice, tasty dish.

 

I served this with a bit of garlic bread made from some home-made artison bread, and a Sangiovese from Andretti wineries. A nice combination with the lentils and salmon. Just as Dorie promised, delicious and easy.