Grilled lettuce hearts with a mint vinaigrette
Posted: September 16, 2012 Filed under: Salad, Vegetarian | Tags: Ferran Adria, Herbs, Lettuce, Salad, vinaigrette Leave a comment
Grilling lettuces hearts might sound like a cardinal sin. However, if you are bored of eating lettuce with a traditional dressing, this is a very, very, very easy to do dish with surprising results. Serve either as an appetizer or a side dish.
Grilled lettuce hearts with a mint vinaigrette (adapted from Ferran Adrià’s The Family Meal)
Ingredients
- the leaves of 8 springs of fresh mint
- 1 tablespoon of mustard
- 1 tablespoon of cherry vinegar
- 1 egg yolk
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 lettuce hearts, cut in half lengthways and seasoned with salt and pepper
Method
To make the vinaigrette, put the mints leaves in a tall beaker. Then, drop in the mustard, the vinegar, the egg yolk and one portion of the olive oil. Start mixing with a hand held blender. Add the olive oil bit by bit, without stopping the blender. It is done when the mint looks chopped, right before it starts to convert into a mayonnaise (be careful not to over do it). Season with salt and pepper.
Cover the surface of a large frying pain (or a grilling one) with olive oil, and heat it. Drop in the lettuce heart and let them fry over medium heat until they are golden on both sides (it will take about 5 minutes). Once out of the pan, cut them half lengthways again.
Put the 4 wedges on a plate and poor the vinaigrette on top it. Serve while warm.
Cooking classes with the Laughing Lemon: cauliflower soup
Posted: September 1, 2012 Filed under: Cooking class, Soup, Vegetarian | Tags: cauliflower, Cooking class, Laughing Lemon, Soup 1 Comment
“Mum, guess what?” I said on the phone , “I am taking a cooking class about soups!”. A big silence followed. A few seconds latter, a very distressed sister came to the phone. “Who are you, what have you done with Burntsugar and why are you torturing my Mother?”. Err… I probably was not tactful enough to break up the news that indeed I now like soup and even take the time to cook it. Everyone in the family vividly remember epic fights about plates of soup not being promptly finished, if eaten at all. So, enrolling in a soup class could only the result of something one very wrong – but very very wrong.
Recipe books have fantastic recipes of soups, packed with flavors and textures to go with the kilometric list of ingredients, but… where is my basic recipe? And what happened to my broths? And my stocks? As soon as I saw the basic soup techniques on the Laughing Lemon, I knew I had to do it… My Mother wouldn’t obviously start teaching me know and pass all the family secrets, and if I wanted to know more, Jack would be probably the one to answer to all my metaphysical soup dilemmas. Indeed he did – when we left the class we had tried puree, creams, broth, stocks, chunky soups…. And, we got to taste them all.
As soon as the occasion presented, I made this lovely cauliflower cream Jack taught us. It cannot be easier: just steam cauliflower and yellow onion. Once it is soft, put in a glass of milk and plenty of water and let simmer. When the cauliflower is soft, blend and sieve. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and is ready to go. Seriously, it is all it takes. Very filling, very healthy and with a reasonable calorie count – I mean, what else can you ask from a soup?
For more information about the Laughing Lemon cooking classes can be found here.
Coconut cake
Posted: August 25, 2012 Filed under: Dessert, Pastry and Baking, Vegetarian | Tags: Cake, Coconut, Sugar, Thomas Keller 1 Comment
Not my birthday cake, but close enough… G. and I share the same birthday, and it has become sort of a tradition to have a dinner party around this time of the year. After agonizing for a couple of days what I would be baking for the occasion, I ended up seeing this one on Thomas Keller‘s Ad hoc at home. It was just not the flavors which caught my attention – there was also a very nice story attached to it. And, having read this was a very dear cake to him, I decided to go for it in less than heartbeat. Let me warn you, it is not an easy dish. But, it is so rich and velvety you end up forget all the cooking efforts once you start eating it.
In case you were wondering what sort extravaganza cake I baked this year, the answer is not 42… I actually let myself be (very) spoiled my dear Zurich friends. All I can say is that it was chocolate, it was rich and it was dense. Very dense… which is always a good thing when it comes to chocolate.
Coconut cake (adapted from Thomas Keller‘s Ad hoc at home)
Ingredients
- 500mL of coconut milk
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 380g of flour
- 1 tablespoon baking power
- 3/4 teaspoon of salt
- The whites of 6 large eggs
- 400 granulated sugar
- 180g of unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 cups of drie shredded coconut
- Sugar syrup (3 parts of water to 1 part of sugar).
Method
1.Pre heat the oven to 180oC (=350oF). Coat a baking tray with baking spray (or butter and flour).
2.Prepare the coconut-vanilla mixture. Put the coconut milk a small pan and whisk to blend. Bring to a gentle simmer, keeping on whisking until most the water has evaporated. You should have the equivalent of 1 cup. Remove from the heat and let it cool down. When the coconut is at room temperature, add the vanilla extract and mix well.
3. Prepare the dry ingredients mix. Sift the cake flour and the baking powder. Stir in the salt and put aside.
4. Prepare the white egg sugar mixture. Whip the whites with a whisker until they begin to froth. Slowly add 150g of sugar and whisk you see medium peak forming. (the whisker should be put to slow when you start adding the sugar, and then put to medium-high). Put aside.
5. Prepare the butter and sugar mix. Put the butter on a bowl and mix with a paddle at medium-low speed until it starts to soften. Add the remaining sugar. Mix until it is light yellow and fluffy.
6. Mix the dry ingredients, the butter and coconut mix. It is not important not to over mix the batter. Each addition doesn’t have to be completely incorporated before you add the next. Add half the dry ingredients and mix; then add half the coconut mix and incorporate it. Start all over again: half of the remaining dry ingredients, then the coconut milk. Repeat with what is left. Make sure you mix the bottom of the bowl.
7. Gently fold in the egg whites (1/3 of it at a time).
8.Put batter in the baking tray and gently smooth the type. Put in the oven for about 30min, and check with the skewer if it done. When the skewer comes out of cake dry, take the cake and let it cool down for about 10min before you remove it from the baking tray. Let it cool completely.
9. Meanwhile spread the coconut on a baking sheet and toast lightly – about 6 to 8min. Let it cool down.
10. Start working on the sugar syrup. In a sauce pan, mix the sugar with the cold water and put to boil. Stir constantly until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is clear (app 3min).
11. Once the cake is cool, brush all the surfaces with the sugar syrup. Sprinkle with the roasted coconut.
Gazpacho
Posted: August 12, 2012 Filed under: Salad, Soup, Vegetables, Vegetarian | Tags: bread, Ferran Adria, Soup, Spain, Summer, Tomato Leave a comment
- 3 bleached garlic cloves, peeled
- 2 onions peeled and chopped in big chunks
- 60g cucumber peeled and chopped in big chunks
- 75g red bell peppers seeded and sliced
- 1Kg rip red tomatoes, chopped in big chunks
- 30g of white rustic bread, without crust, torn into pieces
- 120ml cup water
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil, plus extra to serve
- 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
Method
First, peel the garlic cloves and drop in small saucepan with cold water. Bring the water to a boil. When the water begins to boil, take out the garlic out of the water and put into a bowl of ice water to quickly cool it. Repeat twice, always starting with cold water.
Peel and cut the vegetables into large chunks and put them into a large bowl. Add the tomatoes into large wedges and put in a bowl with the onions, cucumbers, and bell peppers. Add the bread, torn into pieces, then pour over the water. Process everything together using a hand-held blender, about 5 min until is well combined. Add the olive oil, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper and blend the soup until smooth and creamy. Chill in the fridge before serving (at least 2 hours). Serve the gazpacho with a plus an extra drizzle of olive oil. If you want, you can add cured ham, finely chopped egg, tuna, croutons, chopped pepper…..
Marinated mozzarella and tomato
Posted: August 4, 2012 Filed under: Salad, Vegetarian | Tags: Herbs, Mozzarella, Salad, Summer, Tomato, Yotam Ottolenghi Leave a comment
If you had lived in Zurich for long enough, you will have quickly learnt that if the sun is out, you have to leave home and in enjoy it while it is there. God only knows when you will be able to enjoy again walking down the street without having to resort to several layers of clothing. It could be next day, but it can also be in a week, in a month or next year (if ever!). This Summer, it was even more extreme than usual. After a few weeks of sheer desperation, we found ourselves enjoying each quasi-summer day like it was the last one. And, many times it seemed like that indeed it was, and that we all would be condemned to an existence plagued with cashmere cardigans, heavy scarfs and thick stockings…. So, in a nutshell – there was not really a lot of opportunities for cool dishes. Except, maybe this one, from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty. An italian classic, converted into a ubiquitous dish:tomato-mozzarella-basil dictatorship. But, this one has a twist – roasted fennel seeds – which makes it outstanding. Not the usual watered stuff you get so often here in Zurich…
Marinated mozzarella and tomato (adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty)
Ingredients
For the salad
- 250g mozzarella (use buffalo mozzarella for best results)
- 4 ripe tomatoes, cut in wedges
For the marinade
- 1/2 tablespoon of crushed roasted fennel seeds
- grated zest of 1 lemon
- 15 basil leafs shredded
- 2 tablespoons of chopped oregano
- olive oil to taste (or a mix 1:1 of olive oil and rapeseed oil)
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- salt and pepper to taste
Method
For the marinade
First, put the fennel seeds in a small frying pan and heat until they start to pop. Drop them in a mortar and grind them until you have a chunky powder.
Combine all the marinade ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Drop in the shredded mozzarella (shred the cheese and the basil with your hands, for an extra touch of rusticity).
Set aside for a about 20min
For the salad
In a plate, put the marinated cheese and the tomatoes side by side. Drizzle with a bit more olive oil, if necessary and serve.
Strawberry smoothie
Posted: May 26, 2012 Filed under: Fruit, Vegetarian | Tags: Milk, Strawberries, Sugar, Yoghurt Leave a comment
It is only a smoothie… Not much art in putting it together, really. Just drop in the mixer 1 part of cut strawberries, 1 part of plain yoghurt and 1 part of milk. If you must, add crushed ice cubes. Buzz in a mixer, check for sugar, buzz again. Chill. Drink. It was definitely more complicated put the kitchen aid to work for the first time…
Cooking class with the Laughing Lemon – the pesto battle
Posted: May 12, 2012 Filed under: Pasta, Vegetarian | Tags: Laughing Lemon, Pasta, Pesto Leave a comment
So, for over 40 years, I consistently refused all cooking classes my Mother ever offered. I am even (semi) proudly self taught. My poor suffering testers guests are all alive and still show up for dinner every now and again. What would make me, food-blogger wannabe, take cooking classes all of a sudden? Have I gone softie, in my old age?
Well, not really… The analytical and brainy answer would be something along the lines of filling the gaps in my culinary knowledge. Which is fancy to say I have no clue about Italian cuisine, including pasta and its sauces, pizzas and risottos… It is not the kind of thing Portuguese and Spanish tend to cook , and, lets face it, not its secrets are exactly passed along generation to generation. It can try, but clearly, it is not my forté…
The right brain answer was – of course – because I wanted to. I had heard so much about the Laughing Lemon and learnt so much with his blog and posts on the Englishforum.ch, that it seemed even disgraceful to have missed his classes for years.
It was probably one of the best things I did to fill my culinary knowledge gaps. And, it was not only educational – it was also great fun. With infinite patience, Jack showed us different methods for making a pasta sauce, and explained which pasta types are appropriate for each sauce style. To make it even better, we even had time for a demonstration of old vs new cuisine techniques (and eat them). I can promise you the Internets if filled with pages and fora discussing this particular issue – should a pesto be made with a mortar or a blender? Which one of the methods gives a better pesto? Does it matter, really? The battle of pesto was served…
The class was divided in two: the Team Mortar, with all the persons who had a bad day at work; the Team Blender, with all the persons who were calm, cool and collected. Both teams got the usual ingredients: fresh basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, olive oil, salt and Parmesan cheese. And, this was what happened:
Team Mortar
The crushed garlic, basil, pine nuts and salt were dropped in a big mortar. Then each of the team members used the pestle to grind the ingredients down to a paste. After 20min of great effort, the cheese was folded in and evenly mixed with the green paste (a lot more grounding, needless to be said). Finally, the olive oil was added little by little, mixing with a wooden spoon until well incorporated in the mix. At the end, Team Mortar had a green paste with some floaters and pellets.
Team Blender
Chit-chated for 28 min, and then suddenly realized Team Mortar was * almost * done. Quickly placed the ingredients in the blender, and buzzed it three times (app) until it was homogenized. Then checked for consistency and taste (a little more salt), buzzed a few more times, and a perfect smooth and green mixture was obtained.
Everyone tasted both pestos and voted as honestly as they possibly could. It was a close draw, but the smoothness and consistent taste stilted the scales in favor of the Blender Team. It seems that normally, the Team Mortar wins, but not with this tough crowd.
For more information about the Laughing Lemon cooking classes can be found here.
Spinach and cheese parcels (empanada de espinacas y queso)
Posted: April 22, 2012 Filed under: Pastry and Baking, Vegetables, Vegetarian | Tags: Carlos Horrillo and Patrick Morcas, Cheese, Spain, spinach Leave a comment
Once I got the empanada de atun [savoury tuna parcels] properly tested and under control, I decided to expand to other combinations. Not knowing where to start, I turned to Carlos Horrillo and Patrick Morcas, whom seemed to favor spinach, cream cheese and spinach. If it is good enough for Patrick and Carlos, it is also good enough for me…. I am actually quite fond of spinach, which helped a bit my decision. Of course, living in Switzerland, the Cheddar in the original recipe had to be replaced by Emmentaler. No one noticed seemed to complain – if anything it conformed better to the taste of hardened expats living in Switzerland for longer than they want to admit. All in all, a great dish to serve when the occasion requires food easy to eat or informal gatherings. For bonus, it is vegetarian and all the greenies make it look a bit more healthy than its tuna fish counterpart. Eat warm or cold, with a beer or a glass of red wine.
Spinach and cheese parcels (empanada de espinacas y queso, adapted from Carlos Horrillo and Patrick Morcas’ Tapas: Simple Flavours, Striking Combinations)
Ingredients
- 2 packets ready of read-rolled puff pastry (one for the bottom, the other to cover it)
- 800g of fresh spinach, washed
- 100g of full fat creamy cheese, like Philadelphia
- 100g of grated Emmentaler cheese
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
- 1 slightly beaten egg
Method
1. Coat the bottom of a heavy bottom non sticky pan with olive oil and put it on high heat, until the olive oil is smoking hot.
2. Drop the the spinach leaves inside, season whit salt and turn the leaves until they start to wilt.
3. Transfer the leaves to sieve lined with kitchen paper, so it absorbs the bitter liquids.
4. Allow to cool, and put them in a large mixing bowl.
5. Add both cheeses to the spinach and mix everything together until it is homogenous.
6. Allow to cool overnight in the fridge
7. Heat the oven to 200 oC
8. Line the bottom and walls of the rectangular baking tray previously buttered. Pinch it with a fork and fold in the e spinach and cheese mixture.
9. Put the second sheet of puff pastry on top, and close the edges trimming the excess pastry. Seal with the beaten egg. You can brush the whole surface to look shiny.
10. Leave in the stove for about 20m (or according to the instructions), until the pastry is done.
Fragrant orange slices
Posted: January 11, 2012 Filed under: Dessert, Fruit, Vegetarian | Tags: Gordon Ramsay, Honey, Orange, Pistachios Leave a comment
At some point over Christmas, I just felt the need to have something sweet but at the same time fresh and light. Meaning, a dessert that didn’t involve deep fried dough or extra sugary milk and eggs concoctions, all covered with even more sugar and a generous amount of cinnamon. While it was not sugar or cinnamon free, these fragrant orange slice were very nice break from all those Christmas excesses. And, for extra bonus, they provided the recommended daily dose of Vitamin C. Overall, it is super easy dish to do, and is ideal to finish a decadent rich meal. Original recipe was found in Gordon Ramsay’s Fast Food.
Fragrant orange slices
Ingredients
- 4 large oranges
- 1 1/2 tablespoon runny honey
- 1 tablespoon orange blossom water
- pinch of ground cinnamon
- 50g toasted walmuts for pistachios, roughly chopped.
Method
Slice off the top and bottom of each orange and place upright on a chopping board. Following the curve of the fruit, cut off the skin, making sure that you remove the withe pith as well. Turn the peeled orange on one side and cut into slices, removing any pips as you do so.
Arrange the orange slices overlapping on individual plates. Mix the honey with the orange blossom water until evenly blended, then drizzle over the orange slices. Mix the cinnamon and chopped walnuts together and scatter over the oranges to serve.
Polenta and parmesan gratin
Posted: January 6, 2012 Filed under: Pulses and lentils, Vegetarian | Tags: Cheese, Ferran Adria, Polenta 1 Comment
…and this is the polenta I did to go with with the pork loin with roasted peppers and garlic & parsley olive oil. Also a Ferran Adrià’s The Family Meal dish, it is über-delicious and creamy. Probably the best polenta I ever had. For sure, I will do it again. M. even suggest it might go well with Portuguese style codfish.
Polenta and parmesan gratin
Ingredients (for 6)
- 900ml water
- 150g polenta (quick cook variety, which will take about 5-10min to get ready)
- 300ml whipping cream
- 2 teaspoon butter
- 120g Parmesan cheese finely grated
- 4 tablespoon Parmesan for the gratin
Method
Pre-heat the grill to high (top shelf of stove, about 180oC)
Poor the water into a saucepan and bring to boil. Sprinkle in the polenta a little at the time, whisking continuously.
When all the polenta has been added, cook for 2 minutes over a medium heat, whisking continuously.
Pour in the cream and cook for another 2 minutes.
Gradually add the first quantity of Parmesan cheese and add the butter.
Keep whisking until the polenta has thickened. Season with salt.
Poor the polenta into a large backing tray or heatproof dish. The polenta should be about 1 cm deep.
Leave the polenta to stand 5 minutes and then sprinkle with the second quantity of grated Parmesan.
Put in the stove and grill until the cheese is golden and bubbling.
Serve immediately.
Lucie Loves Food 