Sweet and Warm / Douce et Chaleureuse

Less than a year ago, when we moved into our new house, I made a wish. I walked my daughter to the hallway of our house and made a wish: I wished for this house to be warm, to be caring and to always see people lined around the kitchen table. I wanted this house to bring old and new friends together. I wanted this house to be filled with laughter, love, couscous and mint tea. I wanted this house to feed us. To feed people; and to feed our hearts.

Our wishes came true. Our wishes come true every single day. And for that, we are thankful to be looked after and to have a warm shelter above our heads.


Our kitchen brought old friends and new friends together around the table a couple of weeks ago, when celebrating Earth Day with some local bloggers. Blushing cheeks and awkward silence (especially me) quickly faded away with espresso beans stories and some crostinis. The picnic table was set. The sun was out. The couscoussier was steaming its last batch of couscous. Cameras were clicking (thanks again Christine for these lovely photos). Plastic wraps, banana leaves, and paper bags were unwrapped to reveal Uruguayan savory rolls, a refreshing mix of greens with fennel and orange segments, luscious mango and pastry cream tart, and an olive loaf.

The couscous was mixed with steamed raisins and served in my mothers’ wooden “gassaa”, to which I added a lamb and vegetable broth made with green peas, zucchinis, carrots, and a dollop of sweet and deep, spicy and delicious glazed pearl onions. The couscous was good, spicy and sweet, although I would have liked the broth to be thicker. But a mysterious sous-chef turned off the burner without my knowledge and without my permission.

These glazed pearl onions are just what you would expect from any caramelized onions and so much more. The bath of chicken broth, butter and warm spices, like cinnamon, ginger and turmeric, turned these babies into an exotic delicacy that I didn't see possible in an onion. I can olnly imagine how scrumptious they must be with roasted vegetables, winter squashes, stews, rice, pasta, grains, sandwiches, as a side dish to roast chicken, lamb, braised veal shanks, and how they will take mashed potatoes to another level of sophistication.

After lunch, we headed back to the kitchen to share a cup of mint tea, talk about life and family and feast on Christine’s Mango tart. We feasted indeed. Just before my last sip of mint tea, I raised, secretly, my cup and made another wish: I wished for this life to always be as sweet and warm as friends and home sweet home are.

Spicy Glazed Pearl Onions

Recipe: Adapted from here
- 10 ounces pearl onions, peeled
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ cup black raisins
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- A pinch of sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper

Put all the ingredients in a saucepan, and cook over a medium-low heat, covered, 1 hour, then remove cover and continues cooking, stirring from time to time, until liquid thickens to a syrupy consistency and the onions have a glazed appearance, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Oignons Grelots Confits aux Epices

In Français Please: adaptée d'ici
- 280g de petits oignons grelots
- 500ml de bouillon de volaille
- 100g de raisins noirs
- ½ c.c de curcuma
- ½ c.c de gingembre en poudre
- 25g de sucre en poudre
- 25g de beurre
- 1 c.c de cannelle en poudre
- Une pincée de sel marin
- Du poivre noir fraichement moulu

Mettre tous les ingredients dans une casserole et faire cuire sur feu doux, couvert, pendant 1 heure, puis découvrir et laisser réduire jusqu’a ce que le jus ait la consistence d’un sirop, en remuant de temps en temps, et que les oignons aient une apparence caramélisé, pendant 30 minutes. Servir chaud.

My Favorite Pickled Beets Recipe/ Ma Recette Préférée de Betteraves au Vinaigre

I had my first pickled beets about a few months ago at the local fruit market, and I instantly fell in love with them. They were on a tray for people to sample along with pickled onions, cauliflower, cabbage and other bright veggies. As I stood there, my mouth started salivating at these vinegary pickles just like your mouth must be salivating right now as you are reading these pickled words.
The taste of the beets was different from fresh beets. They didn’t have this “earthy” flavor anymore. They were sour, sweet, spicy, although the vinegar was a bit overpowering the rest of the ingredients.

After a few attempts at recreating what I thought was the perfect combination of sweet, sour and spicy pickle, I find this recipe to be the perfect pickled beets I’ve had so far. I added spearmint to the marinade as I like the fresh note that it adds to the marinade, but you can use dill if it’s what you prefer.

Pickled Beets

Recipe: Gourmet, December 2000
- 1 cup cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/4 onion, halved
- 1 small bay leaf
- 3/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 1/4 bunch fresh spearmint
- 3 beets (1 lb without tops)

Betteraves Au Vinaigre

In Francais Please: Gourmet, Decembre 2000
- 250ml de vinaigre de cidre
- 125ml d’eau
- 125ml de sucre en poudre
- ¼ c.c de graines de moutarde
- ¼ oignon, coupé en deux
- 1 petite feuille de laurier
- ¾ c.c de graines de poivre noir
- ¼ bouquet de menthe
- 3 betterave (environ 500g sans leur tige)

- Bring all ingredients except beets to a boil in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Cover and simmer 30 minutes.

- Mettre tous les ingredients à part les betterave dans une casserole de 2- à 3-Litres de capacité, porter à ébullition en remuant jusqu’à ce que le sucre se dilue. Couvrir et laisser frémir pendant 30 minutes.

- Meanwhile, Cook beets in a saucepan of boiling salted water until tender. Drain and cool. Slip off skins and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.

- Entre temps, faire cuire les bettraves dans une casserle d’eau bouillante salée. Egoutter et laisser refroidir. Retirer la peau et couper en morceaux d’un centimeter d’épaisseur.

- Cool the marinade, and then pour through a fine sieve into a bowl.

- Laisser la marinade refroidir, puis passer à travers une fine passoire.

- Stir together beets and marinade, then marinate, covered and chilled, 1 day.

- Mélanger les betteraves et la marinade, puis laisser mariner, couvert et au frais, pendant au moins 24 heures avant de servir.

Leeks and gruyère Soufflé, Step-By-Step / Le Soufflé de poireaux et Gruyère, étape par étape

When I was thirteen, I started writing recipes in an agenda that my father had given me. The agenda wasn’t my favorite. When I think about it, I should have chosen a prettier one, a real recipe notebook; yet I’ve decided to go with this one. A small blue agenda with aluminum covered corners and on the cover you can read: “M Roads and Buildings Industry”. I know this M. He’s my father’s friend, a really nice guy. I just didn’t expect his agenda to be the one that would carry my cherished recipes for such a long time, but it did.

My mother’s recipes notebook is also an agenda. A big, black agenda, that goes back to the late seventies, early eighties. I don’t really remember the exact date. What I do remember however is that on the cover you can read: "National’s Oil Company”. I guess it runs in the family!

But when you come to think about it, isn’t cooking making something out of natural resources? That might explain why my mother and I use such agendas as recipes repertoire. Smart thinking, right?

One thing I made yesterday in my kitchen was this Gruyère and Leeks soufflé. It was heavenly delicious: Creamy, light and very comforting. I know a lot of people get scared of soufflés; they have this reputation of being hard to make and don’t like to wait for anybody. But like most reputations, what you hear is not always true.

If you’ve ever whipped up some egg whites or made a mousse, then there is no reason in not making soufflé. This time, I decided to give you a step-by-step recipe in making leeks and Gruyère soufflé. I hope you will enjoy it.

If you have any ideas for step-by-step recipes, let me know. All suggestions are always welcome.

Leeks and Gruyère Soufflé

Recipe: Basic Soufflé recipe from here. Serves 6.
- 4 ½ tbsp sweet butter, plus 1 tsp to coat the
- ¾ cup grated Gruyère cheese
- 3 leeks, cleaned, washed and roughly sliced
- 1 ¼ tsp sea salt
- 4 ½ tbsp flour
- 1 ¼ cup milk
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ tsp old style Dijon mustard
- A pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
- 3 egg yolks
- 7 egg whites

Soufflé de Poireaux et Gruyère

In Francais Please: La base du soufflé d'ici. Pour 6 personnes.
- 75 g de farine
- 75 g de Gruyère râpé
- 3 poireaux, néttoyés, laves et grossierement hachés
- 1 ½ c.c de sel marin
- 40g de farine
- 275 ml lait
- ¼ c.c de poivre noir, fraichement moulu
- ½ c.c de moutarde a l’ancienne
- Une petite pincée de noix de muscade, fraichement moulu
- 3 jaunes d’oeufs
- 7 blancs d’oeufs

- Make Ahead: Take the eggs out of the fridge, and let them come at room temperature.
Melt 1 tbsp of butter in a pan and sauté the sliced leeks season with ¼ tsp salt. Cover and cook for 5 min on medium-low heat until the leeks are tender. Uncover and continue cooking for a few minutes on high heat until all the liquid has been evaporated. Set aside to cool.
- Avant Toute Chose: Sortir les oeufs du frigo pour qu’ils reviennent à temperature ambiante. Faire fondre 1 c.c de beurre dans une poele et faites sauter les poireaux. Ajouter du sel et laisser cuire sur feu dou, couvert jusqu'à ce qu’ils deviennent tendres. Découvrir le poele et laisser cuire encore plus, sur grand feu, jusqu’à ce que tout liquide soit evaporé. Mettre de coté.

1- Butter a 1½- quart soufflé mold with 1 tsp soft butter. Be sure it is well coated all around.
Add the Gruyère cheese and turn the mold around so that the cheese sticks to the butter. Let the extra cheese fall into a bowl. Refrigerate the coated mold. A very cold mold helps the soufflé rise straight. Never smear the coating or you mat disturb the rising of the mixture.

1- Beurrer généreusement un moule à soufflé d’1 ½ L avec 1 c.c de beurre mou. Ajouter le Gruyère râpé et faites tourner le moule tout autour afin que le fromage adhere aux parois du moule. Enlever l’exces de fromage mais sans jamais toucher l’interieur du moule ou vous risquerez de deranger la montée du soufflé. Mettre le moule au frais. Un moule bien froid aide le soufflé a monter bien droit.

2- Melt the remaining butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Stir quickly, and cook for 1 minute on low heat.
3- Add the milk, 1 tsp salt, black pepper, the Dijon mustard and bring to a boil, stirring with a whisk. As soon as it reaches the boiling point, the sauce will thicken. Boil on low heat for 1 min, still stirring to avoid scorching.

2- Faites fondre le beurre restant dans une casserole et ajouter la farine d’un seul coup. Mélanger rapidement, et faites cuire sur feu doux pendant 1 minute.
3- Ajouter le lait, sel, poivre, la moutarde de Dijon et porter a ébullition, en remuant constament avec un fouet. Des les premiers bouillonements, la sauce commencera a épaissir. Laisser mijoter sur feu doux pendant une minute, tout en continuant de mélanger.

4- Away from the heat, add the yolks and mix well.

4- Hors du feu, ajouter les jaunes d’oeufs et mélanger.

5- Add the leeks, ground nutmeg and the grated Gruyère cheese. Stir with a wooden spoon.

5- Ajouter les poireaux, la noix de muscade rape et le Gruyère rape. Mélanger a l’aide d’une cuillere en bois.

6- Whip the egg whites until they hold a peak, but are still “wet”. Place about one-third in the leek mixture and mix with a whisk. Work as fast as you can, because as soon as you stop beating the whites, they start to break down and become grainy.

6- Battre les blancs d’oeufs en neige jusqu’a ce qu’ils gagnent de volume mais reste un peu mousseux. Ajouter le tiers a la sauce de poireaux et mélanger avec un fouet. Travailler aussi rapidement que possible car après avoir cesser de battre les blancs, ils ont tendance a se séparer.

7- Using a spatula, gently fold the remaining whites and leeks mixture together.

7- A l’aide d’une maryse, incorporer délicatement les blancs au mélange de poireaux.

8- Fill the soufflé mold to the edges. At this point, the soufflé can be refrigerated, and will keep for at least a couple of hours. At baking time, sprinkle some Gruyere cheese on top and place on a cookie sheet in a 375F-preheated oven. Reduce the heat to 350F and bake for 30-35 minutes (about 25 minutes for individual ramekins). Never open the oven when it’s still baking. Serve immediately.

8- Remplir le moule à soufflé jusqu’aux bords. A ce stade, le soufflé peut etre mis au frais pour quelques heures. Au moment de le cuire, parsemer un peu de gruyère râpé au dessus et faites cuire dans un four préchauffé a 190C. Baisser la temperature a 177C et laisser cuire pendant 30-35 minutes (Environ 25 minutes pour des ramequins). Ne jamais ouvrir le four pendant la cuisson du soufflé. Servir tout de suite.

9- You can also serve your soufflé, especially if it is collapsed, unmolded. Run a knife a round the edges and invert on a plate. Serve in wedges.

9- Vous pouvez aussi choisir de servir le soufflé démoulé (surtout si ce dernier est tombé). Faites passer un couteau autour des bords et démouler. Servir en tranches.

Chocolate Truffles Trio / Trio de Truffes en Chocolat

I like to celebrate the month of December with flour dust on my hair and melted chocolate on my upper lips.

There has not been a single day since the beginning of the month where my oven has had a day off. There have been biscotti, meringues, coconut macaroons, breads, granola, jam cookies, dried fruits bars, a decadent brownie and some out of this world chewy chocolate chip cookies (that I’m enjoying right now with a glass of milk).
December has this baking bulimia effect on me.

I pretend some excuses just so I can wear my chocolate-stained apron, turn on the oven and start playing with the flour. I’ve already had some pretty good motives like the traditional “neighbor’s gift baskets”, the “friend’s package Friday”, the “snowy Sunday”, the “chilly Saturday”, the “grumpy Monday”, the “oh-I’m-craving-chocolate-chip-cookies-Wednesday” and the “I-like-to-eat-brownies-while-watching-TheGodfather-Thursday”.

You understand now how crucial it was to keep my oven active on December. Especially how watching The Godfather without having a square (or two) of brownies is a sin on itself.
But the most sinful act of all would have been not to bake when I know that in two days we are off to Florida to spend the holidays with my in-laws.
Traveling and family have this baking bulimia effect on me too.

I believe the only day where I didn’t have to use my oven was the day I made this fantastic chocolate truffle trio. I’ve made chocolate truffles before, but when I made these I knew the previous one were pathetic. I owe this great success to Jacques Pépin and his easy to follow recipe. The method he uses is different from the usual chocolate and heavy cream truffle method. Instead he uses chocolate, egg yolks and butter.
The recipe might seem long, but once you read it you will notice that it’s only precious advises from the chef himself to help you achieve a remarkable result.
I followed his suggestions, divided the basic truffle recipe and flavored it with praline (hope you’re reading June!), orange and coffee. If like me you don’t use alcohol in your cooking, you can always replace it by water as mentioned in the recipe. This won’t affect the texture of the truffles.

You should really try these truffles. They are luscious and very addictive.
Perfect to serve for guests, to give as a gift or just to treat your self on a chilly December.

Happy Holiday Baking everyone.

PS: Please don’t forget to make a donation to this year’s Menu for hope. There are prizes for every taste bud and it’s for a good cause. So go donate, right here.

Chocolate Truffles Trio

Recipe: adapted from here
Basic Mixture:
- 12 oz bittersweet chocolate
- 4 egg yolks
- 2/3 stick (2 2/3 oz) unsalted butter, softened
Coffee truffles:
- 1 tbsp rum (or water)
- 1 tbsp coffee extract (these are the first drops from a drip coffee maker)
Praline truffles:
- ½ cup praline
- 2 tbsp cognac (or water)
Orange truffles:
-Rind of 1 orange (about 1 ½ tsp)
1 ½ tsp Grand Marnier (or water)

To make the basic mixture, melt the chocolate in double boiler (Bain Marie) until the chocolate is melted and lukewarm. Remove from the simmering water and add the egg yolks. Stir with a whisk for a few seconds. It will probably tighten and lose its shine.
Add the butter in small pieces and whisk well. The mixture may become smooth or it may remain somewhat separated. Do not worry about it. Divide the basic mixture equally into three small bowls.
For the coffee chocolate truffles: Add the coffee extract and rum and whisk.
For the praline chocolate truffles: Add the praline and cognac and whisk.
For the orange chocolate truffles: Add the orange rind and Grand Marnier and whisk.

At this point the mixture should become smooth. If it doesn’t, add 1 tsp of hot water to each bowl and whisk until it does. It should not require more than 1 tbsp of water at most. Cover each bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Get the truffles out of the fridge at least 15 minutes before starting shaping them. This way it will be easier to shape them.
- With a small spoon, divide each mixture; in its own plate, into little balls the size of extra-large olives or smaller.
Roll in the palm of your hands to smooth. Keep each flavor separate.
For the orange truffles, secure a toothpick in each ball and freeze the orange truffles for 15 minutes or until hard. Continue working with the two other flavors (that don’t need to be refrigerated before being coated)
- For the coffee chocolate truffles, roll the balls in unsweetened cocoa powder. Shake the pan so the balls roll around and get coated.
- For the praline truffles, roll the balls in roughly ground pistachios or silvered almond.
- For the orange truffles, once firm dip each one into melted chocolate. As you lift the ball out, roll it slightly on the side of the bowl to eliminate the excess. Secure the toothpicks in a piece of foam rubber or Styrofoam, or just a cardboard box so the chocolate drips along the toothpick. Let set until very hard, and then remove the toothpick.
Arrange each truffle variety in a box. They will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks. Serve at room temperature.

Trio de Truffes en Chocolat

In francais please: adaptée d'ici
Pour La recette de base:
- 340g chocolat noir (64%)
- 4 jaunes d’oeuf
- 70g beurre mou
Pour les truffes au café:
- 1 c.s de rhum (ou eau)
- 1 c.s d’extrait de café (ceci représente les premières gouttes de café d’une cafetière)
Pour les truffes au pralin:
- 125 ml de pralin
- 2 c.s de Cognac (ou eau)
Pour les truffes à l’orange:
- le zeste râpé d’une orange (environ 1 ½ c.c )
- 1 ½ c.s de Grand Marnier (ou eau)

Pour la recette de base, faites fondre le chocolat au bain marie. Hors du feu ajouter les jaunes d’oeuf et fouetter à l’aide d’un fouet jusqu’à ce que tout soit bien incorporé.
Ajouter le beurre coupé en petits morceaux et fouetter encore une fois. Le mélange va redevenir brillant ou rester un peu granuleux. Ne vous inquietter pas. Diviser le mélange de chocolat équitablement entre trois petits bols.
- Pour les truffes au café, ajouter l’extrait de café et le rhum au premier bol. Mélanger avec un fouet.
- Pour les truffes au pralin, ajouter le pralin et le Cognac au deuxieme bol. Mélanger avec un fouet.
- Pour les truffes à l’orange, ajouter le zeste et le Grand Marnier. Mélanger avec un fouet.

A ce stade, chaque mélange devrait redevenir brillant. Si ce n’est pas le cas ajouter 1 c.c d’eau chaude au mélange qui en a besoin. Mais pas plus d’une c.s d’eau chaude.
Couvrir chaque bol de film plastique et mettre au frais pendant 2 heures ou jusqu’a ce qu’il soit ferme.
Sortir les bols au moins 15 min avant de les travailler.
Avec une cuil a café, faire des petits tas des differents mélange de la taille d’une grosse olive ou plus petit. Mettre chaque differentes truffes (café, orange et pralin) sur leur propre assiette.
Rouler les differents truffes en boules. Mettre des cure-dents dans les truffes à l’orange et mettre au congélateur pendant 15 min ou jusqu’a ce qu’elle deviennent fermes.
Pour les truffes au café, rouler-les dans du cacao amer.
Pour les truffes au pralin, rouler-les dans des pistaches grossierement hachées ou des amandes effilées.
Pour les truffes à l’orange, tremper chaque truffe dans du chocolate fondu, et remonter les truffes en les rouler llegerement sur le bord de la casserole afin d’enlever l’exces de chocolat. Sécuriser-les sur du polystyrene ou une boite en carton afin que le chocolat coule le long des cure-dents. Laisser de côté jusqu’à ce qu’il devienne ferme et enlever les cure-dents.
Mettre les differentes truffes dans des boites et les conserver au frigo pendant des semaines. Servir à temperature ambiante.

Chocolate Kisses / Baisers au Chocolat

It was in my early teen that I decided I didn’t like meringue. I don’t recall the day it happened, or why it did happen. It was just one of those days. Like one of those days where I decided to wear my mother’s 70’s jumper dresses to school, the day I asked my cousin to shave off her eye browse just to see how she would look like (which she did), or the day I truly believed that my sister’s and my bedroom was under the government security surveillance, or even worse under our parents surveillance.

But if you would have asked me at that time why I dislike meringue so much, I would have given you the exact and same answer I gave to my sister two days ago. I don’t like meringue because it has a though and dry shell, a molar-sticky interior, an artificial looking coloring, it doesn’t melt in your mouth as it’s supposed to do and it’s sweet. Too sweet!

The reason why I share this controversial relation with meringue is because of the funny looking meringue I encountered browsing the candy section in supermarkets. The commercial meringues remind me of the syrup my mother used to give us when we had a stomachache. It was like Pepto-Bismol but with two times the tongue coating texture for two times the: “Ewwww! Ewwww! That’s gross”.
I had this image of meringue for over 15 years now and no one has ever been able to change it.

No one but a man, his book and five leftover egg whites in my fridge.

Jacques Pépin’s “complete techniques” is a real treasure to have in the kitchen. It has more than 1000 cooking methods and recipes, all demonstrated in step-by-step recipes. It has some precious tips and tricks from the master him self, and when a man gives you a basic meringue recipe and start raving about how delicate and tender it is, and how with one basic recipe you can make Vacherin, Dacquoise, Ladyfingers and Oeufs a la neige, you’d better roll up your sleeves, swallow your nose-wrinkling pride and start making some meringue and enjoying it.

Oh! And how I did enjoy it. It doesn’t matter what I said before about molar-sticky whatever meringue because yesterday I’ve fallen head over for my angel kisses meringues. And as if it wasn’t enough I added some bittersweet chocolate ganache filling to cut down on the sweetness a bit and because any reason is a good reason to smear some chocolate.

When you bite into the meringue kiss you have a slightly crunchy shell with fluffy spots and then it starts to melt on your tongue leaving the chocolate behind as the finishing touch.

I have about one hundred and fifty five meringue kisses in my cookie jar right now. And being the cuddling person that I am, I can never have enough kisses in a day.

Meringue and chocolate Kisses

Recipe: adapted from here
- 3 egg whites, at room temperature
- ¾ cup superfine sugar
- A few drops of lemon juice, or a small dash of salt
- Chocolate ganache


Using a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment, whip the whites, adding a few drops of lemon juice or a small dash of salt before you start t whip. Whip on medium to high speed. When the whites are holding a nice shape, gradually add ½ cup of sugar and keep beating for 1 minute. The mixture should be stiff and shiny. Fold in the remaining sugar using a spatula. Folding in a part of the sugar at the end makes for tender meringue.
Coat a cookie sheet with butter and flour, and remove the excess flour. Fill up a pastry bag and pipe out plain or fluted meringues kisses. Lift the tip of the bag in quick, swift motion to avoid a long tail.
Bake them in preaheated 190F oven for 1¾ hours, or until they are dried. You can prepare the meringue in the evening, preheat your oven to 375F, put your meringues in the oven and turn it off. Leave them in there all night to dry out.
Stored dry (without the filling) in a covered container, meringues will keep for months.
Spread some of the chocolate ganache on some meringue kisses, and seal with the remaining plain kisses to from a macaroon. Let the chocolate set a bit and serve.

Baisers de Meringues au Chocolat

In francais please: Adaptée d’ici

- 3 blancs d’oeufs, temperature ambiante
- 175ml de sucre trés fin
- Quelques gouttes de sucre ou une petite pincée de sel
- Ganache de chocolat

Dans un mixer Kitchen-Aid munis d’un fouet, battre les blancs, en ajoutant les gouttes de citron ou le sel avant de battre. Battre à une vitesse moyenne à haute. Quand les blancs commencent à prendre du volume et une bonne consistence, ajouter la moitié du sucre petit à petit. Continuer à battre pendant 1 minute. Les blancs doivent etre volumineux et brilliants. Incorporer délicatement à l’aide d’une spatule le sucre restant. Ce process est coseillé pour avoir des meringues tendres.
Beurrer et fariner une ou deux plaques de cuisson et enlever l’excès de farine. A l’aide d’une poche à douille, faites des petits tas d’1 centimetre de diametre. Retirer la poche à douille rapidement pour qu’un fil de meringue ne se développe.
Cuire dans un four préchauffé a 90C pendant 1¾ heures, ou jusqu’a ce que les meringues soient seches. Autre alternative serait de préparer les meringues le soir, préchauffer votre four à 180C, mettre les plaques de meringues au four et etteindre ce dernier. Laisser sécher pendant toute une nuit.
Les meringues peuvent se conserver, sans leur ganache, dans une boite hérmétique pendant des mois.
Répartisser un peu du ganache sur une coque de meringue et coller la deuxième coque.

Sage Pesto / Pesto de Sauge

I am ashamed of my self. I have just noticed, a couple of days ago, that I didn’t keep my promise of sharing my sage recipe with you as planned two weeks ago. I have no excuses for letting you down and for disgracing my blog. I try to always keep my promises and when I don’t I start fidgeting around the house telling my self that people won’t trust me anymore. I even wrote about it down on my journal:
“Dear journal, I dishonored my loyalty towards my friends. Remember my last post about sage? No? The Friday posts, remember? Ouff! You are slow on the uptake, aren’t you? Ok! To sum up I will say that I promised a recipe, which is my new take on pesto using sage and lemon zest, but failed to deliver it on time. I am unforgivable! What? You think that I should shut up and continue on with the recipe and they might forgive me? You think? Fine, fine I’ll keep it quiet.

Sage Pesto

Recipe:
- 3 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- The zest of ¾ of a lemon
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 big garlic cloves, peeled
- 3 sage sprigs (about 30 leaves)
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt, pepper

Pluck the sage leaves and put them in a blender with garlic, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, the zest and the juice of he lemon. Blend until smooth. With the blender running add slowly the olive oil until it looks like a thick paste. If you like your pesto a little lighter in texture you can always add more olive oil. Season to taste. Keep in the fridge.

Pesto de sauge

In francais please:
- 3 c.s de pignons de pin. Legerement grille
- 100g de parmesan, frechement rape (environ 30 feuilles)
- Le zest du ¾ d’un citron
- 1 c.s de jus de citron
- 2 grosses gousses d’ail, épluchees
- 3 brins de sauge
- 50ml d’huile d’olive
- Sel, poivre

Cueillir les feuilles de sauge des brins et mettre dans un robot ménagere ave l’ail, les pignons de pin, le parmesan, le zest et le jus du citron. Mixer jusqu’a ce que le mélange devienne homogène. Avec votre robot en marche, verser doucement l’huile d’olive pour obtenir une purée assez épaisse. Si vous aimez votre pesto plus leger, en terme de consistence, vous pouvez toujours rajouter plus d’huile d’olive. Assaisoner a votre goût. Garder au frigo.

Rien ne se jete / Nothing goes to waste

Does it feel good when you start making something that you have been buying from the store for years? Yeah, I know, it does.

I remember the first time my mother taught me how to make “Pate Brisee” (flaky pie pastry), I felt so special. Or the first time I made Cheese Soufflé (that was my first dish entering the world of cooking), the time I made Yoghurt and the time I made Granola.
I remember the first time I made my own bread, I was fifteen and my Nana couldn’t stop talking about it during the whole dinner. My grandmother was a “do it yourself” type of person: “If you can do it yourself why bother buying it from the store!” she used to tell me. She used to make her own butter; don’t ask me the recipe it’s a family secret. She also used to make her own Orzo; she rolled it between her fingers and tossed in a big sieve instinctively without even looking at it, while talking to my mother about the latest gossips in the family. She was incredible.

I try everyday to follow her path; but not the rocky path of making my own butter and things that demand having a cow in my apartment, no! I have chosen the smooth path with bumps from time to time but always an exit in case of a bad traffic.
Lately, I learned how to make Candied Orange Peels which I am excited to share with you. I used to hate candied fruits peels; I found them too sweet, sometimes too gooey or too dry. But with this recipe I know that I will never go to back to buy candied fruits again. Because mine are so much better, with all modesty of course, and so easy to make.

Candied peels of lemon and grapefruit can be done in the same manner. They are excellent served with ice cream, poached fruit or dipped in melted chocolate. Dip half of the orange rind in chocolate and leave the other half plain to have a contrast of colors and taste.
I have already used those candied orange peels in a recipe that I will be posting soon.

Candied Orange Peels, recipe from Jacques Pepin

Recipe: Makes about 40 strips
-10 wide strips of zest from an orange
-2 cups of water
- 1/3 cup of sugar and 2/3 cup of water
-Sugar

Using a vegetable peeler, remove 10 wide strips of zest from an orange. (Do not remove the white pith underneath.) Slice each zest into ¼ -inch-wide julienne strips. Put the strips in a saucepan and cover with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 sec. Drain and rinse the strips under cold water.
Return the zest strips to the saucepan with 1/3 cup of sugar and 2/3 cup of water. Bring to a boil and cook, uncovered, until the mixture starts to thicken and turns into a syrup. The strips should be almost transparent and there should be almost no liquid left.
Spread some sugar on a tray. Toss and separate the strips in the sugar until each piece is well coated. Transfer the strips to a plate and let stand for at least half an hour, until dry and crisp. When cold, store them in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Refrigerated, the strips will keep for months. Serve them on your dessert at the last moment, otherwise they will get wet and the sugar coating will dissolve.

Pelures d’Oranges Confites, recette de Jacques Pepin

In francais please: Pour 40 bandes
-10 larges bandes de zest d’oranges
-500ml d’eau
-30g de sucre et 60ml d’eau
-Du sucre

Avec un couteau econome, peler 10 larges bandes de zest d’oranges. (Eviter d’enlever la partie blanche de l’orange) Couper chaque bande en julienne d’un centimeter de largeur. Metrre les zets dans une casserole et couvrir de 500ml d’eau. Porter a ebulition et faire cuire pendant 10sec. Egoutter et rinser les bandes sous de l’eau froide.
Remettre les bandes de zest dans la casserole avec les 30g de sucre et les 60ml d’eau. Porter a ebullition et laisser cuire sans couvert jusqu’a ce que le mélange s’apaississe et devienne un syrop. A ce stade les zests doivent etre Presque transparents et le liquide se serait evapore completement.
Etaler du sucre sur un plateau. Mettre les bandes de zests dedans et couvri de sucre tout en prenant soin de bien separer chaque bande. Transferer les bandes de zest dans un plat et laisser secher au moins ½ heure, jusqu’a ce qu’elle deviennent croquantes.
Quand elles auront completement refroidi, les ranger dans un bocal a fermeture hermetique et mettre au frais. Il se conserveront pendant des mois au frigo.
Les servir sur vos desserts au dernier moment pour eviter qu’elle se ramolissent.