FFWD: Compote de Pommes Two Ways

November 8, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 13 Comments

One thing I appreciate about these French Fridays is the way Dorie’s French take on familiar recipes forces me out of my flavouring habits. Usually, my apple sauce is full of warm apple pie flavours – cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom. This compote de pommes relies on vanilla, instead, to bring out the flavour of the apple.

We’re well into autumn here, so much so that I’m going to have to pull out the rake this weekend and start on the fallen leaves, spreading them over the vegetable garden, once I finish its fall clean up. My flower garden is still going strong, though, especially the dahlias, which are continuing to bloom. Nothing feels urgent outside now. These tasks are simply waiting for me, unlike the weeds of spring and summer, who wait for no one.

Fall and winter cooking doesn’t feel urgent either, the worry that I’m not making the most of something before it’s gone just doesn’t apply to storage fruits and vegetables. The process of cooking slows down, too, with soups and stews and compotes like this one warming the kitchen and the belly.

I made enough of this compote to enjoy of ice cream (or rather, Coconut Bliss) tonight, with lots left over to stir into yogurt tomorrow morning. Next time, I think I’ll make a bigger batch. I haven’t made an applesauce cake in far too long.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this FFWD recipe here: Compote de Pommes Two Ways

FFWD – Boeuf à la Mode

October 25, 2013October 25, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 7 Comments

Today’s French Fridays recipe is actually Muenster Cheese Soufflés, but I didn’t join in, because soufflé is something I reserve for the gluten-eaters in my life and I haven’t had an opportunity to cook for any of them in some time. I have also been neglecting my blog lately, too. I can’t believe it’s been a month! It was a busy one, but I’m back.

Today, I’m sharing something I made when the rest of the group did, but didn’t have an opportunity to post. Boeuf à la Mode is pot roast really, braised in a beautiful burgundy wine that the Doristas who attended IFBC sent to me in an amazingly generous care package last month.

They also sent Cher and her husband Joe to deliver it. I was sad to miss the conference, but meeting Cher more than made up for it. She and Joe are really lovely people and I’m happy I got a chance to meet them. Cher let me know that Susan and Betsy ran around to all the sample tables picking up treats for me. Thank you so much! Kevin was thrilled with all the gluten-free treats, especially. I’m just glad that Cher and Joe didn’t get a customs bill for all the IFBC gear they brought over the border! Thanks to all of you for the treats. I especially loved the note from Susan and John and have been showing off the Trevor-designed button proudly.

As for the pot roast, I cooked it one day and served it the next. With its long marinade at the beginning, it became a weekend project, really. The results were worth it. Very rich, especially with the addition of a couple of anchovies. I halved the recipe (which left me with some wine for drinking), and it worked really well. The photo above doesn’t do it justice. The edges were actually perfectly browned, though they seem black in the photo. I’ll be making this one again.

I also want to wish Dorie a happy belated Birthday. Several of the gang posted special birthday greetings for her yesterday. I’ll be making the rosemary and olive oil version of her French Yogurt Cake from Baking From My Home to Yours this weekend and will have a slice in her honour.

See you all next week. In the meantime, I’m going to be catching up on everyone’s blog posts.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this FFWD recipe here: Boeuf à la Mode

FFWD – Tuna-Packed Piquillo Peppers

September 21, 2013October 25, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 6 Comments

Living vicariously can only be so satisfying. I’ve been glued to my Twitter and Facebook feeds this weekend, as many of our most beloved Doristas attended IFBC in Seattle. I languished at home, nursing my “Last-Minute McCarthy” moniker, because I couldn’t commit. While I pouted, Trix, another NON-attendee, drank wine and floated the hashtag #suckitDoristas on Twitter to drown her sorrows. I think Mardi wins for most mature, as she stuck to compliments and encouragements on the conference attendees’ social media channels.

Even in my funk, I managed to make this week’s recipe, though there were no piquillo peppers in sight. I was seduced at the Food Co-op by some pretty little organic purple peppers, which I substituted for the intended star of the show. I want to prolong that summer freshness for a little while longer, so the crunch of sweet, raw pepper was more appealing than the wintry-seeming jarred variety. I kept to the recipe otherwise, though our dog claimed a little bit of the tuna meant for the filling.

These were a hit – sweet, hot, salty, tangy, and minty – hard to go wrong, right? There may or may not have been some Okanagan red involved in the meal, but you should just put that down to my sour grapes (the Okanagan ones weren’t, though; they were just right).

Tomorrow there’ll be a little balm for my wound – I get to meet Cher, one of our most stalwart Doristas. I’m looking forward to it!

And just so you know, I did make the chops from last week – twice, in fact. Both times, though, I neglected to take pictures. I think it just went out of my head, once I saw how perfectly cooked they were. My chops were venison, so I modified the herbs a bit, using a mix of rosemary and sage. I marinated them for a day (which really draws out the gaminess – though these chops were from a young buck which, according to my Dad, is as sweet as candy). I also made the rosemary butter ahead, too. The herbs were from my garden, we served them with the last of the green beans from the garden, and the rosemary butter that topped the chops also went into some lovely smashed potatoes. All you’ve got is my word for it though, because I forgot all about my camera for those meals.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this FFWD recipe here: Tuna-Packed Piquillo Peppers

FFWD – Floating Islands

September 1, 2013September 1, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 17 Comments

I struggle to reconcile my contradictions, sometimes. I can be a book snob, but secretly loved it when my oldest niece requested that I read the Harry Potter series, so that we could discuss the novels’ themes. I love trying new restaurants and exploring interesting shops, but I’m horrified by the displacement of the poor that’s happening in some of our newly hip neighbourhoods. Suburban-raised and city-dwelling, university-educated and a little downwardly-mobile, my contradictions are predictable, but bothersome all the same.

One contradiction I’m not so bothered by is my love of both old fashioned, family-style cooking and complicated, elegant fare. I’ve been making simple cookies like Snickerdoodles and Chocolate Crinkles since I was a child, but I was just as happy to learn how to make this week’s French Fridays recipe, Îles flottantes. Especially since, like so many of Dorie’s recipes, it’s easier than it looks.

Dorie’s recipes for both the meringue and the Crème Anglaise divide nicely, so I was able to make just enough for Kevin and me (there may have been seconds involved, but I’m pretty sure there are no witnesses to attest to that).

I thought about making some of Dorie’s Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce to serve with the Floating Islands, but instead ran down the street to Woodland Smokehouse and Commissary and picked up some Earnest Ice Cream. Their pints, in adorable, and returnable, little jars, are just indulgent enough for the two of us. I passed over Whiskey Hazelnut, Tahitian Vanilla, and Cardamom, settling on Milk Chocolate, instead. It’s like a Dairy Milk in a jar and was a perfect counterpoint to the intense vanilla of the Crème Anglaise.

I’m quite positive that I’m going to continue to be of two minds about a lot of things, but not about this dessert. Now, if I can just manage to make it to Dîner en Blanc next year, I think I’ve got a perfectly elegant picnic dessert up my sleeve.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Floating Islands

FFWD – Boulevard Raspail Corn on the Cob

August 23, 2013August 23, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 27 Comments

This is the season when I find myself making meals out of whatever comes from the garden, no recipes needed. Steamed chard or runner beans, slices of cucumber and yellow zucchini, whole radishes – mostly topped with nothing more than salt and pepper and perhaps a little olive oil or butter. Why muddy the flavours of such fresh produce with anything more? This week’s dish fits right into my late summer eating habits. The corn is roasted in its husk in the oven (or on the barbeque, for those who live in hotter climes), then dressed sparingly. We opted for a butter, salt, and pepper. I’ll use this method again, especially when the weather is as mild as it will be this week. I’ve got more of the sweet Chilliwack corn my mother dropped off for us just waiting in the fridge.

All that vegetable goodness doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about other treats, though, and yesterday I got to sample some lovely pastries at Beaucoup Bakery with Mardi of eat. live. travel. write. We’re the only two active Canadian participants in French Fridays, so I was glad she was able to fit me in during a very brief visit to Vancouver. I enjoyed our visit.

I don’t make it out to the Fairview neighbourhood very often, perhaps because there are too many tempting shops there. I managed to avoid Books to Cooks this time, for which my groaning cookbook shelves will thank me. I missed my bus, though, so ended up doing a little shopping at Murchie’s and Cookworks while I waited for the next one to show up. There are a lot more shops and restaurants worth visiting in this district, and I’m adding Beaucoup Bakery to the list. Their croissants alone seem worth another trip.

The Fairview district also includes Granville Island and Gallery Row, so there’s a lot to see. Perhaps I’ll spend a day there soon and make a full post of it.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Boulevard Raspail Corn on the Cob

FFWD – Duck Breasts With Fresh Peaches

August 9, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 14 Comments

For the first few years my parents had the farm, they raised Muscovy ducks, the domesticated white variety. Their eggs were a pleasure to bake with and their meat was delicious. Unfortunately, the bald eagles that lived nearby were awfully fond of them, too, so they disappeared one by one. Eventually, my parents tired of replenishing the eagles’ larder and stuck to chickens and geese after that.

I don’t have duck often now, so it’s nice to have a reminder of how easily it makes a delicious meal. This week’s dish required turning on the oven and a little time in front of the stove, on a hot summer’s day. It was worth braving the extra heat for this combination of duck with the peaches that are just hitting their peak here.

I only made a quarter of the recipe, as I knew I’d be eating it alone. I had some lovely peaches I’d picked up at Kerrisdale Farmers Market earlier in the week and I was eager to put them to good use. They were clingstone, so the finished dish wasn’t exactly as Dorie had envisioned it, but they were organic, perfectly ripe, and delicious nevertheless.

I used one for the duck dish and sliced the rest up for this peach crisp, which I modified by adding more (gluten-free) oats to the topping and reducing the amount of (again, gluten-free) flour. I should have made some modifications to the bottom as well, though. Next time, I’ll combine the sour cream mixture with the fruit, while adding some spices or herbs. As written, it’s good, but a little blander than I’d like.

As for the duck, Dorie’s instructions were perfect, save for the temperature of the pan. I had to turn it down from medium-high to a little less than medium to keep from burning the skin of the duck. The pan sauce was perfectly balanced, balsamic and white vinegars against the honey and port wine. (I made a half recipe of the sauce, and sopped the extra up with a little bread.)

This made a perfect summer meal, with some salad on the side, but it would also make a lovely summer appetizer, too. Especially for those prudent enough to take their cooking outside.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Duck Breasts With Fresh Peaches

FFWD – Tzatziki

August 2, 2013May 4, 2014 ~ Teresa ~ 14 Comments

The neighbourhood next to mine is called Hastings-Sunrise, though it’s also been branded The East Village by its business association. It’s only a few blocks away, but it’s in the opposite direction from my regular shopping route, so I don’t get over there as often as I’d like. This afternoon, I decided to get out of my usual routine and head east rather than south. My first stop was Black Rook Bakehouse, which I’ve been meaning to check out since it opened. They’ve got gorgeous pies, cakes, and cookies, along with breads and savoury pot pies, but I settled on a slice of chocolate-threaded banana bread, for an after-errands treat. The lovely shopkeeper threw in a loaf of potato bread, since they were about to close for the long weekend. I’ll be back for some more of that, on my own dime next time. Next, I stopped in at Donald’s Market, for some late-season strawberries and some gluten-free oatmeal. (There are going to be basil-blackberry crumbles all summer long, I think, so I need to be well-stocked with oatmeal.)

You’re probably wondering right about now what all this has to do with this week’s recipe, aren’t you? My next stop is the segueway. Rio Friendly Meats lives up to its name, or rather, its staff does. They stock an array of house-made sausages, along with great cuts of meat. It was the chicken breasts marinating in Greek spices that I came for, though. I thought they’d go perfectly with this week’s Tzatziki, and I was right.

We ate quite late tonight, so I don’t have any photos for you, but I served the oven-roasted chicken with a dollop of tzatziki and a salad on the side (which included the first of the yellow zucchinis from my garden). The tzatziki was also wonderful as a dip for vegetables and rice crackers this afternoon. Tomorrow, the leftovers are going to stand in for cottage cheese in a Greek-style version of last week’s Dieter’s Tartine on that amazing potato bread (for me) and some Udi’s gluten-free bread (for Kevin).

I’m not sure why I haven’t been making my own tzatziki up until now, but I’ll be making up for that omission in future. At a quarter of the recipe, it’s just right for us for two or three days of Greek-inspired eating.

And as for Hastings-Sunrise, I hardly did it justice with my three paltry stops today. If you’re interested in what the neighbourhood has to offer, the folks at Vancouver East Village have done a wonderful job of covering all its businesses and amenities.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Tzatziki

FFWD – Dieter’s Tartine

July 26, 2013July 30, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 30 Comments

“But for all this, she was putting on weight; for if she did not eat she drank, as everyone did. From the first sundowner, gulped down hastily to give her vitality after the hours of work, she drank steadily through the evening until she arrived back in her room in the small hours, slightly tipsy, if not drunk. She was only doing as everyone else did; and if someone pointed out to her, ‘You are living on sandwiches, sundowner snacks, and alcohol, you are sleeping three hours a night,’ he would probably have gotten for his pains a dark and uncomprehending stare; for that was not how life felt to Martha; it was a rush of delicious activity, which, however, was just beginning to flag.”

Doris Lessing, from Martha Quest

I’m not a fan of dieting – the industry, the fads, the body policing, the class profiling, or the skewing of priorities that can be seen in the quotation, above. I am a fan of fresh, delicious, easy meals in the summertime, however. This week’s recipe may fit the first category, but more importantly for me, it fits the second one, too. My version of this simple tartine consisted of sourdough rye topped with a creamy cottage cheese (no need to add sour cream) and a mixture of orange pepper and English cucumber. I dressed it with an Herbes de Provence fleur de sel and some freshly ground pepper. My chives aren’t doing that well in the record-nearing dry spell we’ve been experiencing this summer, or I would have used some of those, too. (If you check out the link, let me know if you agree with my assessment that the presenter’s glasses likely date from that record dry spell year.)

Later this summer, I’ll make it with radishes, yellow zucchini, cucumbers, or tomatoes from my own garden. For now, I’m content to use the local produce (from farmers who get their stuff into the ground in a timely fashion, unlike me) that abounds this time of year. A drizzle of olive oil, balsamic, or both wouldn’t be misplaced, but I liked it without, this evening. Next time, I think I’ll rub a garlic clove on the toast before I dress it.

As for dieting, I’ll eschew it in favour of moderation in all things (even moderation) and some love and respect for my genetic heritage – all the little French Canadian women on my mother’s side of the family end up a bit round in middle age. And with that, I think I’ll have a dish of this blackberry basil crumble, which was fresh and easy, too, made with basil from my garden and the accursed blackberries that afflict my backyard.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Dieter’s Tartine

FFWD – Whole-Cherry Clafoutis

July 12, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 13 Comments

You may be asking yourself, Teresa who? I’ve been absent a while, haven’t I? I fell down the rabbit hole of some contract work, but I’m glad to be back, and I can’t wait to see all your versions of this cake…pudding…pudding-cake. Maybe I’ll just stick to clafoutis, it’s more fun to say, anyway.

Cherries are just hitting the market here, so the timing of this week’s recipe was perfect, as was this dish. I’ll be having my second slice shortly.

So what does your summer hold? Mine’s going to include a lot of canning, a lot of planning, and (I hope) a week or two of relaxation in September.

You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Whole-Cherry Clafoutis

FFWD – Goat Cheese & Strawberry Tartine

June 7, 2013June 7, 2013 ~ Teresa ~ 24 Comments

My partner and I went through a period of fascination with simple living. The net result was adding about a dozen books to our already-overflowing shelves. Simplicity isn’t something that comes naturally to me, obviously.

So, it’s not surprising that my solution to weekend breakfast is often, “Let’s just go out.” Elaborate recipes swirl around in my head, when all I really want to do is have a leisurely conversation or a lazy look through the newspaper. An hour in the kitchen and a sinkful of dishes isn’t as appealing as brunch in the summer sunshine (or, truthfully, peering out at the summer sunshine from a suitably shady spot).

Enter a little reminder that a satisfying, elegant breakfast need not be complicated – this week’s French Fridays dish is a simple tartine. Toasted chunks of baguette slathered with goat cheese, then topped with some sliced strawberries, a little balsamic, and a dusting of fresh pepper. Enough to satisfy mid-morning hunger and wake up the senses.

It was easy enough to make a gluten-free plateful for Kevin, too. With some sea salt rice crackers in place of the baguette, and a distinct absence of balsamic and pepper, he declared these a perfect pre-breakfast snack.

My bookshelves may need a good purge, my cupboards and closets a little organization, and my garden ever more weeding, but this morning I was content to…ahem…simply enjoy these tartines with a nice cup of tea. There’s a whole summer ahead to catch up on the rest.