29 | April | 2012

29 April 2012

Gougères (traditional cheese puffs)

Whether you are going to a Michelin star restaurant or at a friend’s house in France, you will most likely be served gougères to accompany your aperitif drinks (drinks served before a meal). Gougères are traditional cheese puffs made with either Emmenthal, Comté or Gruyère cheese. These little luxuries are perfect with champagne or wine (they are often served during wine-tastings) – and so chic if you have them home-made. Originally from Burgundy, these puffs were invented in the 17th century in a patisserie called ‘Le ramequin de Bourgogne’. So next time you have guests, why don’t you dazzle them with these golden puffs.

Ingredients (makes about 40)

250 ml water
100 grs salted butter
150 grs plain flour
180 grs grated Emmenthal or Gruyère cheese
4 eggs
A dash of ground nutmeg
1 egg yolk for glazing
A dash of salt and pepper

Pre-heat the over 180° celcius.

In a saucepan, bring the water and butter to a boil. Add the flour, stirring very fast and take immediately off the heat. By now the batter will be roughly in the form of a soft ball. Add the eggs, one by one and stir. It’s important to add the eggs slowly – don’t worry if it looks too thick, just continue to stir as it will eventually become a smooth batter. Finally add the cheese, salt & pepper and stir to a good dewy batter.

Prepare a baking tray line with parchment paper. You have two choices for preparing the gougères: either put the dough in a pastry bag with a standard tip and pipe walnut sized mounds, or spoon and shape with the help of two teaspoons and evenly shaped ball (again like the size of a walnut). Glaze with the egg yolk for a golden baked finish. Sprinkle the puffs lightly with grated cheese.

Leave an adequate space between each gougères and bake for 25 minutes approx or until puffy and golden. Serve immediately.

ps: You can prepare these in advance and either refrigerate or freeze them. Just take them out again before serving and heat in a high-heat oven for 5-7 minutes.

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29 April 2012

Quiche Lorraine

Most French people in my entourage know how to make a good quiche Lorraine – this dish is as classic as a baguette and is part of the french culinary heritage. I did find out recently that it was originally German, but somehow turned French when cheese was added to the recipe in the Lorraine region. It’s the perfect light lunch to have, some sort of comfort food for most. My father-in-law loves this quiche, and I serve it with a spinach salad, roasted pine nuts, radishes and avocado. Simple and delightful. As I am a busy mom, I use Herta’s pate feuilleutée (ready-rolled puff pastry), the quality is excellent. But when I have time, I will make my own pastry. It is best to use your pastry straight from the fridge when it is still cold – I find the results are better. Nothing beats a home-cooked quiche Lorraine fresh from the oven. And here’s the best part, it takes about 10 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients (for 4-6)

200 grs chopped bacon
4 eggs
150 ml crème fraiche
2 handful or grated Emmenthal or Gruyère
100 ml milk
5 grs ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

Pastry

230 grs sheet of puff pastry (bought in store)

Pre-heat your oven 220° degrees celsius.

Fry the lardons without any oil until golden and cooked. Place aside on kitchen towel to absorb excess fat. In a bowl, mix the eggs, milk, crème fraiche, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Whisk the mixture till it becomes light and slightly frothy. Roll out your pastry and line your baking dish. Pour the egg/milk mixture, sprinkle the grated cheese and bacon evenly. Bake for 30 minutes and leave to rest 5 minutes before serving.

To serve with spinach salad with roasted pine nuts, radishes and avocado.

Ingredients

200 grs baby spinach leaves
A handful of pine nuts
6 radishes (finely sliced)
1 avocado (chopped)
5 tbps Olive oil
Red wine vinegar
1 tsp mustard
Salt and pepper

Prepare the vinaigrette in a salad bowl, first add olive oil, whisk in the vinegar, then the mustard, followed by salt and pepper. In a frying pan, place the pine nuts and roast for 5 minutes on a low heat or until golden. Leave to cool. Toss in the washed spinach leaves, sliced radishes, chopped avocado and sprinkle with the pine nuts.

29 April 2012

‘Something’s gotta give’ pancakes

Whenever I make pancakes, I always think of my favourite ‘pancake’ movie scene in ‘Something’s gotta give’ with Diane Keaton. She makes late-night pancakes in her smashing kitchen with Jack Nicholson, and it’s simply a perfect moment. So here’s my ‘Something’s gotta give’ pancake recipe. This is always a real treat and the kids love it when I stack the pancakes like a tower and pour the maple syrup before serving. The buttermilk is the key ingredient to make the pancakes extra fluffy and tasty, but I admit it’s not always easy to get it. So should you be out of buttermilk, here’s a tip on how to make it: (for 500 ml) mix 500 ml full-cream milk and juice of a small lemon. Shake well and leave to stand for 15 minutes. I love cooking with buttermilk, and it has become one of my favourite ingredients for marinating chicken.

Ingredients for pancakes (makes about 25)

400 grs all-purpose flour
40 grs white sugar
10 grs baking powder
700 ml buttermilk
100 ml milk
3 eggs
60 grs butter, melted
a pinch of salt

15 grs butter (for frying)
Berries for garnishing

Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix the eggs with the buttermilk, milk and melted butter. When you are ready to make the pancakes, mix all the ingredients together and stir well. Please not that the thicker you batter is, the thicker your pancakes will be. If you prefer finer pancakes, the batter should be smoother. You can decide with how much milk you add.
Heat a skillet or large frying pan with a small cube of butter. Scoop one ladle of batter to make a round pancake (I do about 3 in my pan). When you start seeing bubbles forming (about 2 minutes) flip over. Pancake should be golden brown. Serve hot with maple syrup and berries.

If you want to make banana or blueberry pancakes, simply add in the batter.