Happy Birthday Julia: Rocquefort and Pear Spirals

Happy 100th birthday to a woman who forever changed American kitchens.

As I wrote in my tribute for PBS.org's celebrations, Julia Child was a woman who taught more than just cooking. She taught viewers to think on the fly, because no matter how much we prepare for perfection, perfection is never guaranteed.

Think about that in context of today's Stepford Wife-ian cookery shows. Click over to Food TV and tucked in amongst the plethora of Amazing Race-like competitions, "reality" shows from the back rooms of bakeries and restaurants and shows focussing wacky food-related adventures, you will find what passes as instructional cooking offerings.

Seemingly perfect food, seemingly perfectly prepared by seemingly perfectly coiffed presenters. Sure they can hit their marks, tilt their heads so klieg lights glint off their bleached teeth and have perfectly mastered the forced, authoritative yet approachable "Mmm--that's so good!" They rate well with the 18-55 year old male demographic, don't intimidate those who could easily live with only a microwave, fridge, and are the darlings of those proud to have perfected "finger cooking."

But do you actually believe those presenters would know what to do if--horror of horrors--a bit of shell followed along with the yolk, or a drop of water found its way into a pot of melted chocolate? Without a doubt Laura Calder, Anna Olson, Nigella Lawson, Bobby Flay, Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay (to name but six) would. But others? Well I'm sure they've mastered the art of the teleprompter.

When I watch Julia Child I watch a woman who was passionate about food and cooking...but she was also focussed on instilling that same passion in us. In Julia's world, it was more than figuring out which of the Chicken Sisters would make the best roast or how to pan-fry mushrooms. In her world, part of that passion came from knowing what to do when things go wrong.

Although she wanted to show us the proper way to prepare recipes, sometimes things didn't quite go to plan. Mistakes weren't to be feared but to be quickly and deftly dealt with. They were lessons that made us stronger in the kitchen and, by extension, in life.

So when it came to a dish to prepare to mark her centenary, I went to the very first Julia Child cookbook I purchased: The Way to Cook. It wasn't the first cookbook I bought, but it was within the first five...maybe three.

I was drawn to all the loveliness found in the pages dedicated to pâte feuilletée--puff pastry. In a perfect world I would have spent a day dedicated to layering butter within pastry dough. But this is not a perfect world and I don't have a day to devote to making puff pastry. However...in this imperfect world of mine I do have a mediumscarymegamart around the corner that does stock frozen butter puff pastry.

Julia would understand--in the first French Chef episode, the one about Boeuf Bourguignon, she counselled viewers on using canned beef bouillon instead of consommé. Yes, she advocated making stock, but she seemed very aware that not everyone had the time or ability to make their own beef stock.

Her variations of cheese tarts caught my eye, so I decided to improvise slightly. I decided to make spiral nibblies, with (as she suggests in a tart variation) a mixture of bleu and cream cheeses. Since I'm a fan of pears and nuts with bleu cheese, I chopped a couple of sugar pears and pulled my walnut pieces from the freezer as well.

The resulting Julia-inspired appetiser is easy, with a tasty contrast between flaky pastry, crunchy nuts and soft filling, sharp cheese and sweet fruit. Serve them as nibblies, or along side a simple salad made of rocket (arugula) lightly tossed in balsamic dressing.

Rocquefort and Pear Spirals
Yield 12- 16 spirals

Ingredients:
225g (0.5lb) puff pastry
165g (approximately 6oz) softened cream cheese (2/3 package)
55g (2oz) Roquefort cheese
2 small sugar pears, peeled, cored and cut into a small dice
a couple of handfuls of walnut pieces
black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 200C/400F. Line a cookie tray with parchment paper.

Roll the puff pastry into a about a 0.5cm (0.25") thick rectangle.

Mix the cheeses together until well blended. Spread the mixture on the puff pastry, leaving about 1cm (approx 0.5") clear boarder around the rectangle. Strew the chopped fruit over top the cheese, followed by the nuts.

Roll the smeared and sprinkled pastry and lightly pinch the ends together. Slice the long roll into 2.5cm (1") rounds. Place the discs onto the lined cookie tray. Sprinkle with pepper.

Bake for 10-12 minutes and serve warm

Note:
You can make your own puff pastry, or you can buy a package from the shop. If you do buy it , make sure it's all butter puff pastry.

Bon appetit!

jasmine

I'm a quill for hire!

Mmm...Canada: Crabcakes

Pattycake, pattycake,

Baker's man!

Bake me a crabcake as fast as you can.

I knew I wanted to continue my Canadian food journey with something from the East Coast, but I really didn't want anything big. I just wanted something to nibble on, along side some leafy greens.

When I think of the Maritimes, lobster is the first food to come to mind. Maybe one year I'll boil a lobster but not this year. I wanted something seafoodish, but little and fun to make.

Crabcakes fit the bill nicely. What I like about these is they aren't deep fried--simply browned in a pan and then finished in the oven for a few minutes. I served them with a mustardy mayonnaise, but you can choose whatever sauce you wish.

Crabcakes
Yield approximately 20 small cakes

Ingredients
450g (1lb) cooked crabmeat, drained
0.5 bell pepper, finely diced
6 spring onions, finely sliced (greens and whites)
1 Tbsp (15ml) minced parsley
30g (0.5c) dried breadcrumbs (plus more for coating)
0.5-0.75tsp (2-4ml) finely minced lemon zest
1tsp (5ml) Old Bay seasoning
1 egg
1Tbsp (60ml) mayonnaise
1tsp (5ml) Worcestershire Sauce
a good squeeze of lemon juice
a few drops of hot sauce (to taste)
salt
pepper
oil for frying

Method
Mix together the crab, pepper, spring onions, parsley, half cup of breadcrumbs and zest. In a separate bowl, mix together the Old Bay, egg, mayonnaise, lemon juice, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Pour over the crab mixture and gently combined. Fry a little bit of the crab mixture, taste and balance flavours to taste.

Form patties by pressing together two tablespoons' worth of crab. Refridgetate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and grease lightly.

Heat a little oil in a pan. Coat the patties in bread crumbs and fry for about 3 minutes on each side. Arrange on the prepared tray and bake for 10-15 minutes.

Serve warm, with flavoured mayonnaise (curry, lemon-dill, chipotle, etc) or tartar sauce.

cheers!

jasmine

I'm a quill for hire!

Gung hei fat choy! Salt & Pepper Squid with Garlic and Chillies

Every time I go for dim sum I hope the trolley offers salt and pepper squid. Golden and crunchy, spiky and salty I could probably devour a basket all on my own.

The other day I found the same dish on local Vietnamese restaurant's menu. I ordered it and, yes, it was pretty much the same dish as wheels by me, nestled betwixt and between steamers of siu mai and har gao.

This got me wondering of the dish's provenance and if it was simply by a happenstance of abundant regional coastlines or if it was manufactured to appeal to Western palates. The similarities, down to the sautéed chilli garlic was simply...uncanny.

Authenticity of salt and pepper squid is neither here nor there. I set out to replicate the dish and I think I did a fairly good job of it.

I think, at its heart, it is a non-recipe recipe: squid rings and tentacles dusted in a peppered flour and cornflour mixture, deep fried for a couple of minutes and then tossed in lightly sauteed in a sweet and slightly sour mix of garlic and chillies. I suppose using Thai sweet garlic chilli sauce may put a few noses out of joint, but really all that means is more for the rest of us.


Salt and Pepper Squid with Garlic and Chillies
Serves 1-3, depending if a main or starter

Ingredients
0.5tsp Sichuan pepper (see notes for substitution ideas)
1Tbsp all purpose flour
1Tbsp cornstarch (cornflour)
250g (0.5lb) squid, cleaned, sliced into 0.5cm (0.25") rings and pieces, patted dry (one squid)
Flavourless oil, for frying
salt
1 shallot, minced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 chilli pepper, minced
0.5tsp chinese black vinegar (see notes for substitution ideas)
0.5tsp sweet chilli-garlic sauce
Lettuce leaves (bibb or iceberg)

Method
Toast Sichuan peppercorn in a skillet until their fragrant oils have released. Let cool for a minute or two and then crush or pound lightly.

Mix together wheat and corn flours with the crushed Sichuan pepper. Set aside.

Heat a few inches of oil in a high-sided pot until it shimmers and an inserted wooden skewer (or wooden spoon handle) bubbles when inserted.

While the oil heats, dredge the squid pieces in the spiced flour mixture and set aside.

When the oil is ready, fry the squid in batches, for about two minutes. The rings will not take on much colour, but perhaps a few golden speckles. Remove to drain on paper towels, hitting each batch with a pinch of salt while still hot with oil.

Continue frying the squid, ensuring the oil's temperature is maintained, and adding more, if necessary.

When all the squid is cooked, put a frypan on a medium flame and add a spoon or two of the frying oil. Add the shallot, garlic and chilli and saute for about a minute, or until the garlic has scented the air and the shallots begin to wilt. Add the vinegar and chilli sauce and stir well. Tip in the fried squid and coat.

Test a piece and balance flavours to taste.

Serve hot on a bed of lettuce

Notes:
- If you don't have Sichuan pepper, you can use black pepper or chilli pepper, but change the quantities to suit your spice tolerance; you won't need to toast black or chilli pepper.
- You can use red or white wine vinegar with a bit of soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce instead of black vinegar. The flavour will be different, but still perfectly good.
- This recipe is easily doubled, if you want.

cheers!
jasmine



I'm a quill for hire!