Photo du Jour - Lunch

Our anniversary lunch was spent in an oratory that was constructed in the 7th century.
It is now an ultra modern restaurant that holds one Michelin étoile. (which we didn't know until this morning!)
La Table Saint-Crescent

Salicorne (Pousse-Pierre)

I've got salicorne on my mind.  We recently had dinner with friends from Colombia, who were passing through Paris - so I went to the market on Sunday morning to see what I could find for dinner that night.  At the fish shop sat a pile of fresh salicorne.  Cool!  I don't see that often, and so I eagerly asked the fish guy to give me a few handfuls.

So, what is salicorne exactly?  I tasted it for the first time in the marshlands of Brittany many years ago while visiting a fleur de sel "farm", just off the Atlantic coast.  It's a green plant, a sea vegetable, that grows wildly along the salt marshes.  We picked some that day & ate it on the spot, guided by an expert from the region.  It was salty, immensely crunchy & very moist!  An explosion of sea in your mouth, without it tasting too salty, oddly enough.  I immediately liked it. 

Salicorne goes by many names...I don't think I've seen anything called so many different things!  My favorite is sea asparagus because, well, they kind of look like mini asparagus (to me) & they  taste like the sea!  Other names include slender glasswort, sea beans, sea pickle, and samphire.  Isn't Google great...It also clarified for me that it originates off the coasts of Europe but can also be cultivated and found in other parts of the world, including the coasts of North America, South Africa and South Asia.  Many high end restaurants use it on their plates because it is surprisingly good & beautiful.

It can be eaten raw, pickled, and sautéed....

I served it raw on Sunday night as part of the entrée froid (cold 1st course):  Ceviche de bar, mariniére de coquillages aux aromates et salicorne (Sea bass ceviche, shellfish & aromatic vegetable salad with sea asparagus).

Here's how I prepared it:

I gave it a brief soak in fresh water and then painstakingly cut off the ends of each mini stalk, where it had browned ever so slightly & I didn't think that would look so appetizing on the plate (see middle photo above - cutting the ends off so meticulously is probably not necessary unless, of course, they've started to go bad...it's just my preference to eat them looking pristine, so that's why I did it that way...)  Then I tossed them with a vinaigrette, added some freshly ground pepper, and DID NOT salt them!  They're plenty salty as it is, which by the way, you might want to leave them to soak in water a bit more than I did to desalinate them more...  Anyway, next I simply added the seasoned salicorne to the plate, as a decorative garnish.  That's all.  Not everyone will like the texture or taste, but it's certainly a discovery & well worth trying.  It's at the tail end of the season, so if you come across it, don't be afraid to give it a try!

Hope you enjoy it!
/dma

ps.  It was great to see you again, Patricia & Philippe!

Cool Quesadilla Combos:Recipe

Somewhere along the line I seem to have forgotten about quesadillas. But recently a couple of factors lead to me rediscovering them and their potential. One is the Organic Whole Wheat & Corn Flour Tortillas available at Trader Joe's. Each tortilla has only one gram of fat, five grams of fiber and is high in iron. They fit into my "try to eat more whole grain foods" resolution. A little experimenting lead me to discover that the nutty flavor of whole wheat tortillas is really good with non-traditional, not-necessarily Mexican fillings.

The other bit of inspiration came from a recipe I read in Sara Foster's Casual Cooking for Grilled Shrimp and Goat Cheese Toastadas. That jumping off point lead me to create a shrimp, avocado, radicchio and goat cheese quesadilla with a drizzle of chimichurri sauce. It was truly outstanding. I know quesadillas were all the rage about five years ago, but if you haven't played around with them in a while, they are definitely worth revisiting.

Below is a list of some of my favorite filling ingredients and my tips to get you started.

VEGETABLES spinach olives avocado onions potatoes asparagus lentils beans bitter greens mushrooms red peppers

MEAT/FISH shrimp chicken turkey bacon roast pork sausage caviar ham duck

CHEESES fontina feta cheddar blue goat brie cream-cheese camembert

FRUIT tomatoes fig apple mango pear raisins apricots plums strawberries

FLAVORINGS salsa chutney bbq sauce chimichurri pesto truffle oil garam masala balsamic black pepper

1. Pair up classic combinations, some suggestions:
cheddar and chutney
chicken, mango and bbq sauce
shrimp, feta and green onions
brie and pear

2. Restraint is key. Don't overstuff! For one regular sized flour tortilla, try not to add more than 1/2 cup of fillings.

3. Not every combination has to have cheese, I find leftover Indian food tastes great in a whole wheat tortilla without any cheese at all. Pesto, with or without parmesan cheese is wonderful with potatoes.

4. Use a lightly oiled non-stick pan for cooking your quesadillas and when cooking them open face, use a lid to help melt the cheese and heat up the fillings quickly. When the cheese melts, fold the quesadilla over and remove it from the pan.

5. You can also make them open-faced or tostada style. So technically they are not always "quesadillas" but, who cares?

If you'd care to share, let me know your favorite combo, the more nontraditional the better. The one in the photo? Roast pork, asparagus and Stilton.

FOOD

Cinnamon, Cappuccino Chocolate Thins

There are people who would have you believe that a name is just a name.  That its moniker doesn't, in the end, change the reality of the rose.  I must respectfully disagree.  After all, Renoir didn't call his idylls "Corpulent Women Lolling Naked Outdoors," but instead titled them "Bathers", thus situating them firmly in a classical tradition.  Sometimes a name is all the justification you need.

I don't want to say that I need justification for these cookies, necessarily.  But, on second thought, maybe that is what I'm saying.  Because by most measures, they were a failure.  They were meant to be slice and bake, the kind that you roll into as perfect a log as you can manage in order to slice off neat little circles which should, in theory, maintain some sort of integrity.  They should look about the same post-oven as they did pre.  Not in this case.  In this case, they spread into a giant trigonometry problem of touching, interlocking circles.  With a little care and precision, I extricated each from the other.  But they just weren't what I imagined.  Admittedly, and as you can see, they were too crowded together on the sheet to begin with, but I'm judicious to a fault with my dish-using since it directly correlates to my dish-washing, which is all done by hand.

However, the combination of cinnamon, cappuccino and chocolate made their physical defects fade to the background.  And in fact, had I been expecting a thin cookie, there would have been no defects at all.  So to spare you from the same unmet expectations, we'll agree to call them Cinnamon, Cappuccino Chocolate Thins and leave it at that.

Cinnamon, Cappuccino and Chocolate Thins

From The Great Big Cookie Book by Barbara Grunes and Virginia van Vynckt

2 ounces semisweet chocolate

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room tempearture

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon instant coffee, dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

Melt the chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave and set aside.

Cream the butter with an electric mixer set on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Increase speed to high and add the sugars and the egg.  Beet until the mixture is smooth, then stir in the coffee and melted chocolate.  

Stir in the rest of the ingredients and shape the dough into 2 logs, which don't have to be perfect because the cookies will spread anyway.  Refrigerate the dough for 45 minutes.

Oven preheated to 350F, and cookie sheets lightly greased, remove the dough from the refrigerator and slice into rounds about 1/4" thick.  Arrange on the cookie sheet with plenty of room between cookies.  Bake for 8 - 10 minutes until the cookies are firm.  Transfer to cooling racks and cool.

Notes:

* Although I'll provide a link to this book because I want to give full credit, I can't necessarily recommend it just yet.  I have to have a few more goes with it first.

Smoked Salmon for Breakfast

In theory, breakfast is my absolute hands-down favorite meal. In practice, it's either non-existent, boring old milk and cereal, or a piece of fruit grabbed off the counter. So even though I'm not one much for resolutions, I like the idea of a good breakfast. Last time R and I were in Norway I was struck by the fact that Norwegians really know how to do breakfast. There was a spread every morning of whole grain Wasa crackers on which we loaded various toppings from cheese, jam, cold cuts with lettuce and tomato, chunks of crab, herring, even little mini shrimp. I mean, it's like a real meal. With real food that's actually good for you. Imagine.

So when browsing around the various food blogs and sites, I started link hopping and ended up on Bon Appetite's New Year's Food-Lover's Cleanse. Ugh with the resolutions, I know. But I have to give credit where it's due, and the idea fits so well with this blog and its Norwegian leanings. Not to mention that I frickin' love smoked salmon. And I love it even more when it's laying on a dollop of plain yogurt that's been mixed with chives and a little red onion.

Which is why the Norwegian tradition of these little open-faced cracker things is so genius. If you whisk up the yogurt mixture the night before, they're a completely assemble-and-go affair. And of course, you don't have to save them for breakfast. I find myself craving them constantly.

Smoked Salmon for Breakfast
Adopted from Bon Appetite's Food-Lover's Cleanse

Wasa crackers, your favorite variety
1 cup low-fat (or not, it's up to you) plain yogurt
1/4 small red onion, diced
Handful of chives, minced
Slices of smoked salmon

Whisk together the yogurt, onion and chives. Spread a dollop of the yogurt mixture on each Wasa cracker and then lay a slice of smoked salmon on top. Enjoy!

Gourmet Barcelona

Not only is Barcelona an amazing food city, it knows it. Starting at the Plaza Catalunya, on Friday or Saturday at 11:00 am you can take a Gourmet Walking Tour put on by the Barcelona Tourism office. The cost is just under $15 and it is well worth it. Over the course of two hours a local guide leads you down a bit of the Ramblas, from the Boqueria into the Barri Gotic and finally to La Ribera making numerous stops along the way.

The tour is a terrific way to orient yourself and make sure you hit some of the best examples of Barcelona's gastronomic riches. The first stop is Granja Viader, the site where Cacoalat, a kind of bottled chocolate milk was invented. This is a great place to find all kinds of local dairy products, cheeses, crema catalan, yogurt, but also cakes and sweets that are local specialties.

On to the market! I will post more about the Boqueria but suffice it to say it one of the most impressive covered outdooor markets in Europe. There is a great variety of fresh seafood, eggs, produce, meats, charcuterie, wines and even little kiosks where you can get a meal.

Some more of the highlights include the Patisseria Escriba, here pastries are particularly fine, and don't miss their amazing hot chocolate. I was so enamored, I bought a bag of it. There are two locations, but the building near the market on the Ramblas is a Modernist style jewel.

Next proceed to a tiny alley in the winding, twisting, narrow lanes of the Barri Gotic. Carrer de Petritxol is known for it's "granges", cafes that specialize in traditional products such as chocolate, curd cheese and churros. This is the perfect place to stop for breakfast or a snack.

Xocolateria Fargas is a chocolate shop that opened in 1827 and not much has changed since then. Walking in is like taking a step back in history. There is even an old stone that was once used for grinding cacao beans for Barcelona's chocolate fiends. Buy a little packet of chocolates here and be treated to the best chocolate covered almond with your purchase.

Casa Gispert is a roastery and the scent of coffee and nuts is intoxicating. The dark atmospheric shop is filled with many treats including fig paste with almonds, chocolates, coffee, saffron, smoked paprika, honey, cookies, crackers, and of course those crisp and delicious marcona almonds. This is the place to stock up on pantry essentials and pick up a gift or two to take home.

On to La Botifarreria de Santa Maria. Here you may feel regret that you didn't rent an apartment in town. You will be filled with the desire to purchase sausages, hams and other charcuterie. Make a mental note to order jamon iberica de belota next time you see it on a menu, it is ham from acorn-fed pigs, rich, sweet, porcine and delicious beyond description.

There are plenty more stops along they way, about ten to twelve altogether. Each place, a gastronomic delight will tempt your senses and will fill your imagination...
FOOD

Photo du Jour - Sunflowers

This field of sunflowers is a welcome splash of color amongst the acres and acres of green vineyards.