Curried Zucchini and Swiss Chard

This is super quick to make and very good. If you have surprise guests and happen to have chard and summer squash available, this makes an impressive and quick meal. The chives can be substituted with a quarter chopped and caramelized onion (about 25-50 grams). The success of the dish hinges on how the zucchini is prepared. It needs to be in paper-thin slices, and cooked enough to be tender but not cooked enough so that it turns to mush. I've tended to undercook it, but the few times I've managed to get the right amount of doneness, the summer squash becomes buttery and flavorful with a bit of an al-dente bite to it.

* Serves 2 lumberjacks or 4 delicate ladies

1 recipe Savoury Rice
1 bunch of swiss chard (1lb)
2 medium summer squash, very thinly sliced (10 to 12 oz)
a fistful of fresh chives (equivalent to 3 green onions), minced
½ tsp curry powder
1 (½ oz/14gr) + (½ oz/14gr) 1 Tbsp butter
1+1 Tbsps mild oil
Salt and pepper, to taste.
a squeeze of lemon

1. Start by starting the Savoury Rice.
2. Remove the stems and the large center veins of the Swiss chard. Start with the stems and slice them stems very thin.
3. In a large sauté pan heat half the butter and oil over medium-to-low heat. Add the thinly sliced stems and sauté about 4 to 5 minutes, until starting to go tender. 
4. Meanwhile, fold the leaves together and slice very thin.
5. Before adding the sliced leaves to the sauté of stems, add the chives and cook about 1 minute more. Gradually add the leaf strips a handful at-a-time and cook until tender (about 4 to 5 minutes more). 
6. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
7. In the hot pan, melt the remaining butter and oil. Add the curry powder and warm it through to bring out its flavor, about 1 minute or until it becomes very fragrant.
8. Add the squash and sauté for about 3 to 5 minutes (the thinner they are, the faster they'll cook). Essentially, stop when they're all covered with the curry but still have a bit of bite and the denser flesh hasn't quite become transparent. If you let it cook too long they'll turn to mush. 
9. Season with salt and pepper.
10. Your rice should be ready now. On a platter, spread the rice as your base, followed by the chard on top, and top of that the squash. Apply a generous squeeze of lemon on top and serve immediately.

Custard Pie - for the clowns in your life

I live in a household that loves custard. To eat, that is, not to throw in someone's face - we're not clowns. But that was part of the inspiration: how does one make a custard pie worthy of throwing in someone's face that would be welcomed by the receiver. I don't know if I got it right, but we sure like this version.

1 recipe blind-baked Cookie Pie Crust, completely cooled
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla
¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ cup (2oz/58gr) butter 
⅓ cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 egg

1. Heat the oven to 325°F.
2. Bring the cream and milk to a very slow boil in a saucepan.
3. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla and the nutmeg. 
4. Cut the butter into small chunks and slowly whisk them into the hot dairy until it all dissolves. This part is important to do thoroughly otherwise the butter will separate and rise to the top as the pie bakes creating a weird crust.
5. In a bowl, whisk together the yolk and sugar until the yolk turns a pale yellow. Whisk in the extra whole egg.
6. Very slowly whisk the flavored dairy into the egg mixture. Do this slowly; this is to gradually increase the temperature of the egg and avoid making scrambled eggs with the hot liquid.
7. Strain the mixture into the baked tart shell.
8. Bake about 35 to 40 minutes or until set. The pie will puff up a bit when it is cooked, and will settle again as it cools.
9. Let it cool completely, which can take several hours.
10. Delicious accompanied by a fresh sprig of currants or other tart fruit.

Gratin Italian sausage and kale

I love teasing people about kale. It's the new kid on the block and folks are still discovering it and getting that shiny new convert look when you tell them it's survival food (ie. people eat it when there's nothing left to eat). The truth is that 1) I like kale just fine and 2) it is not new food. It's been around for a long, long time because it's so hardy and reliable. Cook it right, and it's a sweet treat. But it does have a very strong flavor and not everyone is a fan, so if you want to serve kale to a finnicky table, match it with equally strong flavors. This dish is a cheesy saucy gooey warming dish with a lovely crunchy topping.

Some olive oil

1 lb fresh mild or hot Italian sausage, casings removed and crumbled

⅓ cup dry white wine

2 bunches (about 1 pound) kale, stemmed and torn into large pieces

½ cup (4oz/114gr) + 3 Tbsps (1.5oz/42gr) butter, melted

⅓ cup flour

2 cups milk

8oz fresh goat cheese or feta

3oz freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup fresh bread crumbs

1 Tbsp minced fresh herbs (such as a combination of parsley, oregano and basil)

1. Heat the oven to 350°F degrees.
2. In a large stainless steel sauté pan, heat the oil and cook the sausage, breaking it up. Cook until browned (usually when the moisture has evaporated). Remove any excess fat.
3. Add the wine scraping up the fond. Continue to cook until the wine reduces and is mostly evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. 
4. Decrease the heat and stir in the kale, one handful at a time. Mix in the kale and cook until it begins to wilt and turn a bright green. Don't worry about overcooking the kale; it is impossible, unless you burn it! Remove from heat and set the pan aside.
5. Meanwhile, dump the bread crumbs in a medium sized bowl.
6. Melt all the butter in a saucepan. When melted, put 3 Tbsps of it into the breadcrumb bowl.
7. Into the remaining butter, whisk in the flour; continue wisking until starting to brown. Add the milk, whisking constantly, until it thickens into a sauce.
8. Add the crumbled goat cheese to the roux and continue to whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.
9. Pour the sauce into the sausage and kale and let sit 5 minutes to allow any more fond to lift. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to scrape up the fond and mix the sauce evenly in the sausage and kale.
10. Spoon the mixture into a shallow, 2 quart gratin dish.
11. To the breadcrumb and butter, add parmesan and minced fresh herbs. Mix thoroughly, then evenly distribute over the kale and sausage to form the topping.
12. Bake the gratin until the topping is golden-brown and the filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes (briefly broil at this point if not browned enough).
13. Cool slightly before serving with crusty bread if eating as a main dish.

Eggs in Marinade Oil

As many hardboiled eggs as will fit in your jar, covered with the marinade (at least 6)
2 cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup tomato paste
1 cup finely chopped parsley
½ to 1 head of garlic, peeled and minced
5 anchovies, minced 

1. Boil the eggs to the hard-boiled stage (see Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs). Allow the to cool completely, ideally immersed in water in the refrigerator, overnight.
2. Peel the shells from the eggs.
3. In a large jar with a lid, place the peeled eggs. 
4. In a bowl, beat the tomato paste and oil together, then stir in the garlic and anchovies, and finally the parsley. Pour this concoction over the eggs.
5. Screw on the lid and refrigerate overnight.
6. Eat the eggs with the oil, preferably with some crusty bread. It's best to let the concoction come up to room temperature if the oil has congealed in the refrigerator, and to let the aroma blossom as it should when you serve it. Excellent with crusty bread, recommended with cheeses and fresh fruit.

Crème Caramel Flan

Making this dessert is a mindfulness exercise. When making the caramel, paying close attention to the process is a must or the danger of burning it is very real. I by far prefer to use the dry method of making caramel over the wet method - adding water just seems to make it harder to get a good caramel.

This can be made in a cake pan or pie plate, or it can be made in 6 ramekins.

Note that the more egg yolk to egg white there is, the more creamy and tender the custard will be, and the more it will be difficult to serve in pretty slices. For the high yolk custards, I recommend using the individual ramekins.

Caramel

½ cup (3.8oz/110g) sugar

Custard

2 cup whole milk

2 tsps vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean

6 eggs (or 4 eggs and 1 yolk, OR 2 eggs and 3 yolks)

½ cup (3.8oz/110g) sugar

pinch nutmeg (optional)

1. Fill a dish or roasting pan (larger than what you have the creme caramel in) and fill with just enough water that it will be about a half inch below the creme caramel dish. Put this in the oven and pre-heat the oven to 325°F.
2. In a small stainless steel (for the light colour) saucepan, pour in the sugar. Shake the pan to evenly distribute the sugar - it shouldn't be too thick to allow for the sugar to heat evenly.
3. Without any stirring (!) heat the sugar over low to medium heat until it starts to melt. This will begin at the edges - because this is where it starts to melt it also means this is where caramelization starts. 
4. Be patient! DON'T turn up the heat - sugar can burn very quickly.
5. Once the sugar starts to melt around the edges, use a rubber spatula to bring the melted sugar into the middle of the pan.
6. Gently stir, just enough make sure all the sugar is dissolving.
7. Once everything has dissolved, continue to slowly cook, watching constantly and closely ('cause it can burn quickly), until you get the colour you want - light caramel colour = sweeter; dark caramel colour is more complex with bitter notes. 
8. Immediately pour the hot caramel into the cake tin or pie plate or in the individual ramekins and swirl to coat the bottom evenly. Set aside.
9. Pour the milk into the same saucepan, so that it dissolves and absorbs the remaining caramel on the bottom and sides for extra flavour. (If using the whole bean, split the vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the milk, and add the pod.)
10. Heat the milk just to the boiling point, turn off the heat, add the vanilla, cover, and set aside to infuse for at least 10 minutes. 
11. Meanwhile beat the eggs with the sugar. Add the nutmeg, if using. Once the milk has infused, whisk it into the egg mixture.
12. Strain the custard over the hardened caramel and set the pan in a larger dish or roasting pan which has been heating in the oven. (655/6=109g)
13. Bake until set, 45 minutes to an hour (20-30 minutes for individual serving dishes).
14. Remove the flan from the oven and from the water bath. Run a knife around the outside edge to loosen the it. Cool completely – even chill, if you like. To serve, flip the flan onto a plate, pour over any caramel remaining in the pan. Serve in wedges if in a cake tin or pie plate.

Jacques (apple spooncakes)

According to Elizabeth David, these are from the Perigord region of France. It's amazing how the texture improves if the batter is left to hydrolyze overnight. They are small, custardy delicious little pancakes.

1 cup flour (4¼oz/120g)

½ cup of milk

½ cup water

1 Tbsp oil

a pinch salt

1 tsp sugar + more for sprinkling

2 eggs

2 or 3 small apples (5oz/approx 300g) preferably old and wrinkled, grated. If skin is tough, remove it.

Optional: rum or brandy

the juice from ½ lemon

Butter

NOTE: This recipe should be started several hours before making, preferably left overnight. 

1. Mix together the flour, milk, water, oil, salt, sugar, and eggs; stir the batter very well, then let it rest for several hours to overnight.
2. Grate the apples and mix in the lemon juice (and/or booze). TIP: if it's a fresh apple, take fists-full of the grated flesh and squeeze out as much juice as possible. Lightly desiccated this way the apple will more easily soak up the lemon or booze, and won't make the pancakes soggy.
3. Coat a thick bottomed pan with a pat of butter and heat up until the butter just starts to froth. Turn the heat down to medium low for a slow fry.
4. Using a wooden mixing spoon, drop a spoonful of batter onto the hot pan, making room for more; you should be able to cook at least four little spooncakes at-a-time in the pan. They are done when both sides are nicely browned.
5. Put more butter in the pan for every new batch of spooncakes.
6. Serve immediately. Tasty with maple syrup and/or apple butter and yogurt.

Galettes de Memère (Ginger Molasses Cookies)

Every day after school I would cross the single road that ran through my home village from the school yard to my grandmother's house - an apartment built on the top floor of an old house owned by a second cousin. She would always have a snack (une collation) for me, usually a glass of milk and some cookies. Most often, these were the cookies she made. As is common with so many grandmothers of my generation, her recipe was "a smidgeon of this" and "mix in the usual way" kind of instructions. It took me a while to figure out how to make them, and now I make them regularly, usually for special occasions.

1 cup (260g) Blackstrap molasses or Black Treacle

1 cup (200g) brown sugar
1 cup (8oz/225gr) lard or butter

3¾ cup flour (450g)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp salt
½ cup boiling water

1. In a mixer bowl, whip together the molasses, brown sugar and butter until it turns pale.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the baking soda, the dry ginger, salt and flour.
3. When the butter mixture starts to go pale, slow the speed to the slowest! It suddenly and unexpectedly splashes everywhere as soon as you add the the boiling water if the beaters are going too fast. 
4. Mix thoroughly, then slowly add the dry mixture until combined.
5. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
6. Roll into balls (1 oz each), set on cookie sheets and flatten slightly.
7. Cook in 350°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes.