Series Two: Part Thirteen - Coquilles St. Jacques a la parisienne & l'espadon a la provencale

Napier - fishing boats

Napier  - the seductive nature of the sea, the plentiful supply of fresh fish, a warm autumnal day... after a morning of  shopping for a ball dress and other life essential items for the daughters it was time to get the necessary ingredients for this weekend's Julia's recipe. Caroline had "THE" book in hand as we had a reflective pause at Pandora pond (Napier) - a magical estuary which includes a walk way and a well utilised swimming spot. Just across the road is  a seafood supply shop where we purchased scallops and swordfish. Before leaving for home we acknowledged the now rested fishing boats in the harbour, which had previously been working hard to capture the goods we now carried back to our abode.

I have fond memories of my first introduction to scallops at my Grandfather's 60th birthday dinner at the "Tennyson restaurant" in Napier. I was quite intrigued with these small squishy like blobs although my young palate didn't appreciate the delights within.

I chose to use Julia's scallops and mushrooms in white wine sauce recipe. The scallops and mushrooms are added to a simmering concoction of wine, shallots, bay leaf and s&p. The scallops and mushrooms are removed after 5 minutes and the liquid is reduced down to one cup. The preparation of the sauce parisienne is followed with the final assembly being a blend of the sauce and scallop and mushroom mix. Imke, who had just emerged from the depths of her study gave it the thumbs up.

The scallops were followed by a return to Provence, with  Swordfish steaks in wine, tomatoes and herbs.The swordfish was firstly marinated in lemon juice and salt before being panned fried in hot olive oil to brown on both sides. A tomato, herb spread was smeared on top of the fish and the dish was allowed to simmer away. The separation of the fish and sauce occurred to allow for some further reduction of the sauce and the addition of tomato paste and parsley. I must admit I consciously made the decision not to add further butter (the scallops had their fair share!) - and voila the dish was served, accompanied with potatoes and vegetables. All family members ate this dish with relish despite the traditional groan from eldest daughter that I had ruined perfectly good fish by adding a sauce! However I had redeemed myself as a mother by having a great day out in Napier!



Caroline with Julia at Pandora pond

Imke sampling the scallops

Swordfish

Series Two: Part Twelve - Ratatouille

Auguste Gusteau claims... "Anyone can cook" ..
(Lewis, B. (producer); Bird, B (director); "Ratatouille" 2007 Walt Disney Studios)




... a great vote of confidence to all. Ratatouille is one of those great Disney films that you can watch multiple times with appeal to all ages. I took particular interest in the serving of the ratatouille dish to compare notes with Julia's recipe. On further investigation the magnificent stack of eggplant, zucchini and tomato that Linguini and Remy the rat serve to the restaurant critic, Anton Ego, is actually a dish referred to as Confit Byaldi.




Ratatouille originated from Provence and is often referred to as peasant food. Julia advises that a really good ratatouille involves cooking the individual elements separately before they are arranged in the casserole to partake of a brief communal simmer. Julia proudly claims that this recipe is the only one she could find where each vegetable retains its own shape and character.


After a frenzy session of slicing and chopping, the pre-salted eggplant and zucchini were sauteed in hot olive oil to brown slightly. Next the onions and peppers were slowly cooked until tender with a couple of cloves of garlic thrown in. This mix was covered in a tomato pulp and cooked until the tomato begun to render their juice.Using a fire proof casserole dish, layer the tomato mix, eggplant, zucchini and parsley and simmer on the stove top over low heat for about 20 minutes.




The completed dish did as Julia predicted - the vegetables maintained their shape and the kitchen was infused with the perfume of essence of Provence. It's a recipe well worth trying... and you don't even need a "little chef" to get a result that you would be happy to serve at Gusteau's restaurant.

Series Two: Part Eleven -Moules a la Provencale & Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons

The continual saga of stove problems meant I had to source a recipe from Julia that did not need the oven baking function. Hmm.. I felt like a sea related theme - the unseasonal warm weather we are having in Hawke's Bay, mixed with good Hawke's Bay wine - the Fish Filets poached in White Wine with Mushrooms - Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons ... ticked the boxes.


The wine used for tonights dinner was a Sileni Pinot Gris 2014. Sileni was a feature winery this weekend. I crossed the finish line of the inaugural HB (half) marathon the day before which was right outside of the welcoming doors of the Sileni Estate winery. Being on call meant that I could only sniff the fumes and had to make do with the sensible option of consuming an electrolyte drink and a banana.


Knowing that alcohol burns off with cooking I used my Sileni wine with relish for both of my Julia's recipies. The entrée was Mussels on the half shell, Grantineed - I steamed open the mussels in wine first. Then they were topped with a mix that included butter (of course), shallots, bread crumbs, garlic and parsley. A little time under the grill (that part of the oven was still working) until the butter was bubbling and the crumbs were browned lightly... then they were ready to eat.


My discerning eldest daughter Caroline, who does not like mussels was quite happy with a French, garlic bread. However she was quite disgusted with the main dish and how I managed to ruin what was perfectly good fish by adding wine, mushrooms, onions and cheese. Luckily I could extract a portion that wasn't too coated with the offending sauce.


Filets de Possion Bercy aux Champignons is one of a selection of famous French dishes involving  filet of fish poached in white wine and coated with a lovely, creamy sauce made from the poaching liquid. The Bercy is the simplest of the white wine fish sauces (that's my level). The poaching liquid is thickened with beurre manie - a flour and butter paste - then enriched with cream.
I must say despite the cream, butter and cheese the sauce complimented the fish very nicely - not being too heavy (despite the calorie count).... and no baking function required.

Back up entrée

Sileni HB Wine

Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons

Series Two: Part Ten - Marrons &Gigor a la Moutarde

Mother'- Day - a day to celebrate being a mother, having a wonderful mother and remembering those mother's gone. I believe my Grandma Olive would have liked Julia Child and her shenanigans in the kitchen. Olive was a Taurus (birthday just a couple of days ago) - she was elegant but feisty, strong, with a little pinch of naughtiness and she lovingly prepared the most wonderful cooked lunch time meals for us. So in memory of Olive, this mother's day lunch was a mix of her favourite lunchtime fare infused with a touch of Julia. 

As a little starter, we roasted some chestnuts - marrons. These were sourced from our neighbours at Mill Stream Gardens (a source of great gifts and magical lotions and potions). This wasn't a particular Julia recipe, although Julia does provide some guidance on how to prepare and cook these little morsels. Chestnuts have an outside shell and a bitter inside skin, both of which must be removed before the chestnuts can be used. Roasting was a quick easy way to prepare, although don't forget to stab the skin with a knife before hand otherwise you may experience grenade like explosions in your oven.

The roast lamb was the stable favourite. Back in the day there use to be quite a distinction between lamb types and in historic French cookery books you will read an array of terms. These include Hothouse Lamb and Milk fed lambs - Agneau de Lait & Agneau de Pauillac, which is very young lamb raised on milk and considered a prime delicacy. Goodness! We were going for a la supermarket lamb today.

I prefer lamb cooked to a rare, rosy and juicy state so adherence to cooking times was essential. For the lamb I used Julia's herbal mustard coating. This is a combination of Dijon mustard, soy sauce, garlic, rosemary, powered ginger and olive oil. You just paint the mixture on the lamb and throw it in a roasting pan to cook. No searing or basting required. Accompaniments to the lamb included roast potatoes and cooked vegetables. Dessert-were non-Julia and included, what is affectionately referred to in the family, as a "scream sponge".

The lunch was had at my parents house, with the chestnuts and lamb being cooked in the barbeque. I should fess up that I didn't actually cook the chestnuts or the lamb ... the menfolk were left holding the cook book and instructed to cook on, whilst the my mother and daughter and self enjoyed a pleasant autumn walk... it was Mother's day after all - I think my Grandmother would have approved!

Marrons

Left holding the cook book

Beautifully roasted lamb

"Scream Sponge"

Series Two: Part Nine - Ris de Veau et Cervelles

Why is it that the thymus gland for digestive purposes is referred to as "sweetbread" but brains just remains brains. No romantic reframing - with brains there is no mistaking what you are eating. Both from the term and also that characteristic convolution of gray matter and the underlying cerebral white matter- it is a give away.
Brains for dinner didn't quite conjure up the excited and can't wait to eat it response from the family. At the best I had two "I'm willinging to try it" and one "You don't expect me to eat that". It was a call out to my parents who I know were open to eating it (as served to me as a child) so that my gourmet dish was not prepared in vain.
I sourced the brains from "Vetreo" a Mediterranean food speciality shop in Napier - $14.80 for 6. The product was prepared in Wairoa at Affco for the French market - seemed very appropriate. I was going to stop at that, however the "Pak n Save" al cheapo supermarket had a special on sweet breads - I couldn't believe my luck.


Julia dedicates a section within Chapter Seven in Mastering the Art of French cooking on "Sweetbreads and Brains". Both pretty much have the same texture and flavour, but brains are more delicate. Both need to be soaked in several hours in cold water before they are cooked to soften the filament patches and to whiten them. There was quite a section explaining soaking and trimming, however the sweetbreads seemed pretty much trimmed and ready and the brains only needed a little snipe off of the opaque bits at the base.


For the sweetbreads the preliminary cooking that Julia recommend was braising. The soaked sweetbreads are cooked in butter to firm them a little, then baked with wine and herbs. For the sauce I chose the "Ris de Veau a la crème" - creamed sweetbreads. This was a successful entrée with even eldest daughter reporting "Sweat breads were quite nice actually despite being from Julia Childs."


The brains were for the main dish ... "Cervelles en Matelote" - Calf brains in red wine with mushrooms and onions". I had lamb brains which Julia reassuringly noted that these were equally as good as calves. The brains were firstly cooked in wine and a herb stock before being sliced and arranged into the serving dish. A sauce which had a tomato base was made and poured over the brains and the prepared mushrooms ( I didn't have any of the small brown braised onions at the ready so I left them out).  I served these with mashed potato and broccili. As an emergency standby I can cheerios at the ready.


All adults readily ate their serving but the girls relied on the cheerios for their dose of protein that night!

The brain's

The sweetbreads

Gourmet taste testers

Eating brains!

Series Two: Part Eight - La Frite

It is hard to go past a hot chip - and Julia, as a keen consumer of anything potato, includes the preparation of the French fry in her 1972 episode "The Potato Show". It seemed fitting due to the fact that this fried concoction has French in its title. However according to Wikipedia there are some contentious theories of its origin with the French and Belgian both claiming ownership. Some people believe that the term "French" was introduced when British and American soldiers arrived in Belgium during World War One and consequently tasted Belgium fries. They supposedly called them "French" as it was the local language and the official language of the Belgium Army at that time.






Julia demonstrates four different dishes in this "French Fry free for all" ... (yet again Julia can't resist the use of alliteration of the f word- but in the best possible taste. Refer to the fish show for more entertaining uses of words starting with the letter "f".) There is the souffle potato, the potato chip, the potato nest and the French fry. There were pots of fat heating up all over the place and I have never seen such plentiful use of paper towels. I could almost feel the fat lining my mouth as I watched - it was fat overload! I decided to limit myself and just focus on the French fries and souffle potato. I also did not have the bird nest nets to cook the peeled potato in.


First step was the cutting of the potato and this was the opportunity for Julia to show case some French fry cutters. With some grunting and puffing Julia shows off one particular appliance that obviously is not easy to use, then quickly summarises that a knife is the best. There is not much guidance  about the type of potato to use apart from the recommendation to experiment with the caution that "potatoes are strange animals". The girls had recently battled the vegetable garden to find the potatoes within and had unearthed a good number - there were going to be used for the job.
For both the French fry and souffle potato they are firstly cooked in 300 F hot fat then placed in a 400 F fat. For the souffle potato the rectangle potato shape should then puff up - which did for the first lot that were cooked.


However, there were two technical difficulties experienced when cooking. We had a power cut earlier in the day, which had thrown the oven thermostat unbeknown to me. The tarragon chicken that was supposed to be cooked, was only warm. I had started cooking the French fries and the hungry gannets were circulating.  First course - fries. Second course - chicken with healthy vegetables!
The other technical difficulty was that we had another power-cut right in the middle of deep frying. After the lighting of candles and the search for a deck of cards, power was back on and cooking could recommence. At this stage I had had enough and just cooked the remaining prepared potato straight in the 400 F fat.
I did however remain vigilant and ensure safety at all time after witnessing Julia burn herself and lose the handle of the basket in the deep fryer and have to skilfully reclaim it.
The family didn't seem to care that the souffle potato were not filled with air, and that the French fries could have been slightly more cooked inside. Whatever the origin of this rectangle size, cholesterol filled, cardiac causing arteriosclerosis piece of potato, it sure tasted good.

Harvesting the potatoes

The first taste test

Power cut!

Series Two: Part Seven - Jarrets de devant

Autumnal

It is time to slow down... after a hectic week of end of a school term, Imke breaking world records, Caroline hitting the stage with tap, Jamie away in Melbourne and two of us celebrating birthday's ... French cooking took a back step last week. Imke wasn't going to accept the takeaway pizza's midweek as a sufficient birthday dinner. Her request was for a dinner of lamb shank' s... Julia to the rescue. A slow paced, warming comfort dinner dish - complements the autumnal weather we are experiencing of late.

The only reference for lamb shanks in "Mastering the art of French Cooking" is as a variation to Navarin Printanier (Lamb stew with spring vegetables. Apparently lamb shanks (jarrets de devant) are considered part of the shoulder in France, so no special recipes are given for them. Julia suggests that they may be boned or left whole and that any of the lamb stew recipes will do. OK!

Preparation for chef:

1. One glass of red wine (or two) - my choice was a Cabernet Sauvignon - from the Catholics (Mission Estate Winery - Hawke's Bay) - it is a Sunday after all

2.  Music playing on stereo  - Latin (I like to infuse the best of cultures together)

Preparation for Lamb Shanks:

1. Brown lamb shanks (don't forget to dry off first)

2. Sprinkle with sugar and toss until sugar has caramelized

3. Toss again but this time with salt and pepper and flour

4. Add beef stock, tomato paste, garlic, rosemary, bay leaf and cook away in the oven

5. After about an hour add spuds, onions and carrots

A perfect dinner to complement the ebb and flow of this week. The time efficiency of this dish enabled me to have a nana nap this afternoon, the girls to bury the old chook that died (zoom in the autumnal pic and you will see the evidence - an animal death always seems to happen when Jamie is away) - and a rather relaxed ending to the evening... slow down goal achieved.

Preparation for chef

Compliments from the birthday girl

Series Two: Part Six - A little bit of Sole and Creme Caramel

This was supposed to be a blog about the "Spinach Twins" disc one number five from the "The French Chef". I had purchased the spinach from the supermarket in the morning, and had settled down early afternoon to watch the recipe unfold on DVD. It was looking promising - a spinach turnover was being described. After dutifully taking notes of preparation of spinach including the high chop action with the stainless steel knife, the video stopped functioning and I could go no further. Damn it! Julia didn't even have the recipe recorded in her "Mastering the Art of French Cooking".
I did have Tarakihi fish on the menu for the nights dinner, so technically I could have mastered this week by following the crumb fish recipe. I took a photo of one cooked deliciously golden brown to provide some evidence of mastery of cooking....although we all really know that it is simply throwing the fish in some flour, egg and breadcrumbs and frying! So to overcome the disappointment of the spinach I have ventured out to new frontiers - the Crème Caramel dessert. It is rather off putting when Julia describes this as one of the dishes that separates chefs. Quite partial to custard and having plenty of time I commenced preparation. A highlight of this dish was the inaugural use of the copper pot that I had purchased from Julia's favourite cookery supply place in Paris. This was used for preparing the caramel, and it did a super job. The fun part was swirling the caramel around the baking dish like a lava flow in perpetual motion until it cools and sets. The recipe called for 6 large eggs and 5 egg yolks (lucky I had also purchased eggs this morning) warmed milk and some vanilla extract which I clumsily tipped over rather zealously but managed to avoid overdose of the dish.
Julia recommends baking in a pan of boiling water in the lower third of the oven in a 350F oven for about an hour. Hour went past and the mixture was pretty runny .. hmm more time... after an additional hour of cooking I decided its now or never. Off to the freezer to cool down because I wanted to sample this before midnight!
The high anxiety moment of unmoulding worked (whew). One caramel custard ready for eating.. and it went down a treat - very smooth and light - no guilt at all.
Now what to do with that spinach...

Series 2: Part 5 Potage Parmentier & Gigot de pre-sale roti

"There is a sheep in the garden" - this descriptive comment from daughter was not a surprise, as this one elusive sheep was often led astray by the call of the garden's green luxuriant grass. Leaving the company of the flock this independent thinking black faced suffock is often seen strutting around the property doing its own thing. With husband Jamie being overseas it wouldn't have surprised me if the whole lot were on the front lawn as there always seems to be animal or other "events" that want to test my perseverance and survival skills when home alone with the children. This fortnight included the death of a chook ... with the burial being an event in itself with the ground being so hard to dig up; the cat bringing in a dead rat and delivering it right in front of my mother  who was staying the night to help out (sure it was a sign of thanks); the water tank needing changing from one tank to the other late at night which meant wiggling underneath the house to reset the pump which didn't go particularly smoothly. Each night I was comatosed in bed - which meant I didn't even realise there had been a fatal crash down the road in the middle of the night with road closures in place. So I had a little interlude from Julia (she would have understood)...


Easter weekend was upon us, and with "Sausages" as daughter Caroline now describes our free reign sheep, I was inspired to cook a nice roast lamb with a French twist from Julia.
 I coated the lamb (brought from the super) with a mixture of mustard, soy sauce, garlic, rosemary from the garden, ginger and olive oil, which causes the lamb to become a beautiful brown as it roasts. Hardly a challenging French recipe, so I added the addition of a leek and potato soup as the entrée as a dish I had not made before. Julia introduces this recipe with...
 "Leek and potato soup smells good, tastes good, and is simplicity itself to make".
Its hard to go past an introduction like that! OK it didn't make the challenging criteria but the soup went down nicely with some freshly baked rolls I whipped up (a true trusted recipe from back in the 80's).
Being in the spirit of Easter the meal was completed with a divine chocolate brownie - thanks Jill.
And "Sausages" remains safe for another month or two!

Jill with Easter Bunny (Caroline)

Imke - preparing the potage paramentier

Michael - official carver

Series 2: Part 4 Salade Nicoise

Balmy summer evenings extending into March called for some fare that was light but tasty. Julia's rendition of Salade Nicoise - a Mediterranean Combination Salad from Nice - seemed ideal being both "nourishing and beautiful".
 In the 20 odd minutes that Julia has to instruct us on how to create the most famous of the composed salads, viewers are treated with video clips of Julia browsing the Nice market places. Hands are dipped into buckets of capers, olives, and whole salted anchovy's. Back in the kitchen Julia assembles the key ingredients for the salade - lettuce, blanched beans, tomatoes, potatoes, tuna, hard boiled eggs, anchovy, green herbs and of course the French dressing.
The lettuce is the first to arrange on the platter, with Julia taking the opportunity to show case some of latest lettuce drying devices. This is absolutely hilarious with the last item trumping the rest. This lettuce drier is unique in that you create the centrifugal force by pulling on a rope like you were starting a lawnmower. And according to Julia this Swiss design was created by "little old ladies in white tennis shoes" (go figure that statement!) Once you have your lettuce in place it is just the matter of arranging it all on the platter.
Tonight we had a shared dinner with our neighbours who supplied some delicious home made sausages. This worked beautifully with the Salade Nicoise. Of course we took the opportunity together to watch Julia's show "Stuffing a sausage" as our evening entertainment.... and review the episode Salade Nicose where my presenting salad was found to be as composed as Julia's! And as it was yet another beautiful balmy evening we set up our theatre outside and watched Julia underneath the stars.

Series 2: Part 3 Bouillabaisse

In keeping with the Oceania theme after completing another swimming challenge in the Pacific Ocean with my swimming buddy Anne, it seemed appropriate to have a dinner focused on the bounty one can acquire from such an environment. I was hoping for a less dramatic ending for the meal than the ending of my swim, where in my eagerness to cross the finish line to carve off a couple of seconds I did a dramatic dash and promptly tripped on the mat and face planted! Lucky for me I wasn't in first position coming out of the water (fat chance) so it was not witnessed by the entire swimming entourage.


In the French Chef television series one, Julia dedicates two episodes to fish. The "whole fish story" episode provided the fish fundamentals. It was difficult to concentrate on the content as I couldn't stop being distracted by the numerous alliterations that Julia used with the word fish and I was too busy enjoying and having a chuckle that I had to do a few rewinds of the DVD.... "French are fond of fresh fish, "Flat fish family" "Flexible fish knife" "Fabulous fish professor" "Fish frame" ... with Julia even admitting that "everything you do with fish seems to start with a "f". They were tips not only how to prepare, gut and cook your fish  but also how to eat it. A highlight of the show was the inclusion of a video of a French Poisson professor - she knew her fish and skill-fully whipped her knife around whilst handling the fish with a delicate and respectful manner. She demonstrated "fixing fish" which included wrapping the boned fillets of a fish around its still attached fish head so it resembled a rams head with curled horns. Another dramatic display was threading the fillets back through the fish open mouth!
With a knowledge of the fish fundamentals  I decided to cook the Bouillabaisse for the meal.
Bouillabaisse originated as a simple, Mediterranean fisherman's soup made from the catch of the day and flavoured with the typical condiments of the region - olive oil, garlic, leeks, onions, tomatoes and herbs.
First you make the aromatic broth - boiling the soup ingredients for about 40 minutes. For the fish addition for the broth I used  x2 snapper heads. Once the soup has been strained it was time to cook the fish. Julia recommends you should pick six or more varieties of fresh fish. There was only 3 of us eating so I reduced the fish variety to whole Tarakihi, deep sea cod pieces and mussels. Once we had gutted the Tarakihi and cleaned the mussels they all went into the boiling broth. Once cooked, the fish was removed to a platter and the broth served in a tureen which was lined with croutes - and after the obligatory pose for the camera... it was served and eaten immediately.
There was an unanimous decision that this was a fabulous flavoursome fish feast, fit for felicitation.

Gutting

Snapper heads

Caroline and Anne

Series 2: Part 2 - Bread of Life

The Potato Show was the title for the first episode from Julia's television series - "The French Chef 1". Apparently the potato only became fashionable around 1771 and was referred to thereafter as the "bread of life".  Julia found over 200 hundred French recipes for the potato but limited the 1/2 hour TV session to four recipes. These consisted of a combination of scalloped and grated potato dishes.


I choose to cook the "Crepes de pommes de terre" -  grated potato pancakes. Eldest daughter Caroline approved of this as it ticked the potato and pancake box.
4 oz of cream cheese was required to be mixed with one egg with the grated potato at the ready. You had to move smartly as Julia warned that potatoes brown quickly and that would cause "bad psychology for the cook" and I definitely did not want that!


Once you had grated the potato you had to squeeze the living daylights out of them to remove the water. This was referred to as the "amusing part" and I carefully followed Julia's food hygiene requirements of using a clean towel for this part as "not to offend anyone". Once squeezed and mixed with the other ingredients it was simply just the task to pan fry. After watching Julia attempt a few flips with "the courage of her convictions" and losing some of the potato across the kitchen I decided a relaxed non-adrenalin infused turn over with a simple fish slice would do the trick.


The potato pancake went down nicely as an accompaniment to the steak and salad we had for dinner that night... and it got the tick of approval from one of the most discerning food critics (and you thought Michelin rating was difficult!)

Approval from the food critic

Grating

Squeezing

Pan frying