I had some broccoli that I needed to use, and I did not feel like eating them in pieces, so I figured if I made purée, what else could I combine them with. One thing led to one other and one thought led to one other, so here it is, a little timbale as we call it in French. In the culinary world it’s a deep and tall mold, and any preparation that has been mounted this way can be called timbale.

If you are in the mood for some greens, and a little salmon, this could be it. Believe it or not, this is an express dish, that is done in 30 minutes, so it’s always something to consider when your time is limited in the kitchen like most working people.

You can use baby kale instead of spinach, or any leafy green you like and use cauliflower instead of broccoli. This can be served as an appetizer or entrée for a light meal.

Ingredients for 4 people

• 200 g cooked smoked salmon, shredded
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 1 tbs olive oil + 1 tsp
• 2 garlic gloves, crushed
• 1 bag of baby spinach or baby kale
• salt and pepper

For the dill sauce

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 glass dry white wine
• fish fumet
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbs dill, chopped
• 2 tb crème fraîche

 Preparation

Start by making the sauce. Heat olive oil in a small pot, add shallots and soften for about 2 minutes. Add wine and fumet and reduce for about 5-7 minutes. Add lemon juice, dill and crème fraîche.

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add broccoli and cook until tender. Drain well and mash using a potato masher. Adjust with salt and pepper and a little olive oil. Keep warm.

In a large pot, heat olive oil and add garlic crushed. Stir to get the flavor out, then add greens at high temperature until wilted. Adjust with salt and pepper. Keep warm

Using a rind, mount in a plate by starting first with some broccoli purée at the bottom. Add spinach, then salmon, then proceed with another layer and end with the salmon.

Place some dill sauce around and serve hot or warm.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2014/06/smoke-salmon-broccoli-puree-and-spinach-timbale-dill-sauce/feed/ 0 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2013/12/brick-stuffed-with-curried-vegetable-yogurt-herb-sauce/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=brick-stuffed-with-curried-vegetable-yogurt-herb-sauce http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2013/12/brick-stuffed-with-curried-vegetable-yogurt-herb-sauce/#comments Sat, 21 Dec 2013 06:21:11 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=16279 Bricks de légumes au curry, sauce yaourt aux herbes

I got inspired by Indian samosas when I made those. I felt like eating something spicy, salty, but not greasy and since I bought a few brick packs when I was in France, with an expiration date coming close, I figured let’s make something that has the spirit of the samosa but a bit different. Voilà, c’est fait!  If you cannot find bricks, I have seen them sold online tough or in some specialty stores, you can use any kind of dough/wrappers/pastry sheets, etc.. (filo dough, puff pastry, etc…) I love bricks because they get crunchy and are very light.

The stuffing is a mixture of broccoli, yams, carrots and spices. Yams are not often used in French cuisine, but I am starting to like them and use them more often in some savory preparations. I don’t think I can make anything sweet with them, I have a slight blockage about that. In my mind, they’re potatoes and not supposed to be used in desserts. Like my Japanese neighbor has a blockage about rice pudding, I have one about yams combined with sugar.

I loved those crunchy rolls, light, flavorful with lots of texture. It will definitely please vegetarians or vegans if you replace the yogurt sauce with some mint chutney.

Ingredients for 5-6 large rolls

• 1 tbs olive oil (+1 for brushing)
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1 carrot, peeled and cut
• 1 small yam, peeled and cut
• 1 tbs cilantro, chopped
• salt and pepper

For the yogurt sauce

• 250 ml plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp mint, finely chopped
• 1 tsp scallions, chopped
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper

 Preparation

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add vegetables and cook until tender. Drain and chop vegetables roughly and set aside.

In a pan, heat olive oil, add onion and ginger and let soften. Add garlic until fragrant, a few minutes. Add all the spices, and stir well to combine flavors. Add vegetables, cilantro, salt and pepper and mix well until the vegetables are well coated in the spices. Remove from heat and let cool.

In the meantime, prepare the yogurt sauce by mixing all the ingredients together. Refrigerate.

Take one brick sheet placing it flat on a wooden surface. Place 2-3 tbs of vegetable mixture (depending on how big you want to make the roll) in the middle and roll like you would for a spring roll. Proceed the same way with the other brick sheets. Brush olive oil on top of each roll.

Bake in the oven at 380F for about 10-15 minutes and turn around the rolls to the other side until both sides are golden brown and crunchy. Serve hot with yogurt sauce and a green salad.

Here I am, in France again visiting my parents. I made this recipe while in the US a while ago and never managed to finish it. So I figured to post it from France even if it has nothing to do with my stay, nor with what I eat here.

I bought wild salmon, I don’t feel very good about buying wild fish, since we have been fishing way to much and it does hurt the environment, buying farm raised fishes makes me worry about the antibiotics and the way it’s raised…even if it said it’s sustainable…how sustainable is it? In this case, I don’t know what makes me feel better. I think veganism would be a great way to help the environment but that’s not a realistic approach to the problem.

Salmon has not been on the menu for a while, so I thought why not…I love this dish, it’s very quick to make, so if you happen to have some salmon and have no inspiration on how to prepare it, this would be an nice option. It does not require many fancy ingredients, just the basics. What makes this salmon fragrant are the herbs and walnuts mixed with bread crumbs, the crust gets crunchy and so flavorful.

As for the salsa, I have no idea why I called it “salsa” it is definitely not a puree, it has the ingredients of a salsa but that’s about it. I couldn’t find a better name for it, so salsa it will be. No matter how you name a dish, as long as it tastes good, that’s the most important thing.

 Ingredients for 2

For the salmon

• 2 salmon fillets
• 2 egg whites, beaten
• 5 tbs panko breadcrumbs
• 2 tbs chopped walnuts, finely chopped
• 1 tbs mixed herbs, chopped (tarragon, parsley, chives, etc…)
• 1 tsp black sesame seeds
• salt and pepper

For the broccoli salsa

• 2 large broccoli heads
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 1 tbs cilantro, chopped
• 1 large tomato, seedless, peeled and diced finely
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

 Preparation

For the salmon

In a mixing container, combine all the ingredients together except salmon fillets and egg whites. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on each sides of salmon. Dip each side of salmon in egg whites, then coat each side with the bread/herb mixture.

Heat olive oil in a pan, then cook salmon until one side is cooked and golden brown. Turn on the other side and proceed the same way.

For the broccoli salsa

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook broccoli until tender. Drain well and mash finely using a potato masher. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix well.

You might say that this is not real risotto since it’s made with brown arborio rice, so as with any brown rices, you don’t get the creaminess of regular arborio. Honestly I love the texture of brown arborio, it’s chewiness, nutty flavor and wholesomeness. Of course, you can use regular arborio rice if you prefer a more traditional risotto, or short brown rice if you cannot find brown arborio. Then of course, cooking time needs to be adjusted. Brown rice take longer too cook, so be patient. Usually, I keep the water where I cooked the broccoli to cook the rice, it will add extra broccoli flavor. In case your kids are reluctant to eat vegetables, you can try to hide them like in this risotto, it certainly will do the trick.

Ingredients for 4

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1.6 cups (or 300 g) brown arborio rice
• 1 cup dry white wine
• vegetable broth
• 2 cups broccoli
• 3 tbs heavy cream
• 3 tbs freshly grated parmesan (reggiano)

Preparation

Start first by cooking the broccoli. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil, add broccoli and cook until tender. Drain and keep cooking water aside. Keep a few broccoli florets for decoration. Mash broccoli with potato masher until you obtain a very fine mash or puree, the texture needs to be somehow like a cream.

Put broccoli cream back at low heat and add cream . Mix well and adjust with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Heat olive oil in a pot, add shallots and cook until tender. Add rice and coat with oil for a few minutes, then gradually add wine and broth and broccoli water. Continue process until the rice is cooked and tender but still firm.

Add cream of broccoli to the rice and parmesan. Stir well and cook for a few minutes. Serve hot

Nothing too fancy in this post, but rather a very simple combination of shrimps and broccoli. Very few ingredients that work well together.

Vegetable purée is a great way to have the kids who are reluctant to eat vegetable actually eat them and like them too! The vegetables are hidden is some kids-friendly texture and less intimidating to a kid. Instead of the shrimps, you could perfectly use white fish or salmon as well. You don’t need a lot of ingredients nor fancy ones to make this dish that will end up pleasing everyone. I bought broccoli for my dog and bird who eat them as we would eat candies.

I have a strange relationship with this vegetable, I am not a huge fan of broccoli, even though I like them, there is a little contradiction in all of this. I don’t like the fact that they’re everywhere and restaurants add broccoli in many of their side dishes, so they became the vegetable “bouche-trou” literally meaning “stopgap” or “filler”, (another one of those words that are had to translate and could not find any other one). Then, I like them because they’re not very expensive, you can keep them for a while, and they add a little color in your plate…and are filled with vitamin C…but they are still on my ‘ordinary’ list of vegetables such as carrots and peas.

I prefer broccoli in soups and purée, rather than sautés or in pieces. Nothing is wasted in this dish, since the stems of the broccoli are used as well as the florets, so one broccoli head you usually get at the store is enough for about 4 people.

This dish has great complementary flavors and textures, the lemon adds a citrusy flavor to the naturally sweet shrimps all enhanced by almonds and smooth broccoli. With its few ingredients and its simplicity, it’s a great dish.

Ingredients for 4

For the purée

• 1 large broccoli head equivalent of 3 cups
• 2 tbs heavy cream or crème fraîche
• salt and pepper

For the shrimps

• 20 large shrimps, deveined
• 2 shallots
• 2 tbs sliced almond, toasted
• 1 large tomato, sliced
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the broccoli

Cut the floret of broccoli, and the stem. Cut the stem in small pieces. Bring a pot of water to a boil, cook broccoli and stems for a few minutes, about 4-5 minutes. Do not overcook broccoli or they’ll lose they vibrant green color.

Using an immersion blender, mix broccoli nto a purée texture. Place in a pot and add cream. Cook always stirring for a few minutes. Adjust with salt and pepper.

For the shrimps

Heat olive oil in a skillet, add shallots and brown them. Add shrimps, cook for a few minutes until the shrimps turn pink and are just cooked, add lemon juice and cook for a few more minutes. Adjust with salt and pepper.

Grill tomato slices in a grill pan. Cook on one side for a few minutes.

Sprinkle almonds on top of puree, place shrimps on top of grilled tomato, add one tsp of shrimp juice and sprinkle with sliced almonds.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/04/eat-your-broccoli-almond-shrimps-with-broccoli-puree/feed/ 15 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/12/fall-colors-soup-of-spinach-broccoli-leeks-with-whole-wheat-orzo-and-mimolette/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=fall-colors-soup-of-spinach-broccoli-leeks-with-whole-wheat-orzo-and-mimolette http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/12/fall-colors-soup-of-spinach-broccoli-leeks-with-whole-wheat-orzo-and-mimolette/#comments Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:42:45 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=5926 Couleurs d’Automne – Soupe aux épinards, broccoli et poireaux, aux risoni complets et mimolette

Winter is soup time, and when I ran into mimolette, I could not resist. I had not seen Mimolette before in the US and I was so excited. I had planned to make a gratin, and a soup with it, but the cheese did not not make it to either dish. I just ate it all and in a very quick and fashionable manner.

Mimolette is a French cheese made in Lille, the North of France. It’s also called “Boule de Lille“, it’s a cheese produced with cow milk, with a condensed raw flesh (pâte pressée). Its deep orange color comes from a natural coloring called “roucou” which is a plant used in some cheeses such as Gouda, Cheddar or Edam and used in Europe as food coloring. Mimolette‘s hard texture is similar to Dutch Gouda. The older it gets, the harder the texture becomes, and I really love extra old Mimolette, it tends to have a more pronounced character.

I somehow love salty cheeses, they go perfectly well in soups, gratins, and enhance many dishes. This soup made with three green vegetables is full of vitamins and flavors. When I make “creamy” and thick soups like this one, I like it served either with toasted bread or sometimes with small pasta cooked in the soup. You get a wholesome and wonderful meal. Risoni is the Italian name for “orzo”which in Italy is barley, so it can get confusing. My mom used to make soups when I was a child with risoni, it’s very common in Italy to use small pasta like this one or ditalini in soups.

The other important ingredient in this soup is the garlic that adds a lot of character to the broth, it balances out the earthy flavors of the green vegetables.

Ingredients for 4

• 100 g orzo
• 1 1/2 leek, diced
• 2 cups broccoli
• 2 cups raw spinach
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and whole
• 6 tbs mimolette, grated
• 2 tbs olive oil
• vegetable broth
• salt and pepper

Preparation

In a large pot, heat olive oil, add broccoli and leeks and cook for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are coated with olive oil. Add 3 garlic cloves, whole and peeled. Add broth. For broth quantity, it needs to cover vegetables to about 1 cm of liquid. Adjust with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are cooked all the way through about 20-30 minutes.

When vegetables are cooked add spinach leaves (if using baby spinach, no need to chop them, otherwise you will have to chop them roughly). Cook and extra 5-10 minutes. Add crushed garlic and cook an extra 5 minutes.

Keep about two laddles of vegetables aside. Blend the rest in a blender into a smooth purée. Place the vegetables pieces back into the pot with the purée and place back on pot at low heat. When it starts boiling, add orzo, and stir well. Keep on stirring for a while to prevent pasta from sticking. If the consistency is too thick add a little broth. Cook until al dente and serve in bowls. Add 1 tbs of mimolette and sprinkle with olive oil.

Don’t you love when your refrigerator is filled with vegetables? You open the door and all you can see is a bundle of colors. Unfortunately, today, I only had a bunch of broccoli left with a red bell pepper. The good thing is that tomorrow I am going food shopping with a friend of mine to the Berkeley Bowl! I am already excited about it. It will be her first trip there, I cannot wait to see her when she sees the fruits and vegetable section. Some girls enjoy going to the SPA or get a manicure, and I get the same excitement when I go to the Berkeley Bowl. How weird is that?

Since I only had broccoli and bell pepper, I figured I would combine the two. I love those galettes dearly. They’re tender, melt in your mouth and so light!  You can use any vegetables you like and substitute mozzarella with gorgonzola cheese as well. The vegetables just needs to have some consistency so you can mash them in a puree, so it’s better not to use any leafy vegetable. I mixed a little chopped spinach with it, but more would not have worked because of the liquid they tend to produce. Those galettes are a good way to have your kids eat veggies, in case you have fussy ones. They won’t feel they’re eating vegetables, and the melting mozzarella in the middle is a selling point!

I did not add too many ingredients to the galettes and lose the broccoli flavor, since the harissa sauce will enhance them. Harissa is a hot Middle Eastern sauce, served with couscous. You can buy it in tubes and delay it in water. I like to make mine with red bell peppers.

You can serve those with a light salad, and you’re all set for lunch.

Ingredients for 2

For the galettes

• 1/2 head of broccoli
• 6 tbs pre cooked oats or regular oats soaked in hot water
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 2 handful chopped frozen spinach (optional)
• a few basil leaves 
• 1 fresh mozzarella ball, cut in small squares
• 1 tbs plain breadcrumbs
• salt and pepper

For the harissa sauce

• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• tabasco
• 2 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the galettes

Heat olive oil and brown shallots, add broccoli cut in small florets, salt and pepper. When broccoli are cookded mash them with a potato masher. Add defrost spinach and add to the broccoli. Add basil and garlic. 

Add enough water to the oats to form a thick paste. Add to the broccoli, and mix well. 

Take a small quantity in your hand and place a piece of mozzarella in the middle, close the ball well so that the mozzarella will not leek when in the oven and make a patty about 2 inches wide. Dip each side of the patty in bread crumbs. Cook in a pre heated oven at 375F for about 15-20 minutes, or until both sides are golden.

For the harissa sauce

Broil red bell pepper in the oven until the skin get charred. Remove from the oven, let cool. When cooled, remove the skin, and the seeds and cut in pieces. In a mixer, add red pepper and all other ingredients and mix to a smooth texture. Adjust with salt and pepper and serve with galettes.