Originally, I had something else in mind, I wanted to use this tofu as the stuffing of some filo dough triangles. Unfortunately, sometimes things change…since I had no filo dough in my refrigerator. The funny thing is that I was so convinced I had some, so here I am all ready to roll the filo dough but no filo dough at the horizon. I needed a plan B.

Since tofu works well in many different ways, I figure cakes it will be, just no dough.

I wanted some Mediterranean flavors in my tofu, and what’s more Mediterranean than tapenade? This wonderful olive paste that is so fragrant. In this tapenade, I did not include anchovies, I kept it vegan which would go better with this dish.

The great thing about tofu is that it’s naturally bland, so you can season the way you like. It absorbs whatever spice and ingredient you combine it with.

I loved this dish and will definitely make it again for vegetarians and non vegetarians, including myself.

Ingredients for 2

For the tofu cakes

• 230 g extra firm tofu
• 1 carrot, peeled and grated
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 handful kale, finely chopped
• 2 tbs parsley, chopped
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbs + oat flour
• salt and pepper

For the salad

• 1 large red bell pepper
• 1 large yellow bell pepper
• 1 medium eggplant, sliced 1 cm crosswise
• 2 tsp Meyer lemon juice
• 2 tbs extra virgin unrefined olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tbs cilantro, finely chopped
• salt and pepper

For the tapenade

• 150 g green olives, pitted
• 1 tsp capers, rinsed
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tbs olive oil

Preparation

For the tofu cakes

Squeeze water from tofu, using your hands. With a paper towel, pat dry all excess moisture. In a mixing container, crumble tofu using your hands to obtain a very thin and smooth and almost non-grainy texture. There should not be any thick pieces of tofu.

Add carrots and garlic to tofu.

Heat olive oil in a pan. Add shallots and cook until soften. Add tofu mixture and cook for about 5-7 minutes until carrots soften. Mix well. Remove from heat and place in a mixing container. Add all other ingredients and add the flour at the end. If the mixture is too liquid, add a little more flour.

At this point, the mixture is ready to form little cakes of about 2 inches diameter.

Heat olive oil in a pan. Cook cakes at medium temperature until golden brown on both sides.

For the salad

Char broil the peppers under a broiler. Turn peppers on all sides until the skin is burnt. Remove from oven and place in a plastic bag until cool. Peel the peppers and remove seeds. Cut strips of 1/2 inch wide.

Heat skillet, add eggplant slices and cook until golden brown on each sides. Cut each slice in quarters.

In a mixing container, add peppers, eggplant, and all other ingredients.

For the tapenade

Mix all ingredients in a mixer until smooth but a but with a bit of a grainy texture.

Place some salad on a plate, top it with tofu cakes and add a tsp of tapenade on top

I don’t know you, but a good meal,”me met de bonne humeur“! It totally makes me happy, and lifts up my mood…since Mr. F is traveling to Europe for a couple of weeks, I am taking this time off to treat myself with meals I love, just like this one. I love to eat a whole fish, and remove the bones, each bite has a very distinct flavor. To be honest, I don’t particularly enjoy looking at the dead animal on my plate looking at me with his round eye not so fresh anymore, so I try not to focus too much on this part in order not to spoil the whole process of enjoyment.

So let’s go back to this delicious branzino, it’s a very delicate fish mainly found in the Mediterranean basin or in the Atlantic. It’s called branzino in the Adriatic sea and Liguria (in English, they say branzini, the “i” makes it plural in Italian). In the other parts of Italy it’s called spigola. Branzino is light and can be prepared in so many different ways (roasted, steamed, papillote, grilled, etc…) without losing it’s flavor, so it’s quite a wonderful fish.

Ingredients for 2

• 2 whole branzini, cleaned
• 6 tbs panko breadcrumbs
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 tbs kalamata olives, chopped
• 1.5 tbs mixed herbs (parsley, chives, tarragon, etc…), chopped
• zest of one lemon
• 1.5 tbs pine nuts, toasted
• 2 tbs olive oil, or enough to coat the crumbs
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 red onion sliced
• 4 tomatoes, quartered
• lemon oil

Preparation

In a mixing bowl mix breadcrumbs, olives, lemon zest, herbs, garlic, pine nuts, oil, salt and pepper. Mix well and stuff each branzino with this stuffing. Using two tooth picks close branzino sides to keep the stuffing in place. Sprinkle each branzino with oil, salt and pepper. Place in a sheet and broil at high temperature until slightly browned and side cooked. Carefully, without breaking the fish, turn it on the other side, and let it brown. Remove from oven, and serve in a plate. Place some quartered tomatoes and red onions around the fish, add tarragon leaves, sprinkle with lemon oil, salt and pepper and eat warm

When you eat out, salades niçoises are always more or less the same, with minor variations from one restaurant to another…and often a little on the boring side. So after a few thoughts on how to make things a little more exciting and with a different way to prepare them, I came up with a salad that has the ingredients of a salade niçoise (less the salmon), that was lovely. Most of the ingredients are here but in a different way to present and cook them, which modifies all the textures and make them very interesting and exciting. Here the green beans are cut and mixed with the greens and cherry tomatoes. The olives are turned into a tapenade which is an olive paste from the South of France spread on top of the bread. The egg is poached and not boiled and the other final touch is the salt, I used sea weed salt (from Brittany) but of course, you can use any other sea salt.

If you want to remain traditional and feel the salmon shall not be seen on a salade Niçoise, use tuna instead. This salad is really fun, and you can play with it using your imagination as you wish. For instance, if I had quail eggs, I would have poached two quail eggs and made two tartines, instead of one. Now there is not one particular recipe for salade niçoise, and each cook can make it the way he wants, even though the traditional recipe is not supposed to have any cooked ingredients, only raw. So if you want to say that my salad is not a Niçoise, like a Nicois (a person from Nice) would probably say. Well, I am ok with that…it is nonetheless delicious.

Sometimes for specific recipes, I like to remain as close as the original recipe as I can, but in some more “flexible” recipes, I also like to have fun in the kitchen and play around with food…but obviously it needs to be good or it shall not have its spot on the blog.

Ingredients for 2

• 1 salmon filet of about 1/2 lb
• 4 small round yukon potatoes
• 1.5 cups fine green beans
• about 20 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 cup of mixed greens or arugula
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1/2 bell red pepper, roasted,  peeled and cut in stripes
• 2 eggs
• 2 baguettes slices or country bread

For the vinaigrette

• 2 tbs extra virgin unfiltered olive oil
• 3 tbs lemon olive oil
• juice of 1 meyer lemon
• orange-champagne vinegar or any mild fruity vinegar
• about 8 leaves basil, chopped
• Sea weed salt
• pepper

For the tapenade

• 1/4 lb kalamata olives
• 2 good quality small anchovies
• about 6 capers
• 1/2 garlic clove
• 2 tbs olive oil

Preparation

Start by cooking the potatoes in water. When the potatoes are about 3/4 cooked but still a little firm in the center, remove from stove. Let them cool and then peel. Set aside. Cut the salmon in about one inch cube pieces.

Cook green beans in boiling water until cooked but still firm. When cooked remove from stove, then let them cool and cut in about 2 inches pieces.

Using a wooden skewer, place one piece of salmon, then one potato, until you have two pieces each on each skewer.

In the meantime, in a container mix cherry tomatoes, salad, green beans, bell peppers. Prepare vinaigrette by combining all ingredients together.

For the tapenade, mix all ingredients together in a mixer. Toast baguette and spread tapenade on top.

Broil skewer in the oven until golden brown and salmon cooked all the way through or pink (depending on your tastes).

Poach egg in boiling water for about 2 minutes (poaching technique will come in another post).

Pour vinaigrette on salad, toss well and keep some vinaigrette for the skewer.

Plate first salad/beans/tomatoes mixture, then place skewer on top, add the remaining vinaigrette on top of skewer. Serve with tartine of tapenade topped with poached egg, and drizzle with olive oil.

I made a large quiche just like those mini ones for a dinner party, and I had leftover dough…which I did not want to throw away. Why throw away food that you enjoyed making and put time into it?  I love to play with crusts, quiches and tarts, after all, they’re the basics of French cuisine. For savory tarts, I love to use olive oil instead of butter in the crust, and make it wholesome. Olive oil adds a wonderful flavor to crusts and cakes and make them lighter. Of course traditional French cuisine uses more butter, but this blog is not about traditional French food.

I love the combination of zucchini, feta and mint, they pair so well in almost anything such as in savory cakes, flans, couscous, etc…The crust and its herbes de Provence flavor, gives you a kick of Southern French cuisine, with all its aromas, and fragrant scents. Yes indeed, these quiches will bring some warmth and will brighten your day, as Southern French food does, it’s filled with flavors, colors and freshness…so isn’t this a bit of happiness too?

I am one of those crazy people that get affected by the weather, and a bright day with natural light gives me so much happiness. If I could chose the perfect weather it would be a sunny day with 80F temperature, with a light breeze. If anyone of you live in that particular climate, please let me know and I will just move there! (no humidity please). There is a French expression that most old people would respond to when asked, comment allez-vous? “How are you doing?” most of them respond, oh comme le temps!, meaning “like the weather”, which really can show you how much the French are truly “doing” like the weather! so if it’s raining, you can just imagine how they’re doing! Ask no more…

Ingredients for 4 mini quiches

For the crust

• 4.4 oz (or 125 g) wholewheat flour
• 1.69 fl oz (or 50 ml) olive oil
• 1 tsp herbes de Provence
• water
• a pinch of salt

For the filling

• 2 tbs kalamata olives, chopped
• 2 small zucchini, thinly sliced with a mandoline
• 2 tbs feta, crumbled
• 1 tbs mint, chiffonade
• 2 eggs
• 4 tbs heavy cream
• 4 tbs milk
• cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the crust

Place flour in a mixing bowl, then add herbes de Provence, salt, oil, and start mixing, add water gradually enough to make the dough elastic and not crumbly. Mix well to form a ball. Wrap in a plastic film and place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Divide dough in four parts and using a rolling pin, roll into 4 round sheets. Lay flat inside four tart molds.

For the filling

Place sliced zucchini in a bowl and sprinkle with coarse salt, mix well to coat. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Rinse under cold water, squeeze extra water using your hands and pat dry using a paper towel. Cut roughly.

Place olives on top of crust. Mix zucchini, feta and mint and put mixture on top of olives.

Beat eggs with cream and milk, a little salt (not too much since the feta is salty and the zucchini have absorbed some salt too), and cayenne pepper. Pour on top of zucchini mixture.

Cook in a pre-heated oven at 375F for about 20-30 minutes until the top is golden brown and the crust is cooked on the bottom.

One of the greatest gentleman in the food blogsphere, Lazaro Bernal form Lazaro Cooks kindly requested me if I could guest post on his blog. Of course, I accepted with great enthusiasm and excitement. I think it’s an honor to be a guest post on someone’s blog. Usually, it doesn’t take me forever to find a recipe to post, but this time I wanted to find the perfect recipe that would fit Lazaro Cooks and that would be a combination of creativity, flavors, colors and that represents exactly what I love, and what Lazaro’s blog is all about.

I love all kinds of cuisines but I tend to go towards light and flavorful tastes with a Mediterranean flair. Here they’re combined with Asian flavors (because I do love Asian cuisine too, did not have the time to become an expert in it, but I do love to combine Asian ingredients to more Western ones) and the result is a perfectly balanced soba dish with amazing flavors and textures.

For this dish, I got inspired by one of Alain Ducasse‘s recipe, people who have been reading my blog, must know that I am a huge Ducasse fan. I changed a few items and twisted it around but the theme of combining Eastern and Western flavors is there and since Lazaro is a huge “connaisseur” of French cuisine, I knew he would approve my choice.

Go check out his blog for the recipe!

Caviar d’aubergine is a typical French dish, but it does not mean it includes caviar in its ingredient list, it’s basically a vegan dish if you don’t add the parmesan on top. Eggplant caviar is made out of eggplants roasted in the oven and reduced into a purée with herbs and garlic. Of course there are various variations of eggplant caviar. You can add herbes de Provence instead of just thyme, or lavender. I’ve had close friends who don’t like eggplants and loved this dish, so I guess it’s a way to initiate the non eggplant lovers to this wonderful vegetable.

Tartare describes a way of preparing ingredients, like you have tuna tartar, and salmon tartar where the fishes have been cut in tiny cubes, then marinated. In this case, the tomato is peeled, cut in small cubes, marinated with herbs and olives and finally placed in the refrigerator for about an hour. So that is called a tartare.

You can make nice presentations with the contrasts of colors, the red, the green, the white and light brown, it looks very summery and fresh. Being such a light and pretty dish, with contrasts of flavors and textures, you can serve it as a light appetizer, it will put you or your guests en appétit (in appetite) for the next courses, it’s screaming, I’m hungry now and I want more! I love this dish, it’s fresh, light, full of flavors and textures and so far everyone who tasted loved it too. Ca sent les vacances!

Ingredients for 4

• 5 medium size tomatoes
• 1 large size eggplant
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• juice of 1 small meyer lemon
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• pepper
• arugula and shaved parmesan for garnish

For the vinaigrette

• 1 tbs kalamata olives, chopped
• 1 tsp capers, chopped (optional)
• 1 tsb parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Cut eggplants in two lenghtwise. Using a knife, make three incisions from top to bottom of eggplant. Sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. Place on top of parchment paper, placing the flat surface down. Cook in a pre-heated oven at 390F for about 30 minutes or until eggplants are soft. Remove from oven and let cool.

Using a spoon, remove eggplant flesh making sure to drain the water and remove the peel. Place in a mixing bowl. Using a blender, blend eggplant with garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Let it cool.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, and add tomatoes for about 10 seconds, drain, peel, remove the seeds and cut tomatoes in small cubes. Remove excess water.

Refrigerate tomatoes for about 30 minutes.

Mix vinaigrette ingredients all together and add to tomatoes. Spare some vinaigrette to add at the end. Mix well.

Using a rind, place tomatoes layer on your plate, then spoon one tbs of eggplant caviar on top, add shaved parmesan and arugula.

Un cake déjà vu – Cake traditionnel au gruyère, olives et jambon

Savory cakes are very popular in France, everyone has its own version and makes them for appetizers with drinks when you have a guests over. You cut them in small bites and pass them along with drinks. Usually, I don’t like to post too many traditional French or Italian dishes, I somehow love to explore new ideas, flavors and shapes but once in a while, it makes me feel closer to home like with this cake salé. You can flavor it with what you like, such as feta, mint and zucchini, or sundried tomatoes and thyme, or just use your creativity. You only need the basic proportions of flour, olive oil or butter, and eggs, then the rest is up to you.

Nothing too fancy or original in this post, just maybe the most traditional cake salé that every French person who cooks and entertains, knows how to make, it’s a great one, always appreciated and quite delicious combining three main ingredients. Usually savory cakes contain butter, but I like to use olive oil, it gives it a really fruity and fragrant flavor.

Savory cakes are another one of those things I don’t make very often, I tried a few with shrimps, and other ingredients but as far as entertaining menu is concerned, I tend to make other types of snacks or canapés. This is a great item when you have guests pour l’apéro, a lot quicker to make than a savory tart or quiche. Tonight I have a little time to cook, so cake is on the menu among other little bites. It’s healthier than serving chips and other pre-packed junk food. Even though I love thick and salty potato chips! One of those items I cannot have in the house, or I will just not stop thinking about them until I ate them all.

Ingredients for about 6 people

• 6.34 oz (or 180 g) unbleached flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 3 fl oz (or 90 ml) olive oil
• 3.38 oz (or 100 ml) milk
• 7 oz (or 200 g) ham, cut in cubes
• 5.64 oz (or 160 g) gruyère cheese or cantal grated
• 3.5 oz (or 100 g) green olives, roughly chopped
• a pinch of salt and pepper

Preparation

In a mixing container, mix flour and baking powder. In another container, mix eggs, milk, olive oil. Mix well and add to the four/baking powder mixture. Add salt and pepper. Add ham, gruyère and olives. Mix carefully.

Bake in a non-stick loaf pan in a 370F pre-heated oven for about 45 minutes.

Since I don’t really eat meat, I know my blog lacks meat recipes, I figured that when I cook for some non-vegetarian people who do eat meat, I take the opportunity for putting up the recipe on the blog. I look at those chicken thighs and it reminds me of my cute and sweet parakeet and I really have to think about something else or I won’t be able to cook them. Sometimes, I have to detach myself from things that bother me, or I won’t be able to do anything.

I love fresh herbs, all of them! When I first moved to California, I was amazed to see tons of houses with bushes of rosemary as a decoration plant. I thought that was funny, I was wondering if people used it for cooking or if it was just as a decoration…and still I have no answer to that. I used to live on a street where almost all houses had huge rosemary plants bordering them and coming all the way on the sidewalk. Sometimes, when I was out of rosemary, I would help myself. I know it’s not very appropriate but at the time, I thought it was not a big deal especially considering the size of the rosemary spreading in a public zone.

This chicken is very flavorful and mainly due to the tons of herbs I use in it. Sometimes I marinate it overnight so it gets infused with herbs and you get a wonderful roasted chicken. You can also use pearl onions instead of yellow onions.

Squash being in season, I figured I would use it, but some other vegetables like potatoes, carrots, turnips, etc…would work as well. If you have guests over, and want to spend time with them rather in your kitchen, roasted chicken is the key, you just need to baste it once in a while and that’s it. It’s like the kid that doesn’t need any attention, you just give him a toy and he keeps himself busy.

You might need to cover the dish with some aluminum foil for about 20-30 minutes, depending on how your oven cooks, then removing the foil to let the chicken brown. I am still trying to figure out how my oven works with the circular heat.

Ingredients for 4 people

• 4 chicken legs
• 1 whole butternut squash, cut in large pieces
• 2 tbs green olives
• 1 tbs strong Dijon mustard
• 3 rosemary sprigs and chopped
• 3 thyme, sprigs and chopped
• 3 tarragon sprigs and chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 5 lemon slices
• 4 tbs chicken broth
• chili flakes
• salt and pepper

Preparation

You can marinated the chicken overnight with herbs, garlic, mustard and onion, but it’s optional. You can get a fragrant chicken even if you don’t marinate it.

Keep some herb sprigs, chop some of it. Mix all ingredients together in a mixing container except chicken broth and mustard. Place chicken in a oven tray, add herb mixture on top of chicken and coat chicken with it. Spread mustard on both sides of legs.

Cook in a pre-heated oven at 370F for about 30 min, then add broth and regularly baste chicken with it.

Add squash, salt and pepper, and cook until chicken is well roasted and squash tender.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/11/no-i-did-not-miss-you-roasted-chicken-thighs-with-lemon-herbs-olives-and-sunburst-squash/feed/ 13 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/10/snapper-or-not-snapper-red-snapper-kebabs-with-orange-and-olive-vinaigrette-on-fennel-fondue/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=snapper-or-not-snapper-red-snapper-kebabs-with-orange-and-olive-vinaigrette-on-fennel-fondue http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/10/snapper-or-not-snapper-red-snapper-kebabs-with-orange-and-olive-vinaigrette-on-fennel-fondue/#comments Sat, 10 Oct 2009 05:11:57 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=4358 Vous avez dit Vivaneau?- Brochettes de vivaneau grillé à la vinaigrette d’orange et olives sur fondue de fenouil

I went grocery shopping yesterday and again I went crazy with fish and seafood. I have always thought I knew what red snapper was in French…in my mind I had no doubt it was “rougets” because of the red connotation (rouge = red) and rougets are red and very trendy nowadays in France, they’re served in many new and hype restaurants. Snapper looked a lot bigger but I though, oh well, anything American is bigger anyway. Yesterday I could feel I was wrong for all those years and when looking closely at the fish, I started having doubts. You might think, ok what’s the big deal, if she doesn’t know the translation. The thing is that I like to know what I eat and find out more about the fish and what it’s called in my mother tongue, wouldn’t you? Some people might think I am weird, and maybe I am.

For a while I was just staring at the fish and could not make up my mind if I was going to buy it or not. I was somehow worried that snapper would be perche du Nil which I refuse to eat. It’s been exported in France from countries like Kenya, and other African countries and it’s one of the most invasive specie you can find; it destroys every other specie around and is somehow like a parasite. Since its introduction in some African lakes, the other species that lived there, are all extinct and it created many environmental issues in those regions. I am not sure if perche du Nil is grown or sold in the US, and would hope not.

After searching all over the place, I was releaved that Snapper is not perche du Nil, but it’s called Vivaneau. Honestly I have never heard that name before yesterday. Don’t you think it’s such a cute name? sounds like the name of a kid with rosy cheeks from the 18 th century, “hello, my name is Vivaneau, nice to meet you”. First I could not believe a fish would be called Vivaneau, then I had to come to the conclusion that it was its proper name, even though there are a lot of different species in that category.

Anyway, that mysterious snapper ended up in a skewer and I was glad I learnt Vivaneau is living among many in the ocean. Snapper tends to have a fragile texture, so if you overcook it, it will break.

Fennel, orange and white fish are some of my favorite ingredients, they blend beautifully together. This dish is so simple and quick but still delicious and flavorful, let’s not forget healthy.

Ingredients for 3 kebabs

• 1 lb red snapper fillets, cut in large cubes (about 2.5 inches)
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cut in large cubes
• 1 large fennel bulb, shredded
• 1/2 onion, sliced

For the marinade

• juice of 1 small lemon
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbs olive oil
• Szechuan pepper

For the vinaigrette

• 1 tbs dill, chopped
• 2 tbs olive oil
• juice of 1/2 large orange
• juice of 1/2 lime
• 1 tbs kalamata olives, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• salt and pepper

Preparation

In a mixing container mix snapper pieces with marinade ingredients, place in the refrigerator and marinate for about 2 hours.

In a pan, add olive oil and brown onions. Add fennel and cook at low heat until the fennel is tender, almost melting. Add salt and pepper.

Prepare vinaigrette, by mixing all ingredients together.

Start making kebabs using bamboo skewers, (previously soaked in water to prevent them from burning). Alternate a piece of fish with a piece of bell pepper. Sprinkle with Szechuan pepper and salt and broil under broiler. Do not over cook, fish is very tender and might break.

Serve with fennel fondue and kebabs on top. Drizzle with orange-olive vinaigrette.

Les ravioles d’Alain Ducasse – Ravioles de tomate et olives vapeur, sauce soja et balsamique

Since I have been talking about alain Ducasse and that he is one of my favorite chefs,  and one of the most prestigious in France with its 14 Michelin stars, I thought to present one of his recipes that combines the flavors of Western cuisine with the technique of Asian cooking. His cuisine uses an abundance the freshest seasonal ingredients and harmony of flavors. I think I will throw some of his recipes occasionally, because they deserve to be more exposed among the general public. In the US, obviously, people are more familiar with American or British chefs, and Alain is one my favorite chefs of all.

As much as I love to make traditional Italian ravioli, or French ravioles, Asians ravioli have their own particular personality and character. I did not change anything to its original recipe. I have been looking at this one for a while and never tried making it. Usually I like to create things on my own and experiment new recipes but when it has to do with Alain Ducasse, his style of cuisine “me parle” speaks to me in a way that I completely feel in symbiosis with it, and if I use his recipes, I leave them the way they are.

Actually, Alain is not longer French, he became Monégasque, which means citizen of Monaco, and gave up his citizenship but we do love him anyway.

The particularity of this recipe is that the ravioli stuffing is using Western ingredients but are steamed, often used in Asian cuisine and dipped in a pungent balsamic-soy sauce. It’s quite an easy and simple dish but with the right ingredient combination to get that exotic-but-not-so-exotic-touch. Besides, unlike Italian ravioli, you can use wonton wrappers and don’t have to make your own pasta dough. That cuts the preparation time and is the secret to this wonderful but yet quick dish.

Ingredients for 14 dumplings

• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tbs cornstarch
• 8 square wonton wrappers
• 2 to 3 large cabbage leaves, for steaming
• 1 tbs sweet black soy sauce
• 1 tbs balsamic vinegar
• Lettuce to garnish

Filling

• 2 fresh medium tomatoes (about 4 oz or 125 g), blanched, peeled and deseeded, flesh diced
• 4 shallots, minced
• 3 to 4 tbs sundried tomatoes, diced
• 12 pitted black olives, diced
• 3 tbs minced spring onions
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground white pepper

Preparation

Start making the filling. In a bowl, mix tomatoes, olives, shallots, spring onions, sundried tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Mix egg and cornstarch.

Using a wonton wrapper, place 1 tsp or 1 small tbs of filling in the middle of the wonton. Use egg and cornstarch mixture around the dumpling. Place another wrapper on top and using your hand, press firmly on the edges to seal wonton. The egg and cornstarch will seal the wonton.

Mix balsamic vinegar with soy sauce.

Using a bamboo steamer, place cabbage leaves on bottom, place wontons on top of leaves and steam for 3 minutes. Serve with lettuce and add some dipping sauce on top.