I have been neglecting my blog recently, and I feel I should refocus my attention on it. I guess not having too much time is the reason, but maybe because as we say “j’ai la tête ailleurs” (I have my head somewhere else).

I made this recipe a while ago but then never finish writing it. I think I know where the problem is…the writing. Sometimes my recipe has no story behind it, just me wanting to test new combinations and that is it. I will not pretend that by some magic lightning, I got a magic inspiration about this recipe and a very interesting story to share. This recipe is one of those with no story.

I love celeriac, love mung beans, love wild mushrooms, love tarragon, so here we are.

I really enjoyed the whole combination, which made me feel very well nourished and happy. I always make sure that whatever I eat makes me happy.

Celeriac is a French staple vegetable, we eat it in the traditional céleri rémoulade. My mom used to boil it, slice it and serve it cold with a vinaigrette. You can do all kinds of things with celery root, purées and soups are delicious.

Ingredients for 2-3

For the celeriac

• 1 medium celeriac, peeled and sliced crosswise in 1.5 com thick slices
• olive oil for coating
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• salt and pepper

For the mung beans fricassée

• 1 cup mung beans
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 shallot, sliced
• 1 leek, minced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 1.2 cups mixed wild mushrooms
• 2 tbs vegetable broth
• 2 tbs toasted walnuts, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tbs parsley, finely chopped
• salt and pepper

For the tarragon oil

• 1/2 bunch tarragon
• olive oil
• salt

Instructions

For the celeriac

Place celeriac slices on a tray. Coat with the listed ingredients and broil under broiler (far from broiler) until both sides are golden brown. The slices need to be firm and not overcooked to be able to maintain their shape.

For the mung bean fricassée

Cook mung beans in water until cooked about 15 min. They need to keep their shape, and not mushy. They can get easily mushy if overcooked and will lose their pretty shape. When cooked, drain and set aside.

In a pan, heat up olive oil, add shallot and let it soften for a few minutes. Add the carrots, mushrooms, leeks and broth. Cover and let cook at medium heat until vegetables are cooked. Add mung beans and stir well for a few minutes. Add garlic, parsley and nuts, and mix well until the strong garlic flavor fades away.

For the tarragon oil

Place tarragon and olive oil in a mixer and blend until obtained a nice green oil. Adjust with salt.

Place one slice of celeriac in a plate. Add 2-3 tbs mung bean mixture on top and top it with another slice of celeriac. Spoon one tbs of tarragon oil around and heat hot.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2017/10/roasted-celeriac-with-mung-beans-forestiere-fricassee-and-tarragon-oil/feed/ 2 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2015/12/once-it-was-a-salad-soup-of-lettuce-and-peas-with-herbs-cream-of-tarragon-chervil/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=once-it-was-a-salad-soup-of-lettuce-and-peas-with-herbs-cream-of-tarragon-chervil http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2015/12/once-it-was-a-salad-soup-of-lettuce-and-peas-with-herbs-cream-of-tarragon-chervil/#comments Sun, 13 Dec 2015 01:12:46 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=17431 Un jour, ce fût une salade – Soupe de laitue et pois aux herbes, crème d’estragon et cerfeuil

This soup has been made with ingredients that could also be a salad. So if you are tired of lettuce salad, you can turn it into a delightful soup. Soups have a healing and cleansing effect and are so nutritious, so they’re the perfect reason to be part of anyone’s diet.

You can certainly cook lettuce or braise it. Its use is not limited to being eaten raw in salads. Being a leaf, it can be used as spinach or chards or as any other green. Since lettuce tends to be bland, I like to enhance it with fresh herbs. You can also use cannellini beans or chick peas instead of peas.

In France, they often add a tbs of crème fraîche in a velouté, or vegetable cream. I prefer to use yogurt to keep it lighter, it’s a personal choice, but cream would also work. As far as, texture, you can blend it into a fine and smooth texture, I kept it more grainy, it’s all up to your personal tastes.

Ingredients

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 heads of lettuce
• 300 g peas
• 1/2 bunch chervil + 1 tbs, chopped
• 3 tbs tarragon + 1 tbs, chopped
• Vegetable broth
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup Greek yogurt

Preparation

For the soup

Heat olive oil in a pot. Add onions and let soften, then add lettuce. Let it wilt, add broth (to cover the lettuce mixture). Cover and let cook for about 15 minutes. Add peas and herbs and let cook for an extra 10 minutes. Blend soup in a mixer or hand blender. SErve hot with a tablespoon of cream of herbs.

For the cream of herbs

Mix 1 tbs of tarragon and 1 tbs of chervil with yogurt and stir.

Here is a Sunday lunch that gave me some punch (en plus ca rime) – I have not eaten salmon in a long time, probably because I find salmon a little boring to be honest. Maybe when a product becomes easy to find, I lose my interest, not that I like “hard to get” products but let’s say that what’s rare tends to be more special. So I tried to make this salmon a little more interesting and special. Et voila, c’est fait!

I am not a huge fan of regular potato puree with fish, so cauliflower worked very well here, and this way you lose the starch content.

I like to use large chard leaves, the flat and smooth kind (such as swiss chards) instead of spinach, simply because spinach leaves are fragile to manipulate and it’s sometimes difficult to find large leaves. In this case, I used one chard leave for one salmon fillet. For the vegetables, you can use whatever you like, I love the combination of fava beans and oyster mushrooms, they have two complementary textures and go very well together.

I really liked this dish, the herbs made it very fragrant, delicate and not a strong salmon dish with too many powering flavors. I will certainly put this on my “to make again soon” list.

Ingredients for 4

For the salmon

• 4 salmon fillets (about 1/2 lb each)
• 4 large chard leaves
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper

For the purée

• 1 small cauliflower
• 2 medium size potatoes
• milk
• 1 tsp salted butter
• salt and pepper

For the vegetable fondue

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 shallot
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 cup oyster mushrooms
• 1/2 lb fava beans
• 1 tomato, peeled, seedless and diced
• salt and pepper

For the tarragon jus

• 1/2 bunch tarragon
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper (if needed)

Preparation

For the salmon

Blanch chard leaves in salted boiling water for one minute, until the chard softens but still keeps it shape. Remove from heat, and place in cold water to cool. When cooled, remove from water and pat dry carefully with a towel, removing excess water. Using a knife remove the hard leaf from bottom to top, this will leave you with two long panels of chards.

Remove skin from salmon, add salt and pepper on both sides and cook three minutes each sides, in a pan with a little olive oil. Then, wrap carefully the salmon with the two chard panels. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice and cook in a pre-heated oven at 360F for about 10 minutes or until the salmon is cooked to your tastes.

For the purée

Cook the potatoes at low heat covering them with milk. When they’re cooked remove from heat and let them cool in the milk. At this pint, they would have absorbed a substantial part of the milk.

Boil cauliflower in salted water for about 10-15 minutes until tender.

In a mixing container, mix potatoes and cauliflower and mash with a potato masher to obtain a smooth texture, adjust with salt and pepper. Then add butter and mix well.

For the vegetables

Heat olive oil in a pan, add shallot, sweat for a few minutes, then add mushrooms and cook until the eater evaporates. Place fava beans in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, drain, let them cool. Peel fava beans and add to the mushrooms. Stir well, then add tomato and crushed garlic. Cook for a few minutes, until the tomato softens but still remains firm.

For the tarragon jus

Bring 1/2 cup of broth to a boil, add tarragon and cook for 30 seconds, remove from the pot and pat dry. In a blender, mix tarragon with broth to make it into a very fine mixture. Remove from blender into a bowl, add 1 tbs olive oil, 1 tsp lemon juice, salt and pepper if needed.

After placing your puree and salmon in the plate, add a some vegetables around and end with tarragon jus.

Lately I have not been too well, that’s why I haven’t been posting any recipe on a regular basis like I used to, and my desire and energy for cooking has gone down, hopefully it will pick up at some point. I have no motivation for sitting in front of my computer either, but I sincerely miss everyone, people I met through this blog have been incredibly supportive, kind and generous. Thanks so much for anyone who reads my blogs and leaves genuine comments, they mean a lot to me. I apologize if I have had a difficult time to catch up with everyone, I have had very low energy level and some health issues, but hopefully will get back to my regular routine soon.

I started writing this recipe about three weeks ago and never managed to finish it, it took me forever…so here it is after such a long time. This salad is composed with a well balanced mixture of grains, vegetables, and proteins, such a nutritious and flavorful dish.

I call this a salad since it has a dressing but it can be called anything you like, and can be consumed lukewarm or cold. The particularity of this dish is that I mixed eight varieties of grains and seeds such as brown rice, oats, lentils, pumpkin seeds, etc… for a mixed variety of textures. Maybe you’ll think this look more like a bird meal to you than a gourmet salad. It is definitely questionable, but after you taste it, you will think bird ingredients can taste incredibly tasty.

The grains have been enhanced with vegetables, and seafood which complement the grains quite well. This is nothing complicated, you just need various grains in your pantry.

Ingredients for 2-3

• 200 g of mixed grains such as:
• brown rice
• wheat flakes
• sorghum rice
• buckwheat
• pearl barley
• black rice
• pearl rice
• red lentil
• 1 tbs roasted pumpkin seeds
• 10 large shrimps
• 4 medium artichokes
• 3 tbs dry white wine
• 70 g cannellini beans cooked  (either dried or canned)

Ingredients for the herb-lemon vinaigrette

• 3 tbs avocado oil
• juice of one lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• 1 tbs red onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• one pinch cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Mix all grains together and steam them. You can steam them the same way you would steam rice, even if there are many varities of grains, some of them cook a little faster than others but it does not make a big difference cooking them all together. You can use a rice cooker or use the regular technique using a simple pot.

Trim artichokes, removing the hard leaves around, and cutting off the top of the artichoke. Cut in quarters and place in a container filled with water and lemon juice to prevent the artichokes from darkening.

In a pan, heat olive oil, add 1 garlic clove, then drain artichokes and add to the pan, stir for a few minutes, coating the artichokes with garlic and oil, then add wine, salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover with a lid and cook at medium heat until artichokes are tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Saute shrimps in olive oil, add salt and pepper and set aside.

In a large container, mix steamed grains with artichokes, cannellini beans, shrimps, pumpkin seeds. Pour vinaigrette on top by mixing all ingredients together. Stir well and serve. You can serve at room temperature or cold.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/07/salad-of-grain-medley-with-cannellini-shrimps-artichokes-in-a-herb-lemon-dressing/feed/ 28 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/06/a-crepe-thats-not-really-a-crepe-traditional-savory-buckwheat-galette-with-smoked-salmon-grilled-tomatoes-caramelized-onions-and-tarragon-sauce/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-crepe-thats-not-really-a-crepe-traditional-savory-buckwheat-galette-with-smoked-salmon-grilled-tomatoes-caramelized-onions-and-tarragon-sauce http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/06/a-crepe-thats-not-really-a-crepe-traditional-savory-buckwheat-galette-with-smoked-salmon-grilled-tomatoes-caramelized-onions-and-tarragon-sauce/#comments Mon, 14 Jun 2010 21:13:38 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=4693 Une crêpe qui n’est pas vraiment une crêpe – Galette au sarrasin, saumon, tomates grillées et oignons caramelisés, sauce estragon

I haven’t made those for so long, I usually make them when we have a “crêpe party”, and those haven’t occurred in a while!

Basically, the traditional savory crêpes are made with buckwheat flour, the sweet ones can be made with white flour.

A buckwheat crêpe is called “galette bretonne“, the batter is a little different from a regular crêpe in the fact that there is water in the batter but no eggs. The traditional galette Bretonne (or also called Buckwheat crêpe, crêpe au sarrasin) is mainly stuffed with ham, eggs and cheese and it’s called “la complète“…now you can make it with whatever item you like if you want to make it less traditional. I like the traditional one, but I think those three ingredients are a little too heavy for me. Other alternatives could be spinach and mushrooms, eggs and mushrooms, tomato and mozzarella, goat cheese and spinach, etc…or whatever you think would work.

If you have been to Brittany or Paris you must have encounter that delicious treat. There are many crêperies Bretonnes in Paris close to Quartier Montparnasse. The first one I ate was at the Jocelyn crêperie, it was a double crêpe, unlike this one that is simple, a double crêpe is comprised of one crêpe at the bottom, filled with whatever you like, and one other crêpe on top of the filling, then folded and topped with salted butter. You better be hungry for that one, but it’s so good with some dry cider (cidre brut).

Sometimes, I have a crêpe party at home and the crêpes go flying around…then everyone gets so excited when we reach dessert, sweet crêpes with nutella, banana, ice cream and whipped cream. How can you refuse one of those? Vive les crêpes!!

You don’t need necessarly need a crêpe maker and a spreader to make crêpes, a non-stick pan works well too. You can make a 100% buckwheat flour batter if you like it more hearty, I like to use 1/2 white flour and 1/2 buckwheat flour.

Ingredients for about 6-8 (depending on the size of the pan)

For the galettes batter

• buckwheat flour
• white flour
• 1/4 l water
• 1/4 l milk
• salt
  

For the stuffing

• 3-4 tomatoes, sliced
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 tbs capers, rinced
• 6-8 slices smoked salmon
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Fleur de sel
• pepper

For the tarragon sauce

• 1 shallot, diced
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp fish fumet dehydrated
• water
• 3 tbs crème fraîche
• 2 tbs fresh tarragon, chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the batter

Mix flours together in a large mixing bowl. Add water while stirring, then milk, add salt and keep stirring to obtain a smooth consistency. Let it rest for about 2 hours.

Caramelize onions in 1 tsp olive oil. Grill tomatoes on a grill pan and set aside.

For the tarragon sauce

Heat olive oil in a pan, and brown shallots. Dissolve dehydrated fumet in 1/3 cup water. Add to the shallots, reduce a little then add cream. Reduce for a few more minutes and add tarragon, salt and pepper.

Cook galettes as you would for regular crêpes. Using a non-stick pan, spread some batter in the pan covering the whole surface (you need to butter the pan prior to making the galettes). Flip the galette and let it cook on the other side. Add caramelized onions, tomatoes, capers and salmon. remove the galette from the pan and bring borders on the inside. Top with tarragon sauce and serve hot.

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/very-very-chou-salmon-in-a-cabbage-outfit-with-tarragon/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=very-very-chou-salmon-in-a-cabbage-outfit-with-tarragon http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/10/very-very-chou-salmon-in-a-cabbage-outfit-with-tarragon/#comments Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:27:25 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=4796 Très très chou – Saumon en robe de chou à l’estragon

A little alternative to salmon…stuffed in cabbage leaves, a perfect light dish if you want to have fun eating while keeping a thin waste line. As much as I love eating, I really enjoy keeping my weight down and stay in shape. Even though I don’t have a scale, I know when I gain or lose weight on how my jeans fit.

I think the best food is the one you truly enjoy eating and that is healthy, light and flavorful. And yes, it is possible to have it all…

I was at the doctor’s office and of course what best to read when you are in the waiting room, than a five page special on the damages of Mercury in fishes on humans.  As much as I love fish, I think I will slow down on its consumption since it seems that it’s no longer very safe to eat many species such as mackerel, tuna, swordfish, etc… I think we are just polluting the whole planet and we are getting the consequences right back. I have seen that they even sell grey salmon at the supermarket, probably because some people prefer to eat it that way than eat artificial coloring. Grey salmon looks really strange.

I love to stuff cabbage leaves with all kinds of things, and salmon goes perfectly inside those leaves. You could add one egg and some breadcrumbs to the salmon but I wanted to keep it light, so it’s just mixed with herbs. I didn’t make fish fumet since I didn’t have fish bones, so I used a dehydrated one I brought from France, that works fine when you need a quick alternative to home made fish fumet.

For those who don’t have any idea on what chou means, it can have different meanings, could mean “cute”, qu’il est chou ce garçon! this boy is so cute, or cabbage. Ce chou est chou, is quite redundant, isn’t it? After scrutinizing the cabbage for a while, I realized that this big yellow ball can be cute after all.

Ingredients for 6 pieces

• 2 salmon fillets, skinless and cut in cubes
• 12 large cabbage leaves, blanched
• 1 tbs tarragon chopped
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 tsp fish fumet or fish stock
• 3 tbs dry white wine
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Detach cabbage leaves carefully from cabbage head. Bring water to a boil in a large pot, add salt and blanch the leaves for about 3-4 minutes. When cooked drain, pat dry and lay flat on a smooth surface or wooden board. Remove carefully the hard part of the leaves in the middle that sticks out by trimming it, so it will be easier to wrap the leaves around salmon.

In a mixer, add salmon, shallots, garlic, tarragon, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Mix to obtain a smooth mixture but not too thin.

Place about 2 tbs of salmon mixture in the middle of one cabbage leave, then wrap with another one. Using a kitchen thread, tie the salmon package and set aside. Proceed with the rest of the leaves and fish.

Dissolve fish fumet in 1/3 cup of tbs water, add wine.

Place cabbage packets in a dish sprinkle with olive oil and add 2 tbs fish fumet. Preheat oven at 380F and cook fish for about 30 minutes, turning them and pouring fumet regularly. When the top has become golden, remove from oven, remove thread, add lemon juice and serve. Sprinkle with tarragon leaves and serve with its juice.

I got a little sick this weekend, another weird migraine that made me drained, so anytime I get sick, I like to eat soups…I know I made one not that long ago, but when I feel sick, soups are great to get re-hydrated and they seem to coat my stomach very nicely. Do I sound like a grandma? maybe. I haven’t made that root vegetable soup for a long time, and had everything in the refrigerator to make one…so here we go grandma started to peel the vegetables and the soup was on its way.

I love root vegetables in so many ways, and in a soups, they’re delicious. All those flavors are combined together to make a smooth and velvety purée. Rutabaga had a bad reputation in Europe especially among people who went through the second world war, since it was the only vegetable they could find during that time. It’s basically an hybrid vegetable that was produced due to the “hybridisation” of a turnip and a cabbage.

My mom adores to puré her vegetable soup and anytime I go home, there is a huge pot filled with some kind of colorful soup for dinner, we rarely have heavy dinners… I am so spoiled that I turn into a brat, a real “bratty” brat…that would be me, la fille indigne (the unworthy daughter) instead of eating her soup, I make the “Maggi” soup called Sveltesse 0% that is an dehydrated soup with 50 calories per bag. You just pour boiling water on top et voilà! you have a quick soup with 50 calories that tastes good (for a dehydrated soup, it does). I have no idea why, or how…I never eat any kind of that stuff, ever, but for whatever unexplained reason, when I am home, I like the Sveltesse soups. Of course, I get the annoyed stare from my mom, who got somehow used to it, but cannot help to give me the look.

I think we all have our “devil food“, and I admit it with no shame, that Sveltesse 0% is my little devil soup, well at least it’s not some heavy chocolate cake filled with butter and corn syrup.

I never eat that kind of thing here, when I go home, I rarely cook, since two cooks in the kitchen are too many, then I break the habits, all habits. I even turn into a meat eater, not that much but I eat prosciutto, and salami. Something I rarely do here. When you change environment, I think you tend to change your habits also, and adapt to the local way of living..if you don’t, it can be a nightmare.

The little twist of the soup is the cream of tarragon, and turnip chip…the turnip chip looks like one but is not fried, it’s just cooked in the oven.

Ingredients for 6

For the soup

• 2 carrots, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1 medium size potato, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 sweet potato, peeled and cut in chunks
• 3 turnips (2 for the soup, 1 for the chips), peeled and cut in chunks, except the one for the chips
• 1 parsnip, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1 rutabaga, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1 cup celeri head, peeled and cut in chunks
• vegetable broth
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

For the tarragon cream

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbs plain yogurt
• 1 tbs chopped tarragon
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the soup

In a large pot, heat olive oil, then add onions and bown them. Add the rest of the vegetables, salt and pepper and stir and cook for about 5-10 minutes. Add broth, enough to cover the vegetables by 1/3 inch. Simmer until the vegetables are cooked. Add broth as needed, to always have the same quantity on top of the vegetables.

When vegetable are cooked, mix with a hand blender or mixer. Adjust salt and pepper and serve with a tsp of cream of tarragon and 2 turnip chips.

For the turnip chips

Slice the turnips about 2mm slice. Boil in water for a 5 minutes. Drain and pat dry, then place in the oven and let it dry, sprinkle with olive oil and salt. Let it dry some more until the chip is crunchy.

For the tarragon cream

Whip heavy cream. In a mixing container, mix yogurt, lemon juice, tarragon, salt and pepper. Carefully add whipped cream.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/10/where-are-your-roots-vegetable-root-soup-with-turnip-chips-and-tarragon-cream/feed/ 17 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/08/the-tartine-that-works-an-appetite-salmon-tartine-with-a-ginger-caper-mustard-and-herb-dressing/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-tartine-that-works-an-appetite-salmon-tartine-with-a-ginger-caper-mustard-and-herb-dressing http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2009/08/the-tartine-that-works-an-appetite-salmon-tartine-with-a-ginger-caper-mustard-and-herb-dressing/#comments Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:08:22 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=2904 La tartine qui met en appétit – Tartine de saumon au gingembre, câpres, et herbes mixtes

After a beautiful and sunny day, we are back to the grisaille, which literally translates to “greyness”, the good thing about this type of weather is that you can stay home and cook. hat would be the positive thing. I have really never experienced the San Francisco summer, and it can be overwhelming if you need the natural light to enhance your spirit. This summer has been quiet in terms of business, but it will pick up in the fall. Usually in summer I am in Europe, visiting my family but this year I will probably go home a little later.

What about a nice tartine of salmon enhanced with lots of various fragrant herbs on a slice of toasted baguette? It will color your day. It surely did color mine.

The first time I made those toasts, I used smoked salmon instead of fresh, on small toasted baguette as an amuse-gueule or amuse bouche as they would say in the US, and everyone loved it. You can use either fresh salmon or smoked, depending on what you feel like. I put it on toasted bread but you can serve it on a plate, and on top of a mâche salad and with a slice of bread on the side. You can play with it. It’s very versatile.

For 4 medium size tartines

• 1 salmon fillet
• 4 slices of Italian country bread, toasted
• 1 tsp capers, chopped
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp cilantro chopped
• 1 tsp red bell pepper, finely chopped
• chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp ginger, grated
• 1 tbs red onion, chopped
• 1/2 tsp strong Dijon mustard
• 1/2 lemon juice
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Broil salmon under broiler. When cooked all the way through, remove and shred in medium size pieces and place in a mixing bowl. For the dressing, add olive oil and all other ingredients and mix well. Add on top of salmon, adjust with salt and pepper. Toast a slice of baguette and add salmon on top.

Well it might no longer be crab season, but I have urges of a pregnant woman when it has to do with food. Anytime I see crab, I cannot help and buy some. I am a big supporter of eating seasonal and local products, except for crab, I see it, I buy it, which I know goes against what I preach. I hope I will be forgiven.

Don’t get confused, there is no pasta in this dish, just cucumbers cut like spaghetti. I love to make those cucumber spaghetti with fish terrine, or any appetizer bouchée that has seafood in it, it is so refreshing. The thing is you cannot make those ahead of time because the cucumbers produce a lot of water, then they will be soaked in it and lose their crunchy texture. Whenever you grate them, you have to serve them right away.

Crab and shrimps are a great combination. You just need to be careful when you break the shell of the crab legs to remove the flesh, they have some thorns that can be quite dangerous if you are not careful.

Ingredients for 3 (2 crab cakes each) 6 crab cakes

For the crab cakes

• 3/4 lb king crab legs (leave some extra for decoration)
• about 12 large shrimps, ground
• 3 shrimps cut in half for decoration
• 1 egg
• 6 tbs plain bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp capers, chopped
• 1 tbs red onion, chopped
• 1/3 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper
• paprika for decoration

For the cucumber spaghetti

• 1 english cucumber
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1/2 tsp hot Dijon mustard
• 1/2 honey
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp fennel leaves chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the crab-shrimp cakes

Break crab legs and remove flesh, set aside. Remove shell from shrimp and devein them. Grind them in a mixer, not too thin. Mix with crab flesh. Add all other ingredients and mix well. For small patties about 2 inches diameter.

Heat olive oil in a pan and cook cakes on both sides until golden brown and cooked all the way through, about 5-6 minutes at medium heat.

For the cucumber spaghetti

Start making the dressing. Mix olive oil, honey, lemon juice, mustard and fennel, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Set aside

Peel the cucumbers and grate them lengthwise using a julienne cutter, place in mixing bowl with dressing and serve right away. Spoon a tbs of cucumber in a small plate, add one cake on top and decorate with shrimp cut in 2, topped with a little crab, fennel leaves and paprika.