Vanilla apple tart

What a crazy day we had yesterday! Snow in the morning, sun in the afternoon... Autumn and winter at their best, all in one day! The streets were crawling with hungry little trick or treaters, decked out in their Halloween costumes. This apple tart in by no means an antidote for their inevitable sugar rush, but it was the perfect Halloween desert for me. Lately I've been playing around with different types of fillings for sweet tarts and while I love almonds, frangipan filling (at leat the ones I've tried so far) somehow always turns out a bit on the dry side. With this apple tart I wanted something creamy, smooth, with a dash of sourness. The simple combination of full fat sour cream, eggs, sugar and vanilla really fits the bill here. Next time though I will double the amount of filling, maybe add some cardamom or lime oil and use black plums or pears. Oh, the possibilities!

Ingredients:

For the tart shell:

120 gr all purpose flour
120 gr softened butter
120 gr creamy cottage cheese
pich of salt

For the filling:

2 whole eggs
50 gr powedered sugar
200 ml full fat sour cream
1 tsp vanilla essence

4 medium apples, peeled and cut into small wedges
juice of half a lemon
2 tbsp thin apricot jam
1 tbsp pine nuts

Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly butter a 10 inch tart pan.
Mix together all tart shell ingredients until smooth. Do not overwork the dough. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
For the filling, mix eggs, sugar and vanilla until well blended and creamy. Add sour cream. Mix well.
Mix apples with lemon juice.
Roll out dough to fit tart pan. Pour in sour cream mixture and place apples over top.
Bake for about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with apricot jam. Sprinkle with pine nuts and bake for 20 more minutes or until golden. Please check frequently, oven temperatures may vary.

Lemon-yogurt fritters

I'm back after one of the busiest yet best summers on record. There was not much time to post anything.  This summer for us was the summer of tomatoes. Big, juicy, colourful, wonderful tomatoes. Served as bruschetta topping, sandwich filler, sliced with fresh basil, sea salt, olive oil and balsamic, or my favourite the once-a-week fresh tomato sauce. We had many lovely dinners of bucatini with crab and tomato sauce, penne rigate with pancetta and vodka-tomato sauce and so on. Tomatoes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I have a very eclectic range, don't I? But now it's time to bid adieu not only to this magnificent fruit but also to my lovely, minuscule garden, source of many a culinary pleasures over the summer.
Now it's time for fragrant curries and warm soups. Slow simmered stews, hot drinks and loads of apple ice cream.
And just because I have a thing for deep fried dough, I'm going to start with these lemon yogurt fritters I found on a wonderful blog, Orangette. See the recipe here. I haven't changed a thing. It's perfect as it is. Read it and weep. Or better yet, make them. As in now!
This is it, proper soul food for the beginning of something new. Because summer is over. Crying, I am.

Honey-baked nectarines with labne

Here's the thing: I am very hungry, very busy and very excited in no particular order. So here's a quick recipe for your Sunday morning. Or any morning of the week. I've had baked fruit before, but this one towers above all others. I'm planning on devouring every delicious, silky spoon of it every single weekend till the cows come home, or until nectarine season draws to an end. Whichever comes first.

Honey-baked nectarines with labne

Ingredients:

25 gr unsalted butter, coarsely chopped
6 nectarines, pitted, halved
100 gr honey
a few bruised cardamom pods
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
juice of 1 orange
500 gr Greek yogurt for labne

Drain the yogurt over a muslin lined sieve over night. Next morning you can call it labne.
Preheat oven to 375F. Scatter butter pieces in a baking dish. Place all nectarines, cut side up over the butter. Scatter all spices on top of the nectarines, drizzle with honey and pour over orange juice. Bake for about 20 minutes or until your kitchen smells so good, you just can't take it any more. Serve warm with a generous dollop of labne. Add some home made granola and you can call it a meal.
Recipe from GT magazine.

Beat the heat

Here's a little something for the hottest of summer days( two little somethings actually), for all you gourmands out there.

Some of us won't refrain from preparing and enjoying some quality chow just because it's hot outside. And some of us will. If you're part of the latter group, see you in the fall! If you're still here, you must try this refreshing mango and cucumber soup. I've already made it at least five times this summer. Yes, it's that good. There's a bit of prep work involved, but all in all it's easy, fast and there's no cooking involved.

Summer meal planning is easy, really. Especially if you stick to the basics. Cold soups, grilled meat or seafood with nothing but salt, pepper, garlic and lemon juice, throw in some fresh veggies with a cool yogurt sauce and you're home free! As for the sweet part, you have fresh fruit, ice cream or sorbet. My freezer is laden with mango, red currant and raspberry sorbet throughout the season. Now, if you want to take it a step further make a nice tart crust, fill it with whipped cream, mascarpone, ricotta or some pastry cream and top it off with fresh fruit of your choice. And you're done!

Making the perfect tart crust has been somewhat of an obsession of mine lately. If you share my obsession, search no more.

I think I found the one, courtesy of Fran Bigelow, author of Pure Chocolate. This tart crust has a crumbly dough that won't shrink or puff when baked, eliminating the need for the pie weights. Low gluten cake flour makes the dough short and crisp. Not to mention that it's nice and thin and not at all mealy, which most tart shells tend to be.

The key to making perfectly tender tart shells in temperature. Make sure to thoroughly refrigerate your oeuvre. The dough needs to be chilled when it hits the oven. The heat makes the butter expand, forming air bubbles that create a light pastry.

Chilled mango and cucumber soup

Ingredients:

4 ripe mangoes

2 English cucumbers, peeled and deseeded

2 tbsp finely chopped red onions

fresh lime juice to taste

2 tbsp chopped coriander

2 tbsp chopped mint

salt and pepper to taste

Finely chop 2 mangoes and 1 cucumber. Set aside. Coarsely chop remaining mangoes and cucumber. Add to a food processor along with the rest of your ingredients. Blend until almost smooth. Add 1 cup pf water. Blend again.

Transfer mixture to a large bowl, add the finely chopped mango and cucumber. Stir well and chill for a few hors before serving. If you desire a thinner soup, add more water. For a creamier texture, take 1 cup of your finished soup and puree it with an immersion blender. Pour it back into the soup and stir well.

Try adding chopped chillies or fresh ginger for some kick.

Recipe adapted form Gourmet magazine.

The best sugar tart crust (so far)

Ingredients:

3/4 stick (6 tbsp) unsalted butter at room temperature

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg yolk

1 cup cake flour

all purpose flour for dusting

Cream together butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolk. Continue mixing until completely smooth. Add cake flour and mix until just blended. Transfer to a sheet of plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Lightly butter a 9 inch round tart pan (this is very important). Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and let it warm on the counter for about 20 minutes until pliable but still cool to the touch. On a floured board knead the dough a few times. Pat into a ball and flatten with your hands to a 5 inch round disc. Begin rolling from the center out until an 11 and 1/2 inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick is formed. It the dough gets difficult to work with, just return it to the refrigerator for a few minutes. Gently place the dough to the buttered pan. Press it onto the bottom and around the edges of the pan, keeping the sides even and thick.Trim excess dough along the edges. Pierce the bottom with a fork and place in the refrigerator until well chilled, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Place the chilled tart shell on a baking sheet. Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until golden.

Recipe adapted from Pure Chocholate, by Fran Bigelow.

Mon cherry amour

Cherry season is upon us and while I'm sure most of you would rather eat them as they are, crisp, juicy and straight from a bowl (or from a tree if you're lucky), I urge you to try this recipe. Even if it's 40C outside and the last thing on your mind is baking. It honestly takes no time at all to make. You just do some mixing, pouring, scattering and finally devouring copious amounts of these "black beauties".
A few weeks ago I was introduced to what I think was a new kind of cherry (investigation in process), somewhere between a black cherry and a sour cherry, deep red, a tad softer than your regular cherry and with some much needed sourness thrown into the mix. Upon returning from the market the two of us finished off almost the entire contents of a 7 litre basket in one sitting. When I returned next week for seconds and possibly thirds, the cherries in question where nowhere to be found. So I settled for these black cherries, which are almost as delicious but a lot easier to sacrifice for treats such as these cake squares, maybe pickled cherries or even some luscious, silky jam.
This is the stuff summer dreams are made of, along with lemony ice tea, a cozy porch and this song.

Black cherry cake squares

Ingredients:

3 whole eggs
350 ml full fat yogurt
250 ml sugar
100 ml vegetable oil
1 tbsp baking flower
1 tbsp vanilla extract
500 ml all purpose flour
500 g pitted black cherries

Preheat oven to 375C.
In a bowl mix well eggs, sugar and yogurt. Add oil, baking powder, vanilla and mix well. Finally add flour and mix until just combined. Spread batter in a 9"X13" metal baking pan, lined with baking paper. Scatter cherries over the batter and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar, cut into large slices and serve while still warm. Or not. Either way, you'll be happy. I promise.

Happy Sunday!

"There's no sincerer love than the love of food."-George Bernard Shaw

White quinoa porridge with banana and toasted coconut

Quinoa is an ancient food that has been cultivated in the South American Andes for centuries. The Inka called it the "mother grain" and considered it sacred. Technically it is not a grain, but a seed, rich in iron, protein and calcium. The protein in quinoa is considered to be a complete protein due to the presence of all 8 essential amino acids.
Before using, the seeds need to be rinsed well in order to remove a bitter resin-like substance called saponin. Usually quinoa sold in North America is already rinsed, but it's always a good idea to rinse again to remove any leftover residue.
Consider using quinoa in soups, stews, salads, breakfast foods, desserts...The possibilities are endless. Being highly nutritious and gluten free, quinoa is a worthy addition to anyone's diet.
I stock up every month on both white and red quiona and try to incorporate it in my cooking at least once a week.
You'll love this one:

White quinoa porridge with banana and toasted coconut

Ingredients:

2 cups light coconut milk
1 cup white quinoa
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
1 banana, sliced
1/4 cup shredded, toasted coconut

Combine coconut milk with 1 cup water in a pan. Add a pinch of salt and quinoa. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently for about 25 minutes, until the grains are tender.
Meanwhile place sugar with 1 1/4 cups water in another pan and place over medium heat. Stir to dissolve sugar and simmer until thick and syrupy.
Pour some syrup into your serving bowls, then add a layer of quinoa, add more syrup and finally top with sliced banana a sprinkle over the toasted coconut.
Serves 4.
If you haven't got much of a sweet tooth you might enjoy this quinoa salad recipe: http://labohemecherie.blogspot.com/2009/02/moroccan-red-quinoa-salad-with.html

Chocolate salami

There are only a handful of things I'm willing to share. Most of these things have to do with food in some capacity. If it were up to me I'd gleefully share all my meals with loved ones (select ones at that), as I truly believe that entertainment should be a natural and pleasurable part of every one's existence. I like to define a theme, then let it run through the entire occasion. Even if I don't have the right set or props. Say, like nowadays. All my meals are concocted with much love and attention, custom tailored to each recipient's individual preferences. But try as I might, there are always some "glitches" here and there, like this one time, at band camp... I kid, I kid.
Long story short, I love to share my food. And my music. As well as my thoughts on matters of national concern. There's nothing I love more than a substantial, healthy argument.
What I'm not willing to share are my clothes ( just ask my girls:)), my books and the juiciest of bits and pics of my personal life. This is probably why I'm no friend of most types of social media. I do however enjoy my lil'old blog:)
So back to what I do like to share, here's a recipe from the archives: chocolate salami. The last time I had choco salami I was on a train heading to the Black Sea, with a bunch of friends, a backpack and a really old, crappy tent. Back then I thought that trip was somewhat of a disaster, but looking back I have to say it has changed my life to the core. For the better, of course. And I'm still reaping the benefits. See? No juicy stuff here!
Compared to that old version, this recipe has seen some major tweaking and is a summary of a bunch of different versions I found on the world wide web. So, without further ado here it goes:



Chocolate Salami

Ingredients:

40 g unsalted butter
100 g bittersweet chocolate
35 g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla
40 g condensed milk
100 g butter biscuits (such as Leibniz)
20 g flaked almonds
20 g shredded coconut
40 g dried sour cherries
40 g pistachios
20 g blackberry cordial
25 g dessert wine
cocoa powder

Melt chocolate with butter over a pot of boiling water. Let it cool a little.In another bowl crush biscuits into small pieces, not crumbs. Add almonds, coconut, sour cherries and pistachios. Mix. Add cordial and dessert wine. Mix well and set aside. Take your melted chocolate, add icing sugar, egg yolk, vanilla and condensed milk. Place back over the pot of boiling water and cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Add to biscuit mixture. Mix well. Let it cool. Shape into a salami shape using some aluminum foil.
Let it set for a few hours in the fridge. Remove foil and roll salami in cocoa powder. Slice and serve. Perfect picnic fare!

Lemon curd

This one is for one of those mornings when you feel like starting the day on the right note. And by that I mean with dessert. Kinda.
Until a few years ago, in my lil' book of big bad munchies lemon curd fell in the vaguely familiar category. Nowadays it's become a staple in my fridge, right along with Moroccan lemons, Harissa paste and Gianduja spread.
This recipe will yield about 250 grams of luscious curd. Now be warned, this amount has more than 1 stick of butter and can be eaten right out of the jar in one sitting, if you're like me. ( Look for my forthcoming autobiography,entitled How I clogged my arteries in stores everywhere.) But jokes aside, pace yourself, and spread it thinly on toast or use it in a lovely pot de yaourt with some fresh kiwis, pomegranate seeds and passion fruit. And maybe ad some nuts and granola.

Lemon curd

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
2 lemons, juice and zest
125 gr butter, chopped

Whisk egg yolks and sugar until pale. Add lemon juice and rind and finally the chopped butter. Place over simmering water(low heat), cook until mixture has thickened (8 to 10 minutes), whisking continuously, bien sur.
Enjoy responsibly!

Happy New Year!

We started off this brand New Year on a very good note, I'd say. With a scrumptious breakfast. Eating some sort of fried dough (which I have a thing for) for breakfast on every January the 1st has inadvertently become a tradition around here. And there's nothing wrong with that, as my New Year's resolution is very skimpy on any details regarding any kind of self restraint when it comes to guilty pleasures.
Find the recipe for these delicious Buttermilk Beignets here.
May your New Year be the best ever, filled with love, peace, hopes and dreams!

Plum butter snow crescents

"What's in a name..." right? Plum butter snow crescents. Or shape them differently (like my Mom does) and name them Frog's lips. Flaky vanilla scented dough + thick, creamy plum butter + powdered sugar = perfection.
For the less faint hearted I recommend making them with lard. The original recipe which comes from my grandmother uses lard instead of the butter and sour cream. Now, to some of you this might sound strange, to say the least. But don't diss it till you try it! Lard makes any pastry incredibly flaky. You cannot fake this level of flakiness. No butter, no shortening, nothing will rise up to the challenge. That said I always make them with butter and sour cream. It's healthier and my palate is more used to that buttery taste.
So my friends, call'em what you will just make sure you give them a try. You'll thank me later.

Ingredients:

100 g butter, at room temperature
120 g thick sour cream
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
250 g flour
2 1/2 tbsp powdered sugar
generous pinch of salt

150 g plum butter
powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 375F.
In a bowl mix flour, powdered sugar and salt.
In another bowl mix butter and sour cream. Add egg and vanilla. Blend well. Add flour mixture and work dough until very smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. The next day, roll out chilled dough( keeping dough and surface floured) to about 16" square.
Cut into 20 squares. Place a small tsp plum butter into one corner of square, roll it up and form into a crescent.
Continue with remaining dough and plum butter. Place crescents on baking tray. Bake cookies for about 20 to 25 minutes, until golden around the edges. Roll crescents into powdered sugar while still warm.

The One

Have you ever had a perfect food moment, when everything is just flawless: the food, the moment, the place and the people you're sharing everything with? Mine involves a snowy winter day, a sleigh ride, two people who are unfortunately no longer in my life and sitting in the windowsill in my favourite little country house, savouring every little bite of these beautiful plum dumplings. That day must have been one of the most perfect days of my life. It was many many moons ago, but every time I make these little treasures, it all comes back to me.
We all have an absolute, hands down, all time favourite food, right? You know, the food you would ask for for your last meal on this planet. Mine are plum dumplings. They're like sweet gnocchi filled with fresh plums, loadsa cinnamon sugar and rolled in toasted breadcrumbs. Some people like to serve them with sweetened double cream, but I prefer a generous dusting of powdered sugar.

I don't like a very potatoey flavour, so I use a little bit more flour than most recipes ask for. This will make them perfect when freshly made and served warm. The amount of flour you need also depends on the potatoes you're using. The dough must be soft, not too sticky so it can be rolled out easily.

Plum dumplings



Ingredients:

400 g cooked, peeled potatoes
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbsp semolina
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
16 to 18 small prune plums
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
powdered sugar and toasted breadcrumbs for serving

Deseed your plums. Mix caster sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Take each plum and fill them with the sugar mixture. Set aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Push potatoes through a potato ricer in a large bowl. Add salt, egg, oil, semolina. Stir mixture with a wooden spoon. Now add your flour, in three parts and mix together with your hands. Work dough into a smooth ball. Add more flour if necessary.
Using a well floured working surface, roll out dough to make it 5mm thick. Cut dough using a sharp knife into about 18 little squares. Place a cinnamon sugar filled plum onto center of each square. Now shape them into small dumplings, using more flour if necessary. Cook them for about 15 to 20 minutes. Gently take them out into a sieve, letting excess water drip of. Place dumplings into the warm toasted breadcrumbs. Dust with cinnamon sugar and serve.

Back to the basics

I worry a lot. Usually about things that are beyond my control, which makes the whole thing pointless. So why worry?
Just try to stay on the positive side, right? Sure, easier said that done. I'm always in a roadrunner mood. Go, get it, now, fast typeathing. I get overly excited about the most trivial things. And when I have a cloud over my head, the last thing on my mind would be food. I cannot touch food, for the life of me. That may very well be the reason I haven't spent much time in the kitchen lately. That, and also the abundance of fresh local apples, that I have been devouring by the buckets (left no room for anything else). They're so incredibly crisp when freshly picked! I'd always go for a freshly picked apple over any apple dessert.
On my last trip to the farmers' market however I bought so many different types, that I just didn't know where to keep them.
So I made the simplest, most delicious apple squares I could think of. I've been enjoying these since I was a toddler. Never thought of them as dessert. They're a meal in their own right. Make them in the evening. Take the whole pan with you, go to your dark oak library, (I don't have one, but you go ahead and do it), close the door behind you, choose a leather-bound mystery, plant yourself comfortably in your reading chair and devour them while still warm. Don't expect a lot of leftovers.

Apple cinnamon squares

Dough:

300 g all purpose flour
pinch of salt
1 large egg
125 g sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
125 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
100 ml sour cream
1/2 tbsp vanilla

Filling:

3,5 to 4 lb of your favourite apples
1 tbsp cinnamon
Juice of half a lemon

Preheat oven to 375F.
Butter and flour a medium sized baking pan, knocking out excess flour.
For dough: mix all ingredients to form a smooth dough. Divide in two. Cover with a tea towel, chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
For filling: peel and grate all the apples. Squeeze them by the hand fulls to get rid of the excess juice. You should get about two cups of apple juice, depending on the apple. Put juice aside for later use.
Mix in cinnamon and lemon juice.
Roll out half of your dough, to fit your pan. Dough will be thin. Pour apple mixture evenly over dough in pan, cover with second rolled out dough. Prick dough all over with a fork and bake for about 35 minutes or until golden.

Strawberries. For the last time.

Since I'm not a fan of those imported rubbery monsters we can all "enjoy" during the winter. Go out and grab the very last, late Ontario strawberries. Now. Run. Serve them macerated, with some whipped cream, or alongside your favourite brownie.
I still have a handful of them. They deserve a regal treatment, even if they're not exactly freshly picked. I'll bake them. Gently, for a few minutes to soften and release those juices. Then knock them over with homemade custard. Real vanilla, please!!!

Olive oil doughnuts

Blackberry season is upon us. I went to the farmers market, spent a small fortune on a huge box of them. Had big plans for making this thick, dark, gorgeous blackberry cordial laced with mint and lime juice. But It seems like fall has really made its presence known as far as my health is concerned. I was down with a cold the past few days. So blackberry cordial NO, fresh, sweet smelling local blackberries eaten straight out of the box YES.
Let's hope this is just my immune system (wanting to get stronger) playing tricks on me and getting ready to dodge all the viruses that might come my way this winter.
When I'm sick I'm always hungry. Weird, I know. I have strange cravings. I'm not talking about a healthy helping of hot soup needed for that oh so essential boost of vitamins and overall comfort of the soul. Oh, no. I'm talking fried dough. Lots of it. Drenched in some sort of luscious syrup or dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon. And in this case served with a big bowl of blackberries.
But let's keep this short, sweet and addictively delicious. These are the easiest doughnuts ever. They are shortened by olive oil and sweetened by freshly squeezed orange juice. The blackberries are just a bonus.

Olive oil doughnuts

1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup table cream
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup olive oil
60 g sugar
90 g icing sugar
475 g self raising flour
1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Combine egg and 60 g of sugar in a large bowl. Add cream, orange juice, olive oil and vanilla. Add flour to make a soft dough. Knead until it all comes together neatly. Divide dough into 10 equal pieces, then form 15 cm cylinders. Pinch ends together to make doughnut shaped rings. Combine icing sugar with cinnamon. Heat oil to 350 F and fry doughnuts until golden (turning once) about 5 to 6 minutes. Cool completely. Coat with cinnamon sugar. Let go of your willpower. They're worth it.
Recipe adapted from GT magazine.

Red currant vanilla squares and a farewell to summer

Summer is officially over. Loved it, as usual but it was about time. This summer was very different for me for several reasons, which I won't get into right now. The seasonal fruits and veggies, long, quite walks and warm summer rain will definitely be missed but now it's time for something new: my favourite time of the year, FALL. Fall with its gorgeous colours, candle lit evenings with friends and great comfort food, lots of crisp apples and juicy blackberries. For me it has always felt like a new beginning. I still have that back to school thrill running through me. Love the smell of new books, new leather shoes and the prospect of new wonders and adventures.
But since I'm not one for leaving any loose ends, here's my farewell to summer: deliciously juicy, sweet and tart red currant vanilla squares, that scream summery goodness. Made these last week with the last red currants of the season.

Red currant vanilla squares

Ingredients:

350 g all purpose flour
200 g sugar
150 g butter, at room temperature
500 g red currants, cleaned
4 eggs
pinch of salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon
150 ml sour cream

Preheat oven to 375F. Mix 250 g flour with 50 g sugar.Add butter and mix with your hands to obtain a soft dough.
Knead for about a minute. Cover and refrigerate for an hour. Grate dough into a medium sized square cake pan, lined with baking paper. Push on grated dough with the back of a spoon to even it out. Scatter over red currants.
Beat the egg yolks with the rest of the sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in salt, lemon zest and vanilla. Add sour cream and the rest of the flour and mix until combined. Beat egg whites until stiff, add to batter in two additions, gently folding it in. Pour mixture over red currants. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden. Cut into large squares and dust with icing sugar.
Enjoy!



And now here's my wish list for my new "school" year:


Cradle of flavour by James Oseland. The author spent two decades exploring the foods of the spice islands. Need I say more?


Cook in Boots by Ravinder Bhogal. Coffee table/ kitchen shelf perfection from a girl who loves food and shoes even more than I do.


Turquoise by Greg Malouf. The most beautiful book ever from the executive chef of MoMo (Melbourne), author of Saha and one of Australia's best chefs.


A year in my kitchen and My favourite ingredients by Skye Gyngell, expat Australian, now running the kitchen at Petersham Nurseries.
Do you have a cook book wish list?

Apricot-red currant summer tart

I just had to make this tart. But then again this time of year there's always something I "just" have to make. Every day there's something new. Don't you just love August? We already have peaches and apricots, still have red currants and strawberries and I even found some of the last sour cherries( my absolute favourite) of the season. So many recipes, so little time...
Because the season of these wonderful summer fruits is so short, I tend to over bake and over eat all month long. And I'm loving every moment of it!
This apricot red currant tart is best served warm. Think sunny weekday afternoon, tall glasses of homemade lemonade, iced coffee and a few girlfriends popping by unexpectedly. Let the good times begin...


Apricot-red currant summer tart


Ingredients:

300 g all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
200 g diced, unsalted butter at room temperature
2 eggs
150 g sugar
about 8 medium sized halved, pitted apricots
250 g red currants, picked over
1 cup sour cream
powdered sugar to serve

Preheat oven to 375F.
Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add butter, 1 egg, 100 g sugar and mix to form a dough. Knead several times until smooth. Form into a ball and refrigerate covered with plastic wrap for at least 1 hour. Line a medium sized baking tray with baking paper. Mix sour cream with the egg and remaining sugar until sugar dissolves.
Roll out dough on a floured surface to fit baking tray. Place apricots, cut side up on top of dough. Scatter red currants on and around apricots. Pour sour cream mixture around fruit and bake until golden around edges, about 35 to 40 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar. Cut while still warm in large rectangles.

Chocolate and hazelnut baklava cigars

Summer hasn't been very nice to us this year. So far we've had rain, thunderstorms, cooler than usual days and everything in between. Longing for a hot summer afternoon spent on a porch, somewhere very quiet, with a slice of peach pie, some home made lemonade in hand and Billie Holiday tunes in the background seems foolish at this point.
August is usually my month of cold soups, iced drinks, grilled fish and salsas. This year it's a bit different. I had hot chocolate for breakfast this morning. That should explain a lot...
Last week however, I spent a lovely afternoon at home with my new favourite summer read and one of the best cook books I've ever owned: Postcards from Portugal by Tessa Kiros. This book will immediately make you want to jump on a plane bound for Portugal. Given the fact that Portugal is just a tad farther than my local green grocer's I decided to take a quick trip to the latter. I couldn't really find all the ingredients to make anyhting from the book, so I made the best of what I had at home. We had an Andalusian gazpacho, some corn on the cob with mint and feta butter and these yummy, albeit not so summery chocolate-hazelnut cigars to finish. By the end of the meal, we all felt like we just had a great day. A great day, indeed.

Chocolate and hazelnut baklava cigars





Ingredients:

130 g dark chocolate, chopped
250 g toasted hazelnuts
140 ml runny honey
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
6 sheets filo pastry
70 ml melted butter

Preheat oven to 390 F. Combine chocolate, hazelnuts and spices. Add to a food processor and coarsely chop. Add honey and pulse until mixture comes together. Lay one sheet of filo on a clean working surface. Brush with butter. Fold in half, then brush again with butter. Spread two big tablespoons of chocolate- hazelnut filling along the edge closest to you. Fold in the two sides, then roll up tightly. Place on a baking tray. Brush again with butter. Repeat with remaining pastry and filling. Bake until golden, about 8 minutes.
Serve with a vanilla ice cream affogato and you'll be in heaven.

Lemons, lemons, lemons

I dreamt of Italy last night. Again. What is it about this country that gets you hooked? Sure they have all that glorious nature, wonderful, exuberant people, pizza, gelato, opera, unforgettable sunsets over the Colosseum, etc... but I have traveled to lots of exotic, remote corners of the world (getting almost crippled by the weight of my backpack, a.k.a. my best friend), saw incredibly beautiful things, met all kinds of people, and ate my way across several continents and none of these places trigger as many nostalgic emotions as Italy does. And things ought to get better, as far as my daydreams are concerned anyway. Memories get better with age. They get wrapped in this strange fog like filter. You know, like the ones they use to make new photos look old. You look at them, immediately see a story there, and in your mind it all plays out in slow motion. But I digest, as Joey Tribiani so eloquently put it.( If you don't know who Joey Tribiani is, you should probably stop reading this blog). What I wanted to talk about here are lemons. Amalfi lemons, to be precise. These ubiquitous little gems that litterally fall on your shoulders when you take a stroll on the notoriously narrow roads of the Amalfi. You can't escape the scent of lemons here, they're everywhere. In the air, in your pasta, in your salad, in baba al limone or that hornlike little thang Italians call sfogliatelle. What surprised me the most was that it's mostly the zest of lemon that is used, rather than the juice.
So in keeping with tradition, I made this lemony panna cotta today. Not a traditional one, as this version is made with buttermilk and lots of lemon zest, making it lighter and tangier than the usual panna cotta made with cream. And because strawberries are in season, why not serve your panna cotta with some honey-lemon strawberry salad?
Finally, if you're ever in the Amalfi region please, oh please have some lemon granita for me. And maybe a shot of Limoncello. Or two.Thank you.



Buttermilk panna cotta with honey-lemon strawberry salad






Ingredients:

750 ml buttermilk
100 g sugar
zest of one organic lemon
3 1/2 gelatin leaves, softened in cold water

salad:
1 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 tsp mild honey
juice of half a lemon

In a medium saucepan combine buttermilk with sugar and lemon zest. Bring to a slow simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Do not boil. Squeeze out excess water from gelatin and add to buttermilk mixture. Stir to dissolve completely. Strain into 4 cups and refrigerate at least 6 hours.
For the salad combine all ingredients and spoon atop panna cottas.
Serves 4 of you or 1 of me.

Almond custard and mixed fruit gratins

There are three types of people in this world. Those who know how to appreciate what they already have, those who don't, and those who are seriously working on it. I proudly consider myself a member of group #3. But let's not go too deep here, I'm just talking about fruit. When at home, I tend to overlook them. If I want something sweet I just reach for some chocolaty concoction or a tall glass of fizzy apple lemongrass cordial on ice. Not even my shiny brand new fruit basket loaded with all sorts of tropical goodness and local apples and pears( always eat seasonal, right?) will make me throw a glance towards the healthy option. But all that is about to change. As I traveled a lot in the last few years, I realized that what I missed the most in my daily diet were fruits and soup. Not that you can't buy fruit anywhere, it's just that when I'm in a different country I want to eat as much local specialities as I can. These are usually cooked or baked, and that my friends means that there's no room for "boring" fruit like apples and oranges or chicken noodle soup for that matter. Now I try to eat all my fruit when they are still fresh, or use them in desserts, such as these delicious almond custard gratins. You can use any combination of fresh fruit. If you make this for guests, they will swoon first. Next they will ask weather they're easy to prepare. And immediately after your affirmative answer, they will ask for the recipe. I promise.


Ingredients:


2 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup almond meal
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
pinch of salt
1 large mango, peeled, cubed
2 kiwis, peeled, cubed
1 cup blueberries
3/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 stick unsalted butter, cubed
creme fraiche, for serving


Preheat oven to 350F. Butter 4 gratin dishes.
Mix all the fruit in a bowl, then divide among gratin dishes.
Whisk eggs, cream, sugar,almond meal, vanilla, almond extract and salt until combined. Pour custard over fruit. Sprinkle with almonds and dot with butter. Bake for 35 minutes.
Cool to room temperature. Serve with creme fraiche.
Recipe adapted from Gourmet magazine.