My French Food experiment (Part 3): Along with “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”

I made it through breakfast I have to admit, with quite a few dishes that needed to be dealt with but was not deterred since I was on a mission and rather excited to tackle my first soufflé.

A VERY French Lunch:Soufflé Au Fromage (Cheese Soufflé)

Mr. B. was very surprised when I told him I was quite nervous about this soufflé, he was shocked to hear that I had never made a soufflé before, sweet or savory. I always take risks when I entertain, trying new recipes on old and new friends, and I never really worry about things. In my house, there is always a frozen pizza in case of emergencies. I have never had an emergency but there have been many recipes I would never do again. The soufflé just seemed so intimidating-the falling, the egg whites, the last minute prep, etc. When I entertain I like to do a lot of prep ahead of time. Soufflés always seemed so last minute to me but the book notes many steps that can be done ahead of time. Actually the entire soufflé can be made ahead of time and just covered with a large pot for up to an hour!

The book illustrates what a soufflé pan should look like but as noted most American soufflé pans are not high enough. I looked around and I did have one that looked high enough but it was too small. I did not want to alter the recipe. I opted for my round Corning ware white set. I arranged parchment paper around the perimeter and tied it with a string. This took 15 minutes! Not sure if I am just THAT uncoordinated but I have just added a proper French soufflé pan to my birthday list. Since I KNOW I will be making soufflés on a regular basis. Out of the three meals of the day this was by far the easiest. I chose the basic Cheese soufflé because I wanted to try it in its unadulterated glory. I am not at all a fan of omelets. I am not sure if it's a texture thing or what but I would never choose to have my eggs that way. A soufflé is a whole different egg-sperience (sorry I had to get at least one in there, I am done now J). The book suggested you butter and sprinkle the dish with grated Parmesan cheese. This created a crispy crust all around. I am thrilled that I used the paper collar because the soufflé rose almost to the top of the collar. It was perfectly browned and yes it did fall fast. The saying that "you wait for the soufflé it doesn't wait for you" is right on spot. The only laborious part was the egg whites which went fast with the stand mixer.

Because we were eating so much in one day I did not serve it with anything but for guests for a lunch course a nice green salad would be perfect. The soufflé is for 4-6 people (which is what is suggested) and it came out amazing! It was so tender with the cheese sprinkled throughout. Perfectly seasoned. WOW! The next time I would like to try the spinach soufflé or maybe even chocolate! I obviously had leftovers and the next day I heated it up on the stove and served it over a piece of baguette (think Hayes Street Grill Stand at the Farmers Mkt on a Saturday).

I can now say I have achieved a perfect soufflé, not so sure I have "mastered" it but I am looking forward to my next one that's for sure!

Five recipes and 2 meals down!

Jusqu'à ce Soir…Until tomorrow…

Chinese Food Experiment

I have always loved Chinese food. Where I grew up we had some amazing Chinese food restaurants. Every Wednesday growing up we went to the local Chinese food restaurant for the Pu Pu Platter and some Shirley temples for me and my sis. I couldn't get enough of the appetizers. Not sure if it was the food or the FIRE that was in the middle of our platter that enthralled me more. My sister and I would fight over who could stick their chicken wing in the fire first to burn the skin. I know, gross…I still love the appetizers but as I got older I actually branched out and started trying the dishes. As I started to get into cooking I tried my hardest to figure out the ingredients to no avail. When I go to the grocery store all I am familiar with is soy sauce. Actually, wrong. My mom used to BBQ spareribs in that Ah So sauce, I have to admit it was pretty good…

On my quest to overcome my fears (publicly) I attempted to make a Chinese food dish. I wanted one that I have had before in a restaurant so I could at least compare it with my version and I needed to pick something that my husband would eat since he isn't nearly as adventurous as I am. His requirement is that it not be spicy. I chose two recipes from Allrecipes and off I went to the supermarket. To my delight most of the ingredients I was somewhat familiar with, the only foreign one was the oyster sauce. To me it sounds gross but hey I was on an adventure.

Both of these recipes came out fantastic! Are they restaurant quality, probably not, BUT when a husband who refuses to eat leftovers asks if we are having leftovers that night for dinner, you know you did something right. To many, this dish might be on the sweet side so feel free to throw in some heat (maybe chili?). I did the beef in my wok and the rice in my 6qt sauté pan. Next time I would just serve the beef dish with plain jasmine rice. The fried rice was a meal in itself. You might want to double the sauce it was so good especially over plain rice. I wish I could come up with something else to do with the sauce. ..

Crispy Orange Beef
1 1/2 pounds beef top sirloin, thinly sliced
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons orange zest
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

Toss dried beef in cornstarch to coat. Lay beef strips out in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Allow to dry in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, salt and soy sauce. Set aside.

Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Fry in the hot oil in small batches until crispy and golden brown; set aside. Drain all of the oil from the wok except about 1 tablespoon.
Add orange zest, ginger and garlic to the remaining oil, and cook briefly until fragrant. Add the soy sauce mixture to the wok, bring to a boil, and cook until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Add beef, and heat through, stirring to coat.

Fried Rice

2 cups enriched white rice (I use Jasmine)
4 cups water
1 ½ Cup frozen peas & carrots thawed and drained
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 scallions sliced thin
soy sauce to taste (I used 2 T)
sesame oil, to taste (optional) (I used about ¼ t)
oyster sauce (I used 2T)

In a saucepan, combine rice and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.

In a small saucepan, boil carrots in water about 3 to 5 minutes. Drop peas into boiling water, and drain.

Heat wok over high heat. Pour in oil, then stir in carrots and peas; cook about 30 seconds. Crack in eggs, stirring quickly to scramble eggs and scallions with vegetables. Stir in cooked rice. Shake in soy sauce, and toss rice to coat. Drizzle with sesame oil, and toss again.

Notes: If you can make the rice in advance this dish is much better. The drier the rice the better. If you want to add in shrimp do so with the peas and carrots.

Syrian Spinach Pies~~aka Fatayir

This is yet another fantastic recipe I have had the pleasure of cooking with my grandmother. Although for some reason they never come out EXACTLY like hers when it comes to the look and taste. She very rarely measured anything and I think that her patience in the kitchen is something that was not passed down to me. Syrian cooking is very laborious, certainly a labor of love. She formed each pie so it was perfectly round dough with the exact amount of filling and then forming the triangle was with a precision that I just don’t have.

Speaking of “love”, I love the freshness of the lemon with the spinach and the crust is amazing with almost a sweetness to it. I have always preferred these cold. They are great to snack on during the week. They are baked not fried so they are not “that” bad for you.

You can also make these with a meat mixture and I will be making and blogging about it in the near future.

If you want to serve these as an appetizer then make them as small as you want and in any shape you feel like forming. You can make them ahead and preheat them in the oven to crisp up the dough and heat the filling.

6 months ago I was given the Kitchen aid 600 professional for my birthday from my husband. I honestly had no idea what I was missing. I have always been terrified of yeast, I think because it means that you actually have to knead something and that’s way too much energy for me in the kitchen. WELL now that I have my KA I can still make a yeast dough and not have to exert all that kneading energy!

Syrian Spinach Pies

1 1/2 C+2T flour
½ t dry yeast
2/3 C warm water
Salt
¼ C EVOO
1small onion sliced very thin
Pinch of Syrian pepper (optional)
Juice of 2 lemons
Pepper
2 lbs spinach cooked and squeezed dry (or 2 10 oz frozen)

1. In your mixer with the dough hook combine the flour yeast, water ½ t salt and 3 T of the EVOO. Mix at medium speed until a soft dough forms 5-10 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and proof for about 1 hour*.
2. Put remaining 3 T EVOO in pan and sauté onion until soft 5-10 minutes. Add Syrian pepper, pepper, and lemon juice. Stir in spinach and let cool completely. 
3. Preheat oven to 450 link baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat. Divide dough into 10 pieces and form into ball. Let rest for 10 minutes. Roll out into circle about 5” and place filling in middle. Bring up sides of dough to form a triangle and pinch ends to seal. Brush tops with EVOO and bake 18 minutes or until golden brown. 

Note: When I proof I usually do it in my warming drawer. If you do not have one turn on your oven and preheat to 200 then shut it off and put the dough in.

GADGET: The Silpat—I have to admit I was NOT a believer. It just seemed like it would not work, or burn. I received a mat for the holidays and I use it ALL the time! Can be used for sweet and savory items like pizza, cookies, anything, mostly for cookies though. There has been many times where I am in the middle of baking cookies and my roll of parchment paper runs out…not anymore! Check it out, you can find them anywhere.