Jan 12
25
Restaurant Review – Nicole’s 10
Nicole’s 10 is a restaurant in Randolph, NJ that offers casual dining in an upscale atmosphere. Read my review as published by Jersey Bites.
Cheers,
Veronique
Posted in Restaurant Reviews by .
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Yesterday, Jersey Bites published an article I wrote about the pros and cons of the new wine reform bill that passed this week in the Garden State.
Here is a link to the article.
What are your thoughts on this topic?
Veronique
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Jan 12
18
Out with the New, In with the Old
Me on my 3rd birthday
Today, I turn 40 years-old. I come to this milestone with satisfaction, both personally and professionally. To keep this post food and wine-focused, I’ll reminisce about some birthday traditions and memorable birthday meals I’ve cherished over the years.
When I was growing up in Quebec, my mom would often make my sister and me crepes for our birthday breakfasts. The first crepe would have our first initial “stamped” into it with her spatula and we thought that was awesome. When I got a little older, my special birthday dinner became a stuffed beef tenderloin with peppery sauce and mashed potatoes. It’s still no doubt a favorite of mine, when fixed by mom. Another birthday tradition when I was little, was to have my grandma make me a birthday chocolate cream pie. Yea, no cake, always this mile-high pie that I often still crave.
Now that I live in the New York metro area with no family around to help celebrate, my guy always plans a special night out in Manhattan. The restaurant is always kept a secret with me getting clues every few days as to the location or perhaps chef, as the big night gets closer. What fun!! Over the years, we’ve dined at Daniel, Bouley, Nobu and others that are foodie favorites.
This year, my girlfriends from Florida flew up to help celebrate the big 4-0 with me and some of my friends. We I say that “we” celebrated, I mean that the two of them celebrated the fact that I’m no longer in my 30s and have FINALLY joined them in the 40s. As we always do when they come visit, we had a foodie weekend with tons of diet-unfriendly grub. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Did you see the chocolate cream pie they made me that I posted a few days ago!??
I look forward to what’s to come in this new decade. Onwards and upwards!
Veronique
Posted in Culinary Travel Tales Other Neat Things by .
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Jan 12
17
Hummingbird Cake
Photo by Chris Absheer
It is thought the name “Hummingbird Cake” was penned as a result of people ‘humming’ after tasting the scrumptious dessert. This delicious recipe is provided by St Louis guest blogger, Chris Absheer, who is on a quest to provide decadent desserts that are simple enough for the home baker.
Cake Ingredients:
- 3 cups self- rising flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 2 large bananas, mashed
- 8-ounce can crushed pineapple
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 4 large eggs, beaten
Frosting Directions:
- 1 pound confectioner sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 6 Tbs. butter, softened
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp. milk, more if needed
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans and 9 pecan halves
Cake Directions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Grease and flour three 8” round cake pans.
- In a large bowl combine all the cake ingredients. Stir by hand until smooth.
- Divide batter in the three pans. Bake 26 to 28 minutes, or until cake surface springs back when touched.
- Cool cake pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove cakes from pans and place on rack until cooled completely.
Frosting Directions:
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine confectioner sugar, cream cheese, butter, vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk on medium speed until smooth. If the frosting is too stiff, add more milk, one tablespoon at a time.
- Frost the cake and decorate with pecans. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Makes 8 servings.
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Jan 12
16
Mile High Chocolate Cream Pie
Among my circle of friends, I’m typically the one cooking and baking (and loving it). This weekend, my two girlfriends from Florida, Eileen and Gloriann, came to visit me to help celebrate my 40th birthday. To their surprise and my amusement, I put them to work to make me a birthday pie. The recipe below is inspired by a chocolate cream pie by Hershey and it’s delicious.
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 3 cups milk, divided
- 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
- 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
- ½ tsp. salt
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 9-inch pie crust, baked and cooled
- 2 cups heavy cream, whipped
Directions:
- Combine chocolate and 2 cups milk in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, just until mixture boils. Remove from heat.
- Stir together sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt in medium bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining cup of milk and the egg yolks. Stir the egg mixture into the sugar mixture. Gradually add the egg and sugar mixture to the saucepan with the warm chocolate. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture boils, about 2 minutes. Boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the butter and vanilla extract.
- Pour the chocolate mixture into the pie crust. Press a sheet of shrink wrap directly onto the surface of the chocolate mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Cool for 20 minutes then refrigerate until well chilled, at least 2 hours.
- Top the pie with whipped cream before serving.
8 to 10 servings.
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Jan 12
10
Salmon with Brown Sugar Glaze
I came home from a business trip Saturday night to find my guy having planned meals for every night this week. How great is that!!?
For dinner last night, he prepared salmon on the grill with this really great glaze on it that was inspired by a recipe by Bobby Flay. He reserved some of the glaze and drizzled it over steamed green beans for a tasty and simple side dish.
Ingredients:
- 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 Tbsp. finely chopped ginger
- Vegetable oil
- Salt and pepper
- 2 salmon fillets, 6 ounces each
Directions:
- In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the brown sugar, maple syrup and butter. Remove from the heat and whisk in the mustard, soy sauce, olive oil and ginger. Let cool.
- Preheat grill to medium heat. Brush salmon skin with vegetable oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Place the salmon skin side down on the grill. Brush some of the glaze over the salmon fillets. Grill for 10 to 12 minutes to medium doneness, with the lid of the grill closed.
Serves 2.
Notes: You’ll have some glaze leftover. Brush additional glaze over the grilled salmon and drizzle over steamed vegetables or boiled potatoes.
Posted in American Asian Entrees Fish Maple Syrup by .
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Jan 12
8
Fail-Proof Yorkshire Puddings
I was making prime rib for a small New Year’s Eve party I was hosting and couldn’t see not serving Yorkshire Puddings. Some past recipes I’d tried failed and I was somewhat intimidated to try again, particularly for a holiday dinner party. I found the following straight-forward recipe that proved both simple to prepare and delicious.
Adapted from a recipe by Regina Varolli.
Ingredients:
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk, divided
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ tsp. coarse kosher salt
- ¼ cup liquid beef rendering or vegetable oil
Directions (at least 6 hours prior to serving the puddings):
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with ½ cup of milk, set aside.
- In another medium bowl, combine the flour and salt together. Add the egg mixture and whisk vigorously until there are absolutely no lumps left in the batter.
- Cover the batter with plastic wrap and keep it at room temperature until ready to use (at least 6 hours).
Directions (when ready to serve the Yorkshire puddings):
- Heat oven to 425 degrees.
- Place a 12-muffin tin into the hot oven and heat it until the pan is very hot, about 5 minutes. Measure out one teaspoon of beef fat (or oil) into each muffin cup and place the pan back in the oven. Leave the pan in the oven until the fat is literally smoking hot, about 5 minutes.
- As the fat is heating, whisk the remaining ½ cup cold milk into the batter that’s been sitting out all day. Whisk in some fresh, coarsely ground black pepper to taste. Put the batter into a vessel that makes it easy to pour.
- When the fat is smoking, take the muffin tin out of the oven and, working as quickly as possible, pour the batter evenly into the 12 cups. If the batter doesn’t sizzle as you pour it in the muffin cups, expect your Yorkshire puddings to not rise.
- Immediately return the pan to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Do not open the oven for the first 20 minutes of baking. The Yorkshire puddings are done when they are dark golden brown and dry to the touch. The inside of the puddings will be moist.
- Serve immediately. Yorkshire puddings don’t wait, so bake them as you need to serve them.
Makes 12 standard muffin-sized puddings.
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Jan 12
3
Chocolate Caramel Tart
{photo by Andre Baranowski, via Saveur}
When Saveur showcased this dessert (from Brooklyn’s Marlow & Sons) on its cover, I thought I’d go mad. Wow, what a beauty! At a friend’s request, I made it for my New Year’s Eve dinner party and it was as delicious and it is gorgeous.
Originally published in Saveur magazine
Crust Ingredients:
- 1 1⁄2 cups flour
- 1⁄4 cup plus 1 tbsp. Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1⁄4 tsp. kosher salt
- 10 tbsp. unsalted butter, cubed and softened
- 1⁄2 cup plus 2 tbsp. confectioners’ sugar
- 2 egg yolks, preferably at room temperature
- 1⁄2 tsp. vanilla extract
Caramel Ingredients:
- 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
- 3 tbsp. light corn syrup
- 1⁄4 tsp. kosher salt
- 6 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 6 tbsp. heavy cream
- 1 tbsp. crème fraîche
Ganache Ingredients:
- 1⁄2 cup heavy cream
- 4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- Gray sea salt for garnish
Crust Directions:
- Heat oven to 350˚.
- Combine flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Using a handheld mixer, cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until mixture is pale and fluffy; mix in yolks and vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients.
- Transfer dough to a 9″ fluted tart pan with a removable bottom and press dough evenly into bottom and sides of pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Prick the tart shell all over with a fork and bake until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool.
Caramel Directions:
- In a 1-qt. saucepan, whisk together sugar, corn syrup, salt, and 6 tbsp. water and bring to a boil. Cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer inserted into the syrup reads 340°.
- Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter, cream, and crème fraîche (the mixture will bubble up) until smooth. Pour caramel into cooled tart shell and let cool slightly; refrigerate until firm, 4–5 hours.
Ganache Directions:
- Bring cream to a boil in a 1-qt. saucepan over medium heat.
- Put chocolate into a medium bowl and pour in hot cream; let sit for 1 minute, then stir slowly with a rubber spatula until smooth.
- Pour ganache evenly over tart and refrigerate until set, 4–5 hours.
- Sprinkle tart with sea salt, slice, and serve chilled.
Serves 8.
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Traditional Bean Pot
When I was growing up in Quebec, the family would gather at Grandma’s house for baked beans breakfast several times a year. She’d bake fresh loaves of bread and the aromas would be divine.
Grandma would soak her dry beans overnight then cook them slow and low overnight, with Grandpa adding a little water throughout the night. The beans were prepared simply: salt pork, a whole onion (that uncle Dan would always get to have) and some molasses. Grandma would serve the beans on mismatched plates, no two alike, and I’d pour Quebec maple syrup on them and scarf then down – bliss. I’ve eaten my way around a bunch of cities and this meal is still my favorite breakfast.
This year, with Grandma’s passing, my mom, Diane, decided to fix this dish for us as a sort of an ode to Grandma. She’d even bought a handsome bean pot for them to simmer in! I’m providing the recipe below, but it’s not really about making this dish, it’s about the story behind it. Way to go mom for keeping this tradition alive and the family well-fed!
Ingredients:
- 2 cups dried white beans
- 1/2 pound salt pork, cut into 1″ cubes
- 1 medium onion, peeled
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1 tsp. dry mustard
- 1 tsp. each salt and pepper
Directions:
Place the beans in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water then cover with foil. Place the saucepan in the refrigerator at least 12 hours.
- Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Take the beans out of the refrigerator and put on the stovetop on high heat. Boil the beans for 30 minutes, then, using a colander, drain the water.
- Place half of the cubed salt pork in the bottom of a heavy, oven-proof pot or Dutch oven (if you have a traditional bean pot, even better). Add the beans and top with the remaining salt pork. Tuck the onion in. Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the beans and pork.
- Cover the beans with hot water, place in the oven, covered, and cook for 7-8 hours. Halfway through the cooking process, add more hot water to once again cover the beans.
Makes 6-8 servings.
Posted in Breakfast Canadian Maple Syrup Pork Sides by .
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Dec 11
20
Keeping Family Traditions Alive
This is the first Christmas the family will spend without Grandma. I’ve mentioned in past posts what an amazing cook and baker she was and that she had a huge part in my love of food.
One of the items that belonged to Grandma that I was fortunate enough to get was a small 3-section glass dish that she displayed her Christmas treats on.
I’ve made Grandma’s Chocolate and Peanut Butter Treats over the weekend and plan on proudly displaying them on the dish to my guests.
It’s one of my small contributions to keeping traditions alive.
Cheers,
Veronique
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