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What's
Cooking? Francophile Cuisine |
| This summer, I served as mentor to Rebecca
Hutchins, a Frances C. Richmond Middle School extern who spent time
at the Co-op under the auspices of the Upper Valley Business and Education
Partnership (see accompanying
article.)
As educators, our mutual goal is to educate our audiences in a fun, interesting, and engaging way. She wanted to prepare a unit on the cuisine of French-speaking countries around the world, and I was excited to find someone who spoke French fluently, liked to cook, and saw the benefits of sharing this information with our Co-op customers. A French teacher, and a "foodie", Rebecca’s enthusiasm for the French language and cuisine is contagious, and I know that her students will truly benefit from the materials she has assembled for them. We will too, for her UVBEP project work will be showcased here at the Co-op. Armed with an enormous, unorganized stack of "saved recipes," and using Internet access here at the Co-op, Rebecca began her research by identifying traditional recipes and the stories behind them from French-speaking countries around the world including parts of Canada, the U.S., France, Belgium, Switzerland, The Antilles, and North Africa. Then came the arduous task of selecting just a few recipes from each place. Her kitchen was busy this summer as she tested several of the dishes at home. The final recipe selections have been assembled into a brochure, and we have planned a special tasting party at the Lebanon Co-op on November 3, so shoppers can sample some of the recipes. Another aspect of Rebecca’s project is an in-store educational display of the information collected during her research. This includes interesting and unique recipe ingredients, the recipes, a glossary of cooking terms and ingredients, a game that matches the country to the recipe, and a map of the countries featured in the recipes. The display will also include "realia," — items to give realism to the display such as fabric from Provence. This display will be duplicated in Rebecca’s classroom as a focal point of her unit on Francophile Cuisine. As an unexpected benefit of Rebecca’s externship, she has agreed to teach (in French!) an evening cooking class at the Co-op this fall. Here you can try some of her recipes yourself. Creamed Endive Soup Melted Cheese with Boiled Potatoes La Belgique: La Soupe
à la Scarole Serves 4 The Belgians call the endive "White Gold." Select endives with smooth, tightly-closed white leaves and yellow tips. 2 Belgian endives, cored 1 white onion, diced 1 garlic clove, diced 2 Tbs. butter 2 large potatoes, peeled and diced 2 cups chicken broth 1 cup milk or cream Salt and pepper to taste Chopped chives Dill sprigs for garnish Mince the Belgian endives, reserving a few small leaves for garnish. Sauté the onion, garlic, and minced Belgian endives in the butter for three minutes. Add the potatoes and chicken broth and simmer for about fifteen minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Put mixture in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Add the milk, salt, and pepper, and blend. Serve hot or cold. Garnish with the small Belgian endive leaves, chives, and dill. —Belgian Endive Marketing Board La France: Tarte Tatin Serves 8 How does a dish become legend? During the 1850s, Stephanie and Caroline Tatin built and operated the Hotel-Terminus Tatin. When they sold the hotel 50 years later, they left behind the fame of their rustic apple tart. According to the legend, one day Caroline was preparing an apple tart. She had cooked the apples in butter and sugar and, in haste, turned the mixture into a pie tin without the bottom piecrust dough. Choosing not to redo her steps, she improvised by placing the dough on top of the cooked apples. She baked the pie, removed it from the oven, and turned the tart over, creating la tarte renversée. Pastry 1-1/3 cup all-purpose flour 10 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut in small pieces 1/4 cup superfine sugar 1 egg, beaten In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour and butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in sugar. Add egg and mix well. Knead dough in bowl until dough clings together. Form dough into a disk shape. Wrap and refrigerate while preparing topping. Topping 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1/2 cup + 1 Tbs. granulated sugar 2 lbs. cooking apples, peeled, cored, and thickly sliced Grated zest of 1 lemon In a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet, melt butter and sugar. Arrange apple slices by overlapping them in 2 layers of concentric circles over butter mixture in skillet. Sprinkle with lemon zest. Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar starts to caramelize and turns golden brown when bubbling up around sides of skillet. Remove pan from heat. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. On a lightly floured surface, roll out pastry about 1/4-inch thick in a circle the same size as the top inside edge of skillet. Trim edges evenly. Fit pastry over apples in skillet, pressing down lightly. Place the skillet on baking sheet and bake for 35 to 45 minutes until pastry is nicely browned. Cool in pan set on a rack for 2 minutes. Invert at once on a heatproof serving plate. Serve warm. —Victoria Magazine New Orleans: Chicken and Sausage Gumbo Serves 8 Used to thicken many sauces, a roux is a mixture of equal amounts of cooked flour and oil. The cooking period varies, depending on the color of roux required (a white or blond roux for a white sauce, a brown roux for a brown sauce). Use a long-handled wooden spoon or whisk when cooking, as the mixture is very hot. For this recipe, make the roux as dark as possible, but if it develops dark specks, it has burned and you’ll need to start over. Filé powder is a seasoning made from the ground dried leaves of the sassafras tree. Choctaw Indians from the Louisiana bayou country are said to be the first users of this signature spice of Creole cooking. 1-1/2 tsp. salt (divided use) 1 tsp. pepper (divided use) 1 tsp. garlic powder (divided use) 1 tsp. onion powder (divided use) 1-1/4 cup flour (divided use) 1 (2-3 lb.) chicken, cut up 1 cup oil (divided use) 1/2 to 1 lb. Andouille or smoked sausage, cut in _-inch pieces 1 cup chopped onions 1 cup chopped bell pepper 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 cup chopped okra (may use frozen) 8 cups chicken stock 1 Tbs. paprika 1 Tbs. filé powder 4 cups hot cooked rice Mix 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper,
and 1/2 teaspoon onion powder. Rub on chicken pieces and set aside
for 30 minutes. Mix 3/4 cup flour and 1/2 cup oil in a large, heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat and stir to mix. Continue cooking and stirring until the roux is a dark chocolate brown. This can take 30 minutes. If it begins to cook too fast, remove from heat and continue to stir. Add chopped vegetables and stir thoroughly. Mixture will be sticky. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock 1 cup at a time until it is well blended. Add remaining salt, pepper, onion powder, paprika, filé powder, chicken pieces, and sausage. Simmer for l-1/2 hours. Serve over rice. — Juan Garcia, The Dallas Morning News La Suiss: La Raclette Serves 4 Raclette is both the name of a Savoyard cheese (from the region of Savoie) and a traditional dish in which chunks of the cheese were put on the hearth near a glowing fire. The firm rind forms a frame for the warm, soft cheese. Diners gather around with plates, knives, and forks in hand and a bowl of boiled potatoes. As the surface of the cheese melts, it is scraped off, spread across the potatoes, and eaten with gusto! Today, many people use electric raclette grills, and each diner is given a stack of sliced raclette to place into his or her assigned square, where it melts before being spooned over potatoes. 12 boiling potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, Yellow Finn, or Red or White Rose 1 tsp. salt, more to taste 1 to 1-1/2 lbs. Raclette cheese, cut into 4 equal portions Freshly ground pepper, to taste In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes and salt in enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook, uncovered, until potatoes easily pierce with the tip of a sharp knife, about 20-25 minutes. Drain, cover to keep warm, and set aside. To serve, put a piece of cheese for each person on a separate heatproof plate and set the plates near the fire with a cut side facing the heat. Pass out more plates for the potatoes. While the cheese is melting, each diner lightly mashes some of the potatoes and seasons them to taste with salt and pepper. When the cheese is ready, each diner scrapes the melted portion from his or her piece and spreads it over the potatoes. The rind, left intact, provides a frame for the melting cheese. After the scraping, the cheese is placed near the fire to melt again. —Savoring France, by Williams Sonoma Le Tahiti: Poulet avec
les Limettes Serves 6 2-1/2 lbs. chicken cut up, skin removed Juice of 8 limes, divided Zest of 1 lime, finely grated 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. white pepper 1 large sprig of fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp. dried 4 Tbs. peanut oil 2 Tbs. butter 1 cup chicken stock or canned broth 1 Tbs. sugar 1-1/2 Tbs. cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbs. warm water 1/2 cup whipping cream 1 lime, thinly sliced into disks Place chicken parts in a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add half of the lime juice, zest, salt, pepper, and thyme. Seal; massage briefly. Marinate in the refrigerator 2 hours, turning bag occasionally. Remove chicken pieces from marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Reserve marinade. In a large non-reactive saucepan over medium high heat, heat oil. Add chicken pieces and brown on all sides, turning frequently. Pour in marinade and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove chicken to a platter and keep warm. On high heat, cook sauce until it is reduced to about one cup. Reduce heat to a simmer and add remainder of lime juice and sugar. Stir in cornstarch and whisk until thickened. Take pan off heat and stir in cream. Pour sauce over chicken. Garnish with lime slices. —Tradewinds and Coconuts, by Jennifer Brennan |
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