Mushroom buckwheat pancakes, butternut squash purée and chopped chestnuts

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Kasha, mushrooms pancakes, butternut and chestnuts-4

Photo Credit: Les Recettes de Juliette

On Novembre 16th-17th, I participated to the food bloggers exhibition (Salon du Blog Culinaire) by 750g in Soisson. A nice event to spend time with the girls and meet other bloggers like Chloé et Ingrid.

With the team Marine, Nelly, Elodie and Juliette, we drove to the exhibition on Saturday as early as 7.00am for those who were cooking at 10.00am. Juliette and I had a show at 12.00pm.

food bloggers in Soisson

For this first participation, we presented a mushroom buckwheat pancakes, butternut squash purée and chopped chestnuts recipe. A seasonal, tasty and vegetarian recipe we both love. This was the first time I used roasted kasha – the roasted buckwheat seeds. If you like buckwheat, you’ll love kasha. You can cook kasha to use as semolina or to make other preparations such as pancakes. You can also simply eat it raw, sprinkled on salad for example.

Mushroom buckwheat pancakes, butternut squash purée and chopped chestnuts

Kasha and mushroom pancakes, butternut and chestnuts

Photo credit: Les Recettes de Juliette

Ingredients (4 servings):

For the pancakes

  • 150g/5,3oz buckwheat roasted kasha
  • 150g/5,3oz mushrooms
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 shallot
  • Chives
  • Salt and pepper

For the purée

  • 1 medium butternut squash
  • 150g/5,3oz peeled and cooked chestnuts
  • 10cl/3,4 fl.oz spelt cream (or equivalent)
  • 1 onion
  • 1 tablespoon of cashew nut butter
  • Olive oil
  • Salt & Pepper

Directions:

The butternut squash purée

  1. Cut squash in half, lengthwise and discard seeds. Peel and cut in big pieces.
  2. Steam squash for 20 minutes. Blend until smooth and add spelt cream.
  3. Add one tablespoon of olive oil and cashew butter and mix. Add salt & pepper. Add water if needed to dilute the sauce. Reserve.
  4. Chop the chestnuts. Reserve.

The mushrooms pancakes

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the buchwheat roasted kasha and cook for 5 minutes.
  2. Drain and place in a mixing robot. Add the eggs, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Pour in a large bowl. Reserve.
  3. Wash and cut the mushrooms in small pieces.
  4. Peel and chop the shallot.
  5. Heat a pan at medium heat. Add one tablespoon of olive oil and then shallot and mushrooms. Cook for 10 minutes. Stir regularly.
  6. Finely chop the chives.
  7. Add shallot and mushrooms and chives in the batter.
  8. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add one tablespoon of olive oil. Add a ladle of batter and flaten to make a pancake shape. Cook for 5 minutes, then turn it over and cook for 2-3 more minutes until golden brown on both sides.
  9. Repeat until all the batter is used up.
  10. Serve the pancakes with butternut squash purée sprinkled with chestnuts.
mushroom buckwheat pancakes, butternut and chestnuts-2

Photo credit: Les Recettes de Juliette

The recipe in French / La recette en français, c’est par ici !

Bredele Christmas cookies

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Fig, lemon and nuts bredele-7

Bredele are traditional cookies made during the Christmas season in Alsace. Alsatian families make many kinds of them starting as early as November. It is one good idea for a customized homemade gift.

There are dozens of Bredele cookies recipes. The following recipes are three original variations.

Fig and cinnamon star cookie

Ingredients (15-20 cookies)

  • 80g/2.8oz all purpose flour
  • 100g/3.5oz almond powder
  • 80g/2.8oz dried figs
  • 40g/1.4oz sugar
  • 40g/1.4oz icing sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

For the icing :

  • 75g/2,6oz icing sugar
  • 1 egg white
  • 1-2 drops of pure vanilla extract

Fig, lemon and nuts bredele

Directions:

Preheat the oven at 150°C/300°F.

In a robot, mix the dried figs, flour, almond powder, sugar, icing sugar and cinnamon.

Roll out on parchment paper to 1cm/0,4in thickness.

Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper or use a silicon cooking sheet.

Using a 2 1/2-inch star cookie cutter, cut out the cookies and place them on the cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 minutes.

Leave to cool.

Once the cookies are cold, make the glaze. Whisk the egg white until firm. Add on or two drops of pure vanilla extract and icing sugar. Stir until smooth.

Brush the cookies tops lightly with the glaze.

Leave to dry. The cookies are best to eat the following days.

Fig, lemon and nuts bredele-9

Lemon cookie

Ingredients (15-20cookies)

  • 80g/2.8oz all purpose flour
  • 100g/3.5oz almond powder
  • 40g/1.4oz sugar
  • 40g/1.4oz icing sugar
  • 1/2 organic lemon zests and juice

For the icing :

  • 75g/2,6oz icing sugar
  • 1 egg white

Directions:

Preheat the oven at 150°C/300°F.

In a robot, mix the flour, almond powder, sugar, icing sugar and lemon zests and juice.

Roll out on parchment paper to 0,7cm/0,3in thickness.

Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper or use a silicon cooking sheet.

Using a 2 1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out the cookies and place them on the cookie sheets.

Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the cookies over and bake for few more minutes.

Leave to cool.

Once the cookies are cold, make the glaze. Whisk the egg white until firm. Add on or two drops of pure vanilla extract and icing sugar. Stir until smooth.

Brush the cookies tops lightly with the glaze.

Fig, lemon and nuts bredele-8

Walnuts bredele

Ingredients (25-30 cookies)

  • 150g/5.3oz all purpose flour
  • 75g/2.6oz walnuts powder
  • 75g/2.6oz sugar
  • 65g butter
  • 2 tablespoons almond butter
  • 1+1 egg yolks
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 25-30 shelled walnuts

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.

In a robot, mix the flour, walnuts powder, sugar, butter, almond butter, egg yolk and a pinch of salt.

Roll out on parchment paper to 0,5cm/0,2in thickness.

Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper or use a silicon cooking sheet.

Using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out the cookies and place them on the cookie sheets. Glaze with egg yolk and place a shelled walnut in the center of the cookies.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Leave to cool.

Fig, lemon and nuts bredele-13

Vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chestnuts, parsnips and carrots

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vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chesnut-4

I love stuffed cabbage. Cabbage is so healthy, tasty and full of proteins. For this recipe, I wanted to make a vegetarian option. Also, I grabbed the flavours thesaurus by Niki Segnit to find the best flavours combination. Cabbage and chestnut looked like the perfect match. I love both. I had one natural chestnut jar left so I could skip the long chestnuts preparation. Plus I had some carrots and parsnips that looked good with it. In less than 30 minutes, the chestnuts stuffed cabbage dish was ready to serve.

Vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chestnuts, parsnips and carrots

Ingredients (4 servings) :

  • 1 cabbage
  • 350g/12,5oz chestnuts
  • 100g/3,5oz carrots
  • 100g/3,5 parsnips
  • 1 onion
  • 10cl/4fl.oz. white wine
  • 1 teaspoon of olive oil
  • Salt, white pepper, hot chili pepper powder

vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chesnut-7

Directions :

  1. Peel parsnips and carrots. Cut in small pieces. Steam for 20 minutes.
  2. Steam cabbage for 20 minutes.
  3. Peel and finely chopped the onion. Sweat the onion in a pan with olive oil. Add the chesnuts et cook for few more minutes.
  4. Add carrot and parsnip pieces. Lower heat. Cook for few 2-3 minutes.
  5. Deglaze with white wine. Season with salt, white pepper and a pinch of chili pepper powder.
  6. Pick the leaves of the cabbage off.
  7. In a robot, mix chesnuts preparation, carrot, parsnip, and the rest of the cabbage.
  8. Make small balls with the mixture. Place in a middle of a leave. Fold the sides over. Repeat operation with other leaves.
  9. Serve with salad mix.

vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chesnut-2

vegetarian stuffed cabbage with chesnut-11

Savory potato pie

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Potatoe savory pie-3

The savory potato pie (pâté aux pommes de terre) is a French traditional side dish from Creuse. It is one family recipe, simple and comforting !

Ingredients (2 individual pies):

  • 1 puff pastry
  • 2/3 potatoes
  • 2 shallots
  • Dairy cream
  • 1 egg yolk
  • Chopped fresh parsley
  • Salt, white pepper

Potatoe savory pi

Directions:

Preheat the oven at 180°C/350°F.

Peel and cut potatoes and shallots in thin slices.  In a bowl, combine the potato slices, chopped parsley and shallots. Add salt and white pepper.

Cut 2+2 rounds in the sheet of puff pastry – two the size of the mold and two 1 inch bigger. Take off a 1/2 inch round of pastry in the centre of the smallest round (the hole will allow the water to go out the mixture during the baking).

Grease and flour two individual pie molds.

Potato savory pie

Dispose the biggest round of puff pastry in the mold. Fill with potatoes. Cover with puff pastry. Brush the edges of the pastry with water to stick. Brush the top with beaten egg.

Potatoe savory pie-2

Bake for 30-35 minutes.

Remove the pies from the oven. Pour the dairy cream in pie center hole. Allow to stand for at least 10 minutes before serving.

13 must-know websites for a foodie in Paris : my e-shopping list

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Image-panier-gourmand bis

Digital is part of our life. Today, one can arrange sushi home delivery, order organic fruits and vegetables or dairy products directly from the farm, book a table or even cultivate a plot of land. Phones, tablets and applications offer a new playground for innovative services that will help us save time, facilitate search, socialize the shopping journey and simply make it fun. Here is a glance at bookmarkable websites for foodies in Paris.

Trust

Food scandals have made the news recently in France. Remember the 100% beef ©Findus lasagna made with horsemeat, then the rotten meat at ©Quick and ©Ikea chocolate tart suspected to contain excrements (I know this is terribly disgusting).

If you don’t pay attention, the “franchouillard” – said of something typically French – meal that you’ll get at a restaurant or supermarket has already made a tour of Europe, if not the world, and barely includes regional vegetables/products.

In this climate of suspicions, some brands differentiate themselves by offering labeled and/or traceable products. Le Campanier or Panier Bio Paris offer you to find organic fruits and vegetables (but not only local) when TousPrimeurs.com let you choose which farm you want your products from. For traceable meat, Carré de boeuf and Les colis du boucher are two websites to consider, although this might be quite expensive for only one person or two. Same concept for fish : MonPoisson.fr.

Paniers-du-15-XXL-450x296

Some restaurants are also concerned by providing consumers with detailed information on the sources and background of products they use.  A new label « Des produits d’ici cuisinés ici » has just been created to help locate those places. For “locavores” consumers willing to eat the season and favor local production, run to Saveurs Paris IDF website to find the map of awarded restaurants in Paris.

Save time

Home delivery can be really useful. Either because you have friends over and nothing in the fridge or simply because you’re feeling lazy after a long day of work. Alloresto is a very helpful website which enlist numerous restaurants in Paris offering home delivery. They’re classified by delivery zone, type of cuisine… Awesome to find exactly what you’re looking for depending on your needs.

For those who crave for dessert, Citycake is the website to add to your favorites. You can order cakes from the best pastry shops in Paris such as La pâtisserie des rêves, Popelini, Les cupcakes de Chloé.s, L’atelier de l’éclair… and be delivered at your doorstep.

Coming from NYC, foodtrucks trend continues to pick up steam. But the trucks are always on the go and it’s not so easy to locate them. Simple and useful is the map provided by Pouet-Pouet to help you quickly find one next to you for lunch or dinner.

Social

Share your experience and learn from others’ is something truly enjoyable as a customer. Ratings, reviews and comments are the best word of mouth. In Paris the one online service to book a table is La Fourchette. It makes it really easy to find and book a restaurant in Paris while reading the latest reviews about it. For La Fourchette unconditional, have a look at Loisirs & Privilèges private shopping plateforme which offers 20% cashback on partners websites. Same concept but slightly different offer, Restopolitain offers you one free meal for each reservation. The subscription costs 15€/month.

Gaming

Digital is also one place for gaming. Angry birds, Candy crush and other online games are huge commercial success. What if the game could meet reality ? This is what offers MonPotager.com. You plant you seeds and you see your vegetables grow while one farmer actually do it for real. And after the harvest, you receive your basket full of fresh products. How good is that ?

Monpotager.com

Homemade marshmallow using agar-agar

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Homemade marshmallow with agar agar-2

Marshmallows are so delicious and fun. I love the airy and melting in mouth texture. For a complete come back in childhood I’ve used fizzy sugar to envelop the marshmallows. My guests just loved it. The five adults we were, transformed into five kids in less than one minute. This recipe uses agar-agar. It’s not difficult but the use of a candy thermometer is highly recommended.

Homemade marshmallows using agar-agar

Ingredients (30-50 marshmallows):

  • 3 egg whites
  • 250g/8,82oz/1 1/4 cup sugar
  • 100ml/3,38fl.oz/1/2 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon agar-agar
  • Icing sugar
  • 1 point of a knife of powdered red food colouring (optional)

 Homemade marshmallow with agar agar

Directions:

In a small bowl, dissolve agar-agar into 100 ml of cold water.

In a small saucepan, boil the sugar, honey and agar-agar. Place over medium to high heat until the syrup reaches 121°C/250°F (approx. 7 minutes).

Whisk the egg whites until firm (I used an electric mixer). Add a knife of powdered red food colouring.

When the syrup is ready, slowly pour it into the whites and continue to whisk.

Cover a rectangular plate or baking sheet with parchment paper. Or use silicone molds of any size and shape.

Pour the marshmallow mixture in the prepared plate or baking sheet and use a spatula to spread it.  Allow to dry for 10 hours.

The next day, cut the marshmallows into pieces and roll them into icing sugar. Store in an airtight container. The marshmallows should last for a week but I never waited that long to confirm.

Last time I made marshmallows, I used some of the mixture to add a marshmallow layer to Christian Constant fabulous chocolate tart. Hope he would like it :)

Chocolate and marshmallow tart

Amazing lunch @ Il Vino Restaurant, Paris

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IL VINO RESTAURANT-5

For the second time, I went to Il Vino restaurant in Paris 7th. Two is better than one (for the good stuff). First time was for dinner and second was for lunch with my friend Céline (Les pépites de Noisette). Photo credit is all her.

This restaurant has everything. Wine list is exceptional. Enrico Bernardo is Best Sommelier of The World in 2004 (at only 27). Food is crazy delicious. Restaurant Il Vino is 1-star at Michelin. Staff is remarkably qualified and nice!

The concept of the restaurant is genuinely original. It’s all about food and wine combination. Continue reading →