Girl et Galette

A reluctant friend shared his birthday with us this week. He isn’t one to relish attention on his big day, but I coerced him out of his shell with the promise of curry. Have you ever met a Brit who doesn’t love curry?

Menu

Curried Lentils in Tomato Sauce
Spicy Vegetable Red Curry
Saag Paneer with Homemade Cheese
Hardboiled Eggs
Rice
Buttery Garlic Naan Bread

Curried Lentils in Tomato Sauce

From Martha Stewart

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 piece fresh ginger (2 inches long), peeled and finely grated
Coarse salt
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon garam masala (sub cumin if you don’t have this spice mix on hand)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 jar (26 ounces) best-quality store-bought tomato sauce ( I made my own with a can of tomatoes, smashed, seasoned with salt and pepper and stewed with 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes)
2 cans (20 ounces each) cooked lentils, rinsed and drained (Or cook your own from dried lentils as I did)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 1 lime) (I subbed for a lemon)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish (optional) (I used parsley instead)

Directions

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add onion and ginger; season with salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown, 5 to 8 minutes.
Add spices; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
Add tomato sauce, lentils, and 1 cup water. Simmer until slightly thickened, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in lime juice and cilantro; season with salt.
Serve lentil mixture with rice; garnish with more cilantro, if desired.

Saag Paneer

From 101 Cookbooks with notes from Caely in double parentheses

Serves 4-6

1 1/2 pounds fresh (baby) spinach, well washed and dried
2 tablespoons ghee, clarified butter, or unsalted butter
8 – 12 oz paneer cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (( I made my own paneer with the help of this beautiful blogpost))
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon spice mixture* (see below)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 cup buttermilk ((I didn’t have, so I subbed 1/2 cup of plain yogurt))
splash of cream or dollop of plain yogurt (optional)
fresh lemon to finish, and toasted sesame seeds to sprinkle

Chop the spinach well, and set aside in a large bowl.

While you’re chopping spinach, cook the paneer in one tablespoon of the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Make sure the paneer is in a single layer and use a spatula to flip it regularly so all sides get deeply brown. This typically takes 7 minutes or so. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Heat the other tablespoon of butter in your largest soup pot. Add the onions and salt, and saute until the onions soften up, five minutes or so. Add the garlic, ginger, spice mixture, and turmeric. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and nicely combined – a minute or two.

Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the spinach to the pan all at once, if possible. Cook, stirring all the while, until the spinach is collapsed and wilted, a couple of minutes. If you need to add the spinach in batches (adding more spinach as it collapses), that is fine too, just do it as quickly as possible.

Stir in the buttermilk and cream and heat gently while stirring. If the mixture seems dry, add more buttermilk a splash at a time (this rarely happens to me). Taste and add more salt if necessary and more red pepper flakes if you like. Add a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice, stir in the paneer, sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

*Spice Mixture: Use a mortar and pestle or spice grinder to grind the following spices as finely as possible: 2 tablespoons cumin seed, 1 tablespoons coriander seed, 2 teaspoons mustard seed, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1/8 teaspoon cardamom seeds, 3 whole cloves. Store in an airtight container and use as needed.

Spicy Red Vegetable Curry

3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped
3 large potatoes, boiled and cut into bite size pieces
5 carrots, sliced into 1/2″ thick slices
3 cloves garlic, chopped
6 tbsp red curry paste
400 grams (16 ounce) can coconut milk (you can sub with a mixture of equal parts chicken or vegetable broth with plain yogurt)
225 grams (1 cup) peas

Warm oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add carrot, potatoes, garlic and curry paste and cook for 2 minutes. Add coconut milk or broth and yogurt and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until carrots are soft.

Buttery Garlic Naan Bread

Adapted from Anjum Anand for BBC

Serves 5

Ingredients

For the dough

250g/9oz plain flour
2 teaspoons sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
110-130ml (3½-4½ fl oz) milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

For the topping

2 tablespoons butter, melted 
3 cloves garlic, chopped 

Variations: Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, chopped parlsey

For the dough, sift the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into a bowl. In another bowl, mix together the milk and oil.

Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and pour in the liquid mixture. Slowly mix together the dough by working from the centre and incorporating the flour from the edges of the ‘well’, to make a smooth, soft dough. Knead well for 8-10 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too sticky. This can be done in a mixer if you’re lazy like me!

Once kneaded, place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with a damp tea-towel and leave in a warm place for 10-15 minutes. Form the dough into five balls.

Preheat the grill to medium and place a heavy baking sheet on the upper shelf of the grill to heat. If you don’t have a grill handy, preheat the broiler of your oven.

Roll the dough balls out quite thinly, ideally in a teardrop shape, but really this is just aesthetic. Brush the naan with the melted butter and then sprinkle over your chosen topping and press into the surface of the dough. Place the naan onto the hot baking sheet and grill for just 1-2 minutes, or until lightly browned, or place onto a baking sheet and cook under broiler for 2-3 minutes.

Whenever the urge for brownies strike, it’s all-powerful and consuming. To the point that I’m checking the clock every other minute while they are in the oven, urging them to bake faster, and once they finally do emerge from the oven in all their gloriousness, I never let them cool before I cut into them. I’d rather burn my tongue than wait one more minute!

Living abroad has made this insatiable brownie craving rear it’s ugly head all the more often, I suppose because brownies are so terribly American and I reach for them instinctively during bouts of homesickness . Here is my go-to recipe in times of dire brownie need.

Best of Brownie

100 grams (3.5 ounces) dark chocolate, roughly chopped
115 grams (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
200 grams (7/8 cup) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
85 grams (2/3 cup) all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.

In a medium heatproof bowl over a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter together, stirring occasionally until they are just incorporated together. Remove from heat and stir together until it’s smooth and glossy. Whisk in sugar, then eggs, one at a time, then vanilla and salt. Fold in flour with a spatula and scrape batter into prepared pan, spread until even. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the middle just comes out clean.

If you’re feeling fancy, use a sieve to dust the brownies with powdered sugar or cacao powder before serving. Or, if you’re into that whole salty sweet combo (who isn’t?) sprinkle a pinch of flaky sea salt over the top. Let cool before you dig in (or don’t, but try not to burn your tongue like I do) and cut into desired size.

If you’ve been reading regularly you know I had buckets and buckets of apples to use up last autumn. Pounds and pounds of them. I know, woe to me. Many of those apples made it into desserts such as Apple Brownies, Yogurt Apple Cake and Apple Banana Bread with Roasted Hazelnuts. But even more of them ended up peeled, cored and cooked into apple sauce that is now buried in the depths of our deep freeze. Cleaning out the freezer the other day, I stumbled upon this cache of apple sauce and decided it needs to get used up to make room for the many peas and broad beans I’ll be freezing in a couple of months once spring has finally arrived.  

In my quest to use up apples, I’ve found a very efficient recipe: The Triple Apple Cake. A cake that is light on the oil and sugar because it is so heavy on the apples. Apple sauce makes it moist, apple cider boosts the flavor, and sliced apples on top make it texturally interesting.

Triple Apple CakeMakes 1 large cake, approximately 8 servings

30 ml (2 tablespoons) vegetable oil
150 grams (2/3 cup) sugar plus 2 tablespoons for sprinkling
225 grams (1 cup) apple sauce
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon apple cider (can sub apple cider vinegar or white wine)
330 grams (3 cups) flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3-4 medium sized apples

Preheat the oven to 180 ° C (350 ° F).

In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla and apple cider. Once the mixture is smooth and free of lumps, mix in the apple sauce.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and soda, salt and seasonings. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, taking care not to overmix. Pour the batter into a greased 25 centimeter (10 inch) cake pan.

Slice the apples into thin slices and arrange them as you please over the top of the batter. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of sugar evenly over your apples. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Bon appétit!

My best friend Kelsey is obsessed with ginger. The ladies who worked at the sushi restaurant down the street from our apartment in San Francisco dubbed her “the ginger lady” because she was forever asking for more ginger.

I know the internet is chockfull of recipes for Ginger Carrot Soups, but thanks to a little inspiration from my friend Kelsey, this one sticks out from all the rest. This recipe is for you Kels, because its heavy on the ginger and the attitude, just like you my friend.

Ginger Lady’s Carrot Soup

Serves 4

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds carrots (1 kil0), peeled and sliced
1 large potato, peeled and chopped into small cubes
6 cups (1.5 quarts or 3 pints) chicken or vegetable broth
2-4 tablespoons ginger, peeled and minced (It’s a strong flavor for some people, so start with less and add more to taste)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
The juice and zest of half a lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 cup (60 ml) crème fraîche plus  for serving (about 1 tablespoons per person) If you don’t have crème fraîche handy, you may substitute sour cream or a thick plain yogurt such as a greek yogurt 
A handful or fresh herbs, chopped (I’ve used basil and parsley)

In a large saucepan, heat the butter or oil over medium heat. After a minute, add the onion. Sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes, pay close attention that the onion does not brown! Add the potatoes, carrots and garlic to the onion and sauté for about 2 minutes, taking care not to burn the garlic.  Add the broth, ginger and coriander. Cover and bring to a boil. Remove cover and simmer gently until carrots and potatoes are tender, time depending upon how thickly the carrots were sliced.

Once the vegetables are tender, remove the soup from heat and transfer to a large bowl. Add the lemon zest and juice, crème fraîche and salt and pepper to taste. Blend carefully with an immersion blender (if you do not have one, blend soup in batches in a blender), making sure not to splatter yourself with hot soup as I have done too many times to count…

May be served hot or cold, with a dollop of crème fraiche and a sprinkling of fresh herbs.

Any French person, whether they be Parisian or Provincial, will tell you that the best butter comes from Brittany. The combination of happy grass-fed cows and epically magnificent sea salt (Sel de Guérande) makes for  some pretty righteous stuff. So righteous in fact that when I smuggled some home to California for Christmas one year and busted it out for my family to taste, they all closed their eyes and sighed as it melted on their tongues. Heaven, they said.

This salted butter is Brittany’s culinary gem and it pops up in every famous Breton specialty. No galette would show it’s face on a plate without a heaping portion of beurre melting all over it. The display cases of every boulangerie are bursting full of butter, from the  kouign amanns to the tart crusts to the cookies. But one cookie is particularly symbolic of Brittany and its butter: the sablé.

Sable means sand in French. Not the most appetizing name for a cookie I suppose, but it makes sense as the cookie is crumbly and crunchy and grainy like sand. The best comparison for a sablé is shortbread, though they are lighter and less dense than their Scottish counterparts.

Sablé au chocolat                                                                                                Adapted from Smitten Kitchen 

Makes 40 to 48 2-inch thin cookies, fewer if thicker

1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (30 grams) cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces or 115 grams) salted butter, at room temperature
1/2 to 2/3 cup (100 to 135 grams) granulated sugar (less for a more bittersweet cookie)
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 1/2 ounces (100 grams) dark chocolate,  finely chopped until almost powdery in a food processor (you can grate the chocolate if you don’t have a food processor, but this is a long and tedious project)
Coarse sugar for decor (optional)

Sift together the flour, cocoa and baking soda together into a bowl and set aside.

Cream butter, sugar and salt together in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolk and vanilla, beating until combined, then scraping down sides. Add dry ingredients and grated chocolate together and mix until just combined.

Scrape dough onto a piece of plastic wrap, wrap it up and chill it in the frige until just firm, about 30 to 45 minutes.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured surface, roll dough gently to desired thickness (they will puff ever so slightly in the oven).  I did half of mine very thin (1/8″) for a crispier cookie and the other half a bit thicker (approximately 1/4″) for a more toothsome cookie. They’re delicious both ways!

Once the dough is rolled out to desired thickness, cut into creative shapes with cookies cutters and space them an inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle decoratively with coarse sugar. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (for thinner cookies) or 10 to 12 minutes (for thicker ones). Leave cookies on baking sheets out of the oven for a couple minutes before gently, carefully transferring them to cooling racks, as they’ll be fragile until they cool.

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to two weeks of 4 p.m. rations.