Batch of links

- Better post this while it’s still relevant: When Hillary Clinton’s emails were leaked this month, it turns out there was important culinary information in there. You can’t rush a good risotto.

- A very interesting article titled A Plea for Culinary Modernism. The apt subtitle is “The obsession with eating natural and artisanal is ahistorical. We should demand more high-quality industrial food.”

- On a slightly related note, The Pie that won WWII is an interesting read.

- Also, The Depression Radically Changed the Way Americans Ate.

- There is now a sixth taste, which explains why we like carbs so much. And it also makes me wonder why we thought there were only four tastes for so long…

- There’s now potato-based vegan cheese!

- A ranking of the most (and least) vegetarian-friendly cities in America. Not surprisingly, San Antonio is near the bottom, but who would have thought that Santa Fe would come out on top? I’m really impressed by all the data points in this article.

- I heard about a new-to-me vegan chain called Veggie Grill, and it’s expanding! Let’s see if it makes it out of Southern California…

- Montreal has a zero-waste grocery store now – it’s called Méga Vrac.

- Inside the New York Library’s last, secret apartments made me want one of those places!

- Ever wondered what happens to unclaimed airline luggage in the US? Chances are, it ends up at a thrift store in Atlanta.

- A card with a hand-drawn map instead of an address was correctly delivered in Iceland. I love stories like these! It always reminds me of the time a cousin sent a letter to my grandmother using only her first name and the name of her street, in addition to the village and province (no postal code). It got to her that time, but the Canada Post employee won’t stand for such nonsense anymore.

Petits pains de viande coiffés de purée

Ici, on aime ça, la viande et les patates. Enfin, le Petit Prince a l’air d’aimer les patates juste s’il s’agit de frites ces temps-ci, mais sinon, on aime ça. J’ai fait un souper très simple, des saucisses de poulet avec des patates écrasées, le tout rôti au four, et c’était très bon. Le genre de souper sans se casser la tête que j’aime bien faire, surtout avec une petite salade verte.

Dans le même genre (mais en moins simple), voici une recette de Coup de Pouce, qui est présentement introuvable sur leur site (ils ont refait leur moteur de recherche récemment, et c’est le bordel total!). Pour faire d’une pierre deux coups, j’ai testé en même temps cette recette de purée de pommes de terre à l’ail, au parmesan et au beurre noisette qui était à se rouler par terre! Il me restait de la purée de pommes de terre, alors je l’ai servie à côté. La prochaine fois, j’en mettrais davantage dans la recette et j’utiliserais une cuillère à crème glacée pour faire de belles boules sur les petits pains de viande, ce serait plus joli dans l’assiette et moins redondant surtout… L’Ingénieur a appelé ça des « meat muffins », et je pense qu’avec une boule de simili-glaçage de patates, ce serait comme des petits gâteaux à la viande (au lieu de petits pains). Ça aussi, j’ai servi avec une salade verte. Vraiment délicieux (et le Petit Prince a aimé la viande, en tout cas!).

Pour les patates : on s’entend que vous pouvez utiliser la recette que vous voulez, mais je me dois de vous donner celle que j’ai essayée, tellement c’était bon.

Pour la purée de pommes de terre
10 grosses patates (3 lb.; j’avais des Yukon Gold, il me semble)
¾ tasse de beurre
4 gousses d’ail, râpées
½ tasse de fromage parmesan râpé
1 tasse de lait sans lactose (ou plus, au besoin)

Peler les patates et les couper en gros morceaux. Faire bouillir dans de l’eau salée pendant 20 minutes ou jusqu’à ce qu’elles soient tendres.

Après environ 10 minutes, faire fondre le beurre dans une petite casserole à feu moyen. Quand le beurre commence à mousser, ajouter l’ail et brasser sans arrêt jusqu’à ce que le beurre brunisse (il y aura de petits morceaux foncés au fond de la casserole). Retirer du feu.

Drainer les patates et les remettre dans la casserole. Ajouter le beurre réservé ainsi que le parmesan et le lait. Piler les patates jusqu’à ce qu’elles aient une consistance homogène (ajouter un peu de lait au besoin). Saler et poivrer, au goût.

Pour les petits pains de viande
1 œuf légèrement battu
¼ tasse de chapelure assaisonnée à l’italienne (j’ai mis des fines herbes dans ma chapelure nature)
¼ tasse de champignons frais, hachés finement
¼ tasse de carotte râpée
¼ tasse d’oignon haché finement
2 c. à soupe de ketchup
2 c. à thé de moutarde de Dijon
2 c. à thé de sauce Worcestershire
1 gousse d’ail hachée finement
1 ¼ lb. de bœuf haché maigre
½ tasse de sauce barbecue du commerce
1 ¼ tasse de purée de pommes de terre (ou davantage, voir notre plus haut)
¼ tasse de cheddar râpé
ciboulette hachée

Préchauffer le four à 350 °F. Huiler douze moules à muffins et les mettre sur une plaque à biscuits.

Dans un grand bol, mélanger l’œuf, la chapelure, les champignons, la carotte, l’oignon, le ketchup, la moutarde de Dijon, la sauce Worcestershire et l’ail. Ajouter le bœuf haché et bien mélanger.

Presser légèrement la préparation de bœuf haché dans les moules à muffins; badigeonner les pains de viande de la sauce barbecue. Cuire pendant 30 minutes ou jusqu’à ce que les petits pains de viande aient perdu leur teinte rosée à l’intérieur (j’ai utilisé un thermomètre).

Entre-temps, chauffer la purée de pommes de terre au micro-ondes. Répartir la purée sur les petits pains de viande (voir notre plus haut) et parsemer du cheddar. Poursuivre la cuisson au four pendant 5 minutes ou jusqu’à ce que le fromage ait fondu. Parsemer de ciboulette et servir.

Plum Squares with Marzipan Crumble

I made a few more recipes with stone fruit (a somewhat disappointing apple and peach compote and a delicious peach melba parfait with graham cracker crumble with yogurt), but none quite so good as these late-season plum squares with marzipan crumble from Smitten Kitchen. Min came out thicker than what I was expecting (probably because my pan was 8 inches square instead of her 9 inches square), but they were delicious! The Engineer and I both loved them; the Little Prince wants it known that he prefers less fruit in his desserts.

This recipe calls for an 8-inch square pan, but a 9-inch one will work just as well. You can double the recipe and use a 9”x13” pan, too. I wrote down what Deb Perelman recommends doing with the second half of the tube of marzipan (since the most commonly available brand seems to be Odense, I’m assuming everyone will have this “problem”). You won’t regret it!

For the crust
1 cup (130 g.) all-purpose flour
½ cup (55 g.) sliced almonds, toasted (or almond flour)
¼ tsp. fine sea salt or table salt
¼ cup (50 g.) granulated sugar
¼ tsp. almond extract
½ cup unsalted butter or margarine

For the crumble
2/3 cup (85 g.) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup marzipan or almond paste (about 3.5 oz. of a 7-oz. tube)
1/3 cup (65 g.) light brown sugar
¼ tsp. fine sea salt and table salt
4 Tbsp. chilled unsalted butter or margarine, cut into cubes
¼ cup (30 g.) sliced, toasted almonds

For the filling
1/3 cup marzipan or almond paste (the second half of your 7-oz. tube; optional)
1 lb. plums (about 6 or 7), halved, pitted and thinly sliced
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 ½ Tbsp. cornstarch

Preheat the oven to 375 °F. Cut two 12-inch lengths of parchment paper and trim each to fit the 8-inch width of an 8×8-inch square baking pan. Press it into the bottom and sides of your pan in one direction, then use the second sheet to line the rest of the pan, perpendicular to the first sheet. This is going to make it very easy to remove the bars.

For the crust
Combine the flour, almonds, salt, sugar and extract in the bowl of a food processor. Cut the butter into chunks, and add it to the bowl, then run the machine until the mixture forms large clumps, maybe 30 to 60 seconds. Transfer the dough to your prepared baking pan and press it evenly across the bottom and 1/4-inch up the sides. Bake for 15 minutes, until very pale golden. Let cool (you can place the crust in the fridge or even in the freezer, on a cooling rack, to speed this up, but I didn’t bother).

For the crumble
Blend flour, almond paste, sugar and salt in processor until almond paste is finely ground. Add butter and blend, using on/off turns, until coarse crumbs form. Transfer crumble to bowl; mix in almonds.

For the filling
Place the almond paste in between two sheets of wax paper and roll it out thinly. (At this point, mine decided to take on a shape like Texas – go figure.) Cut it into pieces and place it onto your parbaked crust.


Combine all remaining ingredients in medium bowl; toss to coat well.

Sprinkle ½ cup prepared crumble over cooled crust. Top with plum mixture. Sprinkle with remaining crumble.

Bake until filling bubbles thickly and top is golden, about 35 to 40 minutes. If the bars brown too quickly, cover them with foil for the remaining baking time. Cool in pan (again, you can use the fridge or freezer here, but I didn’t bother). Once firm, use the parchment sling to remove the bars and cut them more cleanly on a cutting board. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, before serving.

Zucchini Pizza

The recipes for the pizza and dough are both from Smitten Kitchen. Deb Perelman calls for a 9”x13” half-sheet pan, but I don’t have those. My pan is about 11”x17”, if I remember correctly, so I made the full recipe of her dough (instead of the 2/3 that she recommends), but even then, I didn’t have enough to cover the pan. It did feel like enough pizza in all, though, but I would have preferred it if it had covered all the surface nicely… Next time, I might increase the dough proportions by a third, especially since I didn’t want a too-thin, crispy dough. Keep in mind that this dough, if you make it, is soft and doesn’t stretch easily, so you can’t just roll it out to the desired size. You could always buy your dough, too, if that’s easier, or use your favorite recipe. I really liked this pizza, though I must admit that the Little Prince was a bit disappointed at the lack of tomato sauce and the high vegetable-to-cheese ratio.

Note that you have options for this pizza dough, depending on your schedule: an overnight schedule (beginning at around 8-9 pm the night before, for dinner around 6-8 pm); an all-day schedule (beginning at around 6-8 am that morning); and a part-day schedule (beginning at around 12 pm). I chose the latter.

For the dough
3 cups (375 g.) all-purpose flour (bread flour works too)
slightly heaped 1/8, 1/4 or 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast (for overnight, all-day, or part-day schedules respectively, above)
1 ½ tsp. sea or kosher salt
1 ¼ cup warm water, plus an additional tablespoon or two if needed

In a very large bowl, mix all ingredients with a spoon. The dough will be craggy and rough; this is fine, but if it feels excessively so, add another spoonful or even two of water. Cover bowl with plastic and keep at room temperature for approximately 22 (for overnight schedule), 12 (for all-day schedule) or 6 (for part-day schedule) hours, or until the dough has more than doubled. This takes longer in a chilly room and less in a very warm one, but don’t worry too much about this, as the dough is generally forgiving of a loosened schedule. (I like to put my dough in the microwave with the door ajar, which keeps it safe from drafts and provides warmth from the lightbulb.)

Flour your counter very well. Scrape dough out of bowl onto floured counter; in the time it has risen, it should have changed from that craggy rough ball to something very loose, soft, sticky and stretchy. Flour the top of the dough and make it into a ball shape (if you are making two smaller pizzas with it, divide it into two balls first). Take hold of it and let the soft dough stretch and fall away from your hands a few times before landing on your prepared baking sheet. Use floured fingers to press and nudge dough into a roughly rectangular shape. Add desired toppings (see below).

For the zucchini topping
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 ½ lbs. (about 5 small or 3 large) zucchini or other summer squash, trimmed
1 ½ tsp. fine sea salt
2 cups (8 oz.) coarsely grated lactose-free gruyere cheese
2-3 Tbsp. plain breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 500 °F. Brush either a 13”x18” rimmed half-sheet pan or two 9”x13” quarter sheet pans (see note above) with olive oil. Used floured (or oiled) fingertips to pull, stretch, nudge and press the prepared pizza dough across the bottom of the pan. The dough will be thin and imperfect; just try to get it even and if holes form, just pinch them back together. (This is where I was unhappy with my dough, aesthetically speaking, but the result was very good nonetheless.)

Use a food processor with a grater attachment or the large holes of a box grater to grate the zucchini. In a large bowl, toss together the zucchini and salt. Let stand for 20 to 30 minutes (more, if you have the time), until the zucchini has wilted and released its water. Drain the zucchini in a colander and then use your hands to squeeze out as much water as possible, a fistful at a time.

Back in the large bowl (wiped out if still wet), toss the zucchini with the gruyère shreds, being sure to break up any clumps of zucchini. Taste the mixture; it should be seasoned enough from the salt, but you can add more, plus ground pepper or pepper flakes if desired.

Spread the zucchini mixture over the dough(s), going all the way to the edges of the pan and piling it a bit thicker at the edges, where it will brown first. Sprinkle messily with the bread crumbs.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the topping is golden. Remove from oven, cut into squares and dig in.

Maple Oat Scones

I love having something special for breakfast (and by special, I mean something other than toast with peanut butter or some such option). But because I also don’t really want to spend the early morning cooking, some of my favorite breakfasts are the make-ahead kind, like muffins or quick breads. I made a great coconut-lemon tea cake, but I can’t really make a post out of it because I lack good pictures (somehow, they were all taken in low light and turned out horrid). I do encourage you to try it, though! Another great recipe was these maple oat scones. The original recipe was gluten-free, but I used some white whole wheat flour for expediency’s sake. Note that if you don’t care about eating vegan scones, you can use lactose-free milk instead of plant-based milk here. I loved these because they were not too dense, just sweet enough, and had the oats that I often crave in scones. Plus, you can’t go wrong with maple!

For the oat scones
1 ¾ cups + 2 Tbsp. flour (gluten-free or not)
½ cup quick oats (I used rolled oats)
1/3 cup coconut sugar or brown sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. sea salt
4 Tbsp. vegan butter (margarine), chilled
2 Tbsp. non-hydrogenated shortening
1 cup unsweetened almond milk or lactose-free milk
1 tsp. vinegar

For the maple glaze
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
1 Tbsp. unsweetened almond milk or lactose-free milk

Preheat oven to 400 °F. Prepare baking sheet by lining with parchment paper or silpat. Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, sift together flour, oats, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add chilled shortening and vegan butter. Using pastry cutter, cut in shortening and butter until small pieces remain. (I always do this step in the food processor, it’s faster.)

Mix together almond milk and vinegar in small bowl, then pour over flour mixture. Gently blend dough until it just comes together. Be careful to not overmix.

On lightly floured surface, place dough. Gently pat into 8-inch circle, about 1 inch thick. Using pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut dough into 8 triangles.

Place scones on prepared baking pan. Bake 16-18 minutes, until tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool slightly on cooling rack.

To make maple glaze, mix together powdered sugar, maple syrup and almond milk. Drizzle over cooled scones. Allow icing to set before serving.

Petits gâteaux miel, rose et chocolat blanc

Ah, comme je m’ennuie du blogue Obsessions gourmandes, qui a malheureusement été retiré de la toile quand l’auteure, Catherine Draws, a cessé d’y écrire! Il me restait des recettes à essayer, moi, en plus! Maintenant, Catherine Draws est copropriétaire du restaurant Lili.Co, où je n’ai malheureusement jamais eu le plaisir de mettre les pieds… Cependant, mis à part son blogue, certaines autres de ses recettes sont toujours en ligne ailleurs, et c’est le cas de ces petits gâteaux miel, rose et chocolat blanc qu’elle a créés pour Danone.

Je n’avais pas de yogourt grec au miel, alors j’ai improvisé en mélangeant du yogourt grec nature avec du miel – il se peut que mes proportions aient été différentes de celles de la recette d’origine, mais le principe reste le même. Gardez en tête que vous n’avez pas à mettre beaucoup de miel dedans, puisqu’il y a aussi de la cassonade dans la recette. Nous avons beaucoup aimé ces petits gâteaux! Nous les avons mangés comme des muffins, mais vous pourriez y ajouter un glaçage (comme celui-là, tiens) pour en faire un dessert plus qu’une collation.

125 g. (4 oz.) de chocolat blanc
3 c. à soupe de beurre salé ou de margarine
2 œufs
1 pot individuel (100 g.) de yogourt grec au miel Oikos (voir note)
1 pincée de sel
3 c. à soupe de cassonade
1 ½ c. à soupe d’eau de rose
1 tasse de farine tout-usage
1 c. à soupe de poudre à pâte
1 pincée de sel

Préchauffer le four à 375 °F. Garnir un moule à muffin de caissettes de papier (il m’en a fallu 9).

Au bain-marie, faire fondre le chocolat et mettre de côté.

Dans un petit bol allant au four à micro-ondes, faire fondre le beurre à intensité élevée 30 secondes à la fois jusqu’à ce qu’il soit tout fondu.

Dans un grand bol, battre ensemble à l’aide d’un fouet les œufs, le yogourt grec au miel, le sel et la cassonade. Ajouter l’eau de rose.

Ajouter le chocolat et le beurre fondu à la préparation. Mélanger.

Dans un petit bol, incorporer la farine, la poudre à pâte et le sel et mélanger jusqu’à homogénéité.

Couler la préparation dans les petites caissettes de papier, aux trois quarts de leur capacité, puis faire cuire pendant 12-15 minutes, ou jusqu’à ce qu’un cure-dent inséré au centre de la pâte en ressorte propre.

Sortir du four et laisser refroidir complètement avant de déguster.

Bulgogi

I decided to make bulgogi after seeing this post, but then I realized that I also had one from Bon Appétit that, based on the ingredients, looked more flavorful, so that’s what I went with. Bonus: there are instructions for using various types and cuts of meat, including chicken, which is helpful since I don’t know where to get the thinly sliced fondue beef that is more common in Quebec and called for in the first post. I used beef from a tri-tip steak that I sliced myself (pro-tip: put the meat in the freezer for 15 minutes or so right before slicing it – the task will be easier). Also, I don’t have gochugaru, and I don’t want things too spicy anyway, so I used 1 tsp. of regular ground Korean pepper. This was fantastic; I’ll be sure to make it again! The marinade is great, but it’s worth getting a good sear on the meat as well. Absolutely delicious!

I served this with rice with gomashio and green beans.

¼ pear, grated
1 garlic clove, grated
2 Tbsp. soy sauce (or tamari sauce)
1 Tbsp. gochugaru or 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. grated peeled ginger
1 Tbsp. light brown sugar
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1 lb. boneless pork loin, trimmed hanger steak, boneless short rib, or skinless, boneless chicken
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
kosher salt
sliced scallions (for serving)

Combine pear, garlic, soy sauce, gochugaru, ginger, sugar, and sesame oil in a large resealable plastic bag or medium bowl. Using a sharp knife, slice meat into very thin strips (see note above). Add to marinade, seal bag, and squish everything around until the meat is coated. Let sit at room temperature 30 minutes, or chill up to 8 hours.

Heat 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high until oil is shimmering. Remove half of meat from marinade, letting excess drip back into bag; season lightly with salt and cook in a single layer without moving until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Toss meat and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until cooked through and crisp at edges, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil, remaining meat, and more salt.

Serve topped with scallions.

Raspberry and Rosewater Cheesecake

I bookmarked this cheesecake a long time ago, before I even knew there would be lactose-free cream cheese on the market one day. I originally saw it on Design Sponge, but the recipe is by Christelle Tanielian (so those of you who speak French can get her French version here). I rewrote a bit of the instructions to be clearer.

The crust is made with biscuits roses de Reims (affiliate link), which gives it a beautiful pink hue! That being said, I think that 250 grams was a bit too much, and considering that each package contains 100 grams, I’d just use 200 grams next time – the crust would then be thinner than on the pictures, and I think that’s fine. They contain eggs and wheat as well as possible traces of soy and tree nuts, so I’ve adjusted the tags accordingly. If you want a substitute, the closest you would come in taste and texture, in my opinion, is ladyfingers, though you’d miss out on the pink hue. You could also use Nilla wafers, Speculoos, or graham crackers.


I loved both the look and flavors of this cheesecake! However, the Engineer didn’t like the cheesecake base, even though he really enjoyed this one. I think it’s because this cheesecake doesn’t contain any sour cream, so the base tends to be sort of a one-tone thing, but that creates a better backdrop for the other flavors, so it’s a trade-off.

The top of the cake was so glossy that I didn’t realize it reflected other objects at the angle at which I took the pictures, so please ignore the yellow spot on its upper left surface in the penultimate picture. That is all.

For the crust
200 g. biscuits roses de Reims (see note above)
90 g. (3 oz. or 6 Tbsp.) butter or margarine, melted (coconut oil would work, too)

For the filling
750 g. (three 8-oz. packs) lactose-free cream cheese, at room temperature
150 g. (¾ cup) granulated sugar
3 eggs
2-3 Tbsp. rosewater (to taste; I used 3 Tbsp.)

For the raspberry topping
100 g. (½ cup) granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. corn starch
½ cup water
185 g. (1 ½ cup) frozen raspberries
1-2 Tbsp. rosewater (to taste; I used 2 Tbsp.)

For the crust
Finely grind the biscuits roses de Reims and mix in well with the butter (I did this in the food processor). Grease an 8-inch (22 cm) springform pan and press the cookie mixture evenly into the pan using the bottom of a glass or spoon (and up the sides if you wish, as well). Put aside in the freezer.

For the filling
Preheat the oven at 300 °F. Fill a pan with water and place it on the lowest rack of the oven (this will help keep the cheesecake moist as it bakes).

In a bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition, then add rosewater while beating on low speed until the texture is creamy.

Place the springform pan with the crust on a baking sheet (to prevent making a mess if it drips) and pour the filling evenly into the crust. Place the baking sheet with the cheesecake in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 60 to 70 minutes. Once the oven has been turned off, let the cake cool inside the oven and leave the door closed. Once it is completely cooled, put it in the refrigerator overnight.

For the raspberry topping
Place the sugar and corn starch in a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat. Add water and stir well.

Add the frozen raspberries and crush them using a wooden spoon. Bring the mixture to a boil and stir continually for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in rosewater, and allow to cool completely. I strained the mixture to remove the seeds, but this is not absolutely necessary.

Remove cake from the pan and transfer to a plate. Spread the topping over the chilled cheesecake and decorate with fresh raspberries if you have them. Refrigerate for an hour and serve.