Chef Challenge: Make Halibut Amazing

In my ongoing Chef Challenge series, whereby I bring an ingredient into work and get Chef to create something with it, I recently discovered that I don’t even need to bring in an ingredient. All I need to say is “Make me something amazing,” and Chef will figure it out. Or at least that’s what happened one day when I didn’t have anything with me but still wanted to see what Chef would make up on the spot. There was some halibut in the fridge so I suggested he might want to make something with that. He responded by telling me that halibut was boring. I told him that was all the more reason for him to turn it into something amazing. It wasn’t long before he got an idea and put me to work gathering ingredients.

The resulting dish was a Spanish style fish, (that was first marinated using Asian inspired ingredients, including green tea and lemongrass) served with a citrus and chive salad, on a bed of roasted red and green peppers and garnished with deep fried rice. One of the primary things I took away from this dish was a new way to prepare fish. And just so Chef knows that I’m actually absorbing the information he’s throwing at me, I thought I’d do a remake of his halibut dish, using the same technique for the fish but changing up the sides.

While Chef was making his version he gave me a number of ideas about other sides, sauces and toppings the fish could be served with. He also mentioned that it could be done with any firm fleshed white fish, not just halibut. My version turned into an amalgamation of his suggestions and what I had in my kitchen, resulting in saffron rice and peppers with Spanish style cod, topped with sautéed spinach with chilis and garlic.

Most importantly though, the fish technique actually worked for me! If I were the type, I almost would have squealed. It’s not that making the fish was difficult, but the batter is messy and I’m still not overly confident in my ability to cook proteins. In spite of that, the cod turned out almost exactly as I thought it should. The crust was light and crispy and the interior remained moist. Nice one!

Of course I can never be entirely satisfied with a dish that I make, so my problem with this one was that it lacked a sauce. As soon as I plated it I realized I should have made a spicy tomato based sauce, (which was one of Chef’s suggestions when he was telling me other ways to serve the fish) to add colour, flavour and balance to the dish. It tasted fine without it, but would have been improved with it.

Here’s a basic method for making this fish at home:

Prepare the batter by whipping egg whites and a pinch of salt to stiff peaks, (I used approximately one egg white per serving of fish). Add some herbs if you’d like and a little flour to give the egg whites some stability, (they should still be fluffy and getting it onto the fish will be a messy affair). When your batter is ready, heat some oil in a frying pan and take any firm fleshed white fish and dredge it in flour. Then, carefully coat the fish with the batter and lay it into the frying pan. When one side has browned and the outside is crispy, flip it over to achieve the same effect on the other side. I found that my fish was done as soon as both sides were browned, but if you have an especially thick cut you could transfer the fish from the frying pan to the oven to finish it off.

The French Laundry

As is evident by this blog of mine, I like food and I like to write. So you would think that if I ate dinner at The French Laundry (!!!) on the 21^st of January, I would have had a post up about it immediately. But The French Laundry left me speechless. So what follows is my meager attempt at describing my greatest dining experience.

To begin, I was fortunate enough to get reservations by putting my name on the waiting list. I was planning my trip to Napa specifically to go to The French Laundry and wasn’t going if I didn’t get a table. The problem was, I had to coincide my dinner there with having time off from work. When I called for reservations I put my name on the list for a weeks worth of dinners and hoped for the best. On New Year’s Eve I got a call to confirm that I had a 9pm reservation for two on January 21^st. That meant I had three weeks to plan my trip and figure out who I was taking with me. Although quite a few people expressed interest in coming, most of them couldn’t take the time off work, didn’t have the money, excuses, excuses. Then I realized the best person to take with me was my Dad. He’d appreciate it, (unlike some others who just wanted a trip to sunny California) and his birthday was a couple days afterwards so a celebratory dinner at The French Laundry would certainly be one to remember. As I mentioned last year on his birthday, Dad’s also pretty awesome and I couldn’t ask for a better traveling companion.

Fast forward to January 21^st, the time is 8:50. As we walked through the front door I was nervous. I almost didn’t want to eat there. I’ve read so much about The French Laundry and Thomas Keller and heard so many amazing stories that it seemed as though it was destined to disappoint. But I had traveled over 3000km to get there and I would not be going home on an empty stomach. I gave the hostess my name and we sat down to wait for our table to be ready. As with almost every other location in the Napa Valley, there were copies of Thomas Keller’s books on the coffee table. I wanted to dig into Under Pressure as I’ve only skimmed it at the bookstore, but I was too excited to be able to focus. Our table was taking a couple extra minutes to prepare so two glasses of complementary champagne were brought out to us while we waited. It was only the beginning of over four more hours of impeccable service.

It wasn’t long before we were seated and our server, Shannon, (one of about nine people who waited on us throughout our meal) greeted us warmly, handed us menus and encouraged us to ask her questions if there was anything we were unsure of. There are only two menu options at The French Laundry, both are nine course Chef’s tasting menus but one is vegetarian. I’m sure the vegetarian option was amazing, (I read it over just because I was curious) but there was no way this carnivore was choosing it. Within the regular Chef’s tasting menu there are four courses that require you to choose between two options. For the most part Dad and I made sure to coordinate our selections so that we got to taste everything. However on the course that offered either a cauliflower salad or foie gras, Dad and I both chose the foie. As for wine, we put ourselves in the very capable hands of the sommelier, Anani. It was the right thing to do as he chose an excellent white and then red to carry us through the meal. We couldn’t have asked for a nicer sommelier. I liked him so much I wanted to take him back to Canada with me and to the restaurant I work at. I even offered him free golf… Somehow I don’t think there’s a sweet enough deal in the world that could lure him, (or anyone) away from The French Laundry.

The first bits of food to arrive were two tiny gougères, served on an equally small silver platter. We popped them in our mouths and so began our taste adventure. Warm from the oven and full of cheesy goodness, the gougères left us eager to see what would come next. It was the reknown Thomas Keller Salmon Cornet, the cutest, most delicious little savory cone you’ll ever eat. That was followed by our first official course:

“Oysters and Pearls”: “Sabayon” of Peal Tapioca with Island Creek Oysters and White Sturgeon Caviar

After one bite from a mother of pearl spoon it became very clear to me that The French Laundry would not disappoint. I savoured that little dish of oysters and pearls like nothing I ever have before. The balance of flavours and textures was unlike anything else. Dad, who previously thought he didn’t care much for the texture of oysters was blown away by how much he liked these.

Moulard Duck “Foie Gras en Terrine”: Sunchokes, Apple Mustard Seed Relish, Toasted Brioche and Dijon Mustard

Attention to detail. This dish embodies it. Every element on the plate has a purpose and every flavour combination has been carefully considered. The foie is served with a trio of salts so that you can customize it to your liking, as well as with warm, toasted brioche to spread it on. Half way through this course a server appeared to whisk away our partially eaten brioche and to replace it with warm ones. Thomas Keller thinks the warm brioche enhances the dish and wants to ensure that your last bite is as enjoyable as your first. Attention to detail.

Columbia River Sturgeon “Confit à la Minute”: Globe Artichokes, Pearl Onions, Parsley Shoots and Hobbs’ Bacon

Cod Milt “En Aigre-Doux”: Fennel Bulb, San Marzano Tomato Compote, Niçoise Olives, Arugula and Smoked Eggplant Coulis

This was the first course in which Dad and I had something different, although after eating our way through half our plates, we switched so we could taste everything. I think I’m quickly becoming a fan of anything confited, the sturgeon was to die for. The Hobbs’ bacon that accompanied it was also spectacular, served paper thin but with such a robust bacon flavour that you could have sworn you were tucking into a full slab of it. As for the cod, at first glance it looked like little more than a cod fritter but one bite combined with the tomato compote and eggplant coulis told a very different story.

“Beets and Leeks”: Maine Lobster Tail “Pochée au Beurre Doux” with King Richard Leeks, “Pommes Maxim’s” and Red Beet Essence

Dad and I have eaten a lot of lobster in our lives. His family is from the East coast of Canada and they know how to have a lobster feast. But both of us immediately remarked that we’ve never before had lobster this good and vowed that next time we made it at home it would have to be poached in butter. Of course, we’ll have to try our hand at the gourmet ‘potato chip’ that accompanied it, as well as the beet and leek sauces. The lobster was truly a highlight.

“Aiguillette” of Liberty Farm Pekin Duck Breast: Roasted Savoy Cabbage, Hen-of-the-Woods Mushroom, Tokyo Turnips and Young Ginger Sauce

Corned Marcho Farms Veal Tongue: Tuscan Lentils, Black Trumpet Mushrooms and Brussels Sprouts

Being fans of wild mushrooms, we were happy to see that two different kinds appeared in these dishes. And I was happy to try something completely new to me, veal tongue. Veal tongue is one of those ingredients that when I mention it to my non-foodie friends, I usually get somewhat of a horrified or disgusted look as a response. I challenge anyone to eat veal tongue at The French Laundry and not like it. It was delicately nestled into a perfectly cooked bowl of Tuscan lentils and it was fantastic. Dad went on at length about how wonderful his duck breast was.

Snake River Farms “Calotte de Boeuf Grillée”: Sweet Garlic “Pain Perdu,” French Laundry Garden Carrots, Broccolini, Bone Marrow Pudding and “Sauce Bordelaise”

I now have dreams about Snake River Farms beef. And considering the price, that’s probably all I’ll be doing about it for quite some time. But it was, hands down, the best piece of beef that has ever passed my lips. I let it dissolve on my tongue and tried to make it last for as long as I could so that the memory would remain even after I swallowed. I wanted to lick the plate clean so as to garner every drop of beefy goodness. I miss that beef.

“Tomme de L’Ariège”: Belgian Endive, Green Grapes, Watercress and Black Truffles from Provence

The cheese course arrived and with it came truffles! Hurrah! Point of interest- the grapes were peeled. Every detail is accounted for.

Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet: Pistachio “Pain de Gênes” and Mascarpone

Prior to going to The French Laundry I had recently tried to make grapefruit sorbet. The flavour of mine was decent but the texture was woefully inadequate in comparison to the velvety smoothness of TFL. Their pairing of grapefruit with pistachio and creamy mascarpone is something that I can only hope to one day think of on my own. Sadly, this was one of my worst photos of the night. Taking pictures by candlelight is not easy.

“Mousse au Chocolat Amedei”: Gros Michel Banana Ice Cream, Candied Cashews and Curry “Arlette”

Braised Golden Pineapple: Spiced Sweet Rice Beignet, Dark Raisin Coulis and Long Pepper Sherbert

When we were seated at the beginning of the meal, our server had asked if we were celebrating anything in particular and I told her Dad’s birthday was in a couple days so when they brought out the desserts his was adorned with a ‘Happy Birthday’ sugar paste plaque. I managed to snag a tiny spoonful of Dad’s chocolate mousse and I could have happily eaten a whole bowl of it. The only slight hiccup in the whole FL meal came at dessert for me, (and I cringe at calling it a hiccup because it was barely anything). The long pepper sherbert that accompanied my dish just hit too hard at the back of my throat. The spice was overpowering for me. Although it didn’t linger long, I found the taste to be too sharp when I swallowed it. I debated whether or not I would even mention this little tidbit but decided I would, just to show that in a four hour meal, the only thing I could find to complain about was a tiny element of one single dish.

Mignardises

Chocolates

We were getting pretty full by the time the beautiful box of mignardises was brought to our table but neither of us could resist sampling one or two anyways. The rest were boxed up and given to us to take home, likewise with the selection of gorgeous chocolates. As much as I wanted to eat them at the time, I couldn’t manage another bite. I enjoyed them on the plane ride home instead. Besides the mignardises and chocolate, our take home package included shortbread cookies for each of us and extra chocolate bars for Dad for his birthday.

The service at The French Laundry is nothing if not accommodating. They ask specifically at the beginning of your meal if you have any food allergies that they should be aware of but seem equally good about personal preferences as well. At the table behind me, one of the women requested that there be nothing “cold” in her desserts. The course consisting primarily of Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet was therefore out, as were both of the final dessert options which contained ice cream. The kitchen improvised with completely different plates for her. I almost wanted to make up an allergy just to see what they’d make for me…

As we were finishing up, our wonderful server Shannon, knowing that I work in a kitchen, asked if we wanted to see The French Laundry kitchen after our meal. Absolutely! We were one of the last tables to finish at the end of the night and it was after 1am by the time we were lead back to the kitchen. There was a team of cooks working hard on tomorrow nights menu. They use a matrix to ensure that no ingredient is repeated twice throughout the meal. If I hadn’t of been in awe of the kitchen itself, there were a million questions I wanted to ask them.

As Dad and I made our way out the door I felt like I was walking on a cloud. Time had flown by and I couldn’t believe my French Laundry experience was over already. Despite the fact that it was after 4am my time, (it’s a three hour time difference between California and Ontario) I was wide awake and spent the next couple hours running over every aspect of the meal in my head. The flavours were so distinct on the plate and yet worked in perfect harmony with each other. I went over the meal course by course, trying to remember exactly how everything tasted. It was overwhelming in the best possible way.

My French Laundry experience was everything I hoped it would be and more. I can’t adequately express in words how wonderful/amazing/incredible it was, (the thesaurus can’t help me here either). A very special thanks to everyone at The French Laundry who made our meal there an unforgettable one.

Books and Books and Books

As I’ve said before, there doesn’t seem to be enough time to do everything I want to do, make everything I want to make and read everything I want to read. Despite the fact that I don’t read everything I want to, I do read a lot and thought it was about time I shared some of what I’ve read and what I’m currently reading. Besides cookbooks, I like reading general food nonfiction. Three that I’ve just finished are Heirloom by Tim Stark, The Man Who Ate the World by Jay Rayner and Letters to a Young Chef by Daniel Boulud.

Heirloom is the story of how Stark went from living in Brooklyn and working as a management consultant to growing heirloom tomatoes in Pennsylvania and selling them at the Union Square Green Market and to top New York chefs. The path he took is anything but an easy one and the amount of work that he put into accomplishing his goals is staggering. It’s a testament to the lengths people will go to if they’re passionate about their work. It makes me wish I could commit to something so fully.

The Man Who Ate the World is not a book to read on an empty stomach because yours will be growling as soon as you tuck into Rayner’s description of the meals he’s eaten in search of the perfect dinner. This book left me insanely jealous at times and somewhat saddened at others as one lavish meal blended into another. It was as though enjoying the food had taken a backseat to finding ‘The Perfect Dinner”. Clearly though, this is a man who loves to eat and his adventures are certainly entertaining.

Letters to a Young Chef is a fast read full of advice for a young chef starting out in a new career. The information is not necessarily new but is presented in a reader-friendly and interesting manner as Boulud combines autobiography with advice as well as recipes. What he presses on the most is having passion for what you do because without it you might as well get out of the business right now. What I enjoyed most was reading about Boulud’s personal experiences and the wealth of people he’s worked with. I love a good story.

I’ve also got a stack of cookbooks that I’ve read through but haven’t made any recipes from yet. I know some of you must have these books as well, so if you’ve made anything from them, let me know!

Giada’s Kitchen by Giada De Laurentiis- To be quite honest with you, I’m not all that fond of the bobble head, at least not when she’s on TV. I like her in written form though and have a few of her books, including the pasta one which is quite good. Her newest book, Giada’s Kitchen is full of photos and well layed out recipes with her typically Italian angle to it all. I’ve been eyeing up her recipe for Orange and Chocolate Zeppole, (essentially little donuts) and they’re first on my list of things to make.

Martha Stewart’s Cooking School by Martha Stewart- love her or hate her, you can’t dispute how successful Martha Stewart is. I used to have issues with Martha as I’d failed miserably with a few of her recipes but all of that changed when I got my hands on her Cookie book, which I’ve written about here and here. That book put Martha back in my good graces so I was looking forward to reading her latest book, Cooking School. In typical Stewart fashion, this hefty book is chockfull of information and serves as a great reference source for the home cook. Step by step photos, diagrams and tips in the sidebar are all extremely useful. This book covers the basics which are the building blocks of cooking and baking and necessary techniques to learn.

Friday Night Dinners by Bonnie Stern- As the title would imply, this book is divided by themes for Friday night dinners. It’s not my favourite method of organization although it makes for an interesting read when you’re not searching for something in particular. Each menu, ranging from 100 Mile Diet Dinner to Australian Dinner to Graduation Dinner, begins with a story and includes everything you’ll need from appetizers through to desserts. One of the menus includes falafel which I feel like I have to make just to prove to my parents that their impression of falafel, (ie-“Falafel is just plain awful!”) is incorrect.

The Complete Canadian Living Baking Book by Elizabeth Baird and The Canadian Living Test Kitchen- For as long as I can remember we’ve had a Canadian Living Cookbook at home. In fact, it was the source of my first chocolate chip cookie recipe. The new Baking Book includes all form of baked sweets, (including chocolate chip cookies complete with variations) but also branches out to include bread and savoury baking as well. It’s the type of book that you start adding sticky notes to recipes that you want to make and before you know it, half the book has a sticky on it. And I’m not the only one who thinks so. I left this book at my Aunt’s house for a while and when I went to retrieve it I found her furiously scribbling down recipes that she’d bookmarked to make.

Beyond the Great Wall by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid- If you’ve seen any of Alford and Duguid’s previous cookbooks you’ll know that they’re much more than strictly recipes and this one is no exception. This book is as at home on the coffee table as it is in the kitchen. Bright, vivid photography captures the food, but also the culture of the people, their land and way of life in the outlying areas of China. Woven among photos and recipes are Alford and Duguid’s travel tales and memories which lend particular impact to the roots of the recipes. Every time I look at this book I can imagine how good my kitchen will smell when I’m cooking from it.

As if trying to find time to cook from those books wasn’t taking up enough of my time, I’m also in the process of reading: The Elements of Cooking by Michael Ruhlman, Culinary Artistry by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page and Cooking For Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser.

And in addition to the myriad of books I want and need to read, are also blogs which demand my attention. Two in particular that I particularly enjoy but only recently got around to adding to my blog roll are Notes from the Kitchen and Line Cook. Notes from the Kitchen is written by Michael Laiskonis, pastry chef at Le Bernadin in New York. His writing is both thought provoking and inspiring, I only wish he updated more often because I like his style so much. As if he knew this, he’s started a second, slightly different blog, called Workbook with an emphasis on the day-to-day stuff that he’s working on which I find especially interesting as it’s like getting a peak into his train of thought and recipe development. Line Cook is written by Richie, a sous chef at Nopa Restaurant in San Francisco and is a real insight into working in a professional kitchen. It’s also pretty funny, full of kitchen humour and random thoughts. Be sure to check out quotations from Corey, they’re especially good.

And lastly, I have to point out the bookshelf in the top photo. Dad built it for me as my new acquisitions were stacking up in towers around my computer and needed a better home than the floor. It won’t be long before I need another one…

Foodbuzz 24, 24,24: The 10 Mile Dinner

You’ve heard of the 100 Mile Diet? Well this is the 10 Mile Dinner! Because I’m always up for a challenge I decided to submit a proposal to Foodbuzz’s January round of 24 Meals, 24 Hours, 24 Blogs that would require me to make a three course meal using ingredients within a 10 mile radius of my house. I was thrilled when they accepted my idea and set to work on planning an exact menu. The results are as follows:

The 10 Mile Dinner

Lavash cracker tower with sautéed watercress, caramelized onion, bacon lardons, smoked trout and maple syrup.

Venison chop roast with mashed potatoes, pan fried shiitake mushrooms and roasted butternut squash.

Pavlova with maple whipped cream, grape sorbet, candied walnuts and wine reduction.

Wine: 2007, Back from the Dead Red from Coffin Ridge

Ever since my proposal was accepted for this round of 24, 24, 24, I’d been trying to think of all the possible ingredients I could use in my 10 Mile Dinner. Some of the ingredients came to mind immediately like venison and mushrooms. Others took a little more time. I would think about it while cooking other meals and reading my cookbooks but I also found myself thinking about while doing things unrelated to food, like cross country skiing. It turns out that was a great time to think about it as I found one of my ingredients while skiing around my backyard. Watercress. It grows in a natural spring that feeds our pond. The spring runs year round which prevents it from freezing and allows watercress to grow even in the dead of winter and surrounded by 3 feet of snow, (its current state). The only way to get to the spring however, is either by skis or snowshoes as the snow’s too deep to walk in for any distance. So ski I did and then proceeded to numb my hands completely as I pulled watercress from the frigid spring. But it was a necessary part of my appetizer so it was worthwhile.

Speaking of which, my appetizer started out as being ‘something with smoked trout’ and evolved to become a napoleon of sorts made by layering homemade lavash crackers with sautéed watercress, caramelized onions and homemade bacon lardons, smoked trout and a drizzle of maple syrup.

Like the appetizer, the entrée began as simply ‘something with venison’ and turned into a venison chop roast with red wine that was rubbed with thyme, rosemary and juniper berries and then covered with the fatcap from the bacon that I finished making on the same day, (bacon is a 7 day process, requiring a cure before it can be smoked). The venison was served with mashed potatoes and roasted butternut squash, both cellared from the garden. There were some unusually large butternut squash in the garden this year so every time I cut one up to roast there are always leftovers, perfect for soup.

I thought dessert might be a bit trickier as I certainly couldn’t use chocolate or coffee and try to call it local. But then I remembered that the freezer is full of summer’s bounty, including a container of concord grape juice that was pressed from our own grapes and was begging for an excuse to be used. Grape sorbet then became the first component of my dessert, which was soon followed by pavlovas, (made with eggs from a nearby farmer) and whipped cream sweetened with maple syrup, (from the nearby sugar bush) candied walnuts, (from my tree) and a red wine reduction, (with the wine coming from this county’s only winery, Coffin Ridge).

Complete List of Local Ingredients

Wine, 2007 Back from the Dead Red from Coffin Ridge

Shiitake mushrooms, from Wylie Mycologicals

Venison, Dad shot it with his bow, locally

Watercress, wild from a spring in my backyard

Potatoes, cellared from my garden

Butternut squash, cellared from my garden

Onions, cellared from my garden

Rosemary, dried from my garden

Thyme, dried from my garden

Juniper berries, wild from my backyard and dried

Concord grapes, juice pressed and frozen during the summer from my garden

Bacon, pork belly was bought from local butcher at Cottenie’s Country Meat and I cured and smoked it

Smoked Trout, caught in Georgian Bay by my Dad and smoked at our house

Eggs, from a farmer down the street

Maple Syrup, from Kemble Mountain Maple Products, (also just down the street)

Flour for crackers, from Saugeen Specialty Grains

Sometimes I miss living in the city but when you can make a meal like that out of ingredients you harvested yourself from your backyard, it’s hard to complain about living in the country.

Be sure to check out Foodbuzz and all of the 24, 24, 24 dinners from around the world. There are sure to be some great ones!

I'm getting on a plane early tomorrow morning and heading to what I can only assume is one of the greatest places on earth. More when I return...

Baking! Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart

I haven’t been baking nearly enough. Besides the fact that sweets have been remarkably absent from this blog, I recently had to be prompted to make cookies because the jar was empty. The cookie jar should never be empty. Ever. But there just doesn’t seem to be enough time to do everything I want to do, read everything I want to read and make everything I want to make. But there should always be time for baking.

It seems as though I’ve been sucked into the cooking world lately. This is obviously a byproduct of working in a restaurant where savoury dominates over sweet. It’s probably also as a result of getting caught up in other people’s enthusiasm. When the people around you truly enjoy what they’re doing it’s hard not to want to get involved and have fun with it too. It seems I’m not the only one with this disposition. A couple of the dishies, (dishwashers) at work will usually come find me when they’re done their work and ask me if there’s anything they can do for me. Depending on what needs to be done I’ll either hand them some more dishes to do, ask them to go downstairs to the walk in fridge to get me some ingredients or point them in the direction of something that needs cleaning. They like me best though when I let them use a knife to do some sort of prep work. They just want to cook too.

A couple weeks ago one of the young dishes came and asked me if there was anything he could do to help. I knew there was a large box of herbs that needed to be chopped so I told him he could start on that. His response was an enthusiastic “OK!” followed by a blank stare. I then asked him if he had ever chopped herbs before and determined that he had not. So I set him up with a cutting board and a knife and showed him what he needed to do to avoid chopping off a finger and let him get to work. I went back to what I was doing but kept an eye on him. A short while later he popped his head up and exclaimed, “Look! I’m cooking!” It was so genuine, I couldn’t help but smile.

All of this is to say that I’ve been caught up with cooking and doing a lot more of it than baking, (although in my case, actual cooking, not just chopping herbs) but it’s time to switch it up a bit and a Dorie Greenspan recipe is always a great place to start. The surprising bit is that I’ve made this recipe for Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart before and it’s a rare thing for me to make the same tart twice. However, consistency is also important and therefore repetition is becoming a necessity which is not necessarily a bad thing. Repeating this recipe has allowed me to improve on the final presentation and give the plate a little colour with pomegranates. Ironically, the last time I made it I stated that there was nothing I could do to improve upon it. What a difference a year can make.

Dorie makes this tart with roasted, salted peanuts although I opted for toasted almonds with an extra pinch of salt as that’s what I had in the cupboard. The whipped cream I made is Kahlua infused and only lightly sweetened. And finally, the plate is garnished with pomegranate jelly and fresh pomegranate seeds because I love their sweet tartness and jewel-like tones. I added one other thing to this tart although it was completely accidental. As I stirred the chocolate and warm cream together to make the ganache, I noticed that not all of my chocolate was melting and there appeared to be little bits swimming about. Closer inspection, (and tasting) would reveal that I had used a chocolate bar with cocoa nibs in it so my final ganache wasn’t perfectly smooth but it did have a bonus flavour and texture that I quite liked.

I had thought that I would link to the recipe through the Tuesdays with Dorie group but they’ve shockingly not made this one yet so I’ll just refer you to page 355 in Baking from My Home to Yours, which you should all own by now anyways. Dorie says this tart is best the day it’s made, but I assure you that if there are leftovers they’re just as good the following day with a cup of tea or coffee for an afternoon snack.

NYC Dining: Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller

While many people flock to New York for the galleries, theatre and shopping it should come as no surprise that I was most interested in the food and restaurants. In my last post I hinted at some of the spots I had visited but they really deserve to be mentioned all on their own so without further ado, I give you Bouchon Bakery, Bar Boulud and Café Boulud.

Bouchon Bakery Café is located on the third floor of the Time Warner building and offers a wonderful view of Columbus Circle and Central Park. When I arrived around 1:30pm the place was packed but as a solo diner I managed to grab a seat at the bar. As I perused the menu another single diner was seated beside me. The bartender offered him a menu but he waived it away, saying he’d have the chicken soup and a glass of white. He clearly ate here often and knew what he wanted so I closed my menu and said I’d have the same. It was a good choice. This was not your ordinary, out of a can chicken soup, this was Thomas Keller Chicken Soup and what all chicken soups should strive to be.

The chicken is braised and tender and is nestled into a rich, flavourful broth that it shares with a mirepoix and ricotta dumplings. All meals are served with an epi baguette, (classic Parisian baguette, shaped to resemble a wheat stalk) which was perfect to sop up the broth from the bottom of my bowl of soup. To finish off my lunch it seemed appropriate to order the dessert that shares its name with the bakery so I had the Chocolate Bouchon which was served with a dusting of icing sugar and a scoop of heavenly cherry ice cream. Yes, heavenly. The bouchon were chocolaty and everything that they were supposed to be but it’s the ice cream that I’m left craving more of. All in all, a delightful way to kick off my Thomas Keller experience which will soon include The French Laundry…

Bar Boulud is Daniel Boulud’s more casual bistro. The space is long and narrow with vaulted ceilings and is cozy with an almost tunnel-like feel. In an attempt to save my wallet from too much damage, (it was only my second night in New York) I opted for wine and appetizers instead of a full meal although after seeing the dessert menu I decided I should at least sample it as well. I knew before entering Bar Boulud that I wanted to try their pâté, the issue then became deciding which one. I finally settled on the Pâté Grand-Père which was a coarse country pâté with foie gras, truffle juice and port. I also tried the Saucisson Sec and was happy with it as well, to the point that I want to make my own. For dessert I had the Marron et Cassis which consisted of a chestnut mousse, meringue, blackcurrant gelée, cassis and crème frâiche. I wish the picture could translate how good the dessert really was but it doesn’t do it justice.

Service at Bar Boulud was on point and accommodating to my every whim, even when I made silly requests like asking to keep my menu and to see the kitchen. Our server was surprised at my desire to see the kitchen, it wasn’t something she’d been asked before but said she would ask the Chef if it was ok. Shortly thereafter I was escorted downstairs by one of the cutest cooks I’ve ever seen, (That’s him crouched behind the counter in the Bar Boulud photo. Note to Chef- Please steal him away from Bar Boulud and hire him… Thanks.) who showed me around the kitchen and introduced me to the Chef who was busy expediting. As we made our way back up to the dining room the Cutie Cook asked how if I had enjoyed my meal and upon hearing that I had the pâté, proceeded to win me over completely, (not that he had to try very hard) by telling me I had to try their newest pâté, made of venison, as it was his favourite. I was tempted to return the following night but with so many other places to try in such a short time, it just wasn’t possible.

Café Boulud was my next stop, (I also have the cookbook of the same name) and I was in luck as there happened to be a prix fixe lunch special going on which made my meal there both elegant and affordable. The prix fixe was three courses which also featured an amuse bouche to start the meal and madeleines to finish, in addition to the appetizer, entrée and dessert. The amuse was a goat cheese ball, rolled in parsley and resting on a spoon with tart preserves. For my appetizer I chose the smoked salmon on puff pastry with caramelized onions, bacon lardons and frisée.

I overheard the couple beside me discussing their meal and one of them declared the salmon appetizer the best part because according to him, ‘caramelized onions are even better than caramelized… caramel.’ Next up I had the skate for my entrée, it was accompanied by fingerling potatoes, cauliflower, olives and capers. And for dessert, chocolate tart with mocha ice cream. The lemon scented madeleines, sugar dusted and still warm from the oven were brought out just before the bill and though I didn’t need to eat anything else I couldn’t resist popping one after another into my mouth. Once again, I had a fabulous meal that left me walking on a cloud as I drifted back out onto New York City streets.

If my pockets were deeper and I had the time I would have loved to try out Daniel Boulud’s other two New York establishments, Daniel and DB Bistro Moderne but I suppose that’s something to look forward to for next time, along with Thomas Keller’s Per Se… I might as well dream big if I’m dreaming at all.

New York City

When a friend phones you up with no warning and says you have 30 minutes to pack for a roadtrip to New York City the only appropriate thing to do is to start throwing clothes into a suitcase. This is what happened to me last Monday and shortly thereafter I was on my way to NYC for the first time. What happened next?

An Open Letter to the city of New York:

Dear New York,

Thanks for the Gershwin Hotel, a somewhat reasonably priced hostel in Manhattan. Located in the shadow of the Empire State building and a short walk away from Times Square, it served as home base.

Thanks for providing us with an awesome roommate who treated us to dosas at her favourite Indian restaurant a couple blocks away from the hostel. For another awesome roommate who was a Kiwi and came out and partied with us. And for giving us the strength not to kill the group of young Aussies who were particularly loud, way too early in the morning.

Thanks for a subway system that runs 24 hours, works on a swipe card system and will take you wherever you want to go. Take note Toronto, take note.

Thanks for Magnolia Bakery and their ridiculous cupcakes. I don’t even like cupcakes and yet somehow I was compelled to go there, get cupcakes, eat cupcakes, bring cupcakes back to the hostel and then eat more cupcakes for breakfast. There was a line up, I was not the only one doing this.

Thanks for great entertainment every night but especially for hosting the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble at Joe’s Pub. These guys are an amazing 8 piece brass ensemble, plus drummer who play jazz arrangements with a hip hop flair. Definitely check them out.

Thanks for letting Thomas Keller expand his empire into New York with Bouchon Bakery, (and I suppose Per Se as well but my bank account refused to let me dine there as it has to prepare itself for The French Laundry…). And thanks for being home to many Daniel Boulud restaurants, but Bar Boulud and Café Boulud in particular, (more on those in the next post).

Thanks for being enormous and for and making me walk from morning to night to see everything which helped to counteract the damage done by eating cupcakes for breakfast followed by lunch and dinner at your many wonderful restaurants.

Thanks for being home to Dorie Greenspan, (even though she wasn’t there while I was) and for having an enormous M&Ms store to support her M&M habit, (which I might soon adopt, have you tried the premium Mocha M&Ms???).

Thanks for Danielle and Dave of Habeas Brulee who were nice enough to take me into their home, greet me with a freshly made beef heart burger and let me watch their creative madness for an evening. Thanks also to Danielle for telling me I needed to visit Kalustyans, a magical place filled with fine foods and hard to find spices, which happened to be right down the street from my hostel.

Thanks for your diverse neighbourhoods, bustling streets, bright lights, big things and a week of fun. My only complaint? The depletion of my bank account at such an alarming rate! On my next visit I would appreciate retaining some of my meager assets. Or, at the very least, point me in the direction of a wealthy New Yorker who wants to take me in. It’s the least you could do after the nice things I’ve written about you.

Much love <3

Brilynn