Julia Child's Crepes

I had extra milk and eggs the other day, so I decided to make crepes using a recipe from Recipezaar.com. It came out just alright... a little bland, a little rubbery, it got a half-hearted "mmm" from Brad.

Determined to make better crepes, I thumbed through Mastering the Art of French Cooking and found Julia's version. It was much better--lighter, crispier, and more flavorful.

I didn't have any filling ingredients, so I made "crepe pancakes" with a pat of butter and a drizzle of maple syrup on top. My friend Fran (who is from France) later told me that I could have sprinkled sugar and lemon juice in place of a filling. Who would have thought? I'll definitely be doing this next time.

Here's Julia's version...

Crepes Fines Sucrees (Light Batter for crepes Suzette)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup cold water

3 egg yolks

1 Tb granulated sugar

3 Tb orange liqueur, rum, or brandy

1 cup flour (scooped and leveled)

5 Tb melted butter

An electric blender

Put the ingredients in the blender in the order they're listed above. Blend for a minute at top speed, covered. If there's some flour stuck to the sides, just scrape it off and blend for three more seconds. Finally, cover and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.

When you're ready to cook, rub a skillet with butter or oil and put over heat until it smokes. Remove it from the heat and pour 1/4 cup batter into the pan. Tilt the pan so the whole bottom is covered in a thin layer of the batter. Return to heat for 60-80- seconds, then loosen the crepe. If the edges are a light brown, it's ready to be turned. Brown for another 30 seconds on the other side.

Note that this is my abridged version of the recipes on p. 190 and 648. The cookbook version goes into much more detail, so be sure to pick it up if you haven't! :)

The batter

Roast Rack of Lamb with Mint Sauce

Are you tired of that ubiquitous side of mint jelly that accompanies rack of lamb? The refined mint sauce in this Bon Appetit recipe adds just the right finishing touch to this gorgeous cut of meat. You'll never reach for the mint jelly again.

In this recipe, the lamb gets a triple dose of flavor. First, dijon mustard is patted on the rack. Second, a minty breadcrumb mixture coats the meat. Finally, the sweet and savory mint sauce is poured on top. The result is lamb-perfection, and it's so easy make.

Ingredients:

• 3 8-chop racks of lamb, trimmed
• 6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 3 cups fresh white breadcrumbs
• 6 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

• Fresh mint sprigs

Mint Sauce

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 1/2 cup canned beef broth
• 1/3 cup minced shallots
• 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup sugar

• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Full recipe:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Roast-Rack-of-Lamb-with-Mint-Sauce-1260

After coming out of the oven

The strained mint sauce

Marinated Eggplant with Capers and Mint

Marinated Eggplant with Capers and Mint, Taragon Scrambled Eggs

I am used to always eating eggplant with tomato sauce, so when I found this recipe in an old issue of Gourmet, I knew I had to try this intriguing tomato-free version of eggplant.

The results exceeded my expectations; the eggplant was light and refreshing thanks to the mint leaves, with just a little tartness from the vinegar and capers. Surprisingly, the mint complimented the eggplant perfectly and didn't overpower the dish at all. This just might be my favorite way to eat eggplant now!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound thin Italian or Asian eggplants (2 to 3), cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup chopped mint
• 2 tablespoons small capers, rinsed
• 
  

Recipe:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Marinated-Eggplant-with-Capers-and-Mint-242842

Japanese Food, Part 2

Nijiya had organic moroheiya for sale this week, so I picked up a bunch. It was inexpensive--just a little over a dollar.

So just what is moroheiya? This leafy vegetable is popular in both Japanese and Middle Eastern cooking (where it's called mulukhiya) and takes on a slimy texture when cooked (like okra!). It's known for its health benefits, and a sign in Nijiya proudly boasts that it is "More Nutritious Than Spinach!".

Here are a couple of ways I prepared moroheiya this week:

An Egyptian style moroheiya soup with poached egg

The soup in its beginning stages

Stir fried moroheiya and pork

Japanese Food, Part 1

In West L.A., we have the good fortune of being near some fantastic Japanese specialty markets such as Nijiya and Mitsuwa. I went to Nijiya the other day and picked up some tasty snacks. For people unfamiliar with Japanese food, let me explain what these are...

Inari Sushi, $5 Nijiya Market

The picture above is of inari sushi. Inari sushi is deep fried tofu pouches stuffed with sweetly seasoned sushi rice. It is topped with red ginger. For the sushi neophyte, I would suggest trying inari before any other sushi since it does not contain any raw fish. Here's a recipe if you wish to make it at home:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/japanese-vegetable-and-rice-stuffed-tofu-inari-sushi-recipe/index.html

Uni (Sea Urchin), $10, Nijiya Market

The picture above is of uni, or sea urchin. Uni is a really divisive food: some people love it, and some hate it. There is really no in-between. I love uni. It has a creamy complex flavor that has just a hint of brine from the sea. Uni sushi is one of my favorites, but as you can see, it doesn't come cheap!

Baked Chicken Meatballs With Peperonata

I came across this simple recipe in the August issue of Gourmet. It takes 45 minutes from start to finish, with only 25 minutes of active time--perfect for a lazy Sunday evening. The recipe makes 12 meatballs, which means... leftovers!

The chicken meatballs are much lighter than regular beef meatballs and reminded us of "meatball clouds", if that makes any sense. The peperonata was excellent. It's great how such simple ingredients can come together to make an exquisite side dish.

Click here for the full recipe :

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Baked-Chicken-Meatballs-with-Peperonata-354471

Ingredients..

For Peperonata:

3 red bell peppers, cut into strips
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons drained capers
1 teaspoon red-wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

For meatballs:

3 slices Italian bread, torn into pieces (1 cup)
1/3 cup milk
3 ounces sliced pancetta, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 large egg
1 pound ground chicken
3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon tomato paste

The Peperonata

Maple Roasted Bacon

After eating at the restaurant Grub last week, I became infatuated with maple glazed bacon. I tried this recipe by Ina Garten for maple roasted bacon:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/maple-roasted-bacon-recipe/index.html

While her recipe is great, I thought that it was just as good (and much faster) pan frying the bacon in maple syrup instead of waiting for it in the oven. To copy the Grub-style bacon, I also added cumin seeds and some chili powder.

Ingredients:

Niiman Ranch Bacon
Maple Syrup
Cumin Seeds
Chili Powder

The marriage of sweet, salty and melt-in-your-mouth fattiness in this dish is positively sinful. The outside of the bacon is caramelized with a sticky toffee-like crust; think bacon candy. You'll find yourself eating much more bacon than you'd ever eat on its own. You've been warned ;)

Tyler Florence's Chicken Mole Poblano

"What is Mole Poblano?"

Mole poblano, whose name comes from the Mexican state of Puebla, is a popular sauce in Mexican cuisine and is the mole that most people in the U.S. think of when they think of mole. Mole poblano is prepared with dried chili peppers (commonly ancho, pasilla, mulato and chipotle), ground nuts and/or seeds (almonds, indigenous peanuts, and/or sesame seeds), spices, Mexican chocolate (cacao ground with sugar and cinnamon and occasionally nuts), salt, and a variety of other ingredients including charred avocado leaves, onions, and garlic. Dried seasonings such as ground oregano are also used. In order to provide a rich thickness to the sauce, bread crumbs or crackers are added to the mix. (from Wikipedia)

I love mole. My favorite place in L.A. to get mole is at the restaurant Guelaguetza. Their famous mole negro is out of this world!

When I saw Tyler Florence make this recipe on the Food Network, I knew I had to try it. The only problem was that I couldn't find Anaheim and Chipotle chiles at any of the grocery stores near me! And this is L.A... (granted, it's West L.A., but still...) Ah well, I made it with only the Ancho chile, and it turned out great.

The nice thing about this recipe is that it makes double the sauce that you need, so I have leftover sauce in the freezer for another night. You'll see why this is so great once you taste the sauce. The nuts and spices add such depth to it, and the little bit of bittersweet chocolate brings out the sauce's richness. The end result reminds me of a really good "South of the Border" Chili sauce.

Here's the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-mole-poblano-recipe/index.html

The LONG list of ingredients:

• 2 dried ancho chilies, stemmed and seeded
• 2 dried anaheim chilies, stemmed and seeded
• 2 dried chipotle chilies, stemmed and seeded
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1/4 cup whole almonds
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
• 1 cinnamon stick, preferably Mexican, broken in pieces
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 serrano peppers, stemmed and seeded
• 6 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, preferably Mexican, chopped
• 1 capon or large chicken, cut into 10 pieces
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 4 radishes, thinly sliced
• 1 lime, juiced
• Cilantro leaves, for garnish
• Cooked white rice, for serving

Toasting the spices that go into the mole sauce

The spices after going in the grinder

Brown the Onions and Serrano

Soaking the toasted Chiles in hot water for 30 minutes

The mole sauce

Pan frying the chicken to brown it

Finish cooking the chicken in the mole sauce

Trader Joe's Frying Cheese

For those of you lucky enough to have a Trader Joe's next to you, perhaps you've already discovered a fairly recent addition to their cheese selection: Frying Cheese!

This cheese tastes mild and has a firm texture right out of the package. However, when you fry it, something amazing happens: the cheese becomes soft and takes on a nuttier, cheesier flavor. Its taste is particularly complimented by something sweet like jam, honey or maple syrup.

Here, I have coated it in maple syrup and pan fried it for a couple of minutes on each side until it's soft. Just a warning: this stuff is addictive!