A tartine, if you are not acquainted with the term, is what the French call an open-faced sandwich with a sweet or savory topping. These spreads can be exotic or simple. At one of my favorite food blogs, theKitchn, is posted ten of their favorites, from Ricotta, Fig and Honey to Egg, Arugula and Herb to plain old Roasted Tomato Tartine.
Have I piqued your interest?
What’s for lunch? Hallelujah-It’s-Healthy Tartine, Lemon Basil-Mint Lemonade, & Raw Brownies
This week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe choice is Hallelujah-It’s-A-Healthy Tartine. To be truthful, that’s really not what Dorie chose to call this wonderfully delicious idea for a lunch or snack. In France this recipe is called Tartine Régime. Sounds sexy, right? It translates into English as Dieter’s Tartine. Thud.
So sorry, Dorie, I changed its name. Let’s move on.
First, you vigorously mix together a topping of cottage cheese and sour cream. Generously spread it on a large, toasted piece of country bread. Toss seedless cucumbers, peeled and diced, together with a small tomato, peeled, seeded and diced. Put on top of the spread. Add a dash of Herbes de Provence and fresh chives or basil. Voilà. Quick and Easy.
The ingredients are all prepped and waiting for their slab of toasted country bread to appear.
Because I wanted this lunch to be all about eating healthy, I chose Deborah Madison’s Lemon Basil-Mint Lemonade over a French Rosé for my drink. Although Madison’s new cookbook, Vegetable Literacy, has carried the edible plant kingdom into my kitchen with surprisingly tasty results, I was skeptical about this lemonade business. Why do I ever doubt Deborah or Dorie? It’s not-for-nothing that they publish successful cookbooks. Try this lemonade, Readers, you’ll love it.
a healthy and delicious tartine – American style
For dessert I made Raw Brownies, a recipe my friend, Susan Phillips, adapted from Sarah Britton, an innovative Danish chef who blogs at My New Roots. Susan first shared these with me, saying, “These brownies will change your life.”
In a word, Addictive.
It takes only five ingredients – walnuts, cocoa powder, Medjool dates, almonds and salt – tossed together in a food processor plus a little freezer/refrigerator time to make these beauties. My tip? After pressing the crumbly mixture into a dish lined with waxed paper, refrigerate until cold enough to cut into squares. Then, toss them into a baggie and throw into the freezer to eat when tempted. Although Britton suggests topping them with cinnamon, I don’t bother. A caveat……substitute cocoa powder for raw cacao (in Britton’s recipe) in the same proportions.
Brownies: Healthy – Delicious – Raw (no sugar or eggs)
I’ve started taking these healthy treats on hikes for snacks/ dessert and have found it’s increased my popularity as a hiking partner. Although I’m not yet the hiker I aspire to be, slower than my friends, I bring yummy treats. That counts for something.
To see if my colleagues liked this diet fare (healthy choice) as much as I did, go here. And, please let me know if you try any of this week’s recipes. I’m really excited about this lunch combo and was happy to be able to share all the recipes with you.
This week, for me, has been one of those lucky-to-be-alive times to grab and hold tightly. In our family we accept Life as it comes, with its peaks —quite often, with its valleys. That’s why I’ve made a pact to not waste a moment of “peakness”. This week has been a whoop-de-doo, hoop and hollering cause for celebration. Nothing’s more delicious than Happy.
My week is best told in pictures.
While unpacking, what could taste better than Goat Cheese & Strawberry Tartines
First, please try this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe, Goat Cheese and Strawberry Tartine. Although this little bit of yummy is best served at cocktail time with a chilled glass of Chenin Blanc, I made this for a simple, quick and tasty lunch.
After dripping balsamic glaze on the strawberries,let them rest for 5 minutes so the glaze can seep into the fruit.
Slice a baguette. Spread with goat cheese. (I used goat cheese with honey.) Place sliced strawberries on top and sprinkle with coarsely ground pepper. Finish with balsamic vinegar, if you wish. I chose to drip a balsamic vinegar glaze over the strawberries. The glaze disappeared quickly, seeping into the berries and, when eaten, creating a sensational burst of flavor in the mouth. After you slice your bread, leave it fresh or toast it. I did both. Which is better? It’s a draw.
Second, the construction and cleanup chores on my condo were finally completed so I could begin to move boxes from my storage unit to D-203. By the time you read this, I will have my kitchen in order. Unpacking old friends to hang on walls or put on tables and in cupboards turns a condominium into a home. I’m surrounded by the familiar and it’s a wonderful feeling.
Lastly, after an absence of nine years, I am now back in uniform. It’s official as of this week. Being a volunteer US Forest Ranger carries with it the responsibility of knowing and interacting safely not only with tourists but also with the natural world – the plants, birds and critters. To that end, this week I’ve participated in wildflower and birding field trips, a botany class and an evening river float. It’s tough duty but somebody’s got to do it. All part of Life back in the mountains.
Early morning birding at the Maroon Creek Wetlands in Aspen
An early evening float east of Aspen to see nesting Great Blue Herons. This colony of Blues, at 8,000 feet in elevation, is the highest one in N.A. and is the only one occurring in blue spruce trees.
I love Herons but this was my first Float e-v-e-r. I don’t swim. I didn’t wear the right equipment. My paddle got stuck in willows several times. The water was cold. AND, as you can see, it was stormy!!!
A full-day wildflower and birding field trip. After a 5am wakeup call for a 7am meet-up at the trailhead, we finally stopped for lunch at 12:30pm. I was thinking about my ham and cheese sandwich by 11am.
I suspect you’re wondering, “Who is Anne Leblanc?”
Probably, you’re also dying to know if Pistachio Avocados are grown in the States?
In addition, Readers of my blog often ask me about food blogging. Who? What? Where? When? and How?
In this week’s short Post, I’m offering a 3-for-the-price-of-one Special by answering all these weighty questions.
Our French Fridays with Dorie recipe is Anne Leblanc’s Pistachio Avocado. As Dorie explains, this really can’t be called a recipe. It’s more about being a great idea followed by a list of ingredients.
My Ingredients
The late Anne Leblanc was of Huilerie J. Leblanc fame. According to Dorie, this French company still makes some of the finest, fullest-flavored nut oils in the world. Buy them here or in speciality food stores. More than a decade ago, Ms. Leblanc suggested that Dorie pair a ripe halved avocado with pistachio oil to be offered as a easy side to crab, shrimp and lobster salads or grilled meats. After halving the avocado, sprinkle with fresh lemon juice and Fleur de sel (sea salt) and pour Pistachio Oil into its hollow cavity in the center. It’s simple and simply delicious.
Avocado with Meyer Lemon olive oil and Dukkah
With apologies to Anne, I improvised with ingredients I had on hand. My oil was Sonoma Harvest Meyer Lemon olive oil. I sprinkled Dukkah, a Middle Eastern nut and spice blend, over the top. Although I bought my Dukkah at Trader Joe’s, I love this flavorful combo and will make my own in the future. Find the recipe for Dukkah here or here or here. This was a delightful snack.
Avocado with Meyer Lemon olive oil and Dukkah
The results of the State of Food Blogging Survey, conducted by Foodista and Zephyr Adventures, were released this week. Not surprisingly, our FFWD group mirrors the Survey profile.
Although not pretending to be uber-scientific, here’s a brief re-cap by Allan Wright of Zephyr Adventures: “Six-hundred and seventy-nine food bloggers completed a 32-question online survey. The respondents were primarily Citizen Bloggers (77%) with a minority of Entrepreneurial Bloggers promoting their own company (19%) and the remainder connected to corporations (4%). Based on the respondents, food bloggers tend to be from the United States, female, between the ages of 25 and 44, and either married or living with a significant other. [The number of food bloggers 65 or older, like me, isminiscule.] Forty-two percent are parents and 81% are employed or self-employed full or part time. Forty-two percent of respondents have no background related to food blogging while 58% have some related experience.
When asked “Why do you blog?” 87% of respondents replied, “Food is my passion.” Four additional answers that drew heavy response included: to make a name for myself in the food world; Writing is my passion [like me] ; In hopes of turning my blog into a job; and, to have a voice so I can say what I want to say.”
To see the entire survey’s interesting results, go here.
Many of my FFWD colleagues had their own interpretation of this week’s avocado recipe which you can see at our group Link.
This year March is not playing its proper role. Oh, yes, it roared in like a Lion but in most of the country, we have yet to see the Lamb. Baa. Baa. Baa.
Graphic by danastrip.com
Our recipe choice this week,Lemon-Steamed Spinach, will put a little Spring in your step even if it has not yet come knocking at your door. It could be a perfect and healthy side dish for your holiday or dinner table.
Unfortunately, Dear Readers, you will have to go here to see how my FFWD colleagues prepared this tasty leaf. My kitchen was successfully “loaded and locked” several days ago in preparation for my move to Colorado.
Improvisation is something I do quite easily. For a neighborhood gathering on Palm Sunday I was able to bake my holiday ham in my oven’s broiler pan and glaze it with maple syrup (the real stuff – an entire jug) and it was delicious. For the past several days I’ve been defrosting a vacuum-packed serving of Trader Joe’s oatmeal on a paper plate, topping it with a sliced banana or dried dates. It worked. But I just could not figure out how to zest a lemon and wash and steam spinach without the proper equipment.
How ya gonna keep her out in the kitchen after she’s been on Air Force One?
Air Force One Tail Number 27000 flew seven U.S. presidents – Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, H.W. Bush, Clinton, and W. Bush, around the world on countless missions from 1972-1990. This beautifully restored and reassembled big bird now lives in the Air Force One Pavilion at the Reagan Presidential Library.
That might have been a legitimate question for me this week if our First Fridays with Dorie recipe choice had not been CheesyCrème Brûlée. It still might have been an issue had I not read some early Dorista comments. Both Teresa and Amanda made six individual servings, enjoying one each evening. Translated: this recipe refrigerates well. Then, Diane called it decadent. It’s settled, I’m all over it.
Dorie suggests using 3 ounces of tiny cubed cheese bits for the custard mixture and 2 ounces of grated cheese for the topping. To do it correctly, I weighed my portions. It seems that I am find using my scale more often these days. In fact, I now keep it on the counter.
Realizing that I could make this one recipe, which is decadent, and savor the six servings myself during the coming week, I unfastened my seatbelt, scurried home from my week’s work in California and got out my blowtorch.
“What could be better than combining two of life’s great culinary pleasures, crème brûlée and cheese?” Dorie asks. “It’s a double serving of voluptuousness.”
After buttering shallow ramekins, cut 3 ounces of cheese into tiny cubes. Since I’m two weeks away from needing an empty refrigerator, I combined what I always have on hand, Parmesan and cheddar. Dorie suggests a Parmesan/Comté combo.
Even better,it’s darn easy. You simply exchange cheese for sugar. That it can be made up to two days ahead is even better. (Don’t tell Dorie but I still found it tasty on Day 4 and 5.)
Bring heavy cream and whole milk to a boil in a small sauce pan before pouring it slowly into a bowl of 3 vigorously whisked egg yolks seasoned with nutmeg, salt and pepper. After blending and de-bubbling the mixture (I had to spoon off the layer of bubbles), divide among the ramekins.
Dorie suggested cooking the custard in a 200 degree oven for 50 minutes until firm. It took an extra 20 minutes at my house. Then cool the custard to room temperature, sprinkle grated cheese on top and brown the cheese evenly with a mini propane torch or under the broiler.
I wanted more over less of a crust and this seemd perfect to me. In retrospect, I would grate all my cheese rather than cut it into tiny cubes. Although the cheese melted, it was a tad “lumpy” and I wouldn’t like that for entertaining purposes. However, it made no difference to the taste.
Last week I went to California to begin a long-anticipated writing project on the Presidential Libraries, focusing, at first, on the thirteen facilities overseen by the Office of Presidential Libraries in the National Archives and Records Administration. Although all our Presidents have museums dedicated to their memories, the concept of an official presidential library was the brainchild of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the first was for his predecessor, the 31st President of the United States, Herbert Hoover.
There are some bonuses to living alone. After taking the initial picture of the Crème Brûlée, I ate the strawberry, tossed the spoon in the sink, found some almond biscuits and dug in. My Mother would NOT have been proud.
Since this project has been sitting on a back-burner the past ten years, I was anxious to get started and with two libraries in California, where better to begin? Knowing my schedule, I e-mailed Susan Lester, a FFWD colleague who blogs at Create Amazing Meals, and asked if she and her husband, John, lived anywhere near Simi Valley (Reagan) and Yorba Linda (Nixon), my stomping grounds for a few days. Dinner, perhaps?
I considered it a perfect launch party and good omen for my upcoming writing project. The Lesters not only met me for dinner but generously treated me to dinner. I looking forward to seeing them again next September at the International Food Bloggers Conference in Seattle. This time, the dinner will be on me!
My inquiry and her quick reply – Napa Tavern, 6:30p.m. – made our introductory dinner together last Friday a reality. If you’ve ever questioned that food translates into friendship and fellowship, the proof was in the pudding Friday evening. With two-and-a-half years of blogging among us, we danced easily from topic to topic. And, since you asked? Yes, John held his own.
If you want to see how well my colleagues liked this week’s recipe, check it out here. Since this recipe is not on the blogosphere, you will have to e-mail me privately and I will be happy to send the recipe.
Dorie suggests plating these sealed vegetable packets and letting each guest have the pleasure of savoring the first fragrant puff of steam when the seal is broken. My friend, Ruth, enjoyed the moment.
My! My! My!
Everything about this week’s FFWD recipe was a delicious, winning, you-must-make-this, choice. Let’s just forgeddabout last week’s not-so-good and race quickly on to better and best: Brown-Sugar Squash and Brussels Sprouts** en Papillote.
The cubed squash, apples, halved Brussels sprouts, olive oil, salt and pepper are easily and simply mixed together.
Dorie echoed my original thought when I first read this recipe. “I don’t thinkI’d ever have put the squash and Brussels sprouts together if they weren’t packed into the bin side by side,” she said. “And it was just a stroke of luck that I had both an apple and fresh sage, which is perfect with the vegetables and fruit.”
Divide evenly between four non-stick, 12-inch squares of aluminum foil. Frankly, this was the hardest part and, yes, I counted!!!
To my surprise and Dorie’s, what pleased her most about this serendipitous side was ‘the play between earthy and sweet’.
I sprinkled brown sugar over each bundle and topped with fresh sage. Earthy. Sweet.
Although this is really a recipe for your Fall menus, it is tasty in Winter also. Once again, our Doristas who live in South America and Australia, where it is Summer, are very, very good sports.
I sealed the packets, leaving room so the ingredients can steam, and put them in the refridgerator.
Because I am particularly busy right now, I bought a pound package of pre-cut, cubed squash so it took only 15 minutes to throw this together. I also made the packets in the morning, refrigerated them and added a few minutes to their baking time.
Luckily my veggie-lovin’ Colorado friends, Peter and Ruth Frey, joined me for this week’s successful taste testing. The Freys, enroute to a two-month stay in Cambria, California, stopped to observe my January 31st house-closing (or to “manage” my emotional fall-out if there was a closing glitch).
To accompany this week’s FFWD recipe, I served a green salad and Yotam Ottolenghi’s “Very Full Tart”, a delicious recipe from his cookbook, “Plenty”.
Fortunately we enjoyed two sunny days of exploring Nevada’s outdoors fueled by wonderful food, drink and friendship. Plus, we were able to celebrate yesterday’s successful house closing/sale before their leaving for Callie this morning.
The reason Peter is not smiling is that he had already begun to open his packet before Ruth and I scared the hell out of him by telling (well, yelling at) him to STOP. I needed a photo, of course. A long-time professor at Northwestern University, he understands ‘learning experiences’ and patiently re-sealed his packet for picture-taking. But, he’s all-business so couldn’t smile.
Peter’s silent compliment to the cook.
To see how my FFWD colleagues handled their tinfoil this week, go to our group link. If you want to try this recipe, and I urge you to try it, go here.
I enjoyed introducing my Colorado friends to Nevada’s outdoor hiking opportunities. Nevada is over 80% public land, forty-eight million acres of that land is administered by the Bureau of Land management. Since Ruth and I are both volunteer forest rangers in Colorado’s High Country, she especially enjoyed our hikes at Lake Mead, the Red Rocks National Conservation Area and Black Mountain, a totally different experience from hiking in the Rockies.
** These tiny cabbage-like vegetables are named after the Belgian city of Brussels, which has an “S” on the end. The correct spelling is “Brussels sprouts.”
