CROQUE MADAME

If i were rachel ray, i’d say, with my charming accent, “it’s low keerrb”.

Slice open 1/3 baguette, slather on a generous coating of bechamel, top with fresh sliced ham and gruyère cheese and set under the broiler until browned and bubbling.  Add fried egg sunny side up. so goooood. if iwere rachel ray, i’d say, “it’s dah-lish”

 

dah-lish and low keerrb!

 

WHY IS THIS MAN SO HAPPY?

benoit is thoroughly enjoying his eggplant parm

The charm of  eggplant parmesan is undeniably euphoric.  There is never any left over, thereby hazing the following morning over by the kind of deep metaphysic sadness that comes from realizing how fast the good times pass in our lives.

Please note, this eggplant parm takes a very long time to create.  You’ll first need to make a basic tomato sauce.  I add a dash of red pepper to the sauce to give the ulimate dish a little jazz.  As the sauce is simmering, you can slice 3 big eggplants, toss them with salt and sit them in a collander to drain.  This takes a while, and unfortunately never really works like you hope it will since the eggplant slices at the bottom absorb the water from those on top.  After a 1/2 hour or so, I lay the slices out on a kitchen towel and pat them dry.

Now bread and fry the eggplants in batches, remember, flour then egg then breadcrum/parmesan. Fry in olive oil.  

Grate a pound or so of Gruyère.  

Assemble the masterpiece like a lasagne, sauce then eggplant, then sauce, then cheese, now repeat.

Bake for 45min or until bubbling and rich brown.  I make this well  before people come over and leave it in the oven with the oven off but still warm for at least an hour. This dish becomes mellower after a bit of rest. But then who doesn’t.  I’ve intended these instructions to be more like suggestions and hope you’ll create an eggplant parm that mirrors your deepest self.

The intense, yet ephemeral pleasure is enhanced by knowing that you worked all day to make the eggplant parm, yet nothing compares to the silence at the table as all your guests enter into a collective trance.

CLAMSHELLS

I know this may not be exactly the most original idea, but I really am obsessed with the clamshell as tabletop untensil.  I recently posted cumin in a clamshell (see couscous post)….here is a little shell i use for salt.  If you have a crew of dirty smokers over for dinner, you can give each their own clamshell ashtray.  The best thing is these are absolutely free and waiting for you on a beach nearby.  I think mine mostly came from the Atlantic.

 

ANOTHER GOOD IDEA…

THE DARK AND STORMY!

dark rum + jamaican ginger beer + lime = a GREAT summer drink.

(we have been drinking havana club a major no-no in the usa, but we’ll leave politics out of this, anyway, we’re in france where we can freely guzzle cuban rum and puff without fear on a fat cuban cigar, just not inside)

 

blurry?

¡hola!

A GOOD IDEA

If i were you, i’d have a holiday weekend cocktail party today. I’d start early too, a late afternoon cocktail party is a very good idea.  If you’ve got a huge wrap around terrace with a killer view, a roof deck, or live by a canal like I do, you could have the party there. If you wisely choose to take my advice, be sure to make some of these roast beef toasts with rare roast beef, horse radish and arugula.

GRRRR

LOOK AT THIS GRRREAT PIC OF THE HICKEY SHIELDS CREW IN THE SUPER PUT-YOUR-HEAD-IN-THE-HOLE-AND-BECOME-A-TIGER GAME WE CREATED FOR ASIA SOCIETY.  MORE ON THAT LATER…

WURTZELPETER

My friends Emilie and Gordon from Berlin brought me this bottle of an absolutely delicious alcohol made from roots and herbs with an equally fabulous forest creature on the label. I highly recommend pouring a glass over ice. We liked it so much we drank the entire bottle and woke up feeling awful the next morning. All things in moderation.

BARAKAH

A happy family moment, a convergence of stars, a prosperous breeze, a rainbow, a trip to jojo the butcher and  a couscous….all in one sunday.  I’ve been watching, learning, and testing my own couscous cooking technique…i think I’ve got it.

The most important element is the pot.  You MUST have a couscousier. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This magic pot is key to cooking the grain perfectly as it steams above the vegetables.

First, take a chicken that has been cut into pieces.  In the lower section of the pot, brown the chicken in some olive oil with an onion. Add salt, pepper, and 2 pinches of saffron. Cover with water and cook for about 40minutes.  

While this is happening, chop 2 turnips, 4 carrots, 4 zuccini, 2 peeled tomatoes into large pieces.  Prepare and rinse one large can of chick peas.

Remove the chicken and set aside, covered.  add the carrots, turnips, and tomatoes to the broth and begin to simmer.  Add the zuccini and chickpeas after about 30 minutes, and cook for another 30 minutes or so.  Add fresh cilantro.

Now prepare the grain.  Put 500g of grain into a large bowl.  Add 1/2L salt water + a pinch of salt+ 4 tblsp olive oil and let soak 10minutes.  Fluff the grain with a fork, then add to the top section of the pot and steam over the vegetables for 15 minutes.  Remove the grain, put back into the bowl, and fluff with a fork then put back into the pot and steam again 15 minutes. you can add some raisins to this in the second round.

Heat the chicken under the broiler for a few minutes and  serve! Serve with a fresh tomato, cilantro and onion salad, an orange and olive salad, and harissa!

Polish it off with a fresh mint tea! 

 

cumin in a clamshell!