Category Archives: Autumn
french lentils {ffwd}
Lentils are my favorite bean. I love lentil soup, lentil salad, and even lentils as a side. This week’s recipe for French Fridays with Dorie is “a basic recipe” for French lentils, which I made as a side.
Dorie suggests using French Le Puy lentils instead of the brown lentils you usually see at the grocery store. I know that some Doristas had trouble sourcing these, but fortunately, my local Whole Foods always has these in the bulk section where I buy them by the pounds. I love them, particularly in lentil salad, because they hold their shape instead of getting mushy. I agree that they are worth seeking out.
This recipe’s preparation is similar to my usual method, but also a little bit different. I’m always up for trying new ways of doing things before deciding whether to adopt some or all of the experiment for a new and enhanced “usual” method.
For this version, first the lentils are boiled for two minutes, then drained before continuing. This is to give the lentils a cleaner flavor. I’m not sure I could tell the difference, but I might try it again.
The lentils are simmered with an onion studded with a clove, a carrot, a celery stalk, a smashed garlic clove, and a bay leaf. Once they are tender, some brandy is stirred in for just a minute, before draining the lentils again. My question about this step is: what’s the point of the brandy? I didn’t notice any residual taste. Even though I didn’t use fancy brandy, just Christian Brothers, it still seemed like a waste of brandy.
At this point, cook’s choice: discard the vegetables or chop them up. I chopped them up, mixed them into the lentils, and adjusted the seasoning.
The lentils made the perfect accompaniment to duck confit, beet salad, and braised kale. This dish, or maybe it was the whole meal, felt like a baby step towards welcoming the crispness in the air as summer comes to an end and autumn is upon us.
As far as adjustments to my favorite method, I would try the initial quick boil and drain step again before making a final judgment on that step. I usually simmer my lentils with chopped onion and carrots (and a bay leaf). I found the chopping of the warm (well, hot, I was impatient) vegetables fussy, though I did enjoy the flavors, so I might start adding chopped celery and garlic to the mix. but not whole vegetables. Also, no brandy unless I just stirred it into the warm lentils. So, mixed results on takeaways for me.
To see how the lentils came out for the other Doristas, check out their links here. We don’t post the recipes, but you can find it in Dorie Greenspan’s book Around My French Table.
I was at Squam Lake in New Hampshire overnight with a couple of my morning boot camp buddies. This morning, we hiked to the top of Rattlesnake Mountain, and this is the view back over the lake. Gorgeous, no?
View of Squam Lake from Rattlesnake Mountain (NH)
chestnut-pear soup {ffwd}
November is not a good month for Howard and French Fridays with Dorie recipes. He liked the chicken, but after week 1, it’s been all downhill, and the slide will continue for the rest of the month. Fruit, fruit mixed with savory, French toast, all just not his thing… Oh, well, as they say, “More for me!” This week’s recipe is in the fruit mixed with savory category: Chestnut-Pear Soup.
My signature Thanksgiving stuffing is a chestnut stuffing, so I’m a big fan of chestnuts. I used to roast and peel them, filling the kitchen with aromas that evoke memories of a city street corner on a winter’s day. Peeling chestnuts is hard work, though, so I was so happy when, about a decade ago, I discovered jars of already steamed and peeled chestnuts at Williams-Sonoma. Not an inexpensive option, but with all the tasks to make a Thanksgiving meal, pre-peeled chestnuts always seemed like a good value. Since that initial discovery, I’ve seen (and purchased) chestnuts in even more stores, around this time of year, and stock up to introduce chestnuts into pre- and post-Thanksgiving meals.
Add this simple soup to the list of tasty ways to consume chestnuts. A bowl of Chestnut-Pear Soup looks unpromising, yet a spoonful reveals a surprising complexity of flavor. You get the earthy nuttiness of the chestnuts along with a touch of sweetness from ripe pears and the added depth of oniony-ness from leeks (in addition to regular onions). I used only 1 quart of broth because I prefer a thicker soup than Dorie does.
Chestnut-Pear Soup made a perfect autumn lunch. It would also make an elegant starter to a special (or even an everyday) meal. I topped the soup with a splash of cream and a quartered chestnut and enjoyed my lunch. I’m hoping it freezes well. I was the only one eating it this week, so put a few containers in the freezer for later.
If you’d like to find out how my French Friday friends enjoyed their soup, check out their links here. For the recipe, you can find it in Dorie Greenspan’s book Around My French Table.
A Plateful of Happiness 