Category Archives: Farmers Market
French Fridays with Dorie: Lemongrass-Coconut Braise
As I sit here writing today’s post, all I can say is that if you live on the East Coast, what’s with this heat? We thought we were leaving the Boston area heat behind by escaping to the lake in Maine, but as I follow the temperatures today, it’s just as hot here as at home. Ugh!
I found this week’s recipe for French Fridays with Dorie, Braised Lemongrass-Coconut Pork, to be a seasonal challenge. A stew with root vegetables just didn’t feel like the right thing to be eating when you’re stuck under a “heat dome”, temperatures in the high 90’s for days. I have eaten more ice cream this week, 4 times already, and, true confessions, I don’t even like ice cream that much. (I know, it’s not normal. I’m also not a huge chocolate fan.)
My version is more of interpretation on the theme than a strict following of the recipe, though it does have the same structure. I kept with spirit of Dorie’s recipe so the sauce and flavorings were the same. I used chicken thighs because Howard made ribs over the weekend, and I was just plain “porked” out. I also took inspiration from the season’s vegetables and used steamed green beans and raw red and green pepper along with cherry tomatoes instead of the more autumnal ones suggested. I just realized I didn’t add anything from the onion family. I think I should have included some diced onion chunks, briefly stir-fried. I served this stew over jasmine rice, in a bowl.
This one will go in the “OK” category. It was fine, but lacked excitement. It wasn’t quite Thai, it wasn’t quite Indian, it definitely wasn’t French. Even though I used hot curry powder, the flavors weren’t as strong or as interesting as they could have been. I’m not sure whether I will play around with this to try to make it more to my liking, but there are so many recipes out there to try, I think I’ll just move on. (To be fair to the dish, I don’t mean to dis it, but it just wasn’t 90-degree-weather fare.)
Next week’s recipe is intriguing: a mixed berry terrine. I’ve never made anything like it before. I know I’m the only one in my house that will eat this one, so I either have to figure out how to make a mini-version, or find someone who wants to share it with me.
For this cooking group, we don’t share the recipes, but if anything looks good to you, you can find it in Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table. Of course, you are welcome to cook along, any time you like. We’re here every Friday at French Fridays with Dorie. (Note that, this week, the server is probably down until the end of the weekend…)
If you are under the heat dome with me, stay cool this weekend. It looks like the temperatures will go back down on Sunday.
Two Thoughts
I have to completely different and unrelated things on my mind today…
First thing: Yesterday, we went into Boston to see the last of this year’s Huntington Theatre Company’s productions. We saw The Comedy of Errors, performed by the Propeller Theatre Company from England, which is being performed in repertory with Richard III, which we didn’t see. Propeller Theatre Company is an all-male troupe, just like Shakespeare was performed back in the day. All I can say is that it was HILARIOUS!
Listening to Elizabethean English takes a while to get used to. It’s like listening to a foreign language. About halfway through the first act, the rhythm started to connect in my brain. But, the physical comedy made up for the words.
The basic plot centers on a case of mistaken identity, actually confusion of two sets of identical twins, a pair of masters and a pair of slaves. Everyone is getting the twins confused, the wife, the sister-in-law, the merchants, even the masters and the slaves. Two hours of belly laughter.
If you live in the Boston area and have some free time between now and June 19, you must try to see this show.
Second thing: Of course, it has to be food related. I picked up a huge bag of beet greens at the farmstand in Maine and was inclined to make a quiche. A tour of the fridge indicated something Greek inspired was the way to go. I combined sauteed greens with feta cheese and olives. I baked the crust in a springform pan, making the sides higher than the typical removable-bottom quiche pan. It made a nice, solid, tart; perfect for lunch with a salad. It had a funny pink tinge from the beet greens, but the flavors were delicious. I can’t wait to make it again.
Beet Green Quiche
Makes a 10-inch tart
Serves 6-8
Pastry dough for a 10-inch single crust (use your favorite recipe or mine)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 generous pound of beet greens, rinsed well but not dried
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/4 lb feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, quartered lengthwise
1/4 cup pine nuts
On a well-floured surface, roll out the pastry crust to a 14-inch circle. Transfer to a 10-inch springform pan. The sides should be about 2 inches high. Prick the dough all over, including up the sides, with a fork. Chill the dough in the pan for at least 30 minutes.
Partially bake the crust. Preheat oven to XXXF. Place a piece of parchment paper on the crust and fill completely with dried beans or pie weights. (I use a jar of small white beans, 1 to 2 pounds, which I can use for about a year before needing to replace.) Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes, until set. Carefully remove the parchment and beans. Return to the oven for another 5 minutes or so until it just starts to brown.
Make filling: In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Saute the onions and garlic until soft. Add the beet greens and cook until wilted and most of the liquid as evaporated, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and coarsely chop. In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the milk. Stir in the beet greens, feta cheese, and olives to combine well.
Pour the filling into the crust. Sprinkle with pine nuts. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until center is set. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool.
A Plateful of Happiness 