Cherry Almond Gratins

I recently took Patricia Wells' The Provence Cookbook out of our local library. Oh my, I think this is a book to add to my permanent collection. Reading the recipes I wanted to make every single one. The book evokes the south of France and makes me want to go there NOW. Instead, I'll prepare Patricia's recipes and pretend I'm there.
Last summer I made a cherry clafoutis and loved it. These gratins are another way to serve cherries during their all too short season. This recipe is from The Provence Cookbook with a slight tweak - I used almonds in place of the hazelnuts in the recipe because that's what I had on hand.
The gratins are individual, making for a pretty presentation.

Cherry Almond Gratins (Mini-gratins aux cerises et aux amandes)

1 pound fresh cherries, rinsed, stemmed and pitted
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup finely ground almonds
confectioner's sugar, for dusting the gratins

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Butter and sugar 6 individual gratin dishes and place on baking sheets.
Divide the cherries among the gratin dishes and set aside.

In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, combine the eggs and sugar, beating at the highest speed until thick and pale, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the almonds and whisk until well blended. Pour the batter over the cherries in the gratin dishes.
Place the baking sheets with the gratin dishes in the oven. Bake until firm and a deep golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool. Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Black Forest Cherry Sauce

Cherries and chocolate are a perfect match and they meld together beautifully in this sauce suitable for ice cream, brownies, or just spooning out of the jar. I've made this for a number of years when cherries are in season. It would make a nice addition to a gift basket. The recipe comes from the Bernardin Canning Booklet, and I've adapted it slightly.

Black Forest Cherry Sauce

3 1/2 cups pitted and coarsely chopped sweet cherries
1/3 cup sifted unsweetened cocoa powder
4 cups granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons bottled lemon juice
2 pouches (170 ml) Bernardin liquid pectin (other brands of liquid pectin also work)
1/4 cup Kirsch or cherry brandy (optional)

Sterilize 5 or 6 250 ml (8 oz) mason jars.  Boil snap lids for 5 minutes to soften sealing compound. Keep lids in hot water until ready to use.
Combine prepared cherries, cocoa powder, sugar and lemon juice in a large, deep stainless steel saucepan. Over high heat, bring mixture to a full rolling boil. Stirring constantly, boil hard 1 minute. Remove from heat.
Immediately stir in liquid pectin and kirsch, mixing well. To prevent floating fruit, stir slowly 3 minutes. Skim foam if there is any.
Ladle into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace at the top. Top with snap lids, and screws. Let sit undisturbed on the counter until cool. All the lids should pop and seal.

NOTE: I do not process jams and jellies in a hot water bath as is recommended by Bernardin. Please follow the directions found on the Bernardin site if you wish to process further.

Grilled Chicken, Red Pepper and Melon Salad

Ahhh, summer has arrived. And with it, summer eating. Sweet cantaloupe, creamy avocado, lightly charred red pepper and chicken combine with crisp lettuce and a citrus dressing for an easy summer dinner salad. The dressing can be made ahead and the rest of the salad comes together quickly.

Citrus Dressing:

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup orange juice
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons minced red onion
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients and whisk to combine. Refrigerate until needed. This recipe makes more than what's needed for the salad, but keeps well and can be used on any salad.

Grilled Chicken, Red Pepper and Melon Salad (Serves 2)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup Citrus dressing (recipe above)
1 sweet red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
1/2 cantaloupe melon, seeded, peeled and thinly sliced, then cut into chunks
1 avocado, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
1/4 cup basil, chopped
2 -3 cups shredded romaine lettuce

Place the chicken breasts and red pepper quarters in a flat dish and pour over the Citrus Dressing. Let marinate for 20 minutes or up to 2 hours.
Discard marinade and grill chicken and red pepper over medium high heat until pepper is softened and lightly charred, and chicken is no longer pink inside. The red pepper will take about 6 minutes, longer for the chicken. Cut chicken and red pepper into bite-sized chunks.

To serve, pile lettuce on individual plates and top with melon, avocado chunks, chicken and red pepper. Drizzle dressing over top. Sprinkle with basil.

Cheesy Eggs on Toast

My family knows that I prefer savoury things over sweets. Give me a hunk of cheese or a handful of potato chips over a cookie any day. This is especially true at breakfast time. Eating highly sweetened cereal, cinnamon buns, or even overly sweetened muffins doesn't sit well.

Several years ago one of my aunts traveled to Kenya to visit my cousin who was working there. She had these eggs for breakfast, shared them with us, and now I'm sharing them with you. Protein, whole grains, fresh produce are all included in this meal. And it can be made ahead and reheated so it's quick to go in the morning.

Cheesy Eggs on Toast (for 2, easily doubled or tripled)

3 eggs, hardboiled, peeled

2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese
freshly ground black pepper

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Whisk in the milk and salt, continuing to whisk over medium to medium high heat until the mixture thickens and bubbles. Add the cheese and stir until smooth. Season with the pepper to taste.

Coarsely chop the hardboiled eggs and add them to the sauce. Gently heat.

Serve over whole wheat toast, with sliced tomatoes on the side.

This sauce is basic and is easily altered by adding fresh or dried herbs to suit your taste. I suggest thyme, chives, or parsley. Some basil on the tomatoes would never be out of place.

Broccoli Salad

I find that a lot of broccoli salads are so sweet they taste more like a crunchy green dessert. This one has a hint of sweetness from the cranberries, apples and apricots, but the dressing itself is a bit tangy and not too heavy.

6 cups bite-sized broccoli pieces (Use the stems, too. Peel them, and cut them into one-inch chunks, then slice or chop them to bite-size)
1 apple, cored and diced
1 sweet red pepper, seeded and diced
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup diced dried apricots
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds

Combine the above ingredients in a large bowl.

Dressing
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon honey
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together the dressing ingredients, then combine with the salad. This keeps for a few days in the fridge and I like it with a slice of fresh bread for lunch.

Chocolate Roll

Although this recipe has a triple hit of chocolate, it's still quite light and a good dessert to serve after a heavy dinner. (Or a light dinner, or as a snack). I made this recently for a weekend with our children. They all came up to visit at different times, some overlapped, and I wanted to have easy meals so I could just enjoy being with them.

Jelly rolls are kind of an old fashioned thing, but I think they are easy to make and delicious to eat. The ratio of cake to filling is evenly distributed and just about perfect! I've had people tell me that jelly rolls don't work for them, that they crack. The wonderful thing about them is that if they crack, it's usually at the inner part of the roll and that can easily be disguised and held together with filling. I like them because they can be made ahead and even frozen. So, without further ado, here's the recipe.

Chocolate Jelly Roll

3 large eggs
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup water, room temperature
1 cup sifted flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Grease the bottom and sides of a rimmed baking sheet (about 10 x 15 inches). Line the bottom with waxed paper, and grease that, too. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Beat the eggs until thick and lemon coloured. Gradually beat in the sugar. Blend in the water and the vanilla. Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa powder. Mix into the egg and sugar mixture, stirring only until blended. Pour into the prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until top springs back when lightly pressed.

While the jelly roll bakes, spread a clean tea towel onto the counter. Sprinkle with icing sugar, about 1/4 cup. I place the icing sugar into a sieve then tap it gently while moving it over the tea towel to spread it evenly.

As soon as the jelly roll has finished baking turn it upside down onto the tea towel. Remove the waxed paper and then roll it up together WITH the tea towel. Let cool. When the roll has cooled completely, gently unroll it, spread it with the filling and reroll it, WITHOUT the tea towel. Place seamside down on a pretty serving tray, or slice into 3/4 inch thick slices, top with sauce and enjoy.

Chocolate Butter Cream Filling

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
1 oz (1 square) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 oz (1 square) semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon rum (optional)

Combine the sugar and flour together, whisk in the milk. Cook until thickened, in a small saucepan, over medium heat. Mixture should bubble and boil. Stir constantly to avoid scorching. (note: a little sticking to the pan does not affect the taste - said from experience) Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate until melted. Cool completely.
In mixing bowl, beat butter until creamy. Add flour/milk mixture, the rum and vanilla, and beat well. As you beat it the mixture will become light and creamy. Spread onto jelly roll.

Chocolate Sauce

1/2 cup cream
1 cup chocolate chips

Place in a glass measuring cup and microwave about 1-2 minutes, or until the chips have melted. Stir together and voilà, the easiest sauce ever.

Fish Tostados

This is a combination of a couple of recipes I saw - beef tostados and fish tacos. I was looking for something a little different than just baked or pan-fried fish. This turned out okay, not great. I'd up the heat factor - maybe season the fish with a little chipotle powder or chili powder before frying. But, for what it's worth, this recipe is a start - one I think I'll be tweaking because we really enjoyed the concept and the mixture of flavours. Crunchy cabbage with a bit of heat, lightly sauteed onions, creamy avocado, a hint of tomato, and the creamy chipotle flavoured sauce combined quite nicely.

3-4 cups shredded white cabbage
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded, finely minced
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon minced chipotle pepper
1 pound of boneless white-fleshed fish fillets (I used basa)
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, cut into thin wedges
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 tomato, diced
4 tortillas (I used wheat because that's what I had on hand, next time I'd plan on using corn tortillas)

Combine the sour cream, jalapeno pepper, lime juice and salt. Mix half of this mixture with the shredded cabbage. Set aside remaining sauce.

Heat 1 T of the oil, and saute the onion until tender crisp (you want some crunch left in it). Remove the onion and keep it warm.

Heat the remaining T of oil to medium high. Cut the fish fillets into strips, salt and pepper them, and quickly fry them. Don't let them touch in the pan, do them in batches if necessary. Remove and keep warm. I piled it on top of the onions.

Toast the tortilla under the broiler, or if you like, quickly fry it until crisp.

To assemble, layer on a plate--

Tortilla
Cabbage (3/4-1 cup)
tomato
fish and onion
avocado

Top it all with the remaining sauce and squeeze fresh lime juice over.