Pear cake with honey and lemon

      

Original and with a lot of flavours, this recipe is Camille Lesecq's recipe, pastry Chef of Le meurice, Paris. I changed a few things in the recipe, because I've baked it a few times already.

- did I get fat ? -

Really soft and tender, it can be made in a meat loaf pan,

it has always been a huge success :)

For 6 people

   You will need :   

Pears

2 pears

3.5 oz of honey (100g)

- pine honey -

2.8 oz of butter (80gr)

- Camille Lesecq puts 3.5 oz -

the dough

4.2 oz of white sugar (120gr)

1.8 oz of butter (50gr)

4.4 oz of flour (125gr)

1.7 fl oz of milk (5cL)

1.7 fl oz of olive oil (5cL)

- Camille Lesecq puts 2.5 fl oz -

- you can use vegetal oil if you prefer -

2 eggs

1 grated lemon zest

3tbsp of lemon juice

0.2 oz of baking powder (6gr)

Prepare the pears

In a casserole, melt the butter with the honey on low heat.

Rinse, peal the pears and remove the heart with the seeds. Cut them in dice of 1/2 inch

- Camille Lesecq cuts them in 8, not in dice -

Add them to the melted butter, cover and let it cook at medium heat for 20 minutes.

Let it cool down in the butter sauce. They must be translucid. Set aside.

Turn the oven on at 375°F

Prepare the cake

Beat the sugar with the egss and the lemon zest for at least 3 minutes,

it must be light and foamy

Pour the milk slowly while stirring

Integrate the flour and the baking powder with a wooden spoon 

by doing small circular movements from the center

Finally, stir the lemon juice, the melted butter and the oil

By hand, stir it all together 2 to 3 minutes. Set Aside

Dry of the pears with a colander, use a clean absorbent paper to remove delicatly the excedient butter

In a buttered pan (you can use the butter +honey sauce to butter it), pour 2/3 of the dough, them place the pears carefully with a spoon, and pour the rest of the dough on top of them

- Camille Lesecq puts the pears aside the cake, but I like it better in it -

Put in the oven for 35 to 50 minutes, depending on your mold

Check the cooking by inserting a clean and smooth knife in the middle of the cake, 

it must come out clean

Thanks to Camille for this recipe, the first time I made it, I followed all the instructions, it had 300 gr of butter in it (12oz of butter...)

It's a bit too much butter for me :D

"Cake aux poires juste confites" is the exact name of that cake

Mushroom quiche

For 4 to 6 people (8 inch wide)

If you have a mold of 9 inch or +, put 7,4 fl oz of milk and 3,5 oz of ricotta

   Il vous faut :   

The crust

1 shortcrust dough with salted butter

1tsp of provence herbs d'herbes de provence, 

1tsp origano

peppet

To garnish

1/2 lb of fresh mushrooms (250gr) 

1/4 lb of ham (125gr)

- 4 slices -

2 eggs

2,8 oz of fresh ricotta (80gr)

6,1 fl oz of milk (18cL)

salt and pepper

1tsp provence herbs

Turn on the oven at 450°F

The dough

Make the shortcrust dough with salted butter, add the herbs with the flour

Flatten it on 1/4 inch thick

Place it in your pie pan, stab it with a fork and put in the oven for 4 minutes

Then, set aside while preparing the garniture

Ham and mushrooms

Rinse your mushrooms, cut the extremity of the feet and cut it in half, then in slice

Cut the ham in squares of 1/2 inch 

Put ham and muschrooms in a pan on medium heat with 2tsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt, stay before and mix it regularly so it takes colors.

When mushrooms are reduced and lost their water (it takes 12 minutes approximativly)

Remove it from the fire and dry them using absorbent paper and a colander if needed

Garnish

Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt, stir with the ricotta until smooth

Pour the milk, whisk it and add 1tsp of herbs,

on your pre-cooked dough, place the mushrooms ans the ham carefully 

and pour on it the egg/milk mix

- it must not go over the crust -

If you can't pour it all, don't risk to drawn your dough

- mon moule faisait 22 cm de diamètre -

Spread on it some pepper

Put in the oven for 35 minutes, turn it off and let it cool down 15 minutes 

in the oven with the door opened

Serve when still warm with a green salad, you can put fresh basil on the top :)

How to make sushis and makis, sunday night : sushis night !

Since we got a rice cooker as a wedding gift, every sunday night, it's sushis night !

We have fresh fish from the morning's market, avocados, cucumber,

rice is prepared in the morning, and in the evening it takes me an hour to make them :)

I make 1 cup and a half (of the rice cooker's cup) for 2 people, like that we have some leftovers for monday's lunch.

You can either make more makis or sushis, it depends on your taste, I'll explain it all

- 8.8 oz of dry rice allow me to make 4 rolls or 30 sushis

For 2 people,

   You will need :   

For the rice

8.8 oz of pearl rice, short grain

- I take the Hinode's rice -

5tbsp of rice vinegar

- I use Marukan's vinegar -

2tbsp of white sugar

1 tsp of salt

To garnish

Seaweed's sheets for the rolls

1/4 cucumber

- we eat the rest as a snack with the sushis -

1/2 avocados

- depending how many rolls you make -

11oz 3of really fresh fish,

Pick the thickest one you can, if you are mostly doing rolls, you won't need that much

Wasabi

- japanese mustard -

Tools

1 big smooth knife

1 large spatula

- the one with the rice cooker is perfect -

1 bamboo mat

- I use my table sets :) -

- Let's go ! -

Prepare the rice : vinegar rice

Rince your rice until the water is clear, and cook it in the rice cooker, or in a casserole following the rules
I think that for 8.8 oz of rice, it's 8.5 fl.oz of water 

During that time, in a small casserole, melt the sugar in the rice vinegar on low fire,
 - you have to move it from the bottom of the casserole with a wooden spoon -

once it's totally melted, turn off the fire and let it cool down a bit

When the rice is cooked and tepid, put it in a bowl and pour that sugar/vinegar in it,
mix carefully with a spatula so all the grains are covered with it, and don't break the grains
Cover it with a humid tissue

Let it rest until the sushi-making

Prepare the ingredints

Cucumber

Cut it in half in the longest way, remove the heart/seeds with a spoon
Then cut it in long slices of 1/4 inch thick

Avocados

Cut it in half, then in 4, cut it in long slices of 1/4 inch thick

Fish

Tuna can be cut vertically, in the thickness of the steak, if it's not thick enough, cut it obliquely

 you have slices of fish 2.8inch long on 1.1 inch wide

Use the small pieces and what's left to garnish the rolls

Salmon has to be cut horizontally start by dividing it in 2 or 3 filets of 1/6 inch thick,
then cut them in long slices of 1.1inch wide and 2.8inch long

                                                                    Good to know :                                                            

When touching sushi rice, have your hand cold and wet, rince them after each use with cold water to avoid having rice sticking all over you.
Do the same with your tools, the knife and the spatula.

                                                                                                                                                         

Doing makis (rolls)

Place on your bamboo mat the seaweed sheet, in the sens it bends easily

- try to bend it in your hands -

The shiniest side is on the mat
Spread some rice with your hands, leave 0.4inch towards you and 1.2 inch on the top with no rice

Flatten it with your wet spatula, using the knife as a wall on the side so it won't go out

Put avocados, cucumber and fish at 1/3 of the rice from you, as shown on the drawing.

Use a wet finger to put a line of wasabi along the garniture,

it must be really light, be careful, it's strong

Then roll it, use the mat toward you with your thumbs, squeeze it but not too much,

use your free fingers to keep the garniture in place otherwise it will slide

Cut the extremities at 1/4 inch, and then every inch or so

Use a smooth and wet big knife, do it carefully

Doing sushis

Take a nut-size amount of rice in your fresh wet hands, squeeze it to obtain a cylinder

of you littlefinger-size

Take a slice of fish, spread some wasabi, lightly with a humid finger along the slice of fish

And put it on the rice,

The fish has to be long enough to cover all the rice in the long way

- as on the photo I took -

Don't make it too big, otherwise it's hard to eat

It's so good, we are done for the week after eating them :)

If I did more that 8.8 oz of rice, we would eat it all anyway !

Pain de Gêne, Almond Bread !

Think almond cream, frangipane... oh my god this cake is sooo good :)

evrybody agreed :

" This cake si soooo good ! "

For 8 to 10 people

   Il vous faut :   

0,5lb of almond powder/ground almond

0,5 lb of white sugar

1.2 oz of butter (120gr)

4 eggs

3.5 oz of flour (100gr) de farine

3 tsp of kirsch

- more almonds ! -

Turn on the oven at 450°F

Melt the butter in a casserole on low heat, it must be tepid, not hot

Stir the grounded almonds with the sugar,

do a well in it and add the beaten eggs, 

stir it with a wooden spoon from the center of the bowl

stir in the melted butter

Add the flour, stir it by hand

At the end, stir in the kirsch

Pour in a buttered pan or with parchment paper

Put in the oven and change the settings to 370°F

Vovoi says 40 minutes cooking, but it took me 1h20 in a silicone mold...

It was a pretty thick mold

Take a regulat meat loaf pan :)

By using so much almond powder, I'll have to bring back some more from France ! :)

It's kinda hard to find here, but I saw an "almond meal" that looked like it at Trader's Joe, it might be interesting to check it out.

Chocolate cake #3

Cake #3

Done ! I've tried the 3rd recipe of Vovoi !

Compared to the other ones, it's more friable/cripy because of the grounded almond and it has to be done in a high mold (at least 2.2 inches)

It's taste is well-balanced between almonds and chocolate, it's a tea-time cake, or to mix in some yogurt, with some fruits, something to make it less dry.

You can keep it really well, and it's really different from the other ones. 

I would advise this one to people who are not huge fans of chocolate

For a 7 to 8 people cake

For 4 eggs, 5.6 oz of butter, chocolate and sugar (160gr) , 2.3oz of flour (65gr) and 2.8oz of grounded almonds (80gr) 

   You will need :   

4.4 oz of dark chocolate (125gr)

3 Tbsp of water d'eau

3.5 oz of butter (6.5 tbsp / 100gr)

- Vovoi puts 4.4 oz -

3.5 oz of sugar (0.4 cup / 100gr)

- Vovoi puts 4.4 oz -

3 eggs

1.4 oz of flour (2.5 tbsp / 40gr) de farine

- Vovoi puts 3tbsp -

2 oz of almond powder (4 tbsp / 60gr)

1 pinch of salt

Turn the oven on at 325°F

Melt the chocolate with the water in a casserole on low heat

Stir the butter in it when the chocolate is half-melted

When it's shiny and smooth, remove from the fire and pour in a bowl

Add the eggyolks one by one

- keep the eggwhites in a bowl, in the fridge -

Then stir by hand with the sugar for at least 3 minutes

Add the flour and the almonds little by little,

stir by doing small circular movements

You have a dense dough, don't stir it too long

Beat your eggwhites until stiff with a pinch of salt

Integrate them to the dense chocolate dough in 4 times, 

do it slowly, always the same way, cut and rise with your spatula

Pour in a buttered mold

Put in the oven for 45 minutes, check the cooking by inserting a knife in the middle of the cake, 

if it comes out clean, it's baked. Start to check after 35 minutes

Turn out when tepid

Quiche with leeks, proscuitto and goat cheese

Here is a quiche with leeks as I love them

For a quiche of 6 people (10inch)

If you have a 9inch pan, put only 6fl.oz of milk

   You will need :   

1 pâte brisée with salted butter, pepper and a pinch of ground nutmeg

- I also put 1 pinch of ground thym -

1 lb of leeks

7.4 fl.oz of milk

2 eggs

1 big pinch of ground nutmeg

shredded cheese

salt and pepper

optionnal :

2 slices of prosciutto, italian ham

- for a salty and crusty touch -

1.4 oz of fresh goat cheese (40gr)

-for its softness -

The leeks

Remove the exterior leaves and the dark green extremity, the hard ones.

It's kinda like sharpening a pencil, you will just have the thin and light leaves left.

Cut them in half (the long side), and then in half cylinder of 1/2inch each

Wash them carefully to remove all the dirt that may be left between the leaves, 

and use a colander to dry them off

Cook them : in a pan with some butter and salt at low heat

- they must not get any coloration, they just have to get softer -

OR in boiling water : 6 to 7 minutes in salted boiling water

OR steam-cooking

- I eat a lot of cakes, so I cook them without any butter -

Dry them with a colander and set aside on an absorbant paper

Turn the oven on at 450°F

The dough

Do your shortcrust dough, flatten it to 0,1 inch thick

Place it in your pie mold, stab it with a fork at equal distance and put it in the oven for 4 minutes

If your mold is in silicone, make a cylinder of alluminium to put as a circle 

around the edges to avoid them falling down

The filling

Beat the eggs with a hint of salt and a half teaspoon of ground nutmeg,

add the milk, whisk it and set aside

On your pre-cooked dough, spread the goat cheese in pieces,

place the leeks on it carefully, don't forget the edges

Pour little by little your milk/egg mix, it must not go over the crust, otherwise it would be flabby.

If you can't pour it all, don't risk it and stop pouring

- my mold was a little bit wider than 10inch -

Take 2 slices of prosciutto,

cut them in long bands and place them on the top of the quiche carefully,

Spread it all with shredded cheese and some pepper

Put in the oven for 35 minutes at 450°F 

Then turn it off and let it 10 more minutes

It's better to eat it warm :)

Chocolate sweets

An easy and quick recipe, it reminds me of chocolate "Charlotte"

Vovoi has a lot of sweets and candy style recipe in her cookbook.

But this is more a cake than a sweet, they are easily sliced and eatable by hands though.

It doesn't need to be cooked.

Biscuits have a rhum syrup in them, the inside is a chocolate mousse.

Alcool is pretty strong, it's not a recipe for children ;)

The cake has to be made the day before

For 6 to 8 people

   You will need :   

 4.2 oz of solft lady finger (120gr) 

4.2 oz of dark chocolate (120gr)

3.2 oz of butter (90gr)

3 eggs

For the syrup

2.1 oz of sugar (60gr) de sucre

- 12 squares, I think it's a bit too much -

- I've put only ten,1.8oz (50gr) - 

3tbsp of rhum

2.4 fl oz.

1 large pan or dish, 3inch hight

Make the chocolate mousse

Separe yolks and eggwhites, keep your eggwhites with a pinch of salt in the fridge.

Put the chocolate in a casserole on low heat, make it melt with 1tbsp of water

When the chocolate is half-melted, add the butter,

Let it melt at low heat, stirring until smooth and homogeneous

When it's the right consistency (as on the picture), pour it in a bowl and add the yolks one by one

Stir well after each one

Beat the eggwhites until stiff and add them to that mix

- but cutting, rising, not squeezing them, use a spatula -

If you want to put a frosting, keep some of the chocolate cream before adding the eggwhites.

Making the syrup

Melt the sugar with the water in a casserole on low heat

It takes approximatively 7 minutes, then add the rhum

Stir it and pour it in a plate with edges

Put the soft lady fingers in it

-  3 to 4 seconds on each side -

Place one layer of biscuits, then a layer of mousse, another layer of biscuit

Depending on your dish/mold, display them as you want

I made it in a silicone mold, it allowd me to turn it out easily

The frosting

 Vovoi says to frost it with the chocolate cream you have kept (before adding the eggwhites), use a spatula or a flat tool to cover your cake with it

Enjoy :)