Hot Days and Cool Salads

It was hot today.  So hot that I actually forgot I was in the Netherlands. Perfect temperatures for me, but a good reason to complain for others. "It's too hot!", "I'm melting!", "This heat is crazy!".  A common phenomenon here. As soon as it gets past 25C, there's a reason to bitch.
My warm, southern blood makes me love the heat (not the sweating). So instead of telling everyone I meet about how horrible it all is, I take it as it is: a much-welcomed fluke.
On days like today, I seek comfort in fresh salads, fruit, tons of water and a responsible amount of chilled wine.  As much as I love to cook, I do try to keep my time in front of the stove to a minimum . Here's a typical salad you'd see me eating on a hot summer's day...

Zesty Grilled Chicken Salad with Sunblush Tomatoes
Serves 3-4

For the dressing:
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp grainy mustard
1 tsp dried oregano
sea salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste

For the salad:
350g chicken breast, cut in thick strips
lemon zest, salt and plenty of ground pepper
4 tbsps mild olive oil
150g mixed greens of your choice
1 small knob of butter
1/4 baguette, halved and cubed
small handful sunblush tomatoes, chopped
1 avocado, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
1 tbsp capers

Season the chicken with the lemon zest, salt and plenty of ground pepper.  Drizzle with 3 tbsps of the olive oil and allow to marinate for a few hours.  After that, grill the chicken strips for about 15 minutes.  In the meantime, heat the other tbsp of the oil and the knob of butter in a frying pan and fry the pieces of bread until golden brown. In a large bowl, whisk the ingredients for the dressing.  Throw in the salad leaves and toss to coat.  Divide the greens on the plates. Top with the chopped tomatoes, the avocado, the capers, bread and the grilled chicken. Serve and enjoy!

Tiens!

I recently had the pleasure of working for a fabulous French publication: Tiens! My assignment was to come up with a few summery picnic recipes, do the food styling and make sure there was awesome photography to go with the recipes.
I am so pleased with the results! The magazine is beautifully put together, the music is lovely and the images superb. If you are a Francophile, please have a look.  I promise you will be transported to La Douce France!
By the way, may I just brag by adding that the breathtaking photography was the work of my very talented husband Hans. You should have seen him lying flat on his tummy making sure he got just the right angle! I am indeed very privileged to have his collaboration. Nothing beats working with your husband on an assignment like this, and therefore this project is one I am utterly proud of!

Magret de Canard

I am not really one for pre-packaged, imported meats, but I would be lying if I said I didn't have my weaknesses.  One of them being anything French.  Like duck, par example.  Perhaps I should blame it on the horrendous weather we've been having in the Netherlands (imagine mid-September), but recently I couldn't get duck out of my head. Especially the fabulous duck specialties from the South-West which I so much adore. 
That's why I couldn't help myself when I spotted two vacuum-packed duck breasts at our local supermarket. I needed DUCK and tonight I would EAT duck! And the fabulous thing: they looked gorgeous! Not scary at all! 

So how did I prepare these quackers you ask?  And how did they taste? Well, let me begin by saying that they were amazing. Succulent, tender and actually fresher and milder in taste than most of the duck I've had. 
I wanted to serve the duck in the same style as they once served it to me at a lovely restaurant in Duras: with a small serving of sunny ratatouille and pommes persillées. 

The first thing I did was let the duck breasts come to room temperature. After that, I dried them well with kitchen paper, carved the skins in a criss-cross pattern and seasoned them well on both sides with salt and pepper.  The duck breasts then went into a hot, dry frying pan skin-side down and cooked for approximately 2-3 minutes until the skins were browned and beautifully crisp. I then turned them over, lowered the heat just a little and gave them about 5-6 more minutes.  After that, I took them out of the pan and degalzed the pan with a shot of cognac followed by about a glas of madeira.  While that was bubbling away, I carved the breasts into slices and transfered them back to the pan with the juices for an extra minute or two.  I put them on a plate, added a small knob of butter to the juices and poured it on top of the breasts.  
Of course, you'll want to serve this with a great wine.  Perhaps an elegant Médoc.  
Bon appétit!  

FOODMOOD: Pasta alla Norma

I enjoy serving my family pasta several times a week. Not only because I love Italian food, but because pasta dishes are so simple and varied. There are a lot of ready-made pasta sauces these days but I prefer to make my own fresh varieties. You will come a long way with beautiful tomatoes, herbs, good olive oil and garlic. In this dish you will really taste the sunshine. Delicious, pure and totally straight-forward food!

Serves 3
2 small aubergines, diced
1 tsp fleur de sel
5 tomatoes (with a sharp knife, make a small cross on the underside if each tomato)
6 tbsps olive oil
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 red chili pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
1 ½ tbsp dried oregano
1 ½ tsp sugar
salt and freshly ground pepper
handful basil, chopped
pine nuts and Parmesan shavings, to serve
penne (about 75-100g per person)

Put the aubergine cubes in a colander and sprinkle with the teaspoon of salt. Leave to stand for ½ an hour. Blanch the tomatoes by covering them with hot water for 4 minutes. Drain them and place them uder cold water. Remove their skins and chop them roughly. Heat 2 tbsps of the oil ina large frying pan and fry half of the aubergines over a medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Transfer them to a large bowl and do the same with the other half. Heat the last 2 tbsps of oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and gently sweat the garlic and chili pepper. Add the chopped tomatoes and the aubergines to the garlic and chili pepper. Follow with the oregano, the sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Bring everything to the boil, lower the temperature and allow the sauce to cook for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil for the pasta. Remove the lid from the pan with the sauce during the last 4 minutes of the cooking time. Correct the seasoning. Cook the pasta al dente for 5-8 minutes. Drain and add to the sauce. Stir through together with the basil. Garnish with the Parmesan, the pine nuts and a few whole basil leaves. Delicious with a glass of Nero d’ Avola.