French Food

After our fabulous honeymoon in France, I was inspired to make a french meal.  All the food we had there was so great.  I don't think mine was quite as good as the real thing, but a good imposter. 

Drink...

 

Bordeaux Wine

With France having such great wines, we were sure to stock up our wine fridge with some of the delicious wines we brought back.  We couldn't believe how inexpensive the quality wines were in France.  We saw the majority of bottles on sale for 3-5 Euros per bottle.  We enjoyed many different wines in France in cafes, brasseries, and on our picnics.  

There's no ingredients or directions for this one.  Just get a good bottle, open, pour, and enjoy!

Dinner...

Boeuf Bourguignon

We wanted to have this dish in France, but never got the opportunity to.  I looked up several different recipes and created a combination of them.  One of the recipes I included portions of was Julia Child's.  However, hers seemed very complicated, took a long time, and had to be cooked in the oven.  So, I combined some ideas from her recipe with another quicker, more streamlined recipe I found.  This one was much simpler, quicker, and cooked on the stove top (which was great because our apartment is already way too hot without the oven on!). 

Ingredients:

(serves 4-5)

• 6 oz. bacon, chopped
• 1 beef sirloin steak or top round steak, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 pound)
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/9 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 6 ounce sliced mushrooms (about 2 cups)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves , crushed
• 2 cup fresh or frozen whole baby carrots
• 1 3/4 cup beef broth
• 1/2 cup Burgundy or other dry red wine

Directions:

cooked bacon and beef

veggies cooking

1. Simmer the bacon in a large pot or dutch oven until fully cooked.  Remove from the pot.
2. Sprinkle the beef with salt and pepper.  Coat the pieces with flour.  Cook the beef in the bacon fat until well browned. Remove from the pot.
3. Cook the carrots, onions, garlic, mushrooms, parsley, thyme, and black pepper in the bacon fat.
4. Add the beef stock, wine, cooked beef, and cooked bacon.  
5. Simmer covered for 20 minutes.  If the broth seems too thin, add a little flour and cook a few more minutes.
6. Serve with potatoes, rice, or orzo pasta.

Plat Du Fromage

My favorite food in France was the cheese, and we ate a lot of it!  We even brought some back with us.  The French eat their cheese course at the end of their meal.  We had it this way in France, but I still prefer it before my meal.  I guess I'm just too American!  
For this cheese platter we had a Camembert and another cheese which we aren't quite sure what it was (maybe it was called Auvergne since it says that on the tag??).  The person we bought it from in France didn't speak much English.  We couldn't bring back goat cheese because it was unpasteurized, so he recommended this cheese as a similar one.  
You could have a cheese plate with any variety of cheeses, but typically the ones we had in France included a Brie or Camembert, a goat cheese, a blue cheese, and a hard cheese.

Dessert...

Mousse Au Chocolat

*recipe from FoodNetwork.com
Chocolate mousse has been one of my favorite desserts since I was a kid. Most recipes either have raw egg, or involve using a thermometer to measure the egg temperature.  This was a bit complicated for me, so I went with Alton Brown's simplified recipe.  It tasted delicious, but my texture seemed to be a little off.  I think I might have over beat my whipped cream which caused it to be too stiff and not incorporate smoothly, so be careful not to over-whip!
Ingredients:
(serves 6)

• 1 3/4 cups whipping cream
• 12 ounces quality semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3 ounces espresso or strong coffee
• 1 tablespoon dark rum
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon flavorless, granulated gelatin

Directions:

1. Chill 1 1/2 cups whipping cream in refrigerator. Chill metal mixing bowl and mixer beaters in freezer.
2. In top of a double boiler, combine chocolate chips, coffee, rum and butter. Melt over barely simmering water, stirring constantly. Remove from heat while a couple of chunks are still visible. Cool, stirring occasionally to just above body temperature.
3. Pour remaining 1/4 cup whipping cream into a metal measuring cup and sprinkle in the gelatin. Allow gelatin to "bloom" for 10 minutes. Then carefully heat by swirling the measuring cup over a low gas flame or candle. Do not boil or gelatin will be damaged. Stir mixture into the cooled chocolate and set aside.
4. In the chilled mixing bowl, beat cream to medium peaks. Stir 1/4 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Fold in the remaining whipped cream in two doses. There may be streaks of whipped cream in the chocolate and that is fine. Do not over work the mousse.
5. Spoon into bowls or martini glasses and chill for at least 1 hour. Garnish with fruit and serve.
6. (If mousses are to be refrigerated overnight, chill for one hour and then cover each with plastic wrap)

Let's Stay in For the Movies!

I love going to the movies and one of my favorite things about going is the food.  Just give me a bag of movie theater popcorn or some pretzel bites and cheese sauce and I am happy—I don't really even need the movie! :)  After recently watching the Oscars and deciding to re-watch all of the movies we own, I thought a movie night dinner would be terrific.

Drink...

Adult Soda (Campari and Soda)
Thinking of a drink to go with my movie night dinner was a little difficult because all I ever drink at the theater is soda.  Then, I thought, "Hey, what about an Icee?"  But, we don't have a blender.  Then, I considered just making Kiddie Cocktails because they are basically soda made even better.  However, I decided to go with Doug's idea of making an "adult soda."  This was a great idea and Doug has been wanting to try Campari for a while now—perfect!  But not really perfect because I found that I am not the biggest fan of Campari.   It was a little bitter, but the next day I tried it in an Americano (one part Campari, one part sweet vermouth, splash of club soda, and a twist of lemon) and I liked it much better.   
Ingredients:

• Campari Liqueur
• Club Soda
• Orange (for garnish)

 Directions: 

1. Fill a glass with ice.
2. Fill 1/3 the glass with Campari.
3. Fill the other 2/3 with club soda.
4. Stir and garnish with an orange slice

Dinner...

Pretzel Bites & Pizza Bites

When you go to the movies you can't eat with a knife and fork, so I went with all finger foods for this one!

Pretzel Bites with Jalapeno Cheese Sauce

*recipe from Smells Like Home

These were my best batch of bread yet!!! Finally, a success! The pretzels were not as good as Auntie Ann's or Wetzel's, but they were better than the frozen soft pretzels you can buy in the grocery store.  The cheese sauce, however, was not the greatest.  I think I'll stick to my processed cheese for pretzel bites and either use Velveeta or nacho cheese next time! 
Ingredients for the Pretzels:

• 1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
• 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
• Vegetable oil
• 10 cups water
• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• Pretzel or Kosher salt

Directions for the Pretzels:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the water, yeast, sugar, and yeast on low speed for 10 seconds.  Switch to the dough hook and add the flour and butter.  Mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and transfer it to a well-oiled bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
3. Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in a wide 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.
4. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Slice each rope into 1-inch pieces.  Place a damp towel over the pretzel pieces to prevent them from drying out while you roll and cut the other pieces.
5. Using a slotted spoon, lower a handful of the pretzel pieces into the boiling water and boil them for 30 seconds, flipping them around in the water with the spoon a couple of times. Remove the pretzel pieces from the water using the spoon, drain as best you can, and place them on the baking sheets. Brush the top of each pretzel with the melted butter and sprinkle with the pretzel/Kosher salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 10 – 12 minutes. Brush with remaining melted butter before serving. Serve warm.

Ingredients for the Cheese Sauce:

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (not packaged pre-shredded cheese—shred your own)
• Kosher salt

Directions for the Cheese Sauce:

1. In a small saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter.  Whisk in the flour and cook for 30 seconds, whisking constantly.
2. Slowly whisk in the milk until no lumps of flour remain.  Stirring constantly, bring the milk to a simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens, about 3-5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the stove and stir in the shredded cheese until all of the cheese has melted.  Add a pinch of salt, if needed.  Serve warm.  Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave on medium power at 30 second intervals.

Pizza Bites

*recipe from Pennies on a Platter

These were good and ridiculously easy to make.  I would make them again, but make my dough thinner and somehow close them up tighter because I lost a lot of cheese in the baking process.
Ingredients:

• pizza crust dough (I used Trader Joe's pre-made garlic and herb dough and it was good.  Next time I think I'll try their plain dough though)
• mozzarella cheese, about 20 cubed pieces
• sliced pepperoni
• pizza sauce for dipping
• olive oil
• Parmesan cheese 
• Italian seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.  
2. Lightly grease a 9-inch cookie sheet or cake pan.  
3. Divide the pizza dough into roughly 20 equal-sized pieces.  
4. Take one of the dough pieces and press in a cube of cheese and two slices of pepperoni. (I made some just cheese too—You could add any ingredients you like on pizza!) Pull the edges of the dough down around the filling and seal.  (Make sure your seal is tight!  I had a lot of cheese ooze out!)
5. Place in the pan, seam side down.  Repeat with remaining dough. 
6. Lightly brush the tops of the dough with olive oil. (Or spray the olive oil with your Misto like me!)
7. Sprinkle on Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese.  
8. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve warm or at room temperature, with dipping sauce if desired.

 Dessert...

Caramel Popcorn Balls

*recipe from Gracious Rain
What is a movie night without popcorn, right?  I decided to have my popcorn for dessert this time.  These popcorn balls were tasty but SUPER sugary!  Also, the popcorn got soft from the caramel.  I am not sure if that was how it was supposed to be or if I did something wrong.  I still ate the whole thing anyway.  It tasted good—I just had to brush my teeth afterward :) 
Ingredients:
(makes 7 balls)

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup corn syrup
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tsp. salt
• Large bowl of popcorn (about 3-4 quarts)
• Lollipop Sticks

Directions:

Add caption

1. Heat brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt to a simmer.
2. Boil rapidly for 2 minutes.
3. Pour over popcorn and stir until all the popcorn is covered.
4. Allow to rest until cool enough to handle.
5. Cover hands with sandwich bags and form popcorn mixture into balls.  (I put mine on lollipop sticks so they wouldn't be so messy to eat)
6. Cool completely.

A Dinner With Your Valentine

I love fondue.  And I love crème brûlée.  And for some reason, both of these foods seem romantic to me.  I know, you're thinking . . . fondue, I could never make that!  Crème brûlée, certainly I could never make that!  Well, guess what . . . you can!  These two things might seem difficult to make, but they are actually two of the easiest recipes I have blogged about so far.  Not only are they easy, but they are sure to be so delicious that they will trick your valentine into thinking you are a gourmet chef.  :)

Drink...

Kir Royale

Champagne is a great Valentine's Day drink.  This is a classic cocktail with champagne and crème de cassis, a blackcurrant liqueur.  In France, it is usually drunk as an apéritif (before dinner).  We decided to drink some before and during dinner.  It was really good and went well with the meal.
Ingredients:
(for 1 drink)

• 1/2 shot of crème de cassis
• 4-5 shots of champagne (I preferred more champagne since the crème de cassis is very sweet)

Directions (order of steps is important):

1. Pour the crème de cassis into a champagne glass.
2. Add the champagne and drink!

Dinner...

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE fondue!  What's not to love?  Coating everything you eat in melted cheese cannot be bad.  But, I not only love the taste of fondue, I also love the experience of eating fondue.  Usually our meals are so fast.  We eat quickly and then shortly thereafter leave the table.  However, fondue forces you to slow down and enjoy everything.  This is a fondue recipe from my mom and it's a classic fondue recipe.  I am sure you could use other types of cheese, but I just love the classic Swiss!

Classic Swiss Fondue (AKA "Mom's Fondue")

*recipe from Maureen K.
Ingredients:
(serves 2)

• 3/4 lb of Swiss cheese
• 2 1/4 tbs flour
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 1/2 cups of white wine (we used Chablis which works well in the fondue and is also a traditional wine for Kir [the drink we made, but with white wine instead of champagne—the champagne is what makes it "royal"]
• 3/4 tbs lemon juice
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• dash of pepper
• Dipping ingredients (We used bread, apples, and garlic chicken sausage. You could use so many different things!)

Directions:

1. Cut the cheese into cubes.
2. Toss the cheese with flour in a bag.
3. Rub the fondue pot with the garlic clove.
4. Pour the wine into a pot and set to medium heat.
5. When the wine simmers, add lemon juice and cheese, stirring constantly.
6. Bring the cheese to a bubble, then add nutmeg and pepper.
7. Put the mixture into a fondue pot if you have one.  If not, you can eat it out of the pot in which it was cooked.  It should stay hot long enough for you to eat!

Dessert...

Crème Brûlée

*recipe from Chicago Metallic 
This is one of my favorite desserts.  Before I knew how to make it, I thought it would be very complicated, but as it turns out, it is ridiculously simple!  My parents knew about my love of this dessert and gave me a crème brûlée set a few years ago.  So, I actually have a torch to caramelize the sugar on top.  However, the recipe says you can just put the ramekins no less than 5 inches under the broiler to caramelize it if you don't have a torch. It's good with fresh berries on top as well.
Ingredients:
(serves 4)

• 6 egg yolks
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream
• 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 6 tsp granulated sugar (for the caramelized tops)

Directions:

Before Baking

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved and the egg yolk mixture is thick and light in color.
3. Add cream and vanilla extract and whisk until blended.
4. Fill a baking pan a little less than halfway with water.  
5. Pour the brûlée mixture into ramekins and place the ramekins into the water bath.
6. Bake until the edges are set, but the center is still slightly loose, about 50-55 minutes.
7. Remove the pan from the oven and cool.  
8. Remove the ramekins from the pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
9. Before serving, sprinkle 1 1/2 tsps of sugar on top of each and torch until the sugar is caramelized.

Torching - the scary part!

After a couple bites