Les Gourmandises de France

Tuesday afternoon, as I passed by a French bakery, Les Gourmandises de France, in Manhattan (1437 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10021 – Tel: 212.988.1414), I decided to give it a try. In a small space with walls covered with black and white photos of Paris, and showcases filled with delicacies that reminded me of my visits to the famed Boulangerie Murciano in Paris’ Les Marais quarter, I found…

Strawberry Tart, Lemon Merengue, and so much more…

They also offer croissants, coffee, sandwiches, baked salmon. and a plethora of Shabbat dishes….

Baked Salmon

While I’m not into fish, I must confess that Baked Salmon was good! Early this morning I went back to Manhattan to pick up their challahs…

Seeded and no seeds challahs

Quite a number of locals were there to pick up their challahs and Shabbos dishes, considering I had some of my grandkids from Providence over for Shabbos, I ended up getting one seeded and two without seeds. They looked good and judging by the way some of their regular customers praised them I have no doubt they will be. All their baked products are amazingly parve, but you’d never suspect it from the taste!

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Fried Ice Cream

[Two Tuesdays ago, I video taped Geila Hocherman making Fried Ice Cream. One of the perks of taping Chefs at work is that I get to taste their creations… Let me tell it was truly delicious, so I feel compelled to share and re-post the recipe from Geila’s Kosher Revolution. Whether it is Chanuka or any any other holiday, whether it is winter, summer, spring or autumn, you can enjoy this treat at any time; even if… you are not kid! CS]

© 2012 Geila Hocherman. All Rights Reserved

Fried ice cream? Believe or not, there is such a thing! This is based on a Mexican treat and once you taste, you’ll just want more and more whether it’s Chanukah or any other time.

• Frosted flakes
• Your Choice of nuts
• Your choice of ice cream flavor (formed into balls)
• 1 egg
• sugar to taste
• oil for frying
• dunking chocolate sauce

1. Crush some frosted flakes and any nuts, of your choice, in a bag. Cover the ice cream balls with the crushed flakes and nuts. Refreeze.
2. Mix egg with sugar. Dunk in the ice cream balls, cover with the frosted flakes and nuts. Refreeze.
3. Heat oil to 375 F. Take the covered ice cream balls from freezer. Put a chopstick in each of them and dunk in oil for 15 seconds.
4. When ready, dip each ball into some chocolate sauce and… that’s all there is to them!

Geila

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Elegant Desserts

Recently I stumbled upon Elegant Desserts website and having tasted some of their delectable creations at various catered affairs I couldn’t help but order a few items…

This past Friday eve, to cap off a delicious Shabbos meal, we shared some of the goodies…

We started out with the Hazelnut Pyramid, it comes with nuts and chocolate in hazelnut ice cream. A superb opening salvo of flavor! We followed with a Strawberry Rose Sorbet…

…a Green Apple Square (green apple sorbet topped with a lemon sorbet rosette), Strawberry Square (strawberry puree sorbet with strawberry sauce and white drizzle), and a Mixed Berry Tower (mixed berry puree sorbet one with a vanilla rosette and one with a lemon).

Frankly, the fruit sorbets and puree tasted so incredibly fruit like, it’s obvious that instead of using a common base for sorbets and adding flavors (as most American manufacturers do), Elegant Desserts obviously prefers real fruits! We loved all the flavors and the only thing that marred everyone’s delight was that I hadn’t ordered enough!

Although I’d gotten some items that I was planning to bring out during Chanuka, it was hard to contain ourselves and we succumbed to temptation at Shabbos lunch…

We started with the set of four Dreidlach (lemon,green apple,cherry,orange) and finished the meal with the Menorah…

Flavors were great, my personal favorites were the Green Apple Square and the green apple puree, followed closely by the Strawberry Flower and the Strawberry Square; the lemon flavored sorbet, however, received more votes from the rest of our company.

Now I’m left with no other choice but to order their Chanuka specialties again!

CS

Peach Cobbler

This makes a great dessert, whether for Shabbat or any other occasion:

Ingredients

• 6 peaches, peeled and sliced
• 4 tablespoons 10x confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
• parve vanilla ice cream (or dairy if you do not intend this dish to cap a fleishig meal)

Cobbler Topping

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup 10x confectioners’ sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted margarine (or butter, if this will be a milchig dessert)
• 1 egg
• 5-6 tablespoons almond milk (or milk, if this will be a milchig dessert)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.
2. Put the peaches in an ovenproof dish; add the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch , and almond extract, toss them all together. Bake the peaches in the oven for 20 minutes.
3. While the peaches are baking make the cobbler topping, sift the flour, all but 2 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Rub in the margarine with your fingers until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
4. Combine the egg and tablespoons of almond milk in a pitcher and mix into the dry ingredients with a fork until a soft, sticky dough forms. If the dough seems dry, stir in the extra tablespoon of milk.
5. Reduce the oven temperature to 400 F. remove peaches from oven and drop spoonfuls of the topping over the surface, without smoothing. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar, return to oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and firm – topping will spread as it cooks.
6. Serve at room temperature with ice cream on the side.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Soyummi

A Canadian company, Soyummi Canada, produces a line of gluten free, dairy free, low fat puddings. With purified water and organic whole beans as their main ingredients, Soyummi products come in five flavors: Dark Chocolate, Tapioca, Rice, Cherry and Lime.And… they are all vegan, as they are egg free, and have a natural prebiotic, a source of dietary fiber.

I recently came across these products at a local supermarket, where I picked up two flavors: Dark Chocolate and Tapioca.

I must admit, I was skeptical at first. Though I knew that soy is a very popular substitute for many, many ingredients, I had a tough time believing it would taste very chocolatey BUT… it did. I was pleasantly surprised and could easily see any child with a sweet tooth (which child, doesn’t have one?!?!?) becoming addicted. As a matter of fact, I can think of quite a number of grownups (yours truly included) who’ll like it as well! These products are certified Pareve by MK, (Jewish Community Council of Montreal) one of Canada’s most respected, most reliable hechsherim

According to their website, every flavor comes with:

• No added sugar
• Low calorie
• Low carbohydrate
• No trans fats
• Made with organic ingredients
• Contains a natural prebiotic
• No preservatives
• Gluten free
• Lactose free
• Cholesterol free
• Kosher certified
• Low sodium
• Low in saturated fat
• Non GMO
• Contains isoflavones
• Bioavailability of naturally balanced nutrients

In April of this year, their Dark Chocolate and Rice puddings were both nominated for the 2010 Canadian Grand Prix New Product Award in the dessert food category, and on June 15, 2011, the Dark Chocolate pudding won second place in this contest. Also, in 2003, the original Soyummi Classic line won first prize in the same category.

Aside from being kosher certified, these products (certified organic and vegan) are healthy and delicious, made from all natural ingredients. What could be better for you or the kids?

CS

Fresh & Easy

A well known New York Chef once told me that when he graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, he prided himself of making a pasta dish that required thirty ingredients. Sure, it was absolutely delicious, but it took a loooong time to prepare. Soon, however, he outgrew that urge as he realized you can still make delicious dishes with far fewer ingredients, less preparation time and those tasting them would still lick their fingers.

Leah Schapira‘s Fresh and Easy follows the latter philosophy, as the book makes food preparation fun, healthy, quick!

The book is divided into nine sections:

• Menus
• Soups
• Salads
• Dips & Sauces
• Side Dishes
• Brunch &Lunch
• Main Dishes
• Traditional
• Desserts

The Menus section is subdivided into five sections:

• Appetizer Ideas
• Pesach Menu
• Make-in Take-out
• Quick and Easy
• Freezes Well

Each of these subsections sports tempting thumbnail photos of various dishes and the page numbers where they can be found.

It wasn’t easy choosing just one favorite recipe, but I finally opted for a dessert:

Chocolate Mousse With Pear Chips

Ingredients

• 8 eggs separated
• 12 oz bittersweet chocolate (not baking)
• 1 teaspoon coffee granules (dissolved in 3 teaspoons boiling water)
• 1/4 cup red wine

         Pear Chips

• 2 firm pears
• 1 cup sugar

Directions

1. In a mixer, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
2. Over a double boiler, melt the chocolatre with the coffee. Beat the egg yolks with a fork and quickly add to double boiler, mixing well. Add the red wine. Remove from heat.
3. Fold in the egg whites until combined. Place in individual cups for serving refrigerate.
4. To prepare pear chips, preheat oven to 325F.
5. Thinly slice the pears and lighly coat each side with sugar. Place the pear slices in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Turn the pears over and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the pears in the oven to cool and dry.
6. Before serving, garnish mousse with chocolate shavings and caramelized pear chips.

With great photography, a nice – easy on the eyes – layout, this book is a delight to hold and salivate as you look at the featured recipes,  truly fresh and easy

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Decadent Desserts – Part 1

Winter’s come and gone, spring with its sometimes uncertain weather is about to leave us. It may not be technically summer yet, but summer temperatures are already here. Not only do we enjoy summer type drinks, but even desserts take on new flavors.

This time of the year is perfect for marshmallows roasted over a camp fire, or any other way; I  just tried Elyon Marshmallows and Elyon Mini Marshmallows and found them outstanding!

Mmmmmmm, great marshmallows!

SYR looks forward to this time, when she prepares one of her favorite summer desserts:

SYR’s Toffee S’mores

Ingredients

2 cups – coarsely chopped pecans
1 bag (4.8 oz) –  Honey Grahams broken into 1″ pieces
1 package – Elyon Mini Marshmallows
8 oz – Semi Sweet Parve Chocolate Chips
6 oz – Pareve White Baking Chocolate Bar (cut into small pieces)
1 stick – margarine
1 cup – sugar
1/2 cup – brown sugar
1/2 cup – light corn syrup
3 tblsp – water
1 tsp – vanilla
1 generous pinch – salt
2 – 9″ square pans

Method

Over a low flame, combine sugars, corn syrup, vanilla, salt, and margarine in a pan. Stir constantly as mixture blends, continue stirring for an additional 2 minutes as the mixture starts gently bubbling. Turn off flame.

Add pecans and honey graham pieces into mixture stir until these are fully covered by the caramel.

Grease the two 9″ pans and spread mix evenly into each of them. Spread half of Elyon’s Mini Marshmallow evenly into one pan and the other half into the second pan. Distribute white chocolate chips and dark chocolate chips into decorative patterns on top, for each 9″ pan. Preheat oven to 350F and bake for 10 minutes or until each pan’s contents shows a light beige color. Cool at room temperature and cut into 1″ squares. Refrigerate and serve.

...more s'mores, more s'mores... they didn't last too long!

Yield

162 – 1″ squares

Enjoy it folks, it’s easy to prepare and tastes delicious!

CS