West Highland Terrier Not Included

 Lovely, lovely new cooker is here. Been too drunk busy to write about it properly before, but the Bastard Oven is no more and the lovely new Smeg has arrived.  The model we chose was a compromise between desire and budget. Having had for some years a 'piano' cooker (as they are known here) with 5 gas burners and a large oven, there was no way a food-obsessed individual such as myself was going back to a basic cooker.  However, my dream cooker runs into several thousands of euros and my budget does not.

The Smeg CG90N is reasonably priced, nice efficient gas burners and an oven that heats to 200 in 5 minutes.  So far it's been easy to clean, but let's see how I feel about that when the novelty wears off.

The first thing I baked was a batch of scones.  Husband thought it highly amusing that I sat there with a grin on my face, watching them rise beautifully, but after the horrible struggles with Bastard Oven it was a pure joy to produce such light, even results. I am a happy cook.

Côtes de Porc Sauce Charcutière

Ingredients: 

• 6 pork chops (1 per person or more if you have a particularly healthy apetite!)


• 2 large shallots


• 20 cl dry white wine


• 150 cl water


• 1 soup spoon tomato purée


• 1 soup spoon Dijon mustard


• 4 cornichons


• 2 soup spoons chopped parsley (preferably fresh)


• 50g butter


• Salt & pepper

• Prep time: 5 mins


• Cook time: approx 20 mins

Instructions: 

• Finely chop the shallots


• Thinly slice the cornichons into little circles, place to one side til the end


• Melt the butter in a frying pan and cook the chops for 6 - 8 mins on each side, depending on thickness, remembering to season them with salt and pepper


• Whilst the chops are cooking, put the shallots, wine and water in a small pan and bring to the boil, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking


• Add salt, pepper and tomato paste


• Allow to bubble for a few minutes then add mustard, cornichons and parsley.


• Place the cooked chops in a warm dish whilst you pour the sauce into the frying pan to use up the meat juices


• Pour the sauce over the chops to serve.

Chopping and Changing

The puns just get better and better.

Pork chops are a regular at our house - not too expensive and go well with a variety of side dishes. Last week I was looking for a way to change things up a little and found some good, some bad, and some just plain terrible.  Pork chops cooked in Coca Cola, anyone?......anyone? Buerk.

I settled upon Côtes de Porc Sauce Charcutière : pan-fried pork chops with a slightly tangy, tomatoey sauce.  The main ingredients are white wine, shallots, tomato purée, mustard and a few sliced cornichons (mini pickles - sounds a little odd to some, but they add the delicious tang).

Side dishes should be simple, as the sauce provides the focus of the dish. To maximise the flavour, before serving the sauce I poured it into the frying pan the chops were cooked in to soak up the delicious, buttery meat juices. So popular they've asked for it again tonight!

 

Lobster Thermidor

Ingredients: 

For one:

• 1 small lobster


• 1 shallot, chopped


• 40g softened butter


• 75ml dry white wine


• Juice of 1/2 small lemon


• 50g grated Gruyère


• 1/2 - 1 tablespoon crème fraîche


• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard


• 1 teaspoon chopped chives

• Prep time: 45 mins - 1 hour

Instructions: 

• Prepare the lobster as directed, depending on whether pre-cooked or not.


• In a saucepan, place the shallot and white wine then heat until reduced to almost no liquid.


• Add the crème fraîche and lemon juice, stirring well.


• Whisk in the softened butter, then add the mustard and chives.


• Keep sauce warm in bain-marie.


• Cut the lobster in half, remove the meat and slice.


• Replace lobster meat in shell and cover with sauce.


• Place under grill until it browns slightly.


• Serve with a simple saffron rice, or just some very good bread.

A Crustacean Epiphany And Other Love Stories

Lobster Thermidor: cliché of fine dining, or deservedly revered?

I have never been overly-anxious to try a dish based on price, or reputation as a 'luxury dish' but, by my own admission, it has taken me a ridiculously long time to get around to lobster. I can only apologise to my younger self and promise to spend the rest of my life trying to make up for it.

Given my admitted lack of experience with such a pricey food, I exercised caution and purchased a small, frozen lobster at 7€.  'Pinchey' came pre-cooked, so I merely had to defrost, then plunge in boiling water for 5 minutes for it to be ready.  I am not sure that I personally will ever be ready to purchase a live lobster and kill it myself, regardless of whether this improves the taste. Pinchey tasted frickin' amazing as it was.

I googled around for Thermidor recipes and found that they differed vastly.  Not being one to keep such things as sherry in stock, I worked out a simple version using white wine, shallots, lemon juice, cream and Gruyère.

Love. At. First. Bite.

Savoury, delicious, layered flavour.  Not too 'seafoody', not too rich and creamy.  Nearly fell off my perch when I tasted it.  Husband close to being jealous of Pinchey.  Try it.

In other news, Lovely Oven was delivered today! All shiny and gorgeous, she is humming gently away in the background as she heats up for a trial run. How I smiled as the workmen installed her!  How I smirked as Bastard Oven was loaded on to their van to be carted away! Although there's no excuse now for not getting off my arse and fine-tuning and editing all the recipes I'm supposed to be writing up and translating....