started up the cookin again. Its about time!

Hi folks, I have been pretty busy lately traveling and then home again, just getting in the groove of routine living, as much as I can pull that together!  Anyway, this is a great recipe that I really like and am making now, so just thought I 'd share..

Butternut Squash Soup

2 small or one large butternut squash 
1 onion
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt or 1 tbsp chicken boullion
cayenne pepper
2 tbsp garam masal or mild curry power
6 c H2O
sour cream
Cut squash into 2 inch pieces  removing the strings  and the seeds.
Boil til soft. Drain ,then when cooled off, start peeling off the rind. In the meantime Saute onion in butter til transparent in a 3 quart heavy bottomed  pot.  Add spices and ½ the water.   Then add salt and squash.  Simmer for ½ hour til  flavors have blended.  Scoop out the squash and onions and puree in a blender til very smooth.  Return squash mixture back to  pot.  Add more water if you like to the consistency you desire.  Whisk in any  sour cream  for a creamier soup.  Serves 4-6 . Garnish with cilantro

Serve with Warm spinach salad and some fresh homemade bread and butter. Use the recipes I already have posted if you like for Salads and bread.

Pizza!!

I learned recently that a great pizzeria near my home (Rustico) gets a certain flour for their pizza crust. Its double zero (00) flour from Italy. So I learned that this kind of flour has a high gluten content and is very finely ground. Well, I will forgo the finely ground as its a processed white flour which I do not want to start using. But I can add gluten flour which will increase the likelihood of creating the crust I enjoy from this pizzeria. This recipe is super quick and easy. The toppings can be put on a crust with or without the usual tomato sauce and cheese. That is what makes home made pizza so much fun. Here is one of my favorite renditions of a tomato cheese pizza and a no-tomato no  cheese style. The latter is more like a focaccia bread, in that it is a simple bread with veggies and oil. the only cheese is a generous sprinkling of Romano cheese.  Have fun!

Pizza Dough

2 2/3 cups organic whole wheat flour
1/3 cup gluten flour (Bobs Red Mill)
1/4 cup warm water
1tbsp yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
 Preheat oven to 425. To make the dough dissolve the yeast in the warm water with the sugar. Use a glass Pyrex measuring vessel as yeast may not react kindly to any sort of plastic.  Stir with wire whisk til yeast and sugar dissolve thoroughly. Set aside for 5 minutes. It should have about a half inch of frothiness on top. Then its ready.  To this, add enough warm water to make 1 cup. Never use tap water. Use distilled or filtered water heated on the stove top.

Pour into an stainless or ceramic bowl. Add a cup of the flour, the oil and salt. If you like you can add some chopped herbs for an interesting flavor and visual appeal. If so use, fresh basil, thyme oregano or chives. Summer time is a great time to find these at your local produce market. Stir or whisk til smooth. Then add the rest of the flour or until it is stiff enough to put on a surface for kneading. On the surface add some flour. To knead, use the heal of your hand and press in and push forward creating a slight rolling motion. The point of kneading is to eliminate or reduce the stickiness of the dough. This process should take about 5-10 minutes.  Because this is a gluten rich flour, it will not take that long, as the dough will be pretty stiff to start out.  Now you must rest the dough in order that it softens sufficiently for creating the flat crust. Give it about 30 minutes.  Then either by hand or with a rolling pin, create a flat bread for the baking sheet. This recipe can make 1 normal crust or 2 very thin crust pizzas.

Topping.

Homemade Marinara sauce.
Mozzarella cheese grated or sliced thinly
onions chopped or sliced (organic if possible, as are all the ingredients)
green peppers chopped or sliced
mushrooms chopped or sliced
olives halved
zucchini chopped or sliced

Saute the vegetables lightly in olive oil to soften. Set aside. Preheat oven to lower temperature around 380. Evenly distribute the veggies on top of the pizza dough

 Marinara sauce

I  personally prefer a white pizza, as during the summer the tomato based pizza feels a bit too heavy. Nonetheless this is a very light version, using whole fresh in season tomatoes and fresh basil with just a little olive oil and oregano. 

 

5 large very ripe tomatoes, preferably heirloom style

10 basil leaves chopped

1 tsp oregano dried, or 1 tbsp fresh

2 tbsp olive oil.

 

Chop tomatoes and basil put in blender or food processor, add oregano and oil blend til slightly chunky. Let sit til solids separate somewhat from the liquid. Pour off the liquid. 

Assembly

On the baking sheet sprinkle flour and then lay out the dough.Spread some olive oil on top to cover the surface of the dough. If you are using a sauce as a base, add it now spreading evenly and as thickly or thinly as you desire.  Bake in the oven for only about 10 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove from oven and set aside.

Lower the oven temperature to around 380-400 degrees for the second stage of baking. For the second stage, evenly distribute the sauteed veggies, then add the cheese on top of that. If you prefer, the order can be switched if you don't want to brown the cheese.  You can add fresh basil and Romano on top during last 5 minutes of baking. Enjoy with a summer salad of your choice, anything fresh raw and local will do!

Mole Chicken

Hi Yall. Back again. It has been gray here for days. Anyway, I still enjoy the honeysuckle on the trials I bicycle on.  They have replaced the roses in their aromatic presence. I think intoxicating is the correct word for this flowers smell. I feel so wrapped in love with the smell of flowers  so strong in my life here. And the green, getting greener. (Anywho)  Yesterday I went to my farm. Its a farm I have bought shares of in the cows.

So in effect its my farm! I not only pick up my 2 quarts of milk, cream, butter and eggs, but now get chicken and my produce out there. Some loving committed soul has grown a garden here, for us shareholders to enjoy the fruits of.  Everything I buy is local either straight off of this farm or a neighbors.  The greens and the dairy are from here, and the eggs and the chickens from about 3 local farms.The chickens are organic pasture fed, meaning putting them out in a pasture and letting them eat the bugs and the grasses, you know, like in the old days. The chickens are leaner and not so soft, as regular chickens.  They have real chicken muscles, the legs are longer and the breast is narrower. They had a life so to speak. For this I am grateful, that whoever raised them took into consideration their chicken-ness. Amazingly I feel blessed to have food that though had to die for me is raised  as humanely as possible.
Here is why I have started eating meat as of late. Its a lesson in what has gone wrong in agriculture, but you need to know in order to make the best choices. I take into account the degradation of all food even that which is labelled organic. I wonder how wholesome any food is if you don't know where it came from.  I got a real education from the chicken /egg farmer who happened to be at the farm that day. He owns a place called Too Many Paws farm. He explained the whole butchering thing and why normal organic USDA chickens have to get a chlorine bath. (Its disgusting if you want to know... oh, okay I'll tell you later). The USDA will not give him a stamp of approval because he won't put his chickens thru this final, albeit unnecessary step. Therefore he cannot bring his product to a local store. Only USDA can be sold in a regular store, like Jimbos, Whole Foods ,Trader Joes or other organic market. What a paradox.  His chickens are butchered so that there is no need for this added step, which adds poisonous chlorine... that you think you are avoiding when you buy organic, because you think ALL organic is the same, you know, really good for you.
 Oh contraire!! All organic is not created equally. His chickens do not have the intestines ripped apart  and covering the chicken at the time of butchering. (thats the gross part) These are things I never think about and no one does really.  We owe it to ourselves to get educated about all manner of food production.  If you are interested, I recommend a great book,  Family Friendly Farming by Joel Salatin. I read it a few years ago. He is a friend of Michael Pollan an author who was in the movie, Food Inc. Mr. Pollan  wrote Ominvores Dilemna. Mr Salatin is a hero in these parts, as many farmers try to follow his model for farming.  He too is one of our  local farmers.

I used to be strictly vegetarian actually. But if there is so few producers of quality organic local food, I must turn to other foods and that means animal products.  I cannot eat the quantity and quality of produce I enjoyed in CA. I must be flexible and so I eat meat now.  I could eat sprouts and brown rice I suppose. But I enjoy eating, and cooking like my ancestors did. It creates warmth and joy in a home. I do not believe ones health or spirituality is compromised if one follows certain guidelines to ensure quality in the purchase and consumption of high quality meats.

The key to cooking an organic healthy chicken is slow cooking whether on the grill or roasting in the oven or in a stew. Today I cooked half of one of the birds. I hope you enjoy this fare, its my own recipe for Mole chiicken, which I really like because it has chocolate in it. There are as many variations as there are people on the planet but the common denominator is chocolate and cinnamon, maybe some cumin and hot peppers.  Here is a recipe for the whole chicken.

Mole Chicken

one 3-4 pound chicken cut into 12 serving pieces (organic of course)

2 organic onions chopped 

5 cloves garlic chopped

2 poblano chiles chopped

2 jalepeno chiles chopped

2 carrots organic chopped

2 organic celery ribs chopped.

1 can diced organic tomatoes (32 oz) 

1/2 tsp cloves

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cumin

1/2 cup organic ground powdered dark cocoa

2 tbsp raw organic tahini

2 tbsp raw almond butter

2 tbsp organic peanut butter

1 bay leaf

1 tsp oregano

1 tbsp Celtic or Himalayan salt

1 tsp ground black pepper.

3 cups filtered water

Put water in large Dutch oven. Add tomatos, onions, celery, garlic, chiles  and chicken. Cook til boiling.Turn heat down to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes. .  Remove chicken pieces. Whisk in  spices, cocoa, nut butters. Return to simmer and add chicken pieces again. Let simmer for about 1 hour, til meat is tender and falling off the bones. . For my chicken it will be about 2 hours of simmering.

I am trying not to cook by sauteeing veggies or meat in oil like I normally do. I can do without the risk of creating toxins in the oil by heating it.  This way there is no oil unless you want to add it later.  Overall, there is absolutely no difference in taste and your house will be less odorous and your kitchen cleaner  as well. 

I serve this with cornbread and rice. And every meal I now have salad, in this case it will be the fresh spring greens from my VA farm. I can't eat the rice or the bread now, that's for my other family member who is a carb eater.

One more thing; I just purchased a water ionizer. If you want to create an alkaline environment in your body, this is the easiest fastest way I know. If I am going to consume animal flesh and other things that raise my acidity levels, the least I can do is drink alkaline water. It has been proven to neutralize ones pH even if you eat foods which create an acid environment. Robert O Young ( Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired) cannot say enough about using alkalinized water. It really is your first line of defense against all illness and aging  which is due to the lack of an alkaline bodily "terrain". 

I have a product from Ionlife, the model is the Jupiter Melody. Its $1495 with an extra filter thrown in for good measure. That's it. No shipping charge added to that. Its amazing. So of course I use alkaline water in the cooking as well, which improves the whole recipe, in cooking time, in flavor, in retaining of nutrients. The manufacturer recommends using the highest level of alkalinity (a dial on the machine lets you choose more or less )  for cooking stews and soups.  I will let you know how it affects the rest of me i.e. overall health. Just give me about a month.  

Fasting.

 Its May and here in Virginia, its all about green grass, flowering trees, blue skies, the smell of roses and honeysuckle on the bike paths. People and animals and the plant world filled with hope and renewed vigor. Mother Earth at her most enchanting

Who needs food?  Seriously. When it was gray (or white with snow) that was all I could think about other than staying warm, and whatever we could do indoors that was lifegiving. This is when creativity is at its peak I think. In the darkest time of the year. That is when I am most creative whether in be in my painting to create another more vibrant world in my art) or writng, to wake me up and acknowledge that the emotions and the life force are flowing inside of me despite what I witness on the outside. Now that the weather invites me to play, and the outside world is filled with life (and Love if evident more so than ever) I am not so physically hungry.  But my 'family' is so I must cook and of course we both must eat. 

Today is a good day for me to fast. Coincidentally, it will be a new moon very shortly. In just a few days actually. So then I will continue but with a clearer "palette".  Dumping the old thought patterns, preparing for renewal from the Divine Love source, acknowledging mortality, weakness and all the thoughts I put at bay to go forward daily and put up a brave front. Today is my day to let it all go.I will go thru a 'winter' today. And probably for the next 2 days. Just as the moon is in its darkest phase monthly, I too will go thru this act of death, but only to the outer world which has given me so much joy as of late. Its time.
Mind you I don't do this often. I think when its time you just know its time. There is no hard and fast way to know other than the internal world will trigger you to do this. There is no one thing that is chiding me here, not depression or anxiety or a feeling of wanting anything in particular. Its just a knowing. I didn't even plan this. How can you plan on this if your knowing comes without warning. Anyway, if you never did this don't worry. If you don't want to do this who cares?  Just know that the results are wonderful. A feeling of calm and clarity  So, file this blog away for another month if you think this is something you want to experience.  In the meantime enjoy spring.


In preparation for a fast. Up to 3-7 days in advance
Cleanse the bowels with a good bowel cleanse product.
Drink water and lots of it.
Eat plants and plant products only the fresh raw organic kind, mostly green mostly fruit.
During the fast (Three days)
Rest frequently
Set aside mornings and evening for both breathwork and meditation.
Take salt baths to draw toxins from the skin. Add essential oils to the water. 
Drink warming teas, for me it will be Yerba Mate. And I will add raw honey and raw cream. I can't be that harsh on myself.
Drink lots of water, up to 3-4 liters a day. 
Yoga stretching routine.
Be creative as the thought patterns change so will your views on the world and so write it down or construct an outer replica of your inner world  through art. 
After the fast (First day)
Fresh organic fruit.
Raw nuts
Salads with very dark leafy greens. Just lemon juice, olive oil for dressing. OR your own homemade mayonnaise made with organic cold pressed olive,safflower, sunflower seed oil. 
Continue drinking lots of water.
Next week
Here is where everything can go to seed. To avoid the pitfalls of getting really sick you must stick to clean wholesome foods, avoid alcohol, and meat, and complicated dishes. Continue eating the foods listed above and add simple steamed dishes, minimum spices. Be kind be gentle in thought, word, and deed..... especially to yourself. Let things go, i.e. worries, annoyances, people who cause you to worry and be annoyed. At least know that you don't have to engage in your old ways of engagement. Its just as poisonous to feel these things as eating the wrong foods. Avoid like situations.  Be nice to yourself. The success of this time depends on it. It helps to continue hydrating with 3-4 liters a day. I know its not easy at first. I simply fill 3 glass milk bottles with water and set them in the kitchen. I try to have a bottle in the morning, one in the afternoon and one in the evening.

Full Moon Food. (Coq au Vin Menu)

I survived a full moon in Scorpio last Wednesday!  So did you, meaning that it is  very appetite enhancing, no matter who you are.   But even without knowing astrology and the moons cycles, one can always tell the difference between a full moon day and other days.  Its the intensity of emotional responses that one is aware of that sets these days apart from other less luminous days and nights.  So in honor of that little boost of energy (and the fact that I haven't been writing for quite a while) here are some recipes to satisfy and nourish. I have already given recipes for the Potato Wedges, Crudites and the salad (variation of Spoon Salad) in previous posts. So look them up and repeat the performance... Enjoy!

 ~~~~~~~~~~

Menu

 Coq au Vin

Potato Wedges

Crudites aux Aoili

Arugula and Spinach salad

Cinnamon Pecan Cookies.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Coq au Vin

Ingredients
1 organic whole chicken cut into 10-12 pieces
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt,
1 tsp pepper
5 slices of organic bacon or about 1/2 tsp Hickory smoke flavoring (optional)
4-6  tbsp organic olive oil

1 bottle red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot)

3 cloves garlic
4 tbsp  organic butter

12-29 pearl onions

1/2 pound button mushrooms

1 tsp thyme

2 tbsp tomato paste

1.(This step is optional for those who eat bacon.) Saute the bacon strips in the dutch oven and remove, leaving the drippings.
2.Then dredge the chicken pieces in about 1/2 cup of flour a tsp each of salt and pepper. In a dutch oven take half of the chicken pieces and saute them in the bacon drippings and add a little of the oil. They are golden brown on both sides.  Remove and set aside, while sauteing the remaining chicken.
3.When all the chicken is sauteed, put all of it   back into the pot, open a bottle of red wine pour over the chicken. Set on low heat after it comes to a slow boil. 
The original recipe calls for using chicken broth as well but I choose not to, as I do not buy commercial chicken broth. If you have your own stock then go ahead. It will save on the wine.
4.Then add the rest of the flavorings, thyme, tomato paste, garlic. Add hickory flavoring now if you want if you didn't use bacon. Its fine without the added smoky flavor, but that is the original French recipe. Simmer for around 45 minutes.
5.In a pot of boiling water add the pearl onions and parboil til the skin comes off easily usually takes 15 minutes. Remove the onions and slip the skins off by making a cut at one end. In a separate skillet, add about 2 tbsp of butter. Saute the onions til brown. Remove.
6.Wash the mushrooms. Then cut them in quarters, discarding the stems. Saute them in the butter til brown, adding more butter to prevent any burning.
7.Add both the onions and the mushrooms to the chicken. Simmer on low heat for another 30 minutes.  This recipe is wonderful the day after. I like to cook it a day in advance to let the flavors really meld. This idea is the base for Beef Bourginon and other meat dishes stewed in wine. All use the same ingredients more or less.
8.Remove all the meat and vegetables.  Here you can do the following. To create a thicker sauce, you can now reduce the liquid to whatever thickness you want. Just simmer and stir til it looks glossy and smooth, coating the spoon. To remove the fat from the sauce, you can also remove the liquid and put in a separate container in the fridge. the fat will rise to the top. You can skim it off. It will be solid if left in long enough. That is why I like to serve this the next day. This step is easier if you have a chilled sauce.
9. Put the sauce back in the pot. Then add the chicken, mushrooms and onions. Reheat simmer and serve immediately
10. Serve with Baked Potato Wedges and  Crudites aux Aoili (Mixed vegetables with Mayonnaise dip)  Here  I used fresh tomatoes, asparagus and brussel sprouts. (see previous posts)
11. You can also serve a nice arugula and spinach salad with oil vinegar and grated Romano cheese. Follow recipe for Spoon salad if you feel more comfortable with a recipe to follow. These 2 dishes are the base of many a meal, whether or not you are serving meat, fish, eggs.

Cinnamon Pecan Cookies. 

(At the request of one of my very beautiful  readers I am adding lots of pictures to my food stories i.e. blogs). This is a recipe that is so easy you will never be at a loss again for how to make cookies. The base of the recipe is always the same. No matter if chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, peanut butter. You'll see.
This is a half recipe. Feel free to double if you are feeding a crowd. Preheat oven to 375.

 Ingredients. 

This is the basic cookie dough recipe.1 large organic egg
1 scant cup organic brown sugar
1/2 cup raw organic butter, softened.
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup organic whole wheat or spelt flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp Celtic Sea Salt.

1.Mix together butter and sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix til light and fluffy.
2.Mix together in a separate bowl the dry ingredients.   You now can add whatever you want to create different cookie recipes.
3.For this recipe, add cinnamon to the dry ingredients.  Then combine the dry with the sugar, butter mixture. Add 1/2 cup of broken raw pecan pieces. Stir well.
4. Drop by teaspoonful on a baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes til a bit brown around the edges.
For variations.........

• chocolate chocolate chip?  Add 1/4 cup dry organic cocoa powder to dry ingredients. Add 2 oz (one half a TJ 72% cocoa bar.
• peanut butter? add 1/2 cup peanut butter to butter mixture. Increase flour by 1/4 cup. Chill. Form into balls and flatten with back of a fork to create criss cross imprint on top of cookie.
• oatmeal? Reduce flour by 1/4-1/2 cup add 1-1 1/2 cup of rolled oats. Add 1tsp of cinnamon to dry mixture.
• Create your own....... Have fun be creative.

Fish; domestic or foriegn? And Cocao recipe.

If you want to cut to the chase, just click on the links at the end of this blog.

When I put recipes up here on this blogsite, I really do try to include only recipes with ingredients that are high in nutrition. If I had started this just a few years ago I would have included many of my favorite fish and seafood recipes, like shrimp bisque or seafood chowder. I have put up a salmon recipe but since I knew it was not so 'kosher' to eat fish, even wild salmon,  I also used an alternative recipe using chicken. I can no longer  do this. I still enjoy something called waterzooi, at a wonderful french type restauarant in Wilmington NC. Now when I go there I will have to order the pasta dish, which to me is a waste of going out to dinner.

But now I see that pretty much the entire fishing industry worldwide, is going to have to  be prepared to drop their sales, or risk putting the public in jeopardy.   As far as I can see there are no healthy fish anywhere on the planet. No More Fish. You got that???? We can not consume fish or else we risk cancer, stroke, etc due to the poisons ranging from mercury to pesticides. Actually, anything we use in industry is going to be found in the water which will end up in the fish.
If there is pond raised fish, you have to look at what is fed to them, in this country it most likely is corn. Corn is GMO (Monsanto produces it) traditionally, which means our bodies find it poisonous and react allergically to it. And thats just for starters. So we have Monsanto in the fish industry.

Monsanto was originally  all about herbicides and pesiticdes, you know, like Round-up. Doesn't it sound terrible that these people have not only taken over our plant based food industry, in every conceivable way, from the seed buying at the farm, to the processed food industry but now they have with their chemicals ( a huge portion thereof) used on land have ruined our water ways, and all that lives in them?
We as consumers,(I hate that word) as beautiful spiritual beings, who happen to have bodies, living on this Earth, are being painted into a smaller and smaller corner. What is left safe to eat?  Questions of mortality like, what kind of cancer will kill me? My husband, my son, my father? Death is on my mind. Who will die of this food, first?  Will it be me?  If not then how am I going to suffer before I die?  Certainly not of old age!!

All of life is in jeopardy.  Wake up please. Talk to others. No use hiding this ugly fact, it isn't going to suddenly disappear if we ignore the fact that we are being starved and/ or poisoned by our food producing industries.. It takes grass roots efforts from people like you and me. At first it will feel like the blind leading the blind, but the more we gather knowledge and experience the stronger and healthier we become.
I beleive the foregoing topics of conversations in the near future will be centered on home food growing, and local food buying. We must survive. Our parents if they are still with us, are having the worst time of it. Its hard for them to understand how bad things really are. So I invite you all to write to me, locally or not, and tell me where you buy those organic dandelion greens for less than 3.50 a bunch. Do you grow them yourself?  Anyway this is one of my biggest complaints at the time. But that is just an example of the kinds of things we should discuss and share information on.
I have found a way to reduce flesh as Yogananda calls slimming down, and many of the meals revolve around animal products. Many of the meals revolve around fish. Now that  will change. I must substitute this highly nutritious, ancient food source which is no longer available to the planet (unless you are just too lazy or ignorant to care about what you eat) with something comparable, but there is nothing comparable. Fish contains fish things, like Omega 3 and 6 oils, and other minerals in proportions not found anywhere else.  so I am on a hunt for a fish substitute. Perhaps this forum is a good way to educate people to the news as it comes up along with recipes.

I think I can get thru this confusion of facts and bad news as long as I have some good recipes to help me along.  Like Hot Cocoa, instead of Coffee as the morning  beverage of choice.  Ahhh. I am loving it.........

Perfect Hot Chocolate. 

Organic TJ's Cocoa powder
Organic maple syrup
Organic raw 1/2 and 1/2 cream.
vanilla
Filtered hot water.
Boil the water about 10 ounces. In a large mug put in 2 tbsp of cocoa and 1 tbsp of syrup. Add in about a tsp of vanilla.Add the water leave room for cream.  Whisk to remove lumps. Then add a generous portion of cream. enjoy, guilt free, knowing your nerves and your adrenal glands are given a break from the coffee, your mind is being given thoughts of love and joy. The maple syrup is far sweeter than honey so only use half the amount of sweetener. And don't be afraid of the cream. If its raw, it soothes and protects your intestinal tract, offering much needed health promoting bacteria.  Watch yourself bloom in health and beauty. More on chocolate ..........manana..........



In this Real Food Channel video learn about the dangers of foreign fish imports.  http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/page/45.html


In this article, Dr. Mercola explains how our domestic fish is tainted as well .
WARNING: New Evidence Shows Mercury Present in Nearly ALL Fish

French Provencal Menu

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Tarragon Butter. This is my creation of the day. the rest of the recipes on this menu are tried and true for years.
I am not so impressed with this as regular potato gnocchi But I will say it is very good, just too heavy for me. I think I will work on this and figure out how to lighten it up, as sweet potato is very gooey and requires more flour than regular potato to make it into little pastries.

The menu is a basic quiche with a grated potato crust instead of flour, an assortment of steamed and raw veggies with garlic mayonnaise (aioli)  and the gnocchi.  I am not purposely mixing French and Italian recipes, its just that they are both Medittaranean, and therefore very similar. Especially when looking at Provencal (south of France) recipes and Italian, there is the slightest variations as both use the same ingredients, tomato, olive oil, fish. Its the cheeses that seem to separate these two foods apart.
What makes this really French however, is the use of tarragon. If you have never had it, its probably because you have not had authentic  French food. Anyway I introduced sweet potato, which is distinctly American. The tarragon butter is my idea, a variation from the standard sage butter that I usually see with sweet potato pasta.  I am purposely not including here bread and wine, as I am not wanting to encourage you the reader to eat these things, which I feel would best be enjoyed on holidays and special occasions if you choose to do so. For everyday eating this is festive enough and very healthy as well. Enjoy!

French Menu for Four

Rapee Morvandelle.

(Quiche with potato crust)

3 large or 4 medium organic potatoes

organic salted butter

5 organic large eggs

1/2 cup organic half and half cream

1 cup grated organic gruyere or swiss cheese

1 organic onion chopped

1 cup sliced organic white button mushrooms

3 cloves crushed or finely chopped cloves of garlic.

2 tsp dried tarragon  
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 420. Peel the potatoes and grate the potatoes. Squeeze out a handful at a time to get rid of the excess moisture. Generoulsy butter a quiche or 10 inch pie plate. Put the grated potato in the plate and press around to form a crust, including the sides of the plate as well. Pat firmly making sure there are no bare spots.  Place this in the oven and bake for around 20-30 minutes till its visibly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven

Reset temperature to 350. In a skillet add about 2 tbsp of the butter, onion and mushroom. Saute on medium heat til onion is soft (around 7-10 minutes) , then add the garlic and tarragon, and saute for only 3-5 more minutes. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl put eggs and cream. Whisk til smooth. When the vegetable mixture has cooled add it to the bowl. Last add the grated cheese, salt and pepper. 

Pour into the potato crust and bake for about 40 minutes. When it is slightly firm to the touch in the middle it is done. The potato crust if showing should be browned. 

Sweet Potato gnocchi

One large organic sweet potato (a yam is the same thing)

1 cup organic spelt or whole wheat flour

one egg 

1 tsp salt

Tarragon butter

 Cut a the yam into 2 inch chunks and boil in small pot of water til soft. Remove and drain. Let cool thoroughly. Place this in a bowl and smash it with a fork til completely smooth.  Add the egg  1/2 cup of the flour and salt.  Mix this together with the fork til smooth. Its quite sticky so add enough flour to reduce the stickiness  enough to make small balls of it in your palms.  In a separate bowl add more flour. Take a teaspoon at a time, and place in the bowl and coat with the flour. Press your thumb in the center of the ball and indent til the sides are touching. Set aside on another plate. Get a large pot of water boiling. Drop the gnocchis in the pot and watch to see the water resume boiling. The gnocchis should now be rising to the surface. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon. Place in a serving bowl. Drizzle with the tarragon butter

Tarragon butter.

 3 tbsp organic salted butter

1 tbsp dried tarragon 
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, or in a bowl placed over boiling water. Rub the tarragon in the palms of your hands til its powdered. Mix this in the butter, heating til the aroma of the tarragon is heightened.  Pour over the gnocchis. 

Crudites aux Aoili

(Mixed vegetables with Mayonnaise dip)

Okay, crudites are traditionally raw, but here I mix raw with steamed. I like the combination of colorful vegetables as well as the textures. 

1 cup each of 

Brocolli flowerets about one inch pieces with stems removed

Cauliflower flowerets (prepare same as above)

Brussel Sprouts cut in half lengthwise

6 asparagus spears cut in half and steamed slightly

6 Green onions trimmed

1 large Carrot cut into 3 inch strips about 1/4 inch thick

12 whole Cherry tomatoes

1/2 zucchini sliced on the diagonal

Steam the first three veggies in a steamer, double boiler, or in just a little water. Remove from heat when the broccoli is very green. Let sit in the pot but make sure no water is touching the veggies. Cover for about 10 minutes more. They will cook slightly more with the heat off now to perfection. 
On a large serving plate, separate the veggies into piles to create a display of them in a pleasing way, and put a dish of the aoili in the center. Let people pick form the plate in a communal fashion rather than dishing  them onto their own plates. 

Aoili 
(Garlic Mayonnaise)

3 cloves chopped or pressed fresh garlic
juice of 1/2 lemon (not concentrate!)
1 tsp raw honey
Himalayan or Celtic sea salt 
1 organic egg yolk
1 cup cold press virgin organic olive oil
1 cup organic cold press (if available) grapeseed oil

Extra Virgin Olive oil if used straight up, creates a bitter mayonnaise so I included a bland grapeseed but you can substitute that for any number of good organic oils such as sunflower, peanut or safflower. I like grapeseed because I can't get the other kind.  Just don't use corn, soy or canola (GMO). You can also use a lighter olive oil if you wish. 
 In a large stainless bowl add all but the oils.  Whisk til well blended. Drizzle the oil in very slowly. You might just add a few drops at a time til you get the hang of this process. Stop and whisk well after each addition of drops to make sure the oil and egg are emulsifying. Do this for about 2 minutes. 
Then you can add about 2-3 tbsp at a time and whisk til blended each addition. The mixture should get thicker and thicker with each addition of oil. Taste for flavorings and add accordingly more sweet, sour or salt. Put in glass jar and store in fridge. will remain good to use for about a week. After that it starts separating. You can take it out and mix it anew if you like, but probably you will use it up by then.