Salade Niçoise
ASTUCES: if you us tuna in the salade, use either canned albacore, or the quantity of fresh tuna you like. i suggest 12 ounces; 400g. Sear the whole fresh piece first on each side, season with salt and pepper and let cool. Then, thinly slice the seared tuna and arrange it atop the salad after you’ve tossed the other ingredients together. Don’t use anchovies if you’re using tuna.
Galettes au Sarrasin – Buckwheat Galettes
When the galette is fully cooked on one side, flipped and just about cooked on the other side, you can add the filling, spreading it out as you like, then fold the galette up to the center of the filling, as in the photo.
Couscous Soup
ASTUCE: The best meat for couscous soup is lamb neck, which is wonderfully gelatinous, rather like oxtail or beef eye of round. You can use a mix of meats too, however, without adding any pork. Baking soda added to beans as they cook tenderizes them. Finally, you will notice that the carrots and the zucchini cook until they are soft, which is how they are meant to be. If you want your vegetables a bit more “al dente,” simply add them later on in the cooking time.
Couscous
ASTUCE: Pay careful attention to these pearls of wisdom, as they will ensure perfect couscous:
*The directions urge you to proceed gently, so please do. As you use your fingers and palms, urge rather than rub the liquids and fats into the couscous, very lightly, very gently.
*It is very important that the couscous steams uncovered. If it steams covered, condensation falls from the cover onto the grain causing lumps and making it soggy.
*Wrap a towel around the seam of the steamer to make sure steam doesn’t escape into the atmosphere.
*If you do not have a couscous steamer, you may use a traditional, two-part steamer.
Summer Tomato Tourte
Chicken with Shallots and Apples
This is a gorgeous and very simple recipe that you can make for a cozy family dinner, or even when the boss comes over. It’s impressive and deeply flavorful, dramatic to present, delicious to enjoy!
ASTUCE: I suggest stuffing the chicken with either an orange or two clementines, but you don’t have to. I love the slight additional flavor they add, and their juice squeezed over the chicken right before serving, but I promise this dish is fabulous without them too. The vinegar poured over the chicken adds a touch of welcome acidity to the sauce and crisps up the skin too.
Lamb Parmentier
This recipe makes enough for 8 rounds. You will have leftover mashed potatoes, most likely; don’t worry, they keep and reheat perfectly.
Equipment: six to eight 3-1/2cm (9-inches) metal rounds, for presentation; parchment paper; baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Or, if you prefer, a medium-sized baking dish.
Duck Breast with Two Sauces
Rabbit with Dried Plums
If you cannot find rabbit, use chicken in this succulent recipe!
Grilled Rabbit with Mustard and Crisp Bacon
Rabbit is easily found in most places in the U.S., though it will often be in the frozen food department. Try to find it. It’s beautiful meat – lean, subtle, tender, and it cooks so well, wrapped in bacon, over the coals. The by-word is slow, even cooking. Just be patient, turn it regularly and you’ll have a feast on your hands. And if you cannot find rabbit, use chicken….!
