French Comfort Food

Even though, technically, it's still summer, the weather have turned cooler...usually, with fall, maybe when September comes in, we start thinking of food that will warm us...food that makes us yearn for something Mom is cooking and the aroma from her cooking makes us feel loved and warm...French cuisine does not immediately come to mind, but many comfort meals have a basis in French cuisine...the herbs that are used (bouquet garni for instance) comes from this cuisine...peasant food, such as Pot-au-feu, was enjoyed by the poor and rich...stews were meant to be hearty because it has to sustain a person for a long time...I love stews that have simmered for hours, cooking slowly so all of the flavours are developed into the sauce of the stew as well as the meat being used...if I had started this earlier, I would let this simmer for 3 or more hours, maybe even have used the slow cooker or, better yet, in the oven at 250 to cook slower.

 

After finally taking off the cellophane on Jacques Pépin's cookbook, I found a recipe I hope will satisfy everyone...it's a pork and bean stew, however, I think I will add a few other ingredients to this stew...this recipe is actually from Jacques' wife, who is Puerto Rican, so it's technically not French, but definitely French influenced...by the way, this is beautifully done cookbook with lots of stories accompanying the recipes...if you can find this cookbook, it's a must have, even if you brag that you a cookbook by this wonderful man.

As you can see, I'm taking some short cuts in this recipe...Chef Pépin would not use canned bean (I think he wouldn't) and the meat he uses is country-style or shoulder pork chops; this type of cut meat is not available in Canada (I have never seen it here in Toronto), but I know country-style is available in the U.S...I'm using a pork shoulder and adding carrots and potatoes to the dish because I feel that if I'm cooking a stew, it should resemble one, in part...I'm also going to add some dry white wine to impart more flavour to the stew...I will cut the pork into cubes to evenly cook the meat...yes, I will trim the majority of the fat (healthy eating sucks some times, lol), but retain some fat for what, FLAVOUR...yeah, you're catching on.

I wonder what Chef Pépin would think of my meat cutting skills, lol...very amateurish no doubt...he wrote a book on cooking techniques, including sections on knife skills...I've not read this book but I knew of it and of him being renown for these techniques.

Simmer away...I sautéed the onions until they were soft, then added the garlic, cooking until fragrant...followed by the cut up pork, browning the meat...I seasoned with herbs du Provence and pepper...I have not added any salt, as yet, since the pork has some amount of salt...however, once the stew is done cooking, taste it and add salt if necessary...the wine goes in now to flavour the meat and to cook off the alcohol...I used no salt added canned diced tomatoes and low sodium cannellini beans...simmering on medium/low heat...don't forget to add the bay leaves like I almost did...I also did not use a jalapeño pepper to make it spicy...it smells wonderful up in here...I was going to make some cheddar biscuits, but Tony bought a baguette yesterday, we can use that for dipping into the stew.

Two and a half hours later, we are ready to eat...surprisingly, the meat and stew was not salty, but the pork was tender...the stew was somewhat thick which I like...if anyone tries this recipe, I suggest cooking it on a Sunday and have as a family dinner.

Bon appétit.

Pork and Bean Stew

• 1 Tbs canola oil
• 1 1/2 lbs country-style pork loin spareribs
• 4 cups cold water
• 1 medium carrot cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 medium onions cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 10 oz)
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 16 oz can whole tomatoes
• 1 jalapeno, chopped
• 2 tsp salt
• 3/4 lb dried red kidney beans, picked over and rinsed
• 1 bunch cilantro, stems and leaves chopped separately (1/3 cup chopped stems, 3 Tbs chopped leaves)
• Tabasco (we used Frank’s)

Brown the pork on all sides over medium-high heat in the oil until they were thoroughly browned.  This process took about 15 minutes and I got a lovely sear.  After that, all of the other ingredients were added to the pan except for the cilantro leaves and Tabasco.  Yes, the beans were dry.  The last photo shows the mixture just as it was coming to a boil – and the small amounts of foam that I was supposed to scrape out of the pan (I did a fine, fine job rinsing the beans!).  At this point, it was cover and simmer for a bit over 2 hours.

At the end of this time, what liquid was left was nice and thick and my beans were perfectly tender.  The pork was beyond tender.  A small adjustment of salt and pepper and a bowl of fluffy white rice awaited.  After a quick topping of Frank’s and cilantro leaves, I was in love with my country ribs thanks to Jaques.

 

The Obvious Choice

On the suggestion of a good friend and the fact that I have many, many, many cookbooks, she suggested doing a blog wherein I cook a recipe from each cookbook...after thinking about this suggestion for a hot minute, I thought, how brilliant...then I thought, if I do this, then the recipes must consist of ones I have either never tried or wanted to try...the picture below only details some of the cookbooks I have accumulated over the years, either as gifts or purchased.

 I felt that there should be a rhymn and reason to the blog...should the recipe consist of only doing a main course or coupled with a dessert? Adjust to make it healthy or just follow the recipe as is? I feel that in doing this blog, I will make tweaks to the recipes; however, if it's a baking recipe for cakes, etc., I will follow that recipe to the letter.

As this is the first entry, I decided that (and considering how far I take this blog), it should evolve into incorporating various courses.

So, the first cookbook I'm using is the obvious choice:

Those who know me will say, "duh!" because of my fondness for grilling.…they may also say that I already have grilled everything and this is not even a challenge my grilling skills...maybe, but I have to try just to see what is in the cookbook that I want to try to grill.

First, I have to acknowledge my friends Beylah and Rose, for giving me this cookbook as a birthday gift, oh, maybe three years ago and I'm finally using it...but which recipe shall I use? Shall I grilled beef, chicken, pork, lamb or vegetables? The cookbook contains over 400 pages of a combination of recipes, a section for grilling for beginners as well as sections describing where the various cuts of meat comes from, cooking times and sauces and marinades. When it comes to recipes, people know that I generally incoporate bits and pieces from various recipes to have one recipe...I've decided to go with a spice rub instead of a marinade for the steak (if you clip the link on "steak", it take you to the recipe)...however, I am not making the chutney that is indicated in the recipe...however, I am making Panzanella (the link is to a recipe from Ina Garten).

Here are my ingredients for the steak rub and Panzanella:

For the rub, I used two ingredients not listed in the recipe from Weber: smoked paprika and granulated garlic...also, there was leftover spice rub to use for another occasion; possibly for grilling salmon or some other type of fish...I let the spices season the steak for a couple of hours...for the Panzanella, I'm also adding cilantro and heirloom tomatoes...I added some minced herbs consisting of oregano and rosemary...I've not had Panzanella since I was in Italy three years ago...the favours the I remember most is, well obviously, garlic, but also the taste of the Roma tomatoes and the dressing...Ina Garten's dressing uses champagne vinegar, I did not have this, so I used white wine vinegar with a touch of honey.

The BBQ grill I have uses charcoal and, if you have not grilled this way or tasted food cooked on a grill, try this method...I grew up having family BBQs using charcoal...but when I moved to Toronto and we purchased our first house, we had a propane BBQ grill which was fine; however, I longed for having a charcoal grill...when we moved into our new house, I insisted on getting a charcoal grill and even our friends look forward to having BBQs here...there is nothing like the smokiness that is infused into the meats from charcoal...I even "toasted" the bread for the salad on the grill.

 

The smoke from the grill is blowing in the wind...the other meats are lamb chops.

Well, Sunday dinner is ready and smells so good.

Ingredients FOR THE RUB: 
2 teaspoons paprika 
2 teaspoons chili powder 
1 teaspoon dried thyme 
1 teaspoon light brown sugar 
1 teaspoon kosher salt 
1 teaspoon freshly ground blackpepper 
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
 
 Ingredients for Panzanella 
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced
20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped

Coarsely chopped cilantro 

Minced oregano and rosemary

For the vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and minced herbs. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.