La cuisine d'Hélène: July 2009

Mousseline au Chocolat - Julia Child

This post will be short and sweet. We are experiencing a heat wave on Vancouver Island and I don't function well when it's too hot. Our meals have been salads, sandwichs, take-out pizzas and smoothies. But yesterday I wanted to treat myself to something cold and chocolatey.

I wanted to make another recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking and decided to try the Chocolate Mousse (Mousseline au chocolat). This mousse needs some time to prepare but it is so worth it. This mousse is one of the best I have ever made, it's decadent, creamy, chocolatey. Julia Child's recipe is made with semi-sweet chocolate but I think you should buy the best dark chocolate you can find. I also had Herbal Chai Tea very dark chocolate in the pantry and did use some of it. It gives such an interesting taste to the mousse. This is the perfect dessert for entertaining because you can make it a couple of days ahead. There is even Grand Marnier in the recipe. If you want to make this mousse for kids you'll have to replace the Grand Marnier with orange juice.

If you are planning to buy the book here is what I think. I had made two recipes out of Julia's book and they are really good. I enjoy reading the book, the instructions are clear and if you follow the recipes to a T, you'll have success with them. But they are time consuming. You always need to plan well and in advance. I don't know how people can cook from this book, a full meal, in one evening. I would have to start early, in the morning, to make sure my Dinner is ready on time.

Please visit David's blog for recipe:
David Lebovitz

Visit La Fuji Mama that made the chocolate mousse last week:
La Fuji Mama

This week Gratinée prepared:
Steak au Poivre (Pepper Steak with Brandy Sauce)

La Fuji Mama prepared:
Concombres au beurre (Baked Cucumbers)

Living in the Kitchen with Puppies prepared:
Suprêmes de Volaille à brun (Chicken Breasts Sautéed in Butter)

Read more...

Fudgy Mocha-Toffee Brownies & Award

To celebrate my new blog design I had made those Fudgy Mocha-Toffee Brownies by Cooking Light. These brownies are rich in flavor. I did made some changes to the recipe. I used extra-dark chocolate instead of chocolate chips in the batter. On top I did spread chocolate chips and toffee bits. My sons said that they were really good for a low-fat brownie. This recipe is one of their All-Time Best Recipes.

For recipe:
Fudgy Mocha-Toffee Brownies

Award:
I received a Kreativ Blogger Award from George of Culinary Travel of a Kitchen Goddess. This is so sweet. Thanks George.

The rules:

1- Thank the person who awarded you.
2- Copy the logo and paste it on your blog
3- Link to the person who nominated you for the award
4- Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting
5- Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers
6- Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate
7- Leave a comment on each of the blogs to let them know they’ve been nominated

So here are 7 things you about me:

1- Like George I am addicted to cookbooks. I collect them and love vintage cookbooks. I read them like novels.

2- I was born and raised on a farm in Québec. My parents had 2000 pigs. I was the oldest of the family and helped with farm work, the garden and the house.

3- At a very young age I started to bake and cook. It was a passion. Still love it.

4- I always wanted to have children. At 11 yrs old I was babysitting a family of 4 kids. When I got married, at the age of 24 to a pilot in the Air Force, we started a family. I am now a proud mother of a 20 yrs old daughter and two sons (17 & 15 yrs old)

5- When I was young I wanted to be in the military and serve my country. I did at 21 yrs old and enjoyed every minute of it. I got out after I started a family because I wanted to be home to raise my children.

6- When my youngest son started kindergarten I went back to work for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the Criminal Intelligence Department. Was the best job I ever had. I had to resign when we were transferred.

7- We were transferred seven times in seven different provinces. Was not always easy as we always had to leave good friends behind. On the other side we travelled across the country and have enjoyed everywhere we lived. Canada is a beautiful country. What helped me during these move was all the amazing bloggers that I have met online.

There are so many Kreativ Bloggers out there, I am going to nominate:

1- Dana Treat - Treat Yourself
2- Cinnamon & Spice
3- Selby's Food Corner
4- Elra's Baking
5- The Duo Dishes
6- Lisa is Cooking
7- My Carolina Kitchen
Read more...

Salade Niçoise - Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Soon Food Bloggers around the World are going to watch the long-awaited movie: 'Julie and Julia'. Julia Child exhibited class & culture. Any foodie would have loved to have Julia in their own kitchen. Before becoming famous on TV, Julia and her cookbook collaborators, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, started an informal cooking school in Paris in 1952. The school was held in Julia's kitchen and they taught American students how to cook French food. It was called: L'École des Trois Gourmandes.

Paul & Julia Child travelled by boat to France in 1948 and a simple lunch, in Paris, changed the course of history. Julia Child eat sole poached in white wine and draped in a cream sauce, with oysters on the side, nestled in their half shells. She simply could not get over it.

One of Julia's famous quote is:

'Find something you're passionate about & keep tremendously interested in it.'

It was, in Paris, the day she had her first lunch that she found her passion. She trained at the world-renowned French school: le Cordon Bleu.

And the rest is history. In 1961, Julia finally held in her hands the book titled "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." She has left a legacy of delicious French recipes for the delight of all epicureans.

The movie 'Julie & Julia' will be released August 7. To celebrate the event I had invited foodies on Twitter to join me in cooking from Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I prepared a salade niçoise. It was delicious. It is a perfect main-course summer salad.

To watch the trailer of the movie: Julie & Julia

Discover what food bloggers are cooking:

Cherry Clafouti at More Than Burnt Toast

Coquilles St. Jacques à la Provençale & Biscuit au Beurre at Lisa is Cooking

Râpée Morvandelle at Gratinée

Oeufs à la Bourguignonne at Confessions of a Cardamom Addict

Potage Parmentier & Mousseline au chocolat at La Fuji Mama

Fresh Peach Ginger Peasant Cakes at Passionate About Baking

Tomates à la Provençale at Grandma's Kitchen Table

From my kitchen, salade niçoise:

Baguettes - The Bread Baker's Apprentice

I had time during the week-end to make the French Bread - Baguettes for the Bread Baker Apprentice Challenge. These baguettes are made of a pâte fermentée (which improves flavor and structure) that sits in the fridge overnight. The next day your mix your pâte fermentée with flour, salt, yeast and water and after a two hours rest you shape your baguettes. Shaping baguettes was really easy and I enjoyed this process. For my couche I did not have a canvas cloth so I used parchment. After shaping you let them proof at your temperature for another 75 min. Them you bake them in a very hot oven over a baking stone for best results.

These baguettes went well with the Penne Alla Vodka that I made for Dinner last night. They are lacking salt and I did not get any big holes but the crust was crusty and tasty. I will continue to experiment with different recipes for baguettes. Maybe I'll try Julia's Child baguettes next time.

I am enjoying baking from Peter Reinhart's book. The recipes are easy to follow, great explanations. I did get great results so far. I am improving my bread baking techniques and learning so much.

Baker's Couche: is a canvas cloth used to proof (ferment) the dough. The surface absorbs the extra moisture in the dough giving the bread a thick crispy crust which is a characteristic of French bread. This is best if you want to perfect your bread like the French do and get a nice thick crust.

Slashing: Since some people are asking about my slashing I did use a really sharp small blade, did slash my baguettes about 3/4 inch deep, just before baking. I did 4 long slashes per baguette.

Frozen Peanut Butter Pie - My Recipes

Today I'm featuring a website that I browse daily.

It's: My Recipes. On this site you have access to over 33,000 recipes in over 150 categories from Southen Living, Cooking Light, Real Simple, Coastal Living, Sunset, just to name a few. You'll find what you are looking for, could be one of their to 5 recipes, a delicious desser or ideas for a picnic.

In the grilling section you will find ideas for summer menus, outdoor entertaining, secrets to great grilling, several recipes for the best grilled ribs, perfect potato salad, must-have Margaritas and many more.

If one of your concern is your health and you're trying to achieve to eat healthier you'll find delicious recipes, smart cooking strategies, a summer food survival guide.

You will spend couple hours browsing their different section like: Quick & Easy, Menus & Parties and also wine. For your next party you'll find a list of their top 20 wines for just under $20 and pairing wine with grilled food.

They also have a blog: You've Got to Taste This.

I made great recipes from this site and since the weather is so nice, in the Valley, I needed to prepare a frozen treat for my family. After browsing I decided to make the Frozen Peanut Butter Pie. What I like about this dessert is that you can prepare it ahead of time, freeze it and serve it at your next party. This dessert is refreshing, has just the right amount of peanut butter in it and with chocolate shavings on top you will satisfy your sweet tooth.

For recipe please visit My Recipes website:
Frozen Peanut Butter Pie

And also don't miss their giveaway for the ultimate Weber Summit Grill.

Cruise to Alaska

We went on a cruise to Alaska, for 7 days, with the Norwegian Sun. It was a seven day roundtrip to Vancouver. We stopped in three ports: Ketchikan, Juneau & Skygway. In Skygway we took a bus tour to Yukon.

We loved cruising, it was our first time. Lot's of great shows at night and the food was delicious. We had a stateroom with a balcony. I strongly recommend a cruise to Alaska. The scenery is breathtaking.