Onion Confit Pizza

Happy New Year everyone!   Most of the decorations are put away, and I'm happy to be back blogging and cooking.  As I write, there are carpenters working on the bakery building adding a "pantry".  It's going to be great.  Lots of room to put away the shelving units that have been taking up space for years.   There will be more room for classes, and I'll be able to welcome larger groups. Since we didn't need two pizzas, and it's the middle of the day.   I invited the guys for lunch.  It's freezing cold and a nice hot pizza sounded good.  It makes me feel a little like Ina Garten!

I decided to use Chianti for the wine.  The kind with the straw around the bottle.  When we were Christmas shopping, I found boxes of the drippy candles that change color as they drip. My dad loves these and so do I.  I could use a regular wine bottle, but since I needed wine and the candles needed a bottle, this was the perfect match.  I need to drink or use about another 750 ml's of wine before the candle dripping can commence but I'm off to a good start.  If you look at the box, you'll see the wine bottle sketched out!  I promise to show you the bottle once it's been dripped.

There are some fun recipes just around the corner.  The recipe for today is from Baking with Julia, by Dorie Greenspan and is part of the Tuesdays with Dorie blogging group.  It's not too late to pick up a copy and join the fun.

On to the pizza...

A few years ago, I was making the Onion Soup from Thomas Keller's Bouchon.  In the recipe, he teaches how to cut an onion perfectly so it will wilt and cook down nicely for caramelized onions.  I used the same technique here and will show you how it's done.

If you run out of room, turn the onion around and start from the other side.  Cutting this way will break the membrane in the layers of the onion and help to make them move tender and softer as they caramelize.

So what is confit (cone-fee)?  It's the process of cooking to make the fruit of vegetable soft but sweet.  Orange peels are confited before being dipped into dark chocolate.  Confiture is jam in French.  So think... tender, sweet onions.

Once the onions (sprinkled with sugar) are in the pan and cooked a bit, the wine, red wine vinegar, thyme, salt and pepper as added.  I simmered the confit for about 1 1/2 hours.  Just the perfect time for the dough to have a second rise.

The dough is very easy to put together and has a wonderful texture and feel.  If you're not planning to make the onion confit, you should still head over to The Boy Can Bake and Paul will have all the recipes for you.

I used a mix of Parmesan, Romano, and Asiago cheeses with an assortment of olives.  A few of the olives were stuffed with blue cheese so they were a great addition.

Exactly 15 minutes later the pizza was crisp, golden and delicious.    I baked mine on parchment on a baking sheet and skipped the peel process.

Have a great time making this pizza!   (and dripping candles...)

Soupe a la Victorine (Bean and Leek with Egglant & Tomato Garnish)

vegetable guilt.  What is it?  It's the feeling you have when your CSA box arrives before you've finished the vegetables from the week before.   Some of your lettuce is squishy, with a few squash looking ready for compost.   Never fear.  I've got a recipe for you to use your extra eggplant, tomatoes, onions, and even those white beans from the winter.

This recipe was adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child.   She considered this a peasant soup.  I like it because it bridges the seasons.  You use fresh summer ingredients, but have the earthy, warm flavors that help you coast right into Autumn.  This is a great soup to add sausage, ham or bacon to.  Freeze the soup, and add the meat of your choice later.

The recipe starts out with Northern Bean in a quick boil and soak.  While they're soaking, wash and I mean wash the leeks.  Everything is going to be pureed, so you can dice the leeks then rinse under running water.   There's nothing worse than skimping on this part, then getting a sandy bite of soup later.

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With butter and olive oil, cook the leeks until they're translucent and tender.  I added sage, thyme, salt and pepper to them while they were cooking.  When the beans are finished, add the leeks to the bean & water and simmer partially covered for 1 and 1/2 hours.  Julia is very exact.  Once the soup base has simmered, carefully puree the mixture until smooth.   Be careful- hot soup and blenders don't aways play well together.

Egglant

While the base is simmering, peel, dice and salt the eggplant.  You'll also peel, seed, and dice the tomatoes.  Be sure to save the juice.   To easily peel a tomato, heat water to simmer.  Make an X  on the bottom the tomato and gently drop into the water for about 30 seconds.  Lift out with a slotted spoon and rinse under cold water.  The skin should slip right off.   Then, cut in half, and run your index fingers in the seed pockets to remove the seeds.  Then... dice!

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To print this recipe, click HERE

Soupe a la Victorine

(Purée  of  White Bean Soup with Eggplant and Tomato)

Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child

About 4-6 cups

For the Beans:

1 quart water

1/3 cup Great Northern Beans

In a big enamel pot or stock pot, Bring the water to a boil, add the bean and boil for two minutes, then cover and remove from the heat.  Let rest for one hour

For the Soup Base:

2 cups leeks or leeks/onions

2-3 T oil or butter

2 bay leaves

1/2 tsp each of thyme and sage, dried or 2-3 springs fresh

10-12 peppercorns

1 1/2 tsp salt

Cook the leeks and onions in the butter/oil  until soft and translucent.  Add to the beans (with their water) and add the herbs.  Cook for 1 1/2 hours covered slightly.  When the base has finished simmering, purée in a blender, food processor or  with an immersion blender.

To finish the Soup:

1 1 pound eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

1 pound or about 3 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces with the juice saved.

4 large cloves of garlic, minced

1 1/2 tsp salt

2-3 T olive oil

2-3 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2-3 T fresh herbs for garnish (parsley, chives, thyme)

Sprinkle the salt over the Egglant and let it stand for about 20 minutes.  Pat dry.  Heat the oil in a large skillet and sauté the Egglant until light brown.  Add the garlic and tomatoes.  Simmer the mixture for about 15 minutes or until the eggplant is tender.

Thin the leek/bean mixture with the stock to desiredconsistency, then add the eggplant/garlic/tomato mixture.  Simmer for about 5 minutes, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.  Then serve, adding the fresh herbs to the top.  Your could also add sliced browned sausage, or kielbasa.

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Heat a enameled dutch oven or frying pan the oil until it's hot.  Add the eggplant and toss to give it a nice brown crisp outside.   Add the tomatoes, and the garlic.  Simmer for about 15 minutes, or unti the egglant is nice and tender.   Add this mixture to the pureed soup base and adjust the seasonings.   I needed to add a little more salt and lots of pepper.  To serve, garnish with fresh herbs such as sage, thyme or chives.

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Berry Galette

just like becoming an expert in wine, you learn by drinking it, the best you can afford. You learn about great food by finding the best there is, whether simply or luxurious. The you savor it, analyze it, and discuss it with your companions, and you compare it with other experiences.  Julia Child.

Thank you Julia, that's just what we're doing.  Sampling, baking, cooking then photography and writing all about it to share and learn from one another's experiences.   If she only knew what a great impact she made on all of us.

This summer I've been making galettes with peaches and pears for the farmers' market.  The crust is a simple pate brisee, with frangipane (baked almond cream) and sliced fruit.   They'so so tasty and sell out right away.   This week's Baking with Julia galette is slightly different.  This one is made with berries, and no filling.   The crust is made with flour and cornmeal, making it crunchy and very earthy.   If you 'd like to follow allow and make a galette, Lisa of Tomato Thymes in the Kitchen and Andrea from The Kitchen Lioness  will have the reicpe written on their blogs.   The best part about this recipe, is you don't need a fancy schmancy tart ring or pan.   Just a baking sheet and some parchment paper.

The dough goes together quickly in the food processor.  I found it to be a little dry so I added about 1 T of water.  I also used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.  After a good chill, it was very nice to roll, and shape. I used strawberries, blueberries, blackberries.

After 40 minutes of baking, the galette was golden and so wonderfully fragrant!  I feel like I should have added a little more sugar to the top.  The crust doesn't have a lot of sweetness, and it could have been just little sweeter.  I did really like the additional of cormeal. the earthy crunchy texture was perfect for the freeform beauty.    HOpe you enjoy this one!  Your friends will love it!

Our Dear Julia

Over the past few weeks I've been thinking and referencing the great works of dear Julia Child.   Her personality radiates through the pages of her books. At the recent demo day at Bekah Kates, a kitchen store in Baraboo, I used Le Crueset cookware to demonstrate its wonderful uses.  The recipe I made was Julia's Boeuf Bourguignon.   I made it three times, actually.  Once at home before the store opened for tasting during the morning, and another while people shopped.  The smell of the deep, rich sauce greeted shoppers as they entered the store.   Several times people asked me, "it that "HER" recipe?", or, "did you see the movie?"   We all knew who we were talking about.   It just wasn't right not to make it just one more time the next day while spending time with friends.   Julia would have insisted!   As the leaves fall, give it a try!

About a month ago, I had a surprise arrive in the mail.  I had pre-ordered a cookbook and it arrived.   Not just any cookbook.  One of the best I've seem in a long time.   Dorie Greenspan, author of Baking With Julia, just wrote another amazing book,  Around My French Table.   Each recipe is well written and looks delicious.   While it's a beautiful book, it will be used and will be marked with the little sauce here, and a drip or two there.   Ms. Greenspan has a great blog if you're interested in learning more.

Another piece of Julia news!  In late October, ahead of schedule, As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto is being released.   I can't wait!   It's hard to imagine a book being better then her My Life in France but it will be fun to see. 

My most recent Julia moment was on Friday.   I made a wedding cake with spice cake and apricot lekvar filling.   The lekvar recipe was Julia's from Baking with Julia.  It's a delicious apricot paste with almonds and hint of brown sugar.  It's similar in consistence to thick applesauce.   The color is a deep pumpkin color which makes it a wonderful topping for scones, too.

Here's my recipe: 1 bag dried apricots (about 1 1/2 cups) 1/2 cups slivered almonds 1/4 - 1/3 cup brown sugar 2 tsp.  grated lemon or orange zest dash of lemon juice 2/3 cup water

Simmer the apricot, water and zest until the apricots are soft.  Combine apricots, brown sugar and almonds in a food processor and mix until smooth.  Spread in a pan, and cool, covered with plastic wrap.  Enjoy on scones, muffins or even as a cake filling.  Will keep 7-10 days in the refrigerated.

Enjoy autumn baking, cooking and entertaining.  Until next time, Bon Appetit!