The King of Costco

Why do I disappear whenever I get back to the US? I guess because I'm trying to do a year's worth of work in 2 weeks - meetings stacked up one on top of the other like poker chips. Normally, I hate being away from my own kitchen, but I've been a guest in some truly lovely cooking spaces these past 10 days: molten chocolate cakes for 35 at the Alliance Francaise in Boston (dig their hulking cast iron stove and glass front cabinets) and last night I made gougeres (cheese puffs) for 50 at Grange NYC, in their sleek enameled Aga - a bit rock n roll at the beginning (that top hotplate is HOT) but I got the hang of it in the end. Thanks to Carol Gillott of Paris Breakfasts for her photos. I wish I was going to be in London in June for her exhibition at the Chelsea Arts Club.Augustin seems to be enjoying his NY sojourn. He got his first pair of snazzy sneakers and - a milestone - took his first trip to Costco. When he is a French teenager, wearing a long scarf and smoking Gauloise (I hope not!) I think I'll pull this one out of the album to show his first girlfriend!

It's my birthday today. G. sent me roses, or rather a photo of the roses in our new garden in Provence. Our garden. Hint, hint - huge news ahead.

Gougeres - Cheese Puffs

The perfect partner for a wine tasting. Add whatever flavors you like. Don't be afraid of recipes that puff, the trick is a hot pan and a quick hand.

1 cup water

1 stick (8 tbsp) unsalted butter

1 teaspoon table salt

1 cup flour

4 large large eggs

1 cup grated cheese (chedder, swiss, comte, asagio, etc)

3/4 cup chopped parma ham, diced

small handful of chives, chopped

2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped

In a heavy bottomed saucepan, combine water, butter and salt. Bring to boil (it is important that the mix boil - if it doesn't, your batter won't take). Turn off the heat and working quickly, stir in the flour all at once. Immediately add two eggs and stir to combine. Immediately add the remaining 2 eggs and stir - the batter should look like a lump of marzipan. Add your cheese, ham, and herbs - or any combo of the above.

Using a tablespoon, place dollops of batter on cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Leave enough room in between for some puffing in the oven.

Cook at 425F for 15 minutes. Lower the oven to 400F and cook with the oven slightly ajar, 12-15 minutes, until golden and puffed. That said, I've worked with ovens where you don't open the door or lower the temp at all...see what works best for you.

Makes 20-24 puffs

Sauce Minute

Back to those peas...I love them for many reasons, but mostly because they inspire quick cooking, or dishes that require no cooking at all. On Sunday I made an octopus salad for lunch. (If octopus is not your cup of tea, I'm sure it would work beautifully with cooked shrimp as well.) Just a mince of shallot, a dice of red pepper, a handful of chevril, and a cup full of the raw peas for color and crunch. A drizzle of olive oil and a splash of sherry vinegar on top. The sliced avocado was the perfect compliment, creamy and rich.
My dorade dinner was a flash in the pan. I know whole fish seems so complicated and luxurious, but it really is one of my ten minute meals. Ok, 12 minutes. The fish needs 6 minutes on each side under the broiler, and the sauce minute (that's French for instant sauce) of shallot, lardons (bacon), cherry tomatoes and white wine, takes 7 minutes. Add the peas at the very end, just to heat through. Et voila!

Octopus Salad with Fresh Peas

8 oz. octopus, cut into bite-sized pieces (I buy my octopus cooked, packed in oil, from a Greek store) - cooked shrimp would also work nicely, I think.

1 medium shallot, minced

1/2 red pepper, diced

1 small handful of chevril, chopped

1 cup fresh peas

Sea salt, black pepper - to taste

Olive oil

Sherry vinegar (red wine vinegar in a pinch)

1 small avocado, halved and sliced

Combine all the ingredients except the avocado in a large salad bowl. Add salt, pepper, oil and vinegar to taste. Top with the sliced avocado.

Serves 2

Dorade with Sauce Minute of Lardon, Tomatos and Peas

2 whole Dorade, 12 oz each, gutted

Olive oil

Sea Salt

4 oz. lardons (slab bacon, chopped)

1 medium shallot minced

1 pound of cherry tomatoes, halved

1/3 cup of white wine

1 cup fresh peas

Preheat the oven to broil. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Rinse the fish and lay them out with a drizzle of olive oil and some salt. Cook the fish for 6 minutes, flip to the other side, and cook for an additional 6 minutes. Fish is done when the flesh is opaque down to the bone.

Meanwhile, in a medium frying pan, heat lardons (chopped bacon), for a minute until it renders a bit of fat. Add the minced shallot and saute for 2-3 minutes until bacon is beginning to brown and shallot is translucent. Add the tomatoes, cook for a minute, then add the white wine. Cook for 4-5 minutes, until the tomatos give a bit of juice but still hold their shape. Turn off the heat.

After you have taken the fish out of the oven, add the fresh peas to the sauce and heat through. Serve immediately with lemon and wild rice or quinoa.

Serves 2

Labor Day

Home sweet home. The first of May is Labor Day in France, but somehow, my first Saturday morning back in Paris is feeling minimally laborious. Coffee in the sun, then to the market to buy Augustin his first muget - the lily of the valley that the French give for good luck. Spring has officially sprung. You'll excuse me, I must go shell some peas...I bought dorade for dinner - I'm thinking a sauce minute of cherry tomatoes, lardons, fresh peas and coriander...