French Food in a Jiffy

French food in a jiffy!

Who says that food has to be complicated to be gourmet?  Not Dorie Greenspan.  The past two weeks our French Fridays with Dorie assignments have been easy, packed full of flavor, and use kitchen staples instead of hard-to-find ingredients.  They are almost “no recipe recipes”  and  could become your new best friends in the kitchen.

First up is Baked Apples Stuffed with Fruit.  Yeah, I know how original that sounds, so quit rolling your eyes at me.  These truly are amazing Baked Apples, and no you don’t use a microwave to cut the cooking time.   Select the apple of your choice (just make sure it is large enough for stuffing – crab apples would not be a good selection), core and peel half of the skin off the apple, retaining the peelings for the basting liquid.  Place a dab of butter into to cored apple.  Add a mixture of honey, cinnamon, dried fruits (I used dates and cranberries), and chopped nuts to the center of the apple.  Top with another dab of butter.  Place apples into a pie dish with some liquid (I used Gruner Veltliner wine), apple peels, and more butter.  Place in preheated 350 degree oven for approximately 45-50 minutes, and baste every 15 minutes.    The secret to this baked apple dish is in the basting and the butter.  It is so good you almost forget it is healthy.

Second up is Christine’s Three Party Soups: broccoli, asparagus, and red bell pepper.  Lacking a party to serve these at?  Never fear:  they are great” make ahead and eat later soups” – like for lunch.  The preparation is so simple.  For each soup you put one pound of vegetables into four cups of stock, cook for about 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper and puree in the blender.  For the broccoli, I added some Japanese curry  powder to kick up the heat and provide some intense flavor.  The Japanese curry powder consists of many, many spices and gives the broccoli a hint of curry-like taste.  For the red bell pepper, I added Piment de Esplette for some extra flavor and zing.  This Basque region product adds nuanced, subtle heat and is a delicate alternative to cayenne pepper.  I left the asparagus in its natural state.  Seriously, why buy pre-made soups at the market when it is so easy to whip these up?

If you are unfamiliar with French Fridays with Dorie posts, it is an online cooking group working its way through Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table.  Recipes are not posted, but all are encouraged to buy the book and cook along with the group.  To join French Fridays with Dorie visit www.frenchfridayswithdorie.com.