Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Summertime is blackberry picking season.  I remember picking blackberries as a child, smearing the dark juices all over my fingers and clothing.  Unfortunately I haven’t found any blackberry bushes where we live now.  So I was forced to pick up a plastic box of them at the grocery store.  There is just something wrong about that.  I need to find a patch of blackberries somewhere.

There is an odd synergy between blackberries and cornmeal.  They both have a grainy consistency.  Blackberry “seeds” always get stuck in my teeth and cornmeal has a sandy bite to it. If you are experienced tooth ache or some other issue with your teeth, you can check here for expert dental services. But that is why the ingredients make such a hardy and satisfying munchable muffin.

This recipe came from one of my favorite NC markets and chefs, Sara Foster.  Foster’s Market is an institution in Durham, NC and loved by the Duke University family and residents far and wide.  We like to stop in when traveling to visit the kids.  Sara Foster, former catering chef for Martha Stewart, moved to NC in 1990 and opened her gourmet market and cafe in a funky building with a gravel driveway to rave reviews.  It is the kind of place where you would want to hang out, as many Duke students actually do.  Sara’s food is honest, fresh and seasonal.

These simple and easy muffins taste like summer on a plate.  Smear them with a bit of butter and start your day with a smile.

BLACKBERRY CORNMEAL MUFFINS ( From Fresh Every Day by Sara Foster)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
3/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Line 12 large muffin cups with liners and spray the top of the pan lightly with vegetable oil spray or grease lightly.

Stir the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl.

In a separate large bowl, stir the eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla together.  Gradually add the flour-cornmeal mixture, stirring just until the dry ingredients are moist and no flour is visible.  Do not mix more than necessary.  Gently fold in the blackberries.

Scoop the batter with a 1/3-cup measure or ice cream scoop to fill the muffin tins to just below the top of the liner.  Bake the muffins for 25 to 30 minutes, until the tops spring back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.  Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning them out.

Note:  I used standard muffin tins and ended up with enough batter for 18 muffins.

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Allow me to ramble a bit.  This will be a rather disjointed post.  It seems I have been snapping pictures willy nilly with no particular theme in mind.  We did have this mashed potato casserole last week.  David was grilling ribs and I knew that the timing for dinner would remain up in the air.  There are many steps involved in his rib recipe.  So, as not to worry about the mashed potatoes, I turned them into a casserole that could be kept warm in the oven.  The topping of breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and butter was delicious.

Yesterday we had an old friend from our college days over for lunch.  She has moved close to our area and we had the best time catching up with each other.  I set the table on the porch, and although it was cool, we enjoyed being outside.

Our lunch included Ina Garen’s Couscous and Tuna Salad.  You can find the recipe here.

I made a simple tossed salad with Spring greens, mandarin oranges, raspberries and almonds and these focaccia breadsticks with an oil and balsamic vinegar dipping sauce.

David took me out to lunch for Mother’s Day at a small town near us.  After lunch we browsed in several antique shops.  I found this “Antiques” sign.  It is obviously not old, but it looks great hanging on my porch.

I also found this colorful hanging basket to hang at the entrance to the cottage.

MASHED POTATO CASSEROLE

6 medium baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 to 1 cup half and half or cream
A large handful of chives, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

For the topping:
1/3 cup Italian style breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoon melted butter

Place potatoes in a large saucepan with water to cover.  Add a generous teaspoon of salt.  Bring to bowl and cook until tender.  Drain potatoes.  Add butter and enough half and half to mash into a creamy consistency.  Add chives and mix in.

Grease a casserole dish.  Add potato mixture.

Mix together the topping ingredients.  Spread over potatoes.  Place in a preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes.  Can be held in a warm oven until needed.

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On these dreary winter days, I have been thinking about food that I have experienced in our travels.  There is something to be said for infusing flavor into a dish.  French bistros offer dishes that are well known for simplicity and big flavors.  The countryside of France is full of cozy bistros nestled in picturesque villages.  We had the pleasure of visiting many on our last two trips to France.

In St. Remy we had a lovely lunch at Bistrot Decouverte.  The French blue shutters are so typical of Provencal buildings.  Our lunch of braised chicken and salade verte with a glass of chilled rose’ wine was perfect.

Unfortunately the only picture we took was of my empty plate and my satisfied expression.

We spent a week in the charming village of L’Isle Sur la Sorgue.  This village has been called little Venice because the waters of The Sorgue river flow around and through the town.  It is also known for its Brocantes or antique stores.  One of the most popular antique’s fair in France is held every Sunday in the Market Square.  There are also numerous small bistros to enjoy.

We enjoyed many fine meals and aperitifs along the cobbled streets.

David was pleased to find braised rabbit on the menu of L’Aparte, a Bistro with a water view.  It was served with baked ratatouille and a green salad.

In remembrance of all the fine meals we had in French Bistros, I made this flavorful dish of Chicken Thighs in Raspberry White Balsamic Vinegar.  It is studded with cherry tomatoes.  The ingredient list is short.  The cooking time is also.  But the flavors are big.  It is an adaptation of a dish from Bistro d’a Cote in Paris that Patricia Wells wrote about in her book Bistro Cooking.  If you want to be transported to a warm sunny clime while the snow flurries swirl, this is just the dish to serve for dinner.  You won’t be disappointed.

BISTRO CHICKEN THIGHS WITH RASPBERRY VINEGAR

Serves 2 to 4

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
4 chicken thighs, trimmed of some of the skin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup Raspberry Blush Vinegar ( I used “Alessi” which may be available in your local store for no more than $4.00)
Small container of cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon butter to finish
Chopped parsley to garnish

In a nonreactive skillet, heat the oil and butter over high heat.  Season the chicken thighs liberally with and salt and pepper.  Add the chicken to the hot skillet and cook until the skin side is golden brown (Approx. 5 minutes).  Regulate the heat so that you do not burn the chicken. Turn the pieces and brown them on the other side for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the skillet and pour out the cooking fat.  Return the chicken to the skillet and very slowly add the vinegar.  Lower the heat to medium and reduce the vinegar by half, turning the chicken from time to time to coat it with the mixture, about 10 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and chicken stock. Cover and simmer gently over medium low heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes.

Remove the chicken to a platter and whisk in the 1 tablespoon of butter.  Pour the sauce over the chicken, sprinkle with parsley and serve with mashed potatoes.

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I am always inspired by fellow bloggers.  I sometimes wonder why we even bother with cookbooks when we have such talented people who blog about food on a regular basis.  Monique from La Table de Nana is one of those bloggers.  Among several recipes in one of her recent post, I was attracted to this round of crusty bread full of seeds.  She adapted the recipe from another blogger, Lady and the Pups.  The premise behind the sourdough bread is that you don’t need a sourdough starter.  The sour taste comes from the yogurt that is a part of the mixture.  It is so easy, especially if you kneed it in a stand mixer.  The only difficulty is time.  Time to let it ferment for 6 to 18 hours.  But you might as well just go about your business while the dough does its thing.  There is very little hands on work.

One of the reasons that I wanted to try this bread is because it is supposed to be baked in a heavy covered casserole.  I have been waiting to share this news with you.  I was fortunate to win a set of Staub Cookware from one of my favorite sites, the folks at Food52.  Food52 was founded by former New York Times food editor Amanda Hesser and food writer Merrill Stubbs.  The site offers home cooks everything from recipes to food related articles.  It has an active community of over 300,000 members.  They offer recipe contests in which I have participated.  So far 2 of my recipes have been selected as “Community Picks”.

With the publication of Mimi Thorisson’s cookbook My Kitchen in France, they held a contest offering a set of the beautiful French cookware from Staub.  All that was necessary to win was to leave a comment on their website each day of one week.  They gave away 4 sets.  I won one of them.  I was expecting, perhaps, some small individual cocottes, . . . maybe a small oval baker.  Much to my amazement, right before Christmas three large boxes were delivered.  I received a 5 quart round cocotte with lid, a 9.5 inch oval baker, and a 12 inch skillet (not shown here).  I told David I needed nothing more for Christmas.  Staub is amazing cookware, much like Le Creuset.  The matte black pieces are all featured in Mimi’s cookbook.  By the way, I also won one of her cookbooks.  Since I had already purchased mine, I gave this one to my talented daughter-in-law for Christmas.

The bread baked in the casserole couldn’t have been better.  I’m sure any heavy duty casserole would do, but there is something satisfying about cooking in beautiful vessels.  I highly recommend this bread.  I love the cracked appearance of the loaf.  It is hard on the outside and soft inside, just as a good sourdough loaf should be.  You can make it without the sunflower and flax seeds as the original recipe suggests.  Monique even suggested that I try it that way first, but I loved this version.  Thank you for a great recipe Monique.

FRAUDULENT SOURDOUGH BREAD

• 3 cups (405 grams) bread flour
• 1 1/2 tsp (8 grams) salt
• 1/4 tsp instant dry yeast (if fermenting for 18 hours), or 3/4 tsp instant dry yeast (if fermenting for 6 hours)
• 1 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp (385 grams) plain unsweetened yogurt containing active cultures
• 1/3 cup sunflower seeds, optional
• 1/3 cup flax seeds, optional

Instructions

1. In a stand-mixer with dough-hook, or in a large bowl by hands, mix bread flour, instant dry yeast, salt and plain yogurt, plus seeds if using, on medium-low speed for 2 min until a dough forms. If the dough is too dry and has difficulty coming together, add 1 tbsp more plain yogurt. If you’d like, continue to knead the dough on medium-low speed, or with your hands, for a few more minutes until springy. The dough should be very sticky, but able to retain shapes.
2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let ferment at room-temperature for 18 hours (NO MORE than 20 hours or the yogurt may spoil and become bitter!), or 6 hours depending on your schedule (note that the amount of yeast varies). The dough should almost doubled when finished.
3. After fermentation, dust the counter with flour then transfer the dough on top. Use just enough flour to prevent the dough from sticking, fold the dough gently (without crushing all the air bubbles inside) over itself like folding a letter. Turn 90 degrees and fold again. Then shape the dough into a ball-shape. Transfer to a piece of floured parchment paper, then cover a large bowl on top and let proof again for 1 ~ 2 hours. The dough is ready when it almost double in size again, and should not spring back when you press it with a finger.
4. 45 minutes before the dough’s ready, preheat the oven on 450F/225C with a large dutch oven, or a heavy-bottom pot (both should come with lid) inside. To bake the bread, lift the parchment paper to transfer the dough into the preheated pot, cover the lid and bake for 30 min. Then remove the lid, and bake until the crust is golden browned.
5. Let cool on a rack for 20 min.

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I don’t know about you, but after the Thanksgiving holidays I crave food that is totally different from that table of white carbs and sweet desserts.  Also, for health reasons, David is trying to eat better.  So he has been on a seafood soup kick lately.  He spends his mornings at the gym and then comes home and throws something together like this Venetian fish soup.  Similar to bouillabaisse or cioppino, this fragrant fish soup is vibrant and alive with flavor.

Shrimp and fish fillets are the protein in this soup.  Combined with vegetables, clam juice, crushed tomatoes and white wine, you have a relatively light bowl of goodness.  If you wanted to add some carbs to the mix you could add a piece of garlic infused toasted baguette to the bowl before you add the soup.  But for lunch we liked it just the way that it was.

The recipe came from Food and Wine Magazine.  David adapted it slightly.  But I am showing it here as it was written.  I am fortunate to have him in the kitchen doing his healthy cooking.  Maybe it will offset all of the cookies I am getting ready to make.

VENETIAN FISH SOUP

1/2 pound large shrimp, shells removed and reserved
2 cups water
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, chopped
2 onions, chopped
1 fennel bulb, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 1/2 cups bottled clam juice
2 1/2 cups canned crushed tomatoes in puree (from a 28-ounce can)
1/4 teaspoon dried red-pepper flakes
5 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt or more, depending on the saltiness of the clam juice
2 bay leaves
2 pounds moderately firm white fish fillets such as cod, halibut, ocean perch, orange roughy, or pollack (cut in pieces)
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the shrimp shells and the water in a small pot; bring the water to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.  Strain the shrimp stock into a bowl.  Discard the shells.

In a large pot, heat the oil over moderate heat.  Add the carrots, onions, fennel, celery and garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes.  Add the wine; cook until it almost evaporates, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the shrimp stock, clam juice, tomatoes, red-pepper flakes, 4 tablespoons of the parsley, the thyme, salt and bay leaves.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 25 minutes.  Taste for salt and, if needed, add more,  Remove the bay leaves.

Add the fish, shrimp, the remaining tablespoon parsley and the pepper to the pot and bring to a simmer.  Simmer until the fish and shrimp are just done, about 2 minutes.

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