Oooooooo-la-la! Grillade française

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Moules Grillées
Asperges Grillées avec sa Sauce Maltaise
Carré d’agneau Pistou avec Vinaigrette aux Poireaux 
Salade de Steak Bistrot
Crème Fouettée et ses Petits Fruits de la Saison

We rose to the challenge of Covid-19 again with a social distanced outdoor lunch under the shelter of my backyard Bamba Shack roof.  Having caught the French cuisine bug at Caroline’s delightful spring picnic in May, I chose French BBQ as our June Epitourist theme.

 

Who knew the French have a passion for BBQ? Apparently masters at the charcoal grill, they insist that nothing but wood charcoal will do, with fruit and nut wood chips or woody branches of herbs like rosemary or lavender contributing a delicate smokey flavour. Sadly, we had to make do with a plain old Canadian gas BBQ. But never mind — the garden was bursting with herbs and local asparagus was at its peak.

 

Laura : Moules Grillées

Mussels are quintessential French bistro, so I knew I wanted to grill them as part of our BBQ theme. I’d never done it before, but it proved to be so easy. If you have a grilling basket, putting them in there makes it a bit easier to get them on and off the grill, but I didn’t have a basket, so I just set them right on the medium-high temperature grill and closed the lid—minutes later the shells were open and they were ready to pop into a bowl and serve with Caroline’s beautiful baguette and a simple garlic-scape aioli made with garlic scapes from my garden. I garnished the dish with some bronze fennel fronds, also from my garden.

I chose Vineland Estates unoaked Chardonnay, as well as a Rhone Valley Ventoux Rosé, to pair with the dish. Chardonnay is a nice match with mussels, but you can’t beat a glass of rosé on a summer’s day.

Caroline : Asperges Grillées et sa Sauce Maltaise

I anticipate Canadian asparagus season. When Kaarina announced that she was happy to continue with a French theme and that it had to be cooked on the Q, I immediately thought of grilled asparagus. There's nothing more French than asparagus with sauce maltaise and what better way to grill these little green soldiers than on the BBQ. 

I must admit that, while researching my dish, I learned something about the French"aise" group of sauces. First comes Hollandaise Sauce which is the mother of the "aise"sauces. Add tarragon and you have Béarnaise Sauce. Or add zest and juice of an orange (preferably a Maltaise orange) and you have Maltaise Sauce. All of them made rich with copious amount of butter and tempered egg yolks. What's not to like. For added dimensions, I sprinkled Maldon sea salt flakes for a bit of crunch and umami. 

Sourdough baguettes were also calling to me. I had yet to try my hand at making them and thought it would be the perfect opportunity. I turned to Chad Robertson's Tartine Bread. I was humbly happy with my first attempt.  In these Covid days and to fit in my oven, I made individual baguettes. Approximately 30 cm in length, their shape was worthy, crust crunchy with a good colour and with a dense and tasty crumb. A perfect vehicule to sop up all those delicious sauces.

Kaarina : Carré d'Agneau Pistou avec Vinaigrette aux Poireaux

I managed to procure a rack of spring lamb from a sheep farming acquaintance in eastern Ontario and set out to frenching it with help from a You Tube video.

I turned to Patricia Wells for inspiration on infusing the lamb with French flavours, choosing a Four Herb Pistou from her Bistro BBQ book for both the marinade and serving sauce.

Makes two cups: Process a half a cup of each — chopped parsley, basil, chives and mint — along with a half a dozen cloves of roughly chopped garlic. With the motor running, add a half a cup of EVOO through the feeder tube. Season with salt and pepper.

The lamb shared the plate with a classic French starter, Poireaux Vinaigrette, leeks in a vinaigrette.

This recipe reminded me of the pure joy to be had from a simple, properly constructed vinaigrette. All you need is Dijon, a good wine vinegar, S&P in a large bowl. The key is in beating it continuously with a large balloon whisk as you slowly drizzle in the oil until the dressing is perfectly emulsified. Smother your steamed leeks with this!

I chose Saint Roch, a lighter bodied blend of Syrah, Grenache and Carignan from Rousillon in the South of France for the lamb although I much preferred Diane’s wine choice, the Gerard Bertrand Languadoc, which is a spicier Syrah blend from neighbouring Languadoc. The bolder classic Bordeaux Argaden does not go amiss either - and it takes you effortlessly into a cheese course.

Diane : Salade de Steak Bistrot

Sensationel!

 

When the theme was named I did some quick research before settling on French Bistro Steak, a triple-tested recipe I found online from Canadian Living. Dijon, thyme and tarragon vinaigrette poured over grilled steak and lightly roasted vegetables, with soft-boiled egg on the side. Ease-y! What surprised me was the lack of a marinade, something I always assumed was essential for this cut of meat. A little more poking around revealed there is a school of thought to marinade proteins after you grill, because the moisture and sugar in most marinades can actually cause a protein to simultaneously steam and burn without ever truly searing.
 

I also brought a selection of Italian cheeses. Why? "Leftovers" from our February visit to Eataly. We were so stuffed at our February feast we couldn't manage another bite; of course, I didn't really save them, I don't have that much self control! So I pre-ordered from Alex Cheese Farms, doing my best to match our Eataly selections. Over the phone, I would name the cheese and then he would describe what was on hand. Oh, how I wanted to taste! He laughed and explained they weren't offering counter tastings in the store either. When I asked him to pre-cut into one ounce portions so I could minimize food handling, he gladly complied. On the plate: bosco tartufo with truffle (sheep and cow), montasio (cow), taleggio (buffalo), and pecorino moliterno (sheep and goat).

Whipped Cream
and Seasonal Petits Fruits

 

 

Lobster Boil

If you could stop the hands of time, how would you wile the suspended moments away? I would cook up a feast, invite cherished ones and gather around a beautifully appointed table to enjoy for hours! Delicious decadence, rustic French linen, white china plates awaiting for the colours of food to descend upon them, a myriad glasses for carefully thought out wines and other libation, a hint of soft music in the backdrop, the gentle clank and clink of cutlery and the constant flow of talk and laughter. The idea of a lobster boil came up at our French pique-nique during which we had a very pleasant and successful outdoor lunch, all the while respecting the social distancing order. Starving for social interaction, we put the plan in motion. What can be more sanitary than boiled lobster and oven roasted baked potatoes?

Kaarina kindly offered to pick up everyone's lobster order from Diana's Seafood in the city. I would look after the potatoes. But as theses things do, the planning snowballed (a bit). Diane brought a delicious salad with a champagne, shallot and walnut dressing. The dessert most worthy of mention was most certainly Rob's homemade, chocolate Babka! Oh and I must not forget Diane's A.O.C. Camembert de Normandy!

The sun was shining oh so brightly and not a single cloud cast a shadow on the afternoon. Delicious decadence of sweet lobster meat dipped in butter, a mix and match of cloths weighed down with river rocks covered every table carried out of the house, white china plates, wine glasses and petite champagne flutes, yes, the clank and clink of cutlery and the constant flow of long awaited chatter and laughter. And who knows, maybe the hands of time did stand still...
 

 

Sourdough Country Rye Bake

Caroline

Thursday morning, I pull the starter out of the fridge and feed it. With half a loaf left in the bread box, it's time to bake again. Mill some rye kernels into flour; mix with 20 g of starter, bread flour and water. Repeat at bedtime.

What is it about sourdough? Challenge. Why settle for downhill when you can telemark! Crazy isn't it but, it's true. It's also a healthy choice. Good for the microbiome and all that jazz. OK, it's also delicious as heck!

Thursday morning starter feed.

Starter feeds and dough prep take place in the laundry room. Since the process stretches over 3 days, I like to keep the mess contained and out of the way.

An old pine hutch holds all the necessary tools: note book, Tartine Bread book, pans, flours, kernels, dough bowls, bannetons, utensils (and a spurtle to name one), flour mill, etc. Oh, I forgot the Brød-Taylor proofer. Since we keep a cool house at 19ºC, it was necessary to invest in this gadget to keep starter, levain and dough happy.

The right tools make the job much easier

Friday morning 8 o'clock finds me mixing my levain. I measured the flour the night before to expedite this step... after all morning coffee awaits. After 5 hours in the proofer, I start on the dough mix. I quickly realize that I have WAY too much levain. What to do? What to do? What the hoo let's make more bread. You know that feeling you get when you're about to step off the ledge. Well, I experienced it and guess what? I stepped off the ledge and found myself mixing, stretching and folding more dough than I cared to shake a spurtle at! It took sourdough bread making to an Olympic level. Arms of steel!

20 kg of wet dough!

Bulk fermentation comes to an end at 17.00.

Time to divide, shape and conquer.

 

Hero the dog is surprised to see me up at 7 bells on a Saturday morning. I turn on the oven and start scoring. I decide to keep it simple before coffee. Après café, I ramp things up with Anna and her lovely scoring tutorial.

I give it a whirl to discover that the scoring process
is very meditative and pleasant.

Sourdough has a life of its own. Truly. You can try your best. But in the end, the dough has the final say. Needless to say, I was very eager to see the end result.

Although the bread did burst out of the score lines...

...it is still visually appealing!

So, there you have it. That is how I came to bake 10 loaves of Tartine's country rye sourdough bread on Saturday morning. 

Salad Days

Summer solstice. The longest day of the year. The first day of summer! Light is at its peak with the longest day. Time for gratitude. From here to December 21, the days get shorter and shorter. Reason enough to get the most out of every summer's day.

I chose this date and time for hosting the Epitourists lunch, with the theme of Salad Days. In the culinary sense, not the literary: fresh, colourful, appealing, healthy, with a touch of ease and an element of surprise.

Caroline and Kaarina co-creators on the feast.

Home made sourdough foccacia fresh from the oven! Fresh burrata with grilled grapes! Fresh chèvre with basil! Grilled cheese!

Our meal was stretched over 6 hours, with courses that were light and fresh and full of greens and herbs. The most important ingredient overall: deliciousness.

Menu

Burrata with Grilled Grapes

Grilled Radicchio Salad and Sherry Mustard Dressing with 

Grilled Miso Glazed Scallops

Chargrilled Asparagus, Zucchini and Manouri

Green Herb Salad

Sourdough Foccacia

Coupe Colonel and Affogato

Kaarina

I said I’d come up with an amuse-bouche but really I just wanted an excuse to splurge on some decadent creamy burrata to enjoy with friends who appreciate the indulgence as much as I do. The beauty of Ottolenghi’s Burrata with Grilled Grapes is that it can be entirely prepped ahead.

The grapes marinate in olive oil, sherry vinegar, garlic and crushed fennel seeds for a few hours before they go on the BBQ or the grill pan. The resulting nectar is drizzled over each serving and is so heavenly that it threatens to eclipse the burrata as star of the show. Caroline’s freshly baked focaccia was just the thing for mopping up every last drop. 

Diane

For my course I prepared a grilled radicchio salad with sherry mustard dressing from Bon Appetit that had captured my interest. I tested it out with my family first, and although they initially scoffed at the idea of grilled lettuce, they enjoyed the mix of flavours. Kaarina and Caroline appreciated how heat had ramped up the flavours and brought a nutty taste to the plate.

Served alongside grilled scallops with a miso glaze. The course was paired with Garden Booch, (1.8 oz of Seedlip garden topped with ginger kombucha, on the rocks, garnished with fresh lemon verbena).

Caroline

We’ve come a long way from iceberg lettuce days. Growing up, a salad consisted of chopped iceberg lettuce tossed with sliced cucumber, tomato and shredded carrot dressed with white vinegar and Crisco vegetable oil. Thank goodness we have made progress. Nowadays, any vegetable can be made into a salad. Grilled asparagus are simply delicious. Generously tossed in salt and oil, they take no time to do up on a hot grill. Al dente and nutty, they are irresistible. Good ol' Otto strikes again with Chargrilled Asparagus, Zucchini and Manouri.  Manouri is uncommon. I had to make a special trip to the Danforth to find this Greek cheese. In a previous attempt, I used halloumi and found the end result too salty. This salad is elegant and delivers big on flavours.

Bread being a perfect accompaniment to this dish, I put a new obsession to good use and baked a Simple Sourdough Focaccia from The Perfect Loaf. 

 

Kaarina

My dream was that each forkful would be a different taste in my mouth - and that was pretty much how it turned out. Ottolenghi's Green Herb Salad was the first thing I thought of when Diane proposed Salad Days. What better time to pinch and pick through my garden than Summer Solstice when all the herbs are at their peak freshness?

Six herbs came from various pots and the raised herb box that runs along the sunny side of my ramshackle old garage: parsley, coriander, mint, dill, sage and tarragon. I added store-bought arugula (rocket in the UK) and watercress (to replace the purslane in the recipe). The slivers of snow peas (mange tout) added fresh crunch and the toasted sliced almonds and three kinds of seeds each contributed more texture and a new flavour explosion to each mouthful. 

The Herb Salad was the perfect palate cleanser served on its own just before dessert. We agreed that with its bright lemony dressing the salad could be a fitting companion for simply panfried fish. I might also try replacing the lemon in the dressing with red wine vinegar and serving it with thinly sliced rare filet mignon.

Diane

Dessert was simple and refreshing, with a choice of Coupe colonel (zesty lemon sorbetto with a splash of Ciroc) or affogato (bourbon vanilla bean gelato drowned in espresso). We decided to try both.

Epi T.O.: A Two Day Epitour

It was time for a road trip to shake off the lingering cabin fever plaguing us after a long brutal winter. Last spring we sampled the delights of Montréal. This year we decided on a two-day "epitour" of Toronto, which is quickly catching up to the City of Saints when it comes to all things food. 

We met at St. Lawrence Market, treating ourselves to the antipasti bar at Scheffler’s Deli, an institution at the market since 1955, before heading to Liberty Village for the first of two bakeries on our list.

In the following posts, Laura reports on the bakeries, Diane savours the cocktail choices at Drake Hotel, Kaarina reviews dinner at Laissez Faire, a new King St. W. restaurant, and Caroline takes us on a romp through the Assembly Chef's Hall, a Richmond St. “food court” with a difference.

From Grain to Loaf: A Tour of Three Toronto Bakeries

Laura

Rustic Brodflour loaves!

One half of the Epitourists are sourdough bread obsessed. Caroline and I have been nursing starters and practising our leaven, autolyse, proofing and baking skills for most of the winter. Stand-by for a blog post soon. On our recent Epitourist adventure in downtown Toronto, I put a few bakeries on the itinerary.

Brodflour

This recently-opened bakehouse is tucked into a back alley in Liberty Village. They mill their own flour on a huge stone mill that is prominently on display in the space. The mill is from New American Stone Mills in Vermont. They source rye, red fife, spelt and hard spring wheat from Ontario and Manitoba. Head miller and partner, Jesse Saldana, gave us a great tour and explained how the mill grinds the whole grain between two huge granite stones. The flour is then sifted to remove some of the bran and germ.

There is not a lot of seating in the bakery but we sat down on the couple of benches and tasted a sampling of slices of some of the breads they bake: Dark & Sweet is a heavy, oblong loaf of rye with dark molasses and caraway; Heritage Hearth, a traditional style sourdough batard made with red fife and spelt; and Whole Grain sourdough with rye and whole prairie hard red. Needless to say we all left with loaves to take home. They were also offering samples of sweet Cardamom Knots. Their consulting baker is Swedish, so much of their offerings along with the Hygge-style décor is Scandinavian inspired. Caroline and I also purchased some of their freshly-milled flour to test in our own sourdough loaves. 8 Pardee Avenue, Toronto

Brodflour... such a cool place!

Forno Cultura

This Italian bakery is located in a basement on King Street. It’s a narrow space jam-packed with breads, sweet and savoury baked goods and there’s even a fridge full of pasta sauces, soups and cured meats, and a wall of olive oils and preserves.

Cultured ovens!

The owner is a third-generation Italian baker who wanted to preserve artisanal baking methods. They make beautiful sourdough breads, but it was easy to get sidetracked by all the other goodies. A glass-fronted case runs along the length of the bakery, full of biscotti, croissants, cakes and other beautiful sweet treats. There’s also an assortment of deep-fried arancini and stuffed croquettes. Caroline purchased a few of these home for a quick dinner upon her return home from our gourmet adventure. I left with one of their beautiful biscuit-style cake made with ground almonds and filled with a lemony pastry cream.

Cliffside Hearth

A sourdough baguette is an art to shape

I made a little side-trip on my own to my favourite Scarborough bakery. It just happens to be up the road from Kaarina’s place and very close to our yacht club. It’s run by the husband-and-wife team of David and Camelia. David worked in bakeries for years before starting to bake sourdough bread in their backyard brick oven. After neighbours kept asking to buy his loaves, the couple decided to open up a bakery.

Handsome red...

Since my move to Wolfe Island and my own foray into sourdough baking, David has been a great resource, graciously emailing back and forth with me answering all my sourdough questions. So it was great to be able to spend an hour with him that morning to talk sourdough in person. It was 9:30 am and the end of David’s work day. He’s up and in the bakery in the wee hours of the morning to get the breads proofing and baking.  Unfortunately I was so caught up in my learning that I forgot to take any photos. But you can have a look at their website and Instagram for some drool-worthy pics.
I’ve been struggling with baker’s math and how to ramp up my bread production. David shared his excel spreadsheet with me. It makes it easy to figure out the ratios of starter, flour, water and salt. He also showed me his big bucket of starter that he keeps in the fridge and feeds once a day. He laughed about the “blogger bakers” who name their starters and baby them with twice-daily feedings at carefully monitored temperatures. David said he hasn’t got time for that and it’s impossible to control temperature in the bakery. He says he’s trained his starter, much like a flea circus, to live in the fridge and deal with hot water poured over it. I’m not going to question his methods. His bread is the best I’ve tasted. And don’t get me started on his croissants. I don’t know how Kaarina can live so close by and resist eating them every day.