Pickeld Micro Cucumber and Daikon 小さなキュウリと大根のピクルス

The other day while we were shopping at the near-by Whole Foods, my wife found a new item which is called “Teeny Tiny Cucumber” (picture #3). They are much smaller than “American Mini-cucumbers” and about the size of cornichons. I decide to use them to make a Japanese style pickle along with a daikon pickle. I would have used Japanese citrus “Yuzu” but we do not have any access to fresh yuzu so instead, I used Myer lemons (#1). The cucumbers were not crunchy but the daikon was nicely crunchy. It was a bit too sour/acidic for my wife so next time, I will dilute the marinade with some water.

The marinade is a standard Japanese sweet vinegar (one part rice vinegar,1/2 part sugar, small amount of salt). This is essentially a variation of “Daikon Namasu” 大根なます.

Ingredients:
1 package (9oz) teeny tiny cucumbers (picture #3)*
1/3 medium daikon, peeled, cut into 3-4 mm thick rounds and then cut into tick match sticks
1 Meyer lemon, sliced (or yuzu if available).
1 tsp of salt to “sweat” the cucumber and daikon to remove some internal moisture. 

Marinade:
1 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup water (optional)*

Directions:
Mix the marinade ingredients in a sauce pan and heat on medium flame until sugar and salt melt and start the liquid starts simmering. Let it cool for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a bowl add the cucues, daikon and salt, mix well and let it stand for 10-15 minutes until water comes out.
Drain the excess moisture that came out, add half of  the lemon slices to the bottom of a mason jar, add the cucues and daikon and top with slices of the lemon (picture #2). Pour in the marinade. Once cooled to room temperature, place the jar in the refrigerator. The pickles will be ready in 2-3 days.

* Picture #3 is the package of this tiny cucues. I am not sure if this is a special kind of cucumber or just a young and small cucumber. It is grown in Canada.

We like this pickles. The cucumbers are a bit soft and not crunchy but the daikon was nicely crunchy. Over all, this was nice refreshing dish. May be we should have eaten it raw with a dip as suggested in the package. Next time.

Frangipane Rolls フランジパンロール

My wife’s sister sent this recipe from King Arthur Flour to my wife knowing my wife is a fairly accomplished baker (challenge???). It appears to be a very fancy recipe and the “frangipane” was even a separate recipe. In any case, my wife rose to the challenge. Being a King Arthur recipe, the original recipe called for their “Raspberry and orange jammy bits” in the filling which we would have had to buy. She skipped this and just used the “frangipane”. The thin layer of frangipane added a nice and distinct almond flavor and the rolls had a nice texture and slightly sweet taste (picture #1). It took some work for my wife but she said it was worth it. 

Frangipane recipe (makes about 360 gram which is perfect for the frangipane rolls recipe below)

Ingredients: 
6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (99g) granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1 cup (96g) King Arthur Almond Flour
3 tablespoons (23g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or King Arthur Gluten- Free Measure for Measure Flour
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons almond emulsion or almond extract

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and salt until pale and fluffy, about 1 minute on medium speed.
2. Stir in the flours, egg, and almond flavoring. Mix until just combined.
3. Use the frangipane as desired: fill tart shells, pipe into croissant dough, top slices of Bostock, or come up with your own way to use this flavorful, nutty filling. Bake the frangipane as directed in your recipe or until it’s golden brown and smells nutty.
4. Store leftover unbaked frangipane in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months.

Frangipane roll recipe:

Ingredients: (doubled the original recipe)

Tangzhong (starter)
6 tablespoons (86g) water
6 tablespoons (86g) milk, whole preferred
4 tablespoons (28g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour

Dough
5 cups (600g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 cup (226g) milk, whole preferred
2 large eggs
8 tablespoons (114g) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
2 tablespoon (18g) instant yeast
2 teaspoon (12g) table salt

Topping
2 tablespoons (28g) milk,whole preferred
2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar, optional

Directions:
1.To make the tangzhong: 
In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients and whisk until no lumps remain.
2.Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened, paste-like, and the spoon or spatula leaves lines on the bottom of the pan. This should take 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the strength of the burner.
3.Remove the tangzhong from the heat and transfer it to a large mixing bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, or the bucket of a bread machine (wherever you plan to knead the dough).

4.To make the dough: 
Weigh the flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Place the flour into the bowl with the tangzhong and add the remaining dough ingredients. Mix to combine, then knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — until a soft, smooth dough forms, about 8 to 10 minutes on medium-low speed of a mixer. (The dough may be tacky and stick to the sides of the bowl slightly; that's OK.)
5.Shape the dough into a ball, place it in a lightly greased large bowl or standard dough rising bucket, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. The refrigerated rise will make the dough much easier to handle and shape
6.To assemble: On a lightly floured surface, gently deflate the dough, divide it into four pieces and shape each piece into a ball.
7.Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.
8. Prepare a square pan with a parchment sling or reusable silicone liner. Lightly grease any exposed sides of the pan.
9. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it into an 8" square. If the dough begins to snap back during rolling, set it aside and begin rolling out the second piece. After a couple of minutes, return to the first piece to continue rolling it to the full size (this gives the gluten a chance to relax).
10. Portion one quarter of the filling onto the top half of the square. 
11. Starting at the top, spread the filling across the entire width of the square and down about 4", leaving the bottom 4" bare (#1). If the filling is difficult to spread, warm it in the microwave for 15 seconds and stir; check the consistency. Repeat, if necessary, until it's easily spreadable.
12. Using a bench or chef’s knife, cut the uncovered dough at the bottom into very thin strips (anywhere from 1/8" to 1/4" wide) (#2).
13.Starting from the filling-covered top and rolling toward the uncovered strips, roll the dough into a log about 8" long.
 14. Lightly press the strips into the rolled log to secure. Cut the log into four 2" pieces and then place them, seam-side down, in a row and in alternating orientations in the pan (#3).
15. Roll, fill, and shape the remaining pieces of dough, placing the rolls into the pan to form 4 rows of 4 buns, each row in an alternating pattern (#4 & #5). Cover the rolls and let them rise for 60 to 75 minutes, until puffy.
16.While the rolls rise, preheat the oven to 350°F.
17.To finish and bake the rolls: Gently brush the rolls with milk, being careful not to deflate the delicate dough, and sprinkle generously with granulated sugar.
18. Bake the rolls for 30 to 35 minutes, until the tops are golden brown; a digital thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 190°F (#6).
19. Remove the rolls from the oven and cool in the pan until you can transfer it safely to a rack to cool completely, at least 15 minutes. Serve the rolls slightly warm or at room temperature.
20. Storage information: Store leftover mini wool rolls, well wrapped, at room temperature for several days.

These rolls have a very delicate flavor accented mostly by the frangipan which provides a delicate slightly sweet almond flavor. The bread has the texture and flavor of a milk bread while the frangipan provides a slightly custard like filling interspersed through out the bread. This is definitely a very sophisticated bread.

Spinach Soufflé (easy version) ほうれん草のスフレ

My wife is partial to spinach soufflé. Previously I made it the traditional way by separating the egg yolks and whites. Then making a béchamel sauce in which I put the egg yolks. The whites are whipped before being incorporated into the béchamel sauce too. Then we learned from Jacques Pepin that there are two simpler ways to make souffle. One is to just use a whole egg rather than separating it. The other was to make  a corn soufflé  without even making a béchamel by using fresh corn pure instead. Those two methods were much easier. Recently we tried a variation of another soufflé recipe from Pepin which he called (Maman’s cheese soufflé recipe). We saw the recipe presented on YouTube. Again we used whole eggs rather than separating the yolks and whites. Although we adopted the idea of using a whole egg in the souffle, we did not make Maman’s cheese souffle instead we tailored the recipe to make spinach souffle by adding spinach and onion. It did not rise as much as we expected but it was pretty good. We served it with roasted lamb with mushroom port wine sauce (picture #1).

We cooked it in small but deep ramekins (picture #2). If we used shallower and wider opening vessels like one used by Pepin, it may have risen more but this was just fine and tasted really great.

Again, we modified the recipe in several ways. One modification is that I used much less butter than is used in classic Béchamel sauce; in the classic the same amount of butter and flour is used. I add finely chopped onion and/or mushrooms in addition to the butter. The flour coats the surface of the fat covered onion and makes the resulting Béchame without lumps. This is not a precise recipe but just a note for myself.

Ingredients: (made two large ramekins full, 2 inches in diameter)
1 medium shallot, finely chopped
2 tbs unsalted butter
3 tbs Ap flour
1/2 cup or more milk
1/4 cup spinach, cooked and moisture squeezed, finely chopped (I cooked it without added water in a wok with a lid and then squeezed out any remaining moisture using a ricer).
1/2 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
3 large eggs, well beaten
Back pepper, salt and nutmeg for taste

Butter and grated parmesan cheese to lightly grease the ramekins.

Directions:
In a frying pan, melt the butter and cook the shallot for a few minutes, add the flour and mix for one minute after the dry flour disappears
Add cold milk at once and mix using a silicon spatula until well mixed and thickened. Add the cheese and mix (adjust the thickness by adding more milk)
Add the spinach and seasonings and let it cook for 5 minutes then add to the beaten eggs and mix.
Pour the mixture into the prepared ramekins (70% full) (as per Pepin, this can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days before cooking).
Bake for 30-35 minutes in a preheated 375F oven (I used our toaster oven in convection mode).

It did not rise as much as our previous soufflé but it did rise and tasted great with good texture. This is much easier to make. My wife was quite satisfied with it.

Mini Fruit Galettes ミニフルーツガッレト

We had an excess of strawberries which were nonetheless pretty good. So how to use them? My wife happened to come across a recipe for “Mini fruit galettes” in the Washington Post. Although the original recipe involved making a crust from scratch, she had some pie dough in the freezer which was a bit old so she decided to take a short cut and use that instead. While this rendition was more than adequate and quite good for a small but not too sweet desert there is room for improvement. Since the dough was fairly old it was a bit dry and kept opening up. (As shown by the little pie on the left in the picture). Also, a bit more strawberry filling would have been helpful.

Ingredients:
Two Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts   
1/2 cup plain dried breadcrumbs (I used panko)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups strawberries (or tart pitted cherries and/or peeled, diced peaches as per the original recipe)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier, another orange-flavored liqueur (we used Triple Sec) or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoons cold unsalted butter, each cut into equal pieces
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
About 1/4 cup sparkling sugar or turbinado sugar, for sprinkling

Directions:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut the dough into two inch round portions using a biscuit cutter. (A slightly larger size might work a bit better). Roll out the dough a bit thinner. Scatter 1 tablespoon of the dried bread crumbs across the center, leaving a margin all around. (In the upper left hand corner of the picture #1, a crust with the crumbs on it is just visible.) (These bread crumbs are extremely important. They soak up any excess juice and make a nice almost jelly like filling.)

Stir together the granulated sugar and cornstarch in a mixing bowl. Add the fruit, lemon juice and Grand Marnier (Triple Sec) or almond extract; stirring well to coat the fruit. Scoop out a scant spoon full and put in the center of the piece of dough. Working quickly, lift the outside of the dough edge and pull it up and slightly over the filling, leaving the fruit in the center exposed. (This proved more difficult than we expected. Although we moistened the edges of the dough, it kept opening with the filling spilling out. But with some effort we made it work).

Work around each galette, folding the dough over on itself and forming a series of pleats to make a snug package. Use the outside edge of your hands to cup the edges of the galette and gently press the dough into the fruit. Snuggle one small cube of butter into the center opening. Place the galette on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough rounds, filling and butter.

Freeze them, uncovered, for 30 to 45 minutes, until firm.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly beat the egg, water and salt in a small bowl. Brush the folded edges of each galette with the egg wash, then sprinkle them with the sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until deeply golden brown with bubbling filling.
Cool for a bit before serving.

The crispy buttery pie crust was a nice contrast and went well with the strawberry jellly-like filling. The egg wash with the sugar coating caramelized and made a sweet crunch to bite into. The bread crumbs in the center of the dough is a technique to keep in mind for other baked pie goods. Because they soaked up the excess juice the pie crust did not get soggy and remained nicely crispy. My wife said she will make this again with improvements; one of which is the use of dough that is not quite so dry (old).

Pumpkin “Kabocha” salad カボチャのサラダ

We regularly get Japanese/Asian groceries from Weee. This time we got a Japanese “Kabocha” かぼちゃ squash. It was larger than usual. I made my usual simmered kabocha and pottage かぼちゃの煮物とポタージュ but some still remained. I thought about tempura but that was too much work for such a small piece. So I decided to make this “kabocha salad”. I did not follow any particular recipe but sort of combined two different recipes. This is curry flavored and turned out to be quite good highlighting the natural sweetness of the kabocha.

This is just a note for myself.

Ingredients:
Kabocha squash, seeds removed, skin shaved off (optional), cut into half inch cubes
Raisins

For the dressing
Greek yogurt
Mayonnaise
Curry powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Boil the kabocha in salted water for 5-7 minutes until cooked but not too mushy
Mix the ingredients for the dressing (about the same amount of mayo and yogurt, the amount of curry powder is to your liking)

For an impromptu salad, this was much better than I expected. The natural sweetness of the kabocha was complemented by the curry flavor. The mixture of the yogurt, mayo and kabocha made a nice creamy texture with some tartness. I will make this again.

P.S. Hawk joins us for Hanami 花見!
This year was a bit unusual for the cherry blossoms. The trees bloomed early and the blooms lasted for a long time. Since we have three trees with different bloom timing, we had a very long time to enjoy cherry blossoms or “Hanami”. One afternoon, a hawk joined us for Hanami! We looked out the window and there he was in all his magnificence sitting not ten feet from the window on the railing of the deck. We marveled at the image of such an awesome creature juxtaposed to the delicate loveliness of the cherry blossoms.

St. Patrick’s Day Dinner, Lamb Chops and Cabbage with Bacon セイント パトリクス デイ

While taking inventory of the deep depths of the freezer, my wife came upon 2 thick cut lamb chops; perfect for St. Patrick’s day dinner.  So we cooked the lamb chops and served them with a side of cabbage and bacon as well as rice pilaf (#1). For a change, I managed to cook the lamb to near perfect medium rare. After seasoning with salt and pepper, I seared the chops without any oil on both sides and finished them in a 350F oven. After 5 minutes I started measuring the temperature at the center of the chops. Around 10 minutes, it reached 135F.

We also made cabbage, onion with bacon.

We just cooked this without any particular recipe.

Ingredients:
4 cabbage leaves, center thick veins removed and cut into 1/2 inch squares
1 medium onion, sliced
3 strips of bacon
3 tbs chicken broth or water
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Fry the bacon strips until crispy and set aside on a paper towel lined plate leaving the bacon dripping in the pan
Sauté the onion until well cooked and brown
Add the cabbage and mix
Add water or chicken broth, place the lid and steam until liquid almost all gone
Add the crumbled bacon and season with salt and pepper to taste

This was a great somewhat traditional way to celebrate St. Paddy’s day. Even though it was completely spontaneous and not planned, things don’t get better than this. Next stop the spring equinox.

Mary Walsh's Currant Cake マリイウオルシュのカラントケーキ

We like food themed travel shows. One of which was by Phil Rosenthal. It started as a PBS show “I’ll Have What Phil is Having” which evolved into a Netflix show called “Somebody feed Phil”. Although we had forgotten about it, turns out we had a copy of “Somebody feed Phil The book”. We rediscovered it while looking for another cookbook on the book shelf. It is an interesting read of behind-the-scene stories of the first 4 seasons but it also contains recipes provided by the local chefs they visited during the show. Among those recipes, was one titled “Mary Walsh’s Currant Cake”. Since St. Patrick's day was coming up and the current cake was basically an Irish soda bread my wife decided to make it. According to the book, although it was called current cake one of the secrets of why it tasted so good was that Mary didn’t use currents. She used sultanas (golden raisins) instead. Maybe she used sultanas because she didn’t have any currents. We, of course, didn’t have any currants either (we also didn’t have any sultanas). So my wife used raisons and dried fruit medley from Harry and David. (So really we should probably call our version dried fruit medley cake). As the queen of ingredient substitution in recipes my wife did not stop there. The recipe called for orange and lemon zests but we did not have any oranges. We did, however, have some Meyer lemons which have a flavor that is a cross between a lemon and an orange. So she used that instead and it worked well.

You can see the dried fruit medley and raisins on the cut-surface (picture #1)

Ingredients:
2 ounces (½ stick/55g) unsalted butter (room temperature), plus more for the pan
3¼ cups (450g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons (25g) castor or light or dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Zest of 2 Meyer lemons
1 cup dried fruit medley
1 cup of raisins
1 large egg
1¼ cups (300ml) buttermilk
2 tablespoons (30ml) heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and place a baking rack in the lower third of the oven.
Lightly butter an 8-inch round cake pan. In a large bowl, mix the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt together. Use your fingers to rub the butter into the dry ingredients. Use a citrus peeler to zest the Meyer lemons. Add all the zest and the dried fruit to the bowl with the flour mixture and stir until well combined.

Put the egg in a medium bowl and whisk in the buttermilk and cream. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the buttermilk mixture.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the remaining buttermilk, stirring to make a very moist, shaggy dough. Or, use your hands: grip the edge of the bowl with one hand, stir with a broad circular motion with the other. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface and dust your hands lightly with flour. Gently shape the dough into a thick, roughly 6-inch (15cm) round and use a bench scraper or large spatula to transfer the dough to the center of the cake pan.

Brush the top and sides of the dough with the reserved buttermilk mixture and sprinkle the remaining brown sugar on top (#2). Put the cake pan in the oven, reduce the temperature to 400°F (180°C).

Bake for about 40 minutes until the bread is lightly golden brown on top and sounds hollow when tapped (#3). Transfer the bread to a wire rack and let cool for about 20 minutes. Cut the bread into thick slices and serve it warm with butter.

This is a very nice soda bread. Perfect for Saint Patrick’s day. It had a dense moist texture and a mild slightly sweet taste. The robust flavor of the butter milk as well as the citrus note from the Meyer lemon zest came through nicely. The dried fruit added a nice burst of sweetness.