Month: April 2017

Parisian walks

So, here am I in Paris just for one day before heading to Aix-en-Provence for work. Spring is turning heads here as much as sakura and hanami were in Tokyo and the beautiful warm weather and the jetlag invite for random walks and terraces farniente. With the Paris marathon raging on the right bank we decided to stay on the left bank and enjoy the fresh green of spring with a walk in the hospital La Salpetriere that has a beautiful park nearby the central church, before heading to the classic chic jardins du Luxembourg and finish on the Seine bank after browsing the art galleries in the 6eme. Paris is definitely a city to visit on foot, selecting random streets and seating here and there randomly to have a drink and a break. I personally love to seat at the jardin du Luxembourg drink stands at les Editeurs, place Saint Sulpice or place de l’Odeon. My favorite drinks when jetlagged and in France are some childhood drinks: diabolo menthe (mint syrup and sparkling soda) or straight freshly squeezed lemon juice. Have a beautiful week ahead!

the gardens of hospital la Salpetriere
the gardens of hospital la Salpetriere
Fontaine Medicis in the jardins du Luxembourg
Fontaine Medicis in the jardins du Luxembourg
Seine river from the left bank
Seine river from the left bank

Sakura rice v2

Now that I understand a bit better how to use the salted sakura, I decided to prepare a new version of sakura rice (the fridge being almost empty before our departure to Europe today). I decided to prepare it not with greens as I did last time but with sweet potatoes. So I basically prepared a sweet potato rice in which I added salted sakura flowers from the beginning of cooking. I didn’t washed them this time because I wanted to keep the salty flavor. What happened and was amazingly surprising is that the flavor of the sakura transferred a lot to the sweet potatoes and gave them a very flowery taste very close to rose. It was really delicious. A combination that has given me new ideas of recipes! Coming soon probably! In the meantime enjoy spring and blossoms every where!

Vegetarian quiche

We love quiches and I think I don’t cook some too often! There are so many variations that I can’t do twice the same one! Recently I’ve been using a lot of wheat bran in my breads, cakes, pancakes and quiche or tart doughs. It gives a fibery texture that I really love on top of being rich in nutrients. I simply add two large table spoon of wheat bran to the dough when kneading. For this very simple quiche with lotus root and shiitake I used also tried using okara in the egg base instead of tofu, which is also rich in fibers and protein and it gives a drier texture, a bit that of a fish cake that I really loved. So simple and delicious!

Soya milk curry rice

Curry-rice is always good to eat whether it is warm or cold, I love the creamy sauce with the veggies and the rice. All the textures, the colors and the flavors… yet I often find curry is too spicy for me. One way to soften it is to use soya milk instead of water to prepare the sauce. The soya milk add a good balance in the mouth without damaging the spice taste, but simply by softening the hot part of the spices. It also gives a beautiful pale shade to the sauce.

I used potatoes, sweet potatoes, lotus roots and carrots for the vegetables. 2tsp of curry powder, 3 cloves, 1tsp of cardamom, a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg. A 20cl pack of soya milk. In a greased heated pan I first roast the vegetables before adding the spices, salt and pepper and 1/3 glass of water and 2tbs of flour. Stir well. Then I add the soya milk and cook under cover for 5-10min, then remove the cover and continue until it has exactly the creamy texture I want. I serve immediately with rice.

Green salad

Winter and spring continue their little twists. My cooking is thus following the same pace. And for a warm spring day I prepared a nice little green salad with fresh lettuce, cucumber, okara and plenty of fresh coriander. Very simple and fresh. For the dressing I simply used a tbs of soya sauce. This salad is perfect to eat with rice, grilled fish or just on its own. Have a beautiful week!

Eclair ⚡️

With this horrible rainy and cold Saturday there was nothing else to do than cook some sweets and drink hot tea. After browsing a few recipes of things I wanted to cook, the unanimous choice was chocolate eclairs! And here I am in my kitchen, preparing pate a chou and custard. Of course chocolate eclair is not just enough so I also prepared two other variations: macha and chai. Each was just perfectly delicious. So here is my recipe. Eclairs consist in three preparations: the pate a chou, the custard and the coating.

For the pate a chou:

10cl of water; 10cl of milk; 3 eggs; 70g of butter; 110g of flour; a bit of salt and a tea spoon of sugar. 

In a pan heat the milk and the water. Add the butter, the sugar and the salt. When the butter has melted add the flour all at once and stir well. Continue cooking and stirring until the dough is smooth and doesn’t stick. Cool down a bit and add one egg. Stir until the dough is smooth again. Add the second egg and do the same and then the third egg and repeat again.

Pre-heat your oven at 180 deg. Use a pipping bag to shape the eclairs. Remember they will double almost size so tiny is better. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes.  

For the custard: 

30g of flour; 50g of sugar; 2 egg yolks; 25cl of milk.

In a pan heat the milk. In a bowl mix the eggs with the sugat, add the flour all at once and mix well. Add half ofthe  milk and stir well. Add the mix to ghe rest of the milk in the pan and cook at low heat while stirring for 5min, or until it thickens. Add the flavoring of your choice: cacao powder (2 tbs); macha powder (1tsp); chai spices: cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg… up to your liking. I personally like it with a lot of cardamom.

Cut the eclairs from the previous step in halves and fill with the custard. 

For the coating: 

I didn’t use the usual butter cream but rather a simple sugar coating made with ice sugar, water and macha or cacao powder for the coloring.  Add water little by little to obtain a rather thick mix, and apply with a spoon.

Keep refrigerated. 

Pierre

There are quite many Michelin rated restaurants in Kansai, many are Japanese cuisine restaurants. For A.’s birthday I was looking for a nice place to spend the evening, many are closed on Sunday and I couldn’t make a decision. After spending some time at the Saint Regis hotel, we checked in at the Intercontinental hotel (because it has a swimming pool, something I really enjoy when on business trip) and that’s only at that time that I realized their restaurant Pierre was a newly starred on the Michelin list. Their menu attracted me for being both simple and creative and I was not disappointed. Since I have a list of things I don’t eat that can scare more than one chef and A. has also his preferences that are different than mine I assume that we are a headache!!! But everything was perfectly adjusted and the plates were beautiful, fresh, and perfectly sized for us. Contrarily to many places in Osaka where meat is central, at Pierre local vegetables are playing a main part. If you are in Osaka, I warmly recommend that place, the service lacks a bit of confidence, but the food is exquisite. Wine pairing with the menu was really nice too. Booking is more than recommended as it is quite busy and if like me you have likes/dislikes the chef can accommodate more easily.

Pierre @hotel Intercontinental Osaka near Umeda station and Grand front.

Japanese spring vegetables at Pierre

pictures from the official website  

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