High Fidelity

Cheese Soufflé

It's been a while since I updated this blog. Here is a French classic - Cheese Soufflé. The cheese puff is light-as-air but the cheese cream underneath, however, is as rich as it gets. This is a recipe adapted from Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cooking Techniques. It asks for Gruyère cheese but I substituted it with some British cheese which I believe should be the Red Leicester cheese because I don't have Gruyère and Red Leicester cheese melts really well.

Serves 2

- 2 eggs, separated
- 50ml dry white wine
- salt and pepper
- 100ml double cream
- 75g cheese (any easy-melting cheese)

1. Put the egg yolks and wine in a large bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water and whisk them togther until the mixture is pale and thick enough to leave a ribbon trail when lifted. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk until the mixture is cool.

2. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff. Fold the whites gently but thoroughly into the egg yolk mixture and season with salt and pepper.

3. Bring the cream to the boil in a pan and stir in two-thirds of the cheese until melted and smooth. Pour into two ramekins.

4. Spoon the egg mixture on top of the cheese cream, filling almost to top. Run a finger around the the inside of the rim to push the mixture away from the edge. Sprinke each with the rest of the cheese.

5. Bake at a preheated oven of 180 degree Celsius for 10 minutes or until the soufflé are puffed up and golden brown. Serve at once

Crêpes Suzette

Flambéeing crêpes suzette, originally uploaded by yongtze.

Crêpes Suzette is a typical French dessert but I haven't seen it in any restaurant that I have been to. This is a recipe from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I really like the intense orange flavour of it. If you prepare the crêpes and the orange butter ahead, it is easy and fast to finish this classic dessert. Practise the folding and flaming of the crêpes until you become good at it had you wished to perform this dish in public.


For 15 to 18 crêpes 4 to 5 inches in diameter:

- 3/4 cup milk
- 3/4 cup cold water
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon caster sugar
- 3 tablespoons orange liqueur (I used Grand Marnier)
- 1 cup flour
- 5 tablespoons melted butter

1. Place the ingredients in the blender jar in the order in which they are listed. Cover and blend at top speed until well mixed and the batter is smooth. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

2. Brush the skillet with oil. Heat the pan over moderately high heat until it begins to smoke. Immediately remove from heat, pour in a 1/4 cup of batter into the middle of the pan. Quickly tilt the pan in all direction to run the batter all over the bottom of the pan in a thin film.

3. Return the pan to heat for 20-30 seconds. Once the under side in a nice light brown, turn the crêpe and brown lightly for about 15-20 seconds on the other side. As doen, slide the crêpe onto a wire rack and let cool several minutes before stacking them on a plate. Grease the skillet again and proceed with the rest of the crêpes. You can keep the crêpes warm by covering them with a dish and seeting them over simmering water. Crêpes also freeze perfectly.


For the orange butter (6 serves):

- 1/2 cup caster sugar
- 2 bright-skinned oranges, wax-free
- 200 grams unsalted butter
- 1/2 to 2/3 cup strained orange juice
- 3 tablespoons orange liqueur

1. Peel the skin of the orange (only the orange part) and place them together with the sugar in a food processor. Process until the orange zest and sugar are finely blended. Cut the butter into small pieces, and add into the processor and process until smooth and almost fluffy.

2. Then, cream in the orange juice and the orange liqueur by droplets. Add a bit more orange juice if the muxture still remain creamy. Cover and refrigerate.


To finish off:

- 18 cooked crêpes
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1/3 cup orange liqueur
- 1/3 cup cognac

1. Place the orange butter in a large skillet set over low-moderate heat (or you can use a chafing dish set over an alcohol flame shoud you wish to perform this in public). Heat the butter until it is bubbling.

2. Dip both sides of a crêpe in the butter. Fold it in half and in half again, to form a wedge. Place it at the edge of the pan. Rapidly continue with the rest of the crêpes until all have been dipped, folded and arranged.

3. Sprinkle the crêpes with the sugar. Pour over them the orange liqueur and cognac. Avert your face and ignite the liqueur with a lighted match or a lighter. Shake the pan gently back and forth while spooning the flaming liqueur over the crêpes until the fire dies down. Serve.

Crème caramel

Crème caramel, originally uploaded by yongtze.

I have to say I am a crème caramel man. Crème brûlée might be fancier but crème caramel with its sweet smooth caramel and silky soft custard is always irresistible to me. The recipe is from Gerard Depardieu's 'My Cookbook', which he developed together with his head chef, Laurent Audiot.

Serves 4:

• 15g butter
• 500g milk
• 2 vanilla pods (I used 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence)
• 4 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• 50g sugar

For the caramel

• 2 Tablespoons water
• 10 sugar cubes (I used 10 teaspoons of caster sugar)

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degree Celcius. Grease 4 ramekins with the butter.

2. For the caramel: Boil water with the sugar in a thick-bottomed saucepan until it forms a pale golden caramel. Divide the caramel between the ramekins, tilting them in all directions to coat the base and sides. Leave to cool.

3. Heat the milk gently with the vanilla pods, split in half, in a large saucepan, simmering for 5 minutes. Remove the vanilla pods, scrape out the seeds and add them to the milk.

4. Beat the whole eggs, the extra yolk and the sugar in a large bowl until white and frothy, then pour in the heated milk in a thin stream, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. When the mixture is combined, strain through a fine sieve and pour it into the ramekins.

5. Prepare a bain-marie by filling a deep roasting tin two-thirds full with boiling water and setting ramekins in it. Bake in the hot oven for about 20 minutes.

6. Remove the ramekins from the oven while the custards are still slightly wobbly in the centre and leave them to just warm or completely cold. Serve them in the ramekins or turn them out onto individual serving plates, like this:

Crème caramel, originally uploaded by yongtze.

Orange soufflé

Orange soufflé, originally uploaded by yongtze.

It's always a magical moment to see a soufflé puffing up in the oven! Light and fluffy but full of orange flavour - This orange soufflé is easier to make than it seems.

Makes 2 soufflé

• 1 orange
• 170ml orange juice
• 100g sugar
• 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier
• 2 egg whites

For the orange strawberry sauce

• 120g strawberries
• 1 teaspoon Grand Marnier
• 2 teaspoons sugar

1. Section the orange, leaving only the juicy part - no seeds, skin, white pith, and membranes. In a medium saucepan, heat the orange juice and two thirds of the sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add the sectioned orange, simmer for about 5 minutes. Leave it to cool for a bit.

2. Measure 45ml of the orange juice mixture and put it in a food processor to blend - this forms the base of the soufflé. Work in the Grand Marnier. Return the orange juice mixture to the saucepan.

3. For the orange strawberry sauce, hull the strawberries. Purée them in a food processor with the Grand Mariner, sugar, and 1 tablespoons of the reserved orange juice. Chill for serving.

4. Heat the oven to 200 degree C. Butter two ramekins (250ml each) generously and chill them for 10 minutes in the freezer. And butter them again. Set them on a baking sheet.

5. Whip th egg whites with a teaspoon of the remaining sugar until the whites hold a stiff peak. Add remaining sugar and stir with a spoon until the whites are glossy and form a long peak when the spoon is lifted.

6. Heat the orange juice mixture until the edges start to bubble. Take it off the heat and add a quarter of the egg whites, stirring until well mixed. Add this mixture to the remaining whites and fold together as lightly as possible.

7. Transfer the mixture to the ramekins, filling them to the rim and run your thumb around edge of the mixture to detach it from the ramekin so it rises in a "hat". Bake the soufflé until puffed and brown, about 12 - 15 minutes.

8. Once done, rush the soufflés to the table because they will start collapsing once out of the oven. Poke a hole in the centre and pour in some cold orange strawberry sauce to serve.

Recipe adapted from Anne Willan's "A Kitchen in Burgundy".

An 'English' croque-monsieur

Melted cheddar cheese and bacon on toasted white sourdough, originally uploaded by yongtze.

A croque-monsieur usually has ham and gruyere cheese but I had none so I came up with this very English version of croque-monsieur - Bacon to replace ham and cheddar cheese to replace gruyere cheese. It is nonetheless still a very tasty and satisfying snack. I won't put the recipe here because there is a great video clip that shows how it is done: "How to make croque-monsieur".

Chicken sautéed with leek, garlic, dried chillies, and tomatoes

Chicken sautéed with leek, garlic, dried chillies, and tomatoes, originally uploaded by yongtze.

This is such a simple dish but you've got to try it to believe how good it actually tastes. This is the first time I tried sautéing leek and I'm glad that I did because its intense flavour gave the sautéed chicken a new level of excitement. As usual as in the case of simple dish with very few ingredients, you should use the very fresh and best ingredients you can find, i.e. free range meat and organic vegetables.

Serve 1:

• 2 chicken thighs, make 1 or 2 incisions near the bone so the meat near the bone will cook quicker
• 1 young leek, only the white part, sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic, sliced
• 1 dried chilli, sliced
• half tomato
• 4 tablespoons white wine
• 1 teaspoon unsalted butter for sautéing
• salt and black pepper

1. Heat up a sauté pan over high heat until it's very hot. Melt the butter and wait until the bubbles subside. Place the thighs, skin side down onto the pan. Do not stir or move the chicken, let the skin brown nicely, about 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper.

2. Turn the chicken to brown another side for 2-3 minutes. Always control the heat so that the oil is very hot but not burning. 

3. Once both sides of the chicken are nicely brown, turn down the heat to medium low. Turn the chicken again. Add the leek, garlic, dried chillies, spread them evenly around the chicken and cook for 30 seconds. After that, add the white wine and turn up the heat to high to evaporate the wine quickly.

4. Add the half tomato. Turn down the heat to medium low again. Turn the chicken. Add 3 tablespoons of water. Cover the pan and cook for 4 minutes. Check seasoning and turn the chicken again and cook for another 4 minutes with the pan covered. Check the doneness of the chicken, if ready, serve immediately, with rice. If not, cook for another 2 minutes before you check again. Bon appetit!

Brioche

brioche, originally uploaded by yongtze.

I have been baking too much Ciabatta bread and started to feel sick of eating the same bread. I went to C'est Bon for my birthday last week. They were serving the chicken liver mousse with toasted brioche and it was delicious! The brioche was very rich with buttery flavour and slightly sweet. So I decided to try making it.

There are a lots of recipes online. According to some, it is better to let the dough to proof and rise in a cool temperature like in the fridge overnight because of large amount of butter used, so that you get a smooth, workable dough, with little pockets of butter all throughout.

However, I wasn't patient enough to wait for 1 or 2 days so I followed the recipe that let the dough rise in normal room temperature so the whole process from start to finish baking takes only 3 hours (3 hours is considered short when it comes to baking). The result is surprising good - flaky crust outside and beautifully soft inside. However, you do have to work quite quickly incorporating butter into the dough so the dough remains cool and workable.

And I made my Brioche into a loaf shape instead of the more classically recognized form of brioche à tête  so I only slice what I want and keep the rest in the freezer because brioche freezes very well.

Recipe can be found here.

Cherry clafoutis

cherry clafoutis, originally uploaded by yongtze.

This is such an easy dessert to make and yet it looks so wonderful and impressive. It is traditional in the Limousin during the cherry season and is peasant cooking for family meals.

A pancake-like batter poured over fruit in a fireproof dish, then baked in the oven. Eat it when it's still warm.

Serves 1/2:

- 1 cup of fresh cherries
- about 120ml of full cream milk
- 2.5 tablespoons sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- small pinch of salt
- 2.5 tablespoons flour
- unsalted butter to butter the dish

1. Place all the ingredients except cherries and butter in your blender jar. Cover and blend at top speed for 1 minute for the batter.

2. Use unsalted butter to butter the dish. Spread the cherries at the bottom of the dish. Pour on the batter over the cherries.

3. Place in a preheated oven of 180 degree Celsius and bake for about 17 minutes. The clafouti is done when it has puffed and browned, and a knife plunged into its center comes out clean.

4. Sprinkle top of the clafouti with icing sugar just before bringing it to the table.

Chicken fricassee with sauteed musroom and double cream

chicken fricassee with sauteed musroom and double cream, originally uploaded by yongtze.

You could say this is a far distant relative of the famous Coq Au Vin. You can experiment with different variation by changing the principle formula below slightly because it is a great way to cook chicken if you especially like thick and rich sauce:

A. Saute and brown the chicken briefly in butter/or a mixture or butter and olive oil.

B. Add onion and/or shallot and/or garlic and/or bacon and/or blanched bacon.

C. Add chicken stock, and experiment with different wines: red, wine, sweet muscat wine, marsala wine, etc.

D. Thyme and bay leaf being traditional,  try others like sage.

E. Enrich the reduced sauce with either butter, or cream, or egg yolk, or both cream and egg yolk, or creme fraiche.

For this version that serves 2:

- 2 thighs and 2 drumsticks
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 25g butter
- 1 big shallots, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 150ml chicken stock
- 100ml white wine and 50ml marsala wine
- 75g mushrooms
- 50ml cream
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon beurre manie (equal amount of butter and flour blended together into a paste, usually to thicken sauce)
- salt and pepper

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat half the oil and butter in a large skillet, brown the chicken pieces on both sides until golden brown. Lower the heat, add the shallots and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.

2. Add the wine and stock, bring to a simmer and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked.

3. Meanwhile, saute the mushroom in a little of the remaining butter and oil and season with some salt and pepper. When the chicken is done, lift the pieces onto a serving dish and scatter over the mushrooms.

4. Mix the cream and egg yolk together in a bowl. Remove the skillet from the heat and skim any excess fat from the surface of the remaining juices. Stir in the lemon juice. Add the cream and egg liaison to the pan with the beurre manie, return the pan to a low heat and stir over a very gentle low heat until the sauce thickens lightly, but never let it boil. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then pour the sauce over the chicken and mushroom. Serve with steamed rice and some green salad.

Brussels sprouts in brown butter

Roast lamb with brussels sprouts in brown butter, originally uploaded by yongtze.

Brussels sprouts are great winter vegetable. They have this very fresh bright green and they go well with all sorts of meats, like here - roast lamb.

To prepare the Brussels sprouts: Trim off the stems close to the heads and pierce a cross about 1cm deep in the stem ends.

Brussels sprouts in brown butter

serves 2 as a hearty accompaniment
- 250g Brussels sprouts
- salt and pepper
- a big pot of rapidly boiling water
- butter

1. Plunge the sprouts into the lightly salted boiling water and blanch for about 4 minutes. It is done when you can pierce it with a sharp-pointed knife fairly easily. To be sure, cut one open and eat it, it should be slightly crunchy. (If not serve immediately, cook the vegetables in a large basin of ice cold water.)

2. Halve of quarter the blanched sprouts lengthwise. Add 1-2 tablespoons of butter in a moderately hot skillet. Add the sprouts when the butter starts to bubble. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Toss and swirl the skillet for several minutes until the sprouts begin to brown very lightly. Serve as soon as possible.