Creamy Spring Buckwheat, Chocolate and Chestnut Pudding Cakes and Thinking About Japan

Today I feel lucky.

I look around and I am surrounded by my family, my children thriving, playing without a care in the world, like healthy children do. Seeing the images that come from Japan are heartbreaking. How we can lose it all in an instant. In the blink of an eye our lives can turn upside down. Such devastation.

As soon as I heard about the news on Friday, I thought of my friend Keiko and wondered how her loved ones would be doing. I tried to imagine how I would deal with such news from afar, just as she is. Then, she confirmed her family is well. A sigh of relief.

I could't write a post without acknowledging all those people who have lost it all, but also the stories of survival and hope.

We are thinking about them.



And as for our weekend, it was quiet.

I spent lots of time writing while C. and my parents took care of the kids. I am so thankful for the beautiful weather so we don't have to be cooped up indoors. Well, at least the kids don't have to and that is what counts, no?

And so I continue creating and editing. Feedback from my editor has been great so there goes another sigh of relief.



M. loved snapping fresh and plump sugar snow peas out of their shell. So sweet that she ate pod and all.

J. played hard to get, shying away from my camera. He was busy flying his new kite.



And then we cooked, we cooked a lot.

Like creamy buckwheat with peas, fennel and watercress or chocolate and chestnut pudding cakes.

Not bad, wouldn't you say?



UPDATE:

Here is a good list of resources of how we can all help through donations.

Also, Chika is hosting a sakura fundraiser here.

I have also donated to the International Medical Corps.

I will keep updating as I hear more.

Thank you.

Creamy Buckwheat with Peas, Fennel and Watercress

Serves 4

3 cups of water
1/2 cup buckwheat groats
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbs olive oil
1 shallot, thinly diced
1/2 medium fennel bulb, diced
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
1 cup watercress
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
chicken stock, optional

Bring the water to a boil. Add the salt and the buckwheat. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes. Drain.

In the meantime, in a separate sauce pan, heat the olive oil. Sweat the shallots and the fennel until tender.

Add the cooked buckwheat, peas, mascarpone, parmesan, lemon zest, salt and pepper. If you feel it's too dry, add a little bit of chicken stock to lighten it. Serve immediately.

Ivory Lentil Salad, Strawberries and Buttermilk

As I am sitting in front of the screen trying to write this post, my mind went blank.

I have been cooking and photographing so many recipes lately that it is hard to remember which recipe I was going to tell you about. "Wait, was it the snapper or the vegetable tart?... Wait, what was I going to talk about?". It gets confusing.

I also realized that most of my blogging has been set aside for weekend cooking and baking when mom and I spend time in the kitchen together. I hope you don't mind. I hope that our everyday simple meals are also interesting enough to draw you into the kitchen. I hope so.



So just as we have been doing every Sunday morning, yesterday we headed out to the farmers market. It was sunny, breezy and beautiful. We did our round and got our usual eggs, heirloom cherry tomatoes, radishes and strawberries. Also several kinds of greens and beets.



Do you ever get anxiety after you go to the farmers market? I do. A good kind of anxiety. The kind that makes me want to cook everything at once and photograph it as soon as we get home. The fresher the better.

"Wait, don't put those away yet" I told my mom. "I need to take photos of them". She shook her head.

While I was upstairs shooting, she cooked some ivory lentils for lunch. They cook in about 20 minutes and have the perfect texture for a salad. A little bite still left in them. Perfect with spicy radishes, peppery watercress, sweet julienne carrots and a chili and garlic vinaigrette.



Kai Kai Farms had beautiful tiny little strawberries. So sweet. Then I remembered this recipe and decided to adapt it to include buttermilk, millet and a little bit of corn flour for some extra texture.

It was so good. We had it after dinner while playing a game of "Go Fish".



I also wanted to tell you that I am honored to be listed in Babble's Top 100 surrounded by such great bloggers. Thank you Babble.com!

Spring Ivory Lentil Salad with Spicy Garlic Vinaigrette

Serves 4

1 cup ivory lentils, rinsed
3 cups cold water
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup radishes, thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and julienned
2 cups watercress, washed
2 Tbs olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 tsp chili flakes
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

In a medium saucepan, combine the lentils, water and salt. Bring to a boil, lower heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain and cool for 5 minutes.

Toss the lentils, radishes, carrots and watercress.

To prepare the vinaigrette, heat the olive oil in a small saute pan. Add the garlic and chili flakes. Cook for 2 minutes or until it starts to get a bit of color. Do not burn the garlic. Add the vinegar. It will splatter so stand back. Turn the heat off and swirl the vinegar into the oil. Pour over the salad. Season wih salt and pepper. Toss and serve.

Sophie Dahl's Eton Mess and Watermelon Radishes

Sunday, we picked up our eggs from Robert. Three dozen to be exact. Oh yes, we go through eggs like crazy around here. M. loves her egg in the morning, oozing runny yolk and all. I have lots of baking planned for the week and the farmers market was my stop to get all my provisions.



We had a big dinner planned so lunch was simple. Roasted tomatoes, blue cheese and sliced watermelon radish with yogurt and dijon dressing. Something light and quick to keep us going.

But then came dessert.



Searching for inspiration, I laid out cookbooks and magazines on the living room floor. Sometimes just browsing through UK's Country Living and definitely Elle À Table, I get a surge of ideas coming through me. Then I glanced over to my right and I saw the back of Sophie Dahl's "Voluptuous Delights". There it was. The white and rose rhubarb eton mess with crushed up meringue, a wave of heavy cream and poached rhubarb. Such beautiful color.

I thought of the rhubarb I had in the fridge. The first rhubarb of the season. I had stewed it for breakfast that morning and still had some leftovers.

That photo was just too tempting.



Whipped the egg whites and slowly baked the meringue mounds until crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. Served with lightly whipped cream and the stewed rhubarb.

It didn't even make it to dinner. A mid afternoon sweet snack. Just because.



Eton Mess with Rhubarb

adapted from Sophie Dahl's Voluptuous Delights

3 egg whites
3/4 cup caster sugar
pinch of salt

Whip the egg whites until light and fluffy. Slowly sprinkle in the caster sugar and salt while whipping. Continue to whip until stiff peaks form.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spoon out the meringue forming 6 mounds. Bake at 250F for 1 hour.

Stewed Rhubarb

8 oz rhubarb, diced
1/4 cup cane sugar
1 lemon, juice and zest

Cut the rhubarb into pieces and toss them with sugar, lemon juice and zest. Cook for about 5 minutes until soft. Do not cook it to mush and keep pieces whole.

Serve the meringue with whipped cream and the stewed rhubarb on top.

Revisiting Old Favorites

We cooked a lot this weekend. Between all my recipe testing, mom's nourishing soups and C's barbecue experiment, we had enough food to feed an army.

"Do you want to come over for dinner Sunday night? Something very casual", I asked my friend K. It had been a few days since we had spoken and I really wanted to catch up. We can talk for hours. "I wouldn't miss it for a thing", she said.

We didn't have much time to make a dessert for Sunday's dinner so I started browsing through my recipe archives for a quick cake that I could serve with some cream and fruit. This chocolate and teff cake caught my mom's eye. "That one!", she said. A one bowl cake that is quick and super moist.

In our menu that night, we also had our version of niçoise salad with bonito from the Basque Country, potatoes, eggs, avocados and tomatoes, followed by chicken and chorizo paella.

And lots and lots of conversation. What I always look forward to.



Monday was a holiday and J. was home from school. He loves my mom's porrusalda or butternut squash and leek soup so he asked her to make it. Mine with a poached egg on top.

He also wanted his usual arroz con leche and I craved something light. Meyer lemon, almond and goat's milk custard, a variation of this recipe.



And so sometimes, nothing beats old favorites.

There Were Sour Oranges

"Want tiny sour oranges?", texted Lena late one afternoon. "Of course!", I texted back. Who would have thought she was going to become my best produce supplier this winter. "Where did you get them?", I asked. I was curious to know who had this sour orange tree. Even though they are indigenous, it is hard to find them these days. They came from one of her friends' tree down in Boca Raton and they had more than what they knew what to do with.

"I will take them all!"



I have been working non-stop on the draft of the first chapter of the book. I finally turned it in this weekend and I am anxious to hear what my editor has to say. I am not going to lie, I doubt myself every time I have to decide what makes it into the book and what doesn't. It can be quite a lonely process. A rewarding one, of course, but lonely nonetheless.

So in between testing recipes and shooting, I decided to take a break and stop by Lena's to pick up the sour oranges. They were so tiny and fragrant. Very, very sour indeed.



I came home and started talking to my mom about what to make with them. "Marmalade", she said. Of course she said marmalade. She is the largest consumer of marmalade I know. But I wanted something different to share with Lena and her family. I opted for a classic almond cake and I took it to her the following day. I think they enjoyed it.



"I feel like something with a pudding-like texture", my mom suggested Sunday morning as she was looking at the sour oranges we had left on the counter. I remembered last year's tangerine and pistachio cake. The tangerines were cooked whole in water until tender and then pureed into a paste. I thought I could use that same technique with the sour orange and make a quick cake with it.

We planned to go to the farmers' market so I decided to cook the sour oranges before heading out the door and finish it afterwards.



We came back from the farmers' market with spinach, turnips, leeks and many more of our usuals. Mom made a quick soup with the spinach, turnips, leeks, carrots and potatoes and in the meantime, I baked these cakes with the sour orange puree, coconut and almond flour, coconut oil and the eggs from Farriss farm. A one bowl recipe. So quick and delicious. It has a very light, moist texture. A cross between a cake and a pudding.



After lunch, we sipped mint and tarragon tea and nibbled on the glazed tea cakes. A quick nap and then an afternoon stroll with M. while J. and C. had a boys day out.

And so, that was our Sunday. Easy.

Glazed Sour Orange and Coconut Pudding Cakes

Makes 2 dozen canneles or 1 8.5"x4.5" loaf pan

1 lb (450 gram)s small sour oranges or kumquats
3 eggs
1 cup (200 grams) natural cane sugar
1/2 cup (150 grams) coconut oil, melted
1 vanilla beans, split
1/2 cup (60 grams) coconut flour
1/2 cup (50 grams) almond flour
3 Tbs (30 grams) tapioca flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Place the sour oranges in a medium pot and cover them with water. Cook them covered for an hour or until tender. Drain the water and place the oranges in a large bowl. When cool enough to handle, open them with your fingers and remove and seeds. Transfer the juice and the flesh to a food processor or blender and puree to a fine paste.

Measure 1 cup (300 grams) of puree into a bowl. Add the eggs, sugar, vanilla and melted coconut oil. Whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients and fold.

Scoop into a greased loaf pan or into individual molds. Bake at 350F for about 18-20 minutes for small molds and 45-50 minutes for the loaf pan. Insert a clean toothpick in the center to see if it comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool in the pan for a few minutes before unmolding.

Orange glaze

1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup orange juice

Whisk them until it forms a fluid glaze. Pour over warm cakes.

Scenes From A Weekend With Pennyroyal, Purple Cauliflower and a Lemonade Stand

This was a warm, Spring-like weekend, filled with all sorts of eclectic food and outdoor activities.

I suppose you could say our weekends are always eclectic when it comes to food. A mix bag of styles and tastes, which was very apparent last Saturday night when we hosted a dinner party for some friends.



I like coherence in a meal. I look for flow and harmony of ingredients and courses, but it is not always easy when sharing a kitchen with others. I have come to accept that C. and I just have completely different backgrounds, palates and food references. I come from the land where spices are rarely used, where vegetables make an entree and whole fish is simply roasted with salt, garlic and olive oil. He, on the other hand, loves bold flavors, hearty meats, anything smothered and fried. Smothered seems a good way to describe it.

So eclectic it is.

But our friends love it. They love coming over and having tortilla, pisto and ensalada mixta followed by gooey ribs and jalapeno poppers. They just do. And so Saturday night we had all that.



And then we found pennyroyal.

I believe I had pennyroyal tea once as a teenager in London. Minty and pleasant, but I never even knew what it looked like until this weekend. My mom and I walked around the West Palm Beach farmers' market. Got our eggs, purple cauliflower, pink turnips, watercress, heirloom tomatoes and before leaving, we stopped by the herb guy to see if there was anything new. And there it was, a pennyroyal plant.

"It's used as an insect repellant", he said. "Really?", I replied remembering the tea I had drunk years earlier. As soon as we left his stand, I started researching this mysterious plant and its uses. As it turns out, he was right. Pennyroyal can be used as an insect repellant, prepared as an herbal tea, as well as a delicious ice cream. So exciting.




Mom and I decided to make a light purple cauliflower soup for lunch after the over-indulgent dinner party the night before. Leeks, garlic, pink turnips and purple cauliflower cooked in vegetable broth. Perfectly soothing.

For dessert, an apple, almond and pennyroyal-scented crumble with some of the apples our friend Hilda had brought the night before as a hostess gift. She never comes empty handed.



And so there it was. A weekend of superbowl food, some Basque fare, a new ingredient and the lemonade stand.

Oh yes, the lemonade stand. The one that our neighbor Stella runs on the weekends in front of our home. She is quite the entrepreneur and J. loves helping out.

Aren't they the cutest? We might be biased.

Apple, Almond and Pennyroyal Crumble

makes 4 servings

1/2 cup (70 grams) superfine brown rice flour
3/4 cup (70 grams) almond meal
1/3 cup (70 grams) natural cane sugar
1 Tbs pennyroyal or mint, chopped
5 Tbs (70 grams) cold unsalted butter diced
4 apples, peeled, cored and diced
1 Tbs coconut palm sugar
1 Tbs lemon juice
2 tsp candied ginger, diced
1/4 cup apple juice
1 Tbs tsp pennyroyal or mint, chopped

In the food processor, combine the first five ingredients and pulse until it forms a crumbly sand. Transfer to a bowl and chill until ready to use.

Combine the rest of ingredients in a medium saucepan and cook for 5 minutes. Divide into 4 oven proof bowls and top with the crumble. Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes until filling is bubbling and the crumble is golden.

The Growing Season

It may be a shock to some of you to know that our growing season is actually coming to its peak. Despite some freezing temperatures earlier this month, we have had fairly mild weather that has allowed for crops to grow and flourish. Our farmers market is full of tomatoes, peppers and strawberries.



"Would you want some of our candy beets? They are ready to be harvested", emailed my friend Lena on Friday night. "Sure!".

I was excited to show my mom the beautiful little garden that Lena's boys have put together this year. It was full of beets, peas, greens and squash. The tomatoes were still a bit green, but I brought home a bag full of candy beets and pea shoots.



These kids really blow me away with how they are dedicated to looking after this garden and so knowledgeable at such a young age. Impressive. It reminds me of how lucky I feel to have grown up surrounded by nature and agriculture the way I did. It has showed me so much.

Speaking of where I grew up, El sent me a link to a recent show about the Basque Country. You could take a look if you would like to know more about where I come from.



Sunday morning, my mom, M. and I headed to the farmers market where we found beautiful local ingredients that will go into recipes for the cookbook.

We arrived home hungry and anxious to eat some of the gorgeous tomatoes. I roasted them with some olive oil, thyme, chili flakes and sea salt. Made a quick pesto, toasted breadcrumbs with olive oil and garlic and tossed it all with quinoa pasta. So fresh and ready under 20 minutes. My kind of meal.

For dessert, chocolate and raspberry financiers. A good Sunday lunch indeed.



Chocolate and Raspberry Financiers

Makes 12 financiers

1/2 cup (110 grams) unsalted butter
4 egg whites
1/2 cup (105 grams) coconut palm sugar
1 cup (100 grams) almond meal
2 Tbs (15 grams) cocoa powder
4 oz (110 grams) raspberries, fresh or frozen

In a small saucepan, heat the butter until foamy and the milk solids start to brown on the bottom of the pan. It will smell like roasting nuts; about 5 minutes. Strain the brown butter into a clean bowl and cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg whites, sugar, almond meal and cocoa powder. Add the cooled brown butter and whisk until all is incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple of hours.

Line a muffin pan with baking papers, place the batter in a piping bag with a round tip and pipe it into cups. Fill a little bit less than half way. Press raspberries into the batter. Bake at 350F for about 18-20 minutes.