Family Tradition of Summers in Provence: Pissaladière à ma façon

June 2nd, 2012

 

Nice France on the water by chef Morgan  

family traditions of easy summers in Provence:
Pissaladière à ma façon

Every summer I travel with my daughters to the southeast of France. We stay in the same quaint port village, about 15 minutes from Nice. Year after year we celebrate summer with the same families. The children catch little fish and crabs in the clear blue ocean and chase one another in the fields of wild herbs and lavender. The adults gather over a bottle of Provençal rosé produced nearby and discuss what has gone on throughout the last year. We pick up where we left off and not much changes except the height of the children. It has become a family tradition. Summer is just around the corner and we will be in back in France very soon. However, my head and palate are already there and as I was sitting in the never-ending Los Angeles traffic, I was whimsically thinking of  Provence and that morning daydream  inspired this week’s simple pleasure: Pissaladière (à ma façon). Read the rest of this entry »

Pissaladière (à ma façon)

June 2nd, 2012

 Pissaladière (à ma façon) french pizza

Pissaladière (à ma façon)

 makes one 9” tart

what you need:

2 tablespoons olive oil
20 ounces sweet onions (i.e., Vidalia), sliced ¼” width
1 fresh sprig of thyme, stripped
2 pinches kosher salt
⅓ cup Muscat, Sauterine or Verjus 
14 olives noires de Nice (or black oil-cured olives with the pits removed and olives halved)
12 anchovy fillets packed in oil (optional to rinse) 
1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted Read the rest of this entry »

two ingredients and five minutes: lotte-cigare (Monkfish cigar)

May 27th, 2012

 lotte-cigare or Monkfish cigar

two ingredients and five minutes:
lotte-cigare  
(Monkfish cigar)

In culinary terms, Memorial Day in America means celebrating with family and friends over uncomplicated, easy meals and it always involves a grill. When I am in Los Angeles, I grill as much as I can simply because nothing beats cooking in the beautiful outdoor weather (in Paris my kitchen is so small that the mere pulling of something from the oven will surely place my backside on the opposite wall…although there is a nice window). I am soon headed back to France so this week I was grilling and it was the flames from the grill, the lobster tails on the grill, and an unlit cigar which inspired this week’s simple pleasure: lotte cigare (monkfish cigar). 


Read the rest of this entry »

spring carrot purée

May 27th, 2012

chef morgan carrot puree 

 spring carrot purée

 serves 4

what you need:

1 pound diced orange carrots (trimmed not peeled)
2 cups (16 ounces) water
3-4 ounces olive oil 
3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon piment d’espelette (optional)
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (as needed) Read the rest of this entry »

venez avec moi en Alsace

May 20th, 2012

  venez avec moi en Alsace

An Overview

A family member, I deeply love, is loosing her sight. She has never been to France. She never will go. On a recent trip to the Alsace (alzas) region in the northeastern area of France, I called her. She asked me what Alsace was like.

Hotel balcony in Alsace region France by Chef Morgan

I stood on my hotel balcony and I gazed upon vineyards blanketing the entire Alsace region, the green horizon only broken up by small villages and castles. I struggled with words to place her there with me because descriptions can be flawed. Nevertheless, I tried to convey the warmth of this place and its people, the comfort of its food, and the beauty of the region. I told that:

  • The Alsatian people are warm and as welcoming as an embrace between reunited loved ones. 
  • The country breeze is peaceful and dreamy and it makes you whisper.
grape leaves by Chef Morgan
  • Grape leaves wave majestically in the breeze as if they were swaying to your favorite classical melody. 
plate with spoons
  • The food is generous with family-style plates of comforting meats, yet refined at the same time with the warm flavors of bacon, rendered goose fat, tangy cheese and sauerkraut, and notes of juniper berries, fennel seeds, and cumin.
various breads from france
  • The smell of cinnamon, allspice, and ginger spills into the streets from the boulangeries and fill you with the anticipation only a child knows waiting for Santa. 
basket of bread
  • Biscuits and breads are generously baked with French butter, nuts and dried fruits. It is Christmas everyday.
empty wine glass
  • Friends bond over apéritifs of the region’s delicate and fruity wines served in an elegant, petit green-stemmed glass and served with goose liver pâté de foie gras that has been embellished with a hint of ginger. 
goose liver pâté de foie gras
  • Where one vineyard ends, the next begins. Together they weave a green quilt with varying patterns and shades of green. Each square unique and adding to the richness of the region as a whole. 
Vineyard road in alsace france
  • Driving on the wine route is like watching the end of the film Cinema Paradiso  (where scenes of couples in various films are spliced together to form one continuous and passionate embrace) because leaving one winery, and approaching the next, fills you with a continuous reoccurrance of  joy and anticipation.
vineyard in alsace france

I realized then that the words were spilling quicker and quicker from my mouth and my voice was filled with excitement and she was appreciative but I was even more so, because it feels good to share a special discovery with others.It is now with the same spirit that I share my culinary visit to Alsace with you.

Venez avec moi en Alsace for a little taste of this special corner of the France.

LM

rooftops in alsace france

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Mother’s Day recipe 2012: crunchy chocolate and espresso almond cookies

May 14th, 2012
mug on law book

studying for bar exam by Chef Morgan

Mother’s Day recipe 2012: 

baking cookies, having the courage to follow your heart,
and being true to the woman that you are:

crunchy chocolate and espresso almond cookies

Recently someone asked my oldest daughter: “What do you want to be when you grow up?”  I remember being asked the same thing when I was her age. Watching her respond inspired this year’s Mother’s Day personal recipe for my daughters (below) and this week’s simple pleasure: crunchy chocolate and espresso almond cookies.  Read the rest of this entry »

rice and coconut milk smoothies

May 7th, 2012

rice and coconut milk smoothie by Chef Morgan 

dancing my way to a tropical paradise with Joséphine Baker
and one arm tied around my neck: 

rice and coconut milk smoothies

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles. I had been in the kitchen testing recipes all day and like Maria being called to the Alps, the hills of Mulholland were beckoning me. It was too beautiful to stay indoors. Time for a running break and enjoy some fresh air. That run and the aftermath that followed, with a little inspiration from Joséphine Baker, led to this week’s simple pleasure: rice and coconut milk smoothies. Read the rest of this entry »

rice and coconut milk smoothies

May 7th, 2012

 

coconut mango smoothie by chef morgan with garnish of flowers

 

rice and coconut milk smoothie

makes 24 ounces (4 6 ounce servings)

what you need:

½ cup aborrio rice 
1 cup water
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1  cup (unsweetened) coconut milk
1 cup crushed ice
5 ounces chopped fruit (strawberries, mango, bananas, or pineapple or a combination)

fresh fruit (as needed for garnish)
fresh pineapple mint leaves (as needed for garnish)
fresh edible flowers (as needed for garnish)

how to: 

  • Cook Rice. Place rice and water in a saucepan over medium-high flame. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer until cooked. If the water is almost gone, but the rice is not cooked, turn off the flame and place the lid on the saucepan. The carryover heat will finish cooking the rice. Let the rice cool slightly.
  • Purée. Place the rice, sugar, coconut milk, and fresh fruit in a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend until very smooth and the rice is completely puréed.  If you prefer, you can use the fruit as a garnish rather than a primary ingredient in the smoothie. Either way, you can store in the refrigerator until you are ready to enjoy.
  • Add Ice.  Add ice and blend until smooth. 
  • Adjust Consistency. If smoothie is too thick (and you like the flavor), add a little more ice to thin. If it is too thick and you want to bump up the flavor, add a little more coconut milk (you can sweeten it a little with stevia, agave nectar or more brown sugar if necessary). 
  • Garnish. Add fresh fruit and/or fresh herbs/flowers in a beautiful way. 

More recipes for runners runner icon chef morgan

coconut mango smoothie by chef morgan

it’s hot; it’s cold; it’s both: zucchini and sorrel velouté

April 29th, 2012

 

Healthy Soup warm or cold

it’s hot; it’s cold; it’s both:
zucchini and sorrel velouté

Raining one day; hot and sunny the next. While the calendar says spring, the weather weaves in and out of winter (and apparently this will continue). Unpredictable weather can be problematic when menu planning (and ordering) because the temperature necessarily affects how and what we eat. You would not want to eat cassoulet in July any more than you would crave a tomato-based gazpacho on a cold December day. Generally speaking, the beauty of nature is that if we eat seasonally, the food “in season” mirrors what our bodies need and crave: heavier, more filling foods in the winter to keep us warm (i.e., winter squashes and cauliflower) and lighter, hydrating foods in the summer (i.e., watermelon and tomatoes). But the climate change is throwing off our “food-dar.” It was the need to create meals that combine chilly-weather comfort with the lightness of spring (and that can be enjoyed whatever the temperature) which inspired this week’s simple pleasure: zucchini and sorrel velouté (served hot or chilled). Read the rest of this entry »

zucchini and sorrel velouté

April 29th, 2012

zucchini and sorrel velouté, simple soup by chef morgan

zucchini and sorrel velouté

yields 16 ounces (4 cup servings)

what you need:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 pound chopped zucchini, trimmed
2 cups water
2 handfuls sorrel, stems removed
1-2 tablespoons nonfat Greek yogurt
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 bouquet garni (fresh Italian parsley, thyme, 1 bay leaf) 
½ teaspoon kosher salt (and to taste)
4 turns on a pepper mill (and to taste) Read the rest of this entry »

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