Poupette in the kitchen: 2011

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Brats and kraut leftovers salad

Boy, am I on a roll today, or what?

After receiving a lo-hot of cabbage in my farm share over the summer, I decided a few months ago to make my own sauerkraut. I won't be posting the recipe here, because I did not document the process with pictures and I basically just followed a random recipe found on the internet.

A couple nights ago, I decided to use the kraut in a basic beer-brats and kraut recipe. Long story short, I found myself stuck with leftovers and did not feel like eating full-on sauerkraut and sausages yet again today, so I came up with this salad on the fly.

INGREDIENTS (for 2)

- 1 romaine heart salad
- 1 small red apple
- 1 cold leftover grilled bratwurst
- about 1/2 cup leftover kraut
- shaved gruyere cheese
- white balsamic vinegar
- olive oil
- salt and pepper

RECIPE

- with a stick blender, puree the kraut with the salt, pepper, vinegar and olive oil: that will be your dressing for the salad.

note: I used white balsamic because I had this at home already. I think it might be better with apple cider vinegar, since it will pair well with the fresh apple.

- dice the cold brat and the apple in small cubes.
- cut the salad in bite size chunks.
- toss everything together, add the dressing and top with shaved cheese.

Bon appetit!

Winter roots and squash gratin

So..... Today I am going to a late "Halloween/day of the Dead" potluck dinner with my colleagues. I decided to tweak a french staple: the Gratin Dauphinois.

I decided to use whatever winter veggies were sleeping in my fridge, and ended up using potatoes, butternut squash, parsnips and turnips.

This recipe is dead simple. No pun intended ;)

Here goes:

INGREDIENTS (about 10 servings as side dish, 6 servings as vegetarian entree):

- 1 large butternut squash
- 1 huge turnip (same size as a rutabaga)
- 1 medium yukon gold potato
- 1 medium parsnip
- 1 small carton of whipping cream (I would normally use heavy cream, but that's all there was left at the supermarket today)

- a splash of milk
- about 2 cups grated Gruyere cheese (it really does make a difference to use this nutty-flavored delicious cheese in stead of cheddar or mozzarella. If you can, splurge! -it's not that expensive-)

- grated nutmeg (fresh is better, but already ground is fine too)

- salt, pepper

RECIPE:

- preheat the oven at 350F (~175C).
- wash, peel and quarter all veggies.

- using a mandolin, cut the vegetables in thin slices (~2mm thick).

Be very careful with the mandolin and protect your fingers with the guard. I promise that this is really the ONLY way to go with a mandlin. I recently discovered what it feels like to be a veggie going through that blade, and I do not recommend it... Lost the fingerprint and sensitivity on my right ring finger :(

- Put the vegetables in a thin layer on the bottom of a dish. Add salt, pepper, a little bit of nutmeg and some cheese.

Add another layer of veggies, salt, pepper and cheese. No nutmeg on that second layer. Then repeat layers only adding nutmeg every other layer (I find that if I add nutmeg on every layer, it becomes overpowering). Finish with a nice layer of grated cheese on top.

- Pour the cream and milk on top of the veggies.
- Bake in the oven for 60 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

- Enjoy!

Friday, September 16, 2011

2011 recap

It's been almost a year since my last post... Shame on me! It doesn't mean however that I've been slacking in the cooking department...
Here's a photo-recap of what's been going on in Poupette's kitchen since September '10: