APERO MUNCHIES: CHICHI CHERRY TOMATOES

My favorite heure of the day: l’heure d’apero! Made even more enjoyable if in Paris. Such a modest indulgence really. An innocent drink en terrace with great company, watching a parade of Parisians. Peanuts, Greek olives and a waft of tobacco…it could be the calm before the storm…or just the calm before the calm.

What is also super nice is to host a few close friends for un apero at your apartment. Casual yet sophisticated. It could be just before you depart for the theatre or cinema or new Bobo restaurant in the quartier. Or it may even progress to an extended apero. Regardless, cherry tomatoes (and maybe a finely sliced saucisson) are the perfect munchies to have with un apero!

But perhaps you want to make an understated effort. So try these CHICHI CHERRY TOMATOES. An easy culinary maneuver, using ingredients that many would already have in their larder. And voilà, instantly impressed apero partners.

Captive companions: Cynthia and Sophie H, my adopted sœurs parisiennes

Captive location: My former Paris studio, 12 rue de Picardie, 75003

Captivating comment: “I made the most embarrassing language fault when I was flirting with this boy in French last night”

Captive drop: Un Kir

INGREDIENTS:

1 punnet of cherry tomatos, sliced in half (best quality you can afford)

1 bunch of basil

20 shaves of Parmesan

20 Carrs melts (or high quality wheat based biscuit)

30ml of balsamic vinegar concentrate (available at quality providores)

1.     Lay out biscuits on a serving plate.

2.     Arrange 4-6 cherry tomato halves on top.

3.     Using a pastry brush, paste a small amount of balsamic concentrate onto the cherry tomatoes.

4.     Top with one or two basil leaves.

5.     Finally top with a shaving of Parmesan.

NOTE: You could also use tartlet cases, for a super sophisticated finish. 

TUNA WONTON CRISP

Yet again I have failed to find a name for this Canapé that invokes utter sophistication. But do forgive me!  Once you taste them…I’m sure you will. The name certainly does not do this bite justice, though I was trying to be pragmatic. Further, I didn’t want to indulge in any form of foodie fusion/ culturally insensitive Japanese lingo... I’ll leave that to supermarket recipe books.

This canapé is simple and sophisticated! Sophisticated in both flavors and appearance and also elegant. The perfect partner for a fine French bubbly. Yes, it draws inspiration from Japanese flavors…a post-modern approach to fusion food.

I love making these for my girlfriends, as they are super light, delicate and great complements to mischievous girl talk. Between bouts of hilarity, Champagne top ups and perhaps a sneaky cigarette, these little bites seamlessly pop into the mouths of my dear friends. Voila… before you know it, the whole group is tremendously jolly, satisfied and most importantly, they don’t feel like they have over indulged!

Captive companions: Sophie, Kristy and Liv...my eternal girlfriends

Captive location: Poolside at Sophie’s Hamptons Maison

Captivating comment: “Where did all the champagne go?”

Captive drop: A bottle (or perhaps two) of Perrier-Jouet

INGREDIENTS

5 Taiwanese rice crackers or 10 wonton wrappers

2 tablespoons of Japanese mayonnaise

1 teaspoon of wasabi

250g of sashimi tuna (sliced into bite sized piece)

4 pieces of canned pear (sliced thinly)

Bunch of micro herbs: cress is best, though normal cress will also work

1.     Mix mayonnaise with wasabi. Alter according to your guest’s wasabi taste bud threshold.

2.     Break rice cakes into small bite size piece. For a more refined shape, use wonton wrappers. See note

3.     Lay tuna onto each rice cake

4.     Top with wasabi mayonnaise mix

5.     Add a piece of pear and finally a few micro herbs for garnish. Serve immediately so that rice cake retains its crunch

Note: The original recipe uses fried wonton wrappers instead of Taiwanese rice cakes. This makes each bite evenly square. To prepare, cut wonton wrappers in 4 even squares. Shallow fry the squares in vegetable oil, usually only a minute on each side (until golden brown, but be extra careful that they do not burn), then drain onto paper towel.

Recipe Source: Mark Pearce of Treat Catering Melbourne. One of my foodie mentors!

MUSHROOM RAGOÛT TARTS

Okay, so ragoût and tart is not really a fusion that is set to make foodie fame (unless cooked by a hatted celebrity chef on Australian MasterChef). And, I know that traditionally, a ragoût should be made of a base of either meat or fish!  But this recipe is as delicious as it is rustic, with a promise to impress any food snob. Be naughty, break a foodie rule!

Essential to this captive bite is making sure the onions are well cooked before adding the mushrooms. Drop the diet! Be extra generous with the butter and thyme! Try combining as many different varieties of mushrooms as possible. This makes the flavor more complex and hopefully more interesting for your guests. And also…don’t forget the salt!

Captive companion: Mr James, the inspiration for this recipe.

Captive location: Melbourne hipster café serving home-style spin offs

Captivating comment: “Mushrooms are sooo tasty!”

Captive drop: An Australian Pinot Noir.

Ingredients:

50-100g of butter (taste vs. waisteline, you choose)

3 onions, finely diced

5 whole garlic cloves

2 tablespoons of olive oil

3-4 sheets of short crust pastry

500g of mushrooms – shitake, oyster, inoki, wild, portabella (mix it up)

20 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed, stalks disposed.

20 shaves of Parmesan

1.     Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

2.     For pasty cases, butter cupcake tins. Cut out a circle of pastry according the size of your cupcake tins. Make 10 if large and 15 is small.

3.     Blind bake for 10 minutes, remove weights, then bake for another 15 minutes or until golden brown.

4.     Meanwhile, heat oil and butter in a pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Cook for 20 minutes or until onions are almost disintegrating.

5.     Add the densest mushrooms first, cook off and add the next variety until all are in the pan. Add thyme leaves.

6.     Cook until all mushrooms are soft (approx. 10 minutes). Remove garlic cloves

7.     Spoon mushroom mixture into tarts, making sure you give fair representation of each mushroom variety.

8.     Top with Parmesan. Serve either warm or at room temperature.

Note: Tartlets can usually be bought from high quality providore, if you don’t have the energy to muck around with pastry. This also makes a brilliant bruschetta topping. Use crusty sough dough bread.

BRUSCHETTA Á LA FAÇON GIOVANNA

It’s not often that I can write about a recipe with such heightened passion. As an avid gourmand and cook, I have come across so many fabulous recipes, but this one has left the greatest stamp on my heart (and stomach for that matter)!

It takes me back to a wonderful period of my life, when I was living in Paris, learning French and embracing la belle vie! My dear amie italienne, Giovanna, also an avid Francophile cooked for me in her shoebox apartment, just a short walk from Gare de l’est! We sat on her bedroom floor (under her elevated bed), eating off a make shift table and drinking a 10 euro Bordeaux from plastic tumblers. Bliss! Since them I have been totally enamored by the simplicity and wholesomeness of Giovanna’s Orecchiette de pomodoro!

So in the spirit of THE CAPTIVE CANAPÉ I have translated the original dish to a bruschetta recipe. But ether way, it will always transport me back!

So please, it’s my pleasure…go on, fall in love with this recipe…I promise you too will be transported!

Captive companion: Giovanna, merci beaucoup pour cette recette incroyable

Captive location: Una Tratoria in Capri

Captivating comment: “C’est très Italienne!”

Captive drop: A Barolo if budget permits, though really any red wine is a fine complement!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of olive oil

3 packets of cherry tomatoes (the best you can afford), halved

4 whole cloves of garlic, peeled (or more if you are like me and just can’t get enough)

8 sprigs of basil

16 shaves of Parmesan cheese

Crusty sourdough loaf

1.     Heat olive oil over medium heat in a heavy based frying pan

2.     Add cloves of garlic and allow them to infuse the oil for 3-5 minutes. Make sure they do not burn

3.     Add tomatoes and cook for 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are super soft.

4.     Slice off bread and toast

5.     Add tomatoes to top of toast (be generous), and finish off with a sprig of basil and two shavings of Parmesan cheese.

6.     Serve immediately (this is very important, as the recipe contains quite a bit of oil and you want the toasts to still remain crunchy!)

7.     Delizioso!

Note: This tomato recipe also goes perfectly with Orecchiette (the hand made ear like pasta). Simply cook the pasta as per the instructions on packet, once cooked al dente, mix in with the tomatoes and then serve with the basil and Parmesan!

THE QUEEN’S SWINDLE

I am totally enamored by these sandwiches! Foremost as they don’t look or taste like a sandwich; perhaps part of the reason for my overwhelming admiration! They are fit for a queen, given their delicate nature and fine ingredients (fish roe can be substituted for caviar if your budget and ethical position permits). The combination of fish roe, olive tapenade and Persian feta on top could just as well be jewels in the Queen’s crown. And they taste divine. So why is this such a swindle? Nobody will ever guess that they have a base of white bread!

Such a versatile canapé, really. They can be served for morning, afternoon or high tea and also pre-dinner or pre-lunch nibble. I find basil and dill to be the most apt herbs to use as the filling, given their piquant taste, though you can get extra adventurous and use super fresh thyme! Quality of the butter is important, as is the shape. A perfect circle departs from typical sandwich form and helps to seal your deception.

Captive companion: Paul, my favorite Queen

Captive location: A hot new design studio in Singapore.

Captivating comment: “Ummm doll, can you pass me another of those little canapé things!”

Captive drop: Champagne darling…

Ingredients:

1 loaf of white bread, sliced lengthways (if possible)

1 cup of basil

1 cup of dill

50g olive tapenade

50g Persian feta cheese or chèvre (goats cheese)

50g fish roe

50g French butter

1.     Butter two slices of bread, add basil or dill to top and sandwich with second slice

2.     Cut off the crust

3.     Using a rolling pin, roll the bread flat

4.     Take a round cookie cutter and push out the maximum amount of discs from the slice.

5.     Top each disc with a pinch of cheese, fish roe and olive tapenade

6.     Repeat until all ingredients have been utilized

Pop the champagne darling!

THE QUINTESSENTIAL DOLMA

The Greeks will always claim that they created Dolmas or Dolmades, along with Pythagoras theorem and democracy, though their heritage can also be traced across Turkey and the Middle-East. History aside, I can’t help but feel sorry for Dolmades. They always seem to be present, though rarely attended to and never the star of the show. They’re often relegated to the side of a mezze plate, overshadowed by bolder more attractive savories. Their delicate vine leaves usually collect a sprinkling of cigarette ash and wind up in the kitchen trash the next morning.

But it doesn’t need to be like this, if only you give Dolmades a chance to stand alone…they truly will shine! Their versatility means you can stuff them with a variation of meat, vegetables, nuts, rice and spices. The focus should be on creating a flavorsome filling and for this reason, I only added a little rice for texture. Below is my recipe, which is far from traditional, though very tasty! Follow your palate, throw in what you like and if brave serve with a pungent homemade tzatiki for that extra garlic kick…Yamas!

Captive companion: Pavlos, my dear Greek friend, eternally proud of his heritage.  

Captive location: A Ouzerie in Skiathos

Captivating comment: “I can’t believe you made dolma!”

Captive drop: Ouzo on the rocks

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 brown onion, sliced finely

½ Fennel, sliced finely

1 leak, sliced finely

4 cloves of garlic (or more if your palate permits!)

1 carrot grated

1 eggplant grated

2 zucchini grated

Bunch of dill, sliced finely

Bunch of flat leave parsley, sliced finely

1 cup of cooked brown rice

1 jar of vine leaves (20-30 vine leaves)

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Olive oil to serve

1.     Heat olive oil over medium flame in a heavy based. Cook off onions and whole garlics until for 5-7 minutes, until onions are translucent. Add in fennel and leak and continue to cook for additional 5 minutes. Continue to add in remaining vegetable ingredients and herbs.

2.     Stir mixture regularly and for a slightly smoky flavor, allow mixture to catch on bottom of pot. Continue to cook for 10-20 minutes, until mixture is broken down. 

3.     Add in rice.

4.     Remove garlics, crush them with a fork on a board and return to mixture. Allow mixture to cool for 10 minutes.

5.     Lay out one vine leaf flat on a clean bench, remove stem and add table spoon of mixture to the base of the leaf. Fold up the side facing closest to you, then fold in the sides of the leaf, then roll the leaf towards the top. Voila…repeat until you finish the mixture

These Dolmades will keep for up to five days in an airtight container in the fridge.