Amazing how plants thrive when they have what they need, a bit of dirt, some sunlight and a little hydration.  My little eco-sprouts are growing like proverbial weeds.  Pumpkins, sunflowers and geraniums are up and leaning into the light on the sills of my kitchen.

Sadly the squash seeds, a few years old did not pop their little green leaves above the soil line.  They were planted in eggshells, a new experiment and not my favorite seedling method.  Hard to water, and so porous, they dry out fast, I think I prefer the paper cartons they come in.

Our resident magnolia suffered the most, it's beautiful blossoms turned to brown mush by the frost.  But with all the rain it seems to be doubling it's efforts with a whole new round of flower petals.   I love how Mother Nature responds to crisis, just double down.  Let's face it, she wins more than she looses.

Now, if it would just stop dipping below zero and pouring rain, I could beat back the weeds and dig in the dirt.

Dirt eggs, earthy, with a side of grit.  No, we're not eating them, but we'll be enjoying lovely stuffed squash blossoms by June, and prefect little squash come harvest time.

This is one of three eco-friendly indoor starting methods I'm trying this year for eco-seedlings.  The eggshells will contain the seedlings in a tiny cocoon as stalks harden and tender roots grow.  The shell then breakdowns in the garden when they're planted, adding a bit of compost  and calcium to the soil.

Getting dirty...

The eggshells I've never used before but I have used egg cartons.  Paper egg cartons break up easily by hand as you plant each seedling, the size, shape and depth is perfect.  The toilet paper rolls is a new idea, I saw it on a Facebook page I just LOVE called Backyard Diva along with the eggshells.  (Backyard Diva tells me she's launching her own site soon at backyarddiva.ca , can't wait for that and we will be sure to let you know when she does.)

Always open to new ideas in the garden and hippy-throwback that I am, I'm nuts about anything that reduces, reuses or recycles.  I find gardeners are a very resourceful bunch, and when the bug bites we will used every available space to quell the urge to grow.

So far I'm not as fond of the paper rolls, they're messy to fill and harder to manage than the paper egg cartons or the eggshells themselves. 

These seedlings will go into the secret garden that I cleared last fall.  This is a garden that will be entirely edible, some floral, some herbal, some vegetable.  By mid summer I want it bursting with colour, leaves and fragrance with tumbling vines and towering flowers.

Inside seeding is easy to do and it gives tiny plants a chance to spout and be nurtured before taking it's place in the garden.  Whether you're seeding a windowsill garden or growing for a bigger project, it's pretty easy to do.

For larger, dried seeds like the ones I'm using; nasturtiums, pumpkins, squash & sunflowers, I like to soak the seeds for 24 hours to help them soften before I plant them in the dirt. It helps pump them up and get those little germinators thinking "OH BOY!" before they bust their thin skins and spout roots & leaves.  Sometimes I give them a few days and allow them to sprout but at minimum 24 hours in a shallow pan of water.  To keep the humidity, cover with a clean paper towel and put them in a warm place - I like the top of the fridge.

Then it's as easy as a bit of potting soil and something to contain the roots, a bit of sunshine and a nice, moist environment.   By the end of the week I'll have every last window still covered as I continue to prep space, prune back perennial herbs gone mad and drag home bags of dirt.

We sure could use a week of wet weather, considering doing a rain dance... do you have to be naked for that?  That could frighten the neighbors. 

Seeds soaking... just in the light to have their picture taken. Use a nice dark, warm corner.

Time to get back to the dirt, to tend those things sprouting and eager for sun, the tiny seeds we sowed last year, the corner we cleared in a bargain with Mother Nature.  Gardens left unattended she takes back, covering them with her own brand of beauty; vines and leaves and saplings all muscling for position, seeking sun, reaching for rain, claiming the soil.

I am the grateful attendant of a garden long forgotten.  Last year I uncovered many of it's secrets; peonies, hostas and bleeding hearts long overshadowed by invasive species, and a wilding patch of rhubarb.  I reclaimed the  foundation of an old barn, where herbs had ranged and self-seeded and added new varieties that will flavour our meals and attract the busy bees adding dimension to their honey with dill blossom, lemon thyme and chervil.

Clearing the Gypsy Garden in the fall...

In the still cool days of spring we begin again, spouting in the kitchen and tending seedlings on window sills.  Last year much of my ambitious gardening  was curtailed by illness.  Now healed, and eager to work off the layers of comfort food around my middle - we dig.  I invite you to follow this year's Gypsy Garden and share tips & ideas for all things green and growing. 

The earth is so dry it's like powder, something tells me we're about to get a series of wet days,  so I clear and move those things in need of space as fast as I can,  because once the rain hits it's grow time, Baby!

 

"Gardening requires lots of water - most of it in the form of perspiration." ~Lou Erickson

Tip #37 from my grandmother's kitchen - how to soften brown sugar when it's become a hard, unusable mass.  

Ending this week with a little  kitchen wisdom; it can happen to any of us the brown sugar is neglected  for a little while, we lift the lid and it's hard as a rock.  All brown sugar needs is a bit of moisture to bring back that soft, scoop-able freshness.  There are several ways to do it, here's a few options:

1.  Seal sugar in an airtight container with a fresh slice of bread on top.  Let stand overnight and - fresh as a daisy.

2.  Sprinkle a few drops of water over the sugar, seal in a zip-seal plastic bag.  Let stand for two days and there's your softened sugar.

3. Got an orange?  Good.  Take a quarter piece of orange peel, place it pith (white) side down and seal it in an airtight container with your nasty sugar for a day, then remove the peel when it's job is done.  (A couple of slices of apple also works well.)

Not quick enough for you?  Need it now?

Alright then, put your hardened sugar in a microwaveable bowl, place it in the microwave along with a coffee cup half full of water.  Nuke on high for 60 seconds, if the sugar is still hard, go an extra 30 seconds.

No microwave?  Yeah, me neither.  Pulsing in the food processor works, makes a horrid racket though.

No food processor?  Place sugar in a plastic bag, wrap it in a kitchen towel and smash it liberally with a heavy pan.  This is also an excellent anger management technique.  I recommend it heartily if you have sullen teenagers moping about, texting at the dinner table.  Begin smashing that sugar without warning, while smiling, chatting happily about your day.  Failing all else, and for truly dramatic effect, got a hammer?

 What?!  Like I'm the only one to ever use a hammer in the kitchen.  

Fresh again! Time to make more cookies.

Truffles and their overt use in both His kitchen and My kitchen have turned me into a Truffleupagus (lover of all things truffled).  It's an expensive little addiction and a good excuse to share some newly acquired truffle-ology in a new edition of Food Gypsy CSI (Corinna's Secret Ingredient).

Truffles aren't such a big secret, they've been enjoyed by lovers of fungus for thousands of years.  They're prized for their earthy flavour and musky scent, and I thought I'd share a few secrets I've learned that keeps us in truffles --- without breaking the bank.

"If I can't have too many truffles, I'll do without truffles." ~ Sidonie Gabrielle Colette

Fresh truffles are a pricey purchase. This is due largely to their scarcity and difficulty in harvesting them. Truffle hunters will tell you that some locations yield year after year, while others are a once in a lifetime find.  Truffles hail from the tuber family, but having no foliage of their own, they rely on their host tree (oak  and hazelnut for most varieties, pine in the case of the Himalayan) to provide the necessary carbohydrates and chlorophyll.  This often results in a tell-tale stain on the surface of the soil, which truffle hunters, armed with dogs (and the occasional pig), look for when hoping to unearth 'black diamonds', the jewels of the kitchen.

Fresh truffles come in three grades: super extra, extra grade and first choice.  Grading is based on quality and size; the super extra can be as large as an orange; extra grade is about the size of an egg; and first choice is roughly the size of a walnut   Most of us would be lucky to see one above first choice, as they are often fought over by gourmets and premier chefs, though many would argue that the smaller truffles are richer in aroma and taste.

Oh, The Choices...

White truffles:  Alba Madonna, is known as the 'queen of truffles' for its musky, garlic tainted scent. Harvested in late fall in northern Italy, white truffles are the most expensive of the lot, an average one ounce truffle is worth between *$200 - $300.

Black Truffles:  The Black Périgord Truffle (pictured above) is named after the Périgord region of France, but is also found in Spain, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia and Australia.   This is a winter truffle harvested in December and January when its perfume is at its height.   A one ounce truffle is in the neighbourhood of *$150 - $200.

Chinese truffles:  A black, winter truffle variety. Among the most plentiful, it is often the most affordable. Among the varieties are the Tibetan and the Himalayan.   Look for Chinese Truffles to retail around *$30 per ounce for first choice.

Summer Truffles:  Often called Burgundy Truffles, they're found across Europe, and come in two varieties: one harvested in summer, with a pale flesh, and one harvested in December that is darker.  This variety is often used in truffle products such as truffle oils, truffle butters and truffle cheeses. If you find it fresh, expect to pay between *$125 - $150 per ounce. ( The Summer Truffle can also be found in a jar for about $75.)

Truffle Cousins:  In North America there is the Oregon Truffle, which grows in the Pacific Northwest.  A very affordable truffle option, a 1 ounce truffles will run you about *$35 - $50, but it is very hard to find outside its growing area.  The Pecan Truffle, or Texas Truffle, a small red skinned truffle, is found in the nut orchards of the southern United States, and is used almost exclusively in that region.

If you make an investment in fresh truffles store them in a dry cool place.  Ideally they're kept in good risotto style rice - which absorbs any excess moisture - and stored in the fridge.  This adds fragrance and taste to the rice, which later makes a beautiful risotto.  You'll also want to pick up a truffle plane (slicer) like the one above so you can shave thin bits of truffle onto a dish; these range anywhere from $25 - $95.

*Market prices vary.  Calculated based averages quoted from retailers.

"The most learned men have been questioned as to the nature of this tuber, and after two thousand years of argument and discussion their answer is the same as it was on the first day: we do not know. The truffles themselves have been interrogated, and have answered simply: eat us and praise the Lord." ~ Alexandre Dumas

Big Truffle Taste for Under $40...

You don't have to invest hundreds of dollars to have truffles in the kitchen. There are some wonderful truffle products for under forty dollars that offer terrific truffle flavour and aroma at a fraction of the cost.  Look for them in your local gourmet or specialty food store.

Truffle Oil ($20 - $39) and Truffle Salt ($12) are probably the most common truffle products and are easy to find.  I often see truffle oil on the shelves of higher-end supermarkets and it is perhaps the most versatile of the truffle products.  Saute in it, make a gnocchi with it, brush it on grilled meats or fish or make a batch of truffle aioli and be the star of the dinner party circuit.

Truffle salt is one to keep an eye out for, use it the same way you would any salt, for an enhanced flavour.   Both truffle oil & truffle salt are often used as a finishing agent, adding a hint of flavour and a whole lot of aroma, perfect for pasta, risotto and vegetable dishes.  Hot tip:  use the oil and salt as a combo and make popcorn a gourmet experience.

For bigger truffle taste, try Truffle Paste ($18). It's a thicker agent, with lass oil added, you need very little to flavour a dish.  Truffle paste can also take a bit of heat so it's safe to whisk it into sauces, or in any recipe to which you want to add that signature flavour.  It's terrific in mashed potatoes or as part a seasoning rub for poultry or fish.

Cream of Porcini & Truffle ($25) mushrooms and truffles heighten each other's flavors and the porcini is often used to extend a truffle product.  A rich, meaty mushroom,  it offers its own intensity to the truffle flavor.  Creamed truffle products are wonderfully rich and are often served straight out of the jar as a condiment with cheese or charcuterie.  If you use a truffle cream of any kind  to cook with, go easy with the heat, adding it at the very end to barely warm it and release the fragrance.

Truffle Carpaccio / Sliced Truffles in Oil ($40) is an inexpensive option for for presentation, and in dishes like Poussin en Demi-Deuil (chicken roasted with slices of truffle under the skin), though you will have to use more truffles to get the flavour intensity as truffles are not as bold once immersed in fat.

Dehydrated Sliced Truffles ($15) new techniques have allowed dehydrated truffles to maintain more taste.  If you're considering adding truffle to a sauce, ragout or stew, the dehydrated version could be the answer, the flavour is released as they rehydrate.  The best thing about dehydrated truffles is that they store for a long time and are light and portable, perfect for (gourmet) camping.

Not pictured: 

• Truffle Four ($12), can be used to thicken sauces or to enhance a dough or pasta.
• On occasion you'll find a dried truffle pasta ($9) made with truffle four, there are some good ones on the market, only way to find out is to try them and see.   
• Truffle Powder ($29), the poor cousin to porcini powder, it has little flavour.  Skip it and get a good porcini powder instead. 
• Truffle Honey ($21) is relatively new to North America, a mild honey infused with truffles, it's often used to baste game birds or drizzled over a good prosciutto.
•  And if you wish to dip a toe in the waters outside the outside our $40 price tag; Truffle Juice ($85/14 ounces) as the name implies, truffles, squeezed for their inner moisture content.  The juice is a very intense product, able to withstand heat and easily adaptable in the kitchen.

Two of our favourites in the kitchen at the moment; Porcini Black Truffle Paté ($32) and Black Truffle Oil ($29).  Truffle oil is often used as a finishing oil, added to the top of a steaming risotto or pasta, it explodes with earthy aroma.  The mushroom truffle paté can be used as a condiment with a nice piece of cheese and a heel of bread.   It also adds beautifully to finish a sauce, and makes for a magnificent pasta;  toss lightly with hot pasta, a bit of butter or olive oil and serve.  (Now considering its uses in the bedroom...)

Once you discover a few of your favourites, it becomes a mix and match flavour extravaganza.  Below; hanger steak with creamy potatoes and porcini mushrooms in a porcini truffle sauce and parsley roasted tomatoes.  Mushroom & truffle paté was used in the sauce, truffle oil used as a fat base to finish the steak and the whole thing is crowned with fine shavings of black truffle.  A simple meal at home, with five star restaurant flavour.

"Whosoever says truffle, utters a grand word, which awakens erotic and gastronomic ideas...." ~ Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, The Physiology of Taste.

Sources & Resources:

In Ottawa La Bottega offers a large variety of truffle products, in store and on line, as well as fresh White Alba Truffles in season (November).  For the most part, their supply is special order so if you're interested, call and reserve.

Also in Ottawa, The Byward Fruit Market offers several truffle products and three fresh varieties in season: Black Winter Truffles (January), the Himalayan (December - February) and occasionally the Oregon Truffle in the fall.  Again, supplies are limited, call the store direct at 613-2416542.

Online, check out Gourmet Store offering a wide variety of the products mentioned above.  Caveat: often the smallest quantity of fresh truffles they ship (in season)  is a quarter pound.  Start saving now.

I encourage you to add your favorite local stores for all things truffled in the comments below as a resource to other readers.  Can't be without our truffles!

While here for a little visit our favourite French Girl, Food Gypsy Editor Astrid DesLandes, was THRILLED to find that Nutella now comes in a new convenient size.  "Wow, finally a jar that will last a WEEK" she declared, quickly calculating how much that jar would put her luggage overweight for her return trip to Calgary.

"I'm sure it's worth it" I said.  Come on, the savings in gas alone, running back & forth to the store.  Think of the cost to the environment, all those extra jars to recycle.   Best to purchase a jar you can get your whole hand in.

"If my head wasn't so big, I'd put it right in the jar!"   It's true, she does have an unusually large head.  You know what they say about people with big heads... big hats.

That, right there folks, is a 5 kilogram jar of Nutella (11 pounds for those needing the imperial translation.) If there's more than 50 hazelnuts in a 13 ounce jar, then there are more than 676 hazelnuts in the new 5 kilogram (convenient, weekly) size.   Or, as it's known in Italy, Snack Size.   Now I know what to get her for her birthday.

A little Fun Food Friday for ya'!

"OK time to go, put down the Nutella now..." "NO! MINE... mineminemine!!!"

A Molecular Valentine from the Chef in my life.  This Valentine's Day instead of posting yet another red velvet cupcake, we decided to let Food Gypsy Technical Advisor, Chef B, loose with some food science to breakdown a few elements for you to try in your kitchen.

We call this sultry little appetizer From Russia with Love; smoked salmon with a potato salad in a light, grainy mustard dressing, grapefruit caviar, borscht jelly, asparagus sprouts, borscht spaghetti and a beet foam.

Molecular gastronomy is science and food taken to a whole new level.  Cooking has always been about science, the application of heat, cold, acid, fat, moisture, flavour, colour, texture and spice; understanding the properties of an ingredient and using techniques to achieve a desired result. Molecular gastronomy takes us several steps further into the world of beakers and Bunsen burners and opens up new methods, artistic possibilities and ways to experience food.

Several of our readers have expressed an interest in molecular cuisine, so we thought we might start with a plate that combines molecular applications along with some recognizable elements, to take the mystery out of molecular gastronomy.

Using three easy molecular processes, we've taken a relativity simple set of ingredients to a rather extraordinary result using the techniques of Gelification, Spherification and Emulsification.  

Gelification: the process of turning a liquid into gel which is a solid, jelly-like material that can have properties ranging from soft and weak to hard and tough.

In this application we used the additive Agar Agar to form the flat jellied disks, and borscht spaghetti you see here.

Agar Agar is not new; it's derived from a polysaccharide that accumulates in the cell walls of red algae and is often used in Asian desserts and as a vegetarian gelatin substitute.  Yes... it's seaweed. Many different kinds of seaweed (such as Irish Moss) have been used as thickening agents for hundreds of years in cuisine. Now Agar Agar is available in a powdered form for convenience and more accurate measurements.

Chef B combined Agar Agar with the clarified juices of that great big, beety, meaty borscht we made last week, then he took the (now) thickening liquid and pushed it through hallow tubing, chilled the whole works in ice water, removed it from the tubing by forcing air through and TA DA --- Borscht Spaghetti.

The remainder, we set in the bottom of a low, flat bowl, and he later cut and used it as a jelly base on the plate for colour, texture and structure.

Spherification: the culinary process of shaping a liquid into spheres which visually and texturally resembles caviar.

The delicate pink spheres of grapefruit juice you see, perched on the smoked salmon, were the result of adding Agar Agar to grapefruit juice, bringing it to a boil then dropping it, drop-by-drop, into ice cold oil.

The oil was chilled for almost two hours in the freezer, Chef B found he needed to drop five droplets, one on top of the other, to get the right size and to allow the liquid to sink into the oil and form a beautiful, delicate ball.  The only way to determine just what worked best was with a little  experimentation.

This is not Chef B's first experience with molecular cuisine; in his time with Le Cordon Bleu, he was privileged to see the grandfather of molecular cuisine himself, Hervé This, in action.  Since then he's used several molecular kits in the kitchen and often uses foams and jellies in his cuisine.

"Each molecular kit is a bit different, each brand of additive (e.g. Agar Agar) I've used has been slightly different in their results, just like different brands of peanut butter taste different.  I find l have to play a bit to know how I can use each, and how far I can stretch it to get the results I'm looking for.

When you're using molecular elements it's important to have a plan.  I can take any five ingredients and make you a meal conventionally, it will look good and it will taste good. With molecular cuisine you have to think in terms of how each element will play, how the plate will look, and how the ingredients, in each form, work together, and then you have to find the harmony.

It's like moving from a rock band to the Royal Philharmonic... "  ~ Chef B

Emulsification: the process of turning a liquid into a light air foam.

The additive involved with this technique is Soy Lecithin, which we added to stabilize the whipped beet juice into a standing beet foam. Lecithin is an oily substance that occurs naturally in the plant (soybeans) and animals (egg yolks) world.

Soy lecithin is a common food additive that you've no doubt seen on many labels. It's extracted from soybeans as a by-product of soybean oil production.  Soy lecithin is one very popular emulsifier and it's easy to use; simply add it to a liquid, whip to a foam and allow to stand for five minutes before plating.

A foam is a beautiful way to handle a sauce or a finishing element on a savory dish, in a dessert or a on a cocktail.  It has an almost explosive effect on the pallet, the air carries the flavor up to the sinuses and heightens the pleasure of the moment.

Everything else you see is very simple,  a rose of smoked salmon formed by rolling the salmon gently by hand and palming it as needed, to form the base and petals.  A light potato salad with chive, mayo and a grainy Dijon dressing was ring formed on top of a round of borscht jelly.  You also see drops of the dressing on the plate for added texture and flavour.

A fresh dash of asparagus spouts is positioned artfully under the salmon and on top of the potato salad. This gives the plate structure and texture. Then the rose is finished with delicate beads of grapefruit.

I'll be honest, without Chef B in the Gypsy Kitchen, this is something I never would have considered doing, but after watching the processes and plate come together (like a masterpiece), it gave me new ideas and took all the fear out of experimenting with molecular elements. 

I'd like to try it myself, I'll start small... with a cocktail or a dessert. I envision suspended drops of something, likely booze.  

But how does it taste?

In our time together in the kitchen I learned a great deal about the properties of various liquids and new textures and applications, but what I did not expect to learn was a new way to eat.

Eating molecular is about involving all the elements at once, like a complicated piece of music, if is not meant to be dissected, it's meant to be held in symphony.  The way this worked against my palate was surprising, like giving my mouth a new way to taste.  In many ways it was startling, something firm that is usually soupy, something smooth and round that explodes with citrus tang against your tongue, all backed by a smokey, fatty fish.

It made me stop and breathe between bites because that was the best way to ready my senses for a fresh onslaught of flavour.  I've never experienced food in quite this way before and that, in itself, makes molecular gastronomy worth the science.

More molecular for you to chew on, resources and recommended reading:

Kitchen Mysteries: Revealing the Science of Cooking (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History) by Hervé This

This is the original chemist of molecular cuisine, and his Kitchen Mysteries is essential reading for any serious food craft-er.  Science geek that I am, I love this book and often gift it (to fellow food geeks) because I find pleasure in knowing how (and why) things work.

If you're interested in playing with a few molecular elements in your kitchen, invest in a small home kit like the CUISINE R-EVOLUTION kit available on line from molecule-r.com.  Under $80 it comes with five additives, some specialized equipment like syringes and tubing and a very easy to follow along instructional DVD.

Personally, this was just my speed, it was almost idiot proof and had some great ideas for future applications.  If you're new to molecular, this could be a whole lot of fun without a steep investment.

For the serious among you, and those pursuing a career in the kitchen, check out Infusions 4 Chefs and their range of products and demo materials.  Including their line of El Bulli products, just because it's (currently) closed doesn't mean we can't learn from Ferran Adrià! 

May your Valentine's Day be filled with love... and all its elements.

A little something interesting for Valentine's Day with our Up Your Skirt Dessert; a reconstructed creme brulee, strawberry carpaccio, a dash of chocolate and a pair of edible gams.  What?  You were expecting cupcakes?!

From time to time I let the chef in my life loose in the kitchen.  When I want to stretch and try something new, I look at a recipe I've never approached before, something I've only enjoyed in restaurants or bakeries.  It forces my brain to adapt, overcome challenges that my arise and find solutions.  Sometimes it's a booming success, other times it goes straight into the compost.

After 20 plus years in the kitchen, Chef B's version of stretching is a little different from mine.  "Let's do something FUN!" he says, and so we strategize, borrow ideas and plan and I watch in awe as he experiments.

It was fun... and sometimes frustrating... but the result is rather fabulous.

This sweet ending was inspired by a page in "Grand Finales, The Art of The Plated Dessert" that features this stunning photo, that inspired Chef B and we thought it might be fun to show you something a little more entertaining.   In the original version shown in this photos, the final height was almost a foot tall.  We downsized to create an intimate, feminine design that's fun and sassy.

Love is in the air and up your skirt.

Chef B's Up Your Skirt Dessert is not nearly as complicated as it looks.  The creamy dome you see on the bottom is a simple creme brulee, cooked and cooled but rather than covering it with caramel, Chef Benoit took that beautiful, soft custard and combined it with gelatin for a firm texture we could build on, re-molded and chilled.

The creme brulee recipe, which we featured earlier this week, it's perfect just as it is; no need to go all fancy-shamcy, but if you want to try something completly different, follow along step by step.

Re-Molded Creme Brulee Recipe

1 envelope gelatin
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup water
2 ramekins creme brulee

Method

Combine gelatin, milk and water in a sauce pan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally.  Remove from heat, allow to cool for about 3 minutes, add creme brulee custard and blend until smooth.  Immediately re-mold and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

We used silicone molds so it was easy to unmold the final product.

The shirt is a simple caramel basket.  Caramel = melted sugar.  As it browns it turns amber and gets thick and gooey.  He then applied a little oil to the back of a stainless steel ladle (because it was about the right size we were looking for) and thinly drizzled the caramel to create this sexy little basket.

You could use this in a number of applications; under berries or to hold a mousse or meringue or, cast the caramel in flat sheet on a piece of parchment, break or cut it into interesting shapes and accent a gorgeous cake, a poached pear.  This is something to have a lot of fun with and use on it's own.

A couple of parameters to keep in mind, being made of sugar, it melts when it comes in contact with liquid, so if you're using hardened caramel in an application with any humidity (I.e: berries) plate and serve fast before it starts to wilt.  It's also HOT to work with so use caution hot caramel will burn your skin.  (Not a project to do with young children.)

The strawberry carpaccio is as easy as a dash of grainy vanilla and sugar on some thinly sliced strawberries.  Plate with some forethought, balance colour and texture.  Use the sweetened, coloured juice as an accent, like you see on the top plate.

The silky chocolate drizzle,  is merely melted chocolate (in a parchment paper piping bag) applied directly to the plate.  Accents around the creme brulee; also tiny, well placed, drops of chocolate.

The curvy calves were a whole lot more work.  Part tech; scanning the patten, resizing in photoshop, printing, cutting out a positive then transferring to a thicker card-stock for a negative that became our stencil, and part pastry chef; executing the stencil with clean edges, baking to perfection, removing cleanly without breaking and then assembling and placing them perfectly.  I'm exhausted just writing that.

The thin, transparent cookie dough is called Tuile, it's a spreadable batter that molds easily, is completely edible and very breakable.  Not sure if I will ever stencil with tuile again, effective but fussy.  Best to work with it when it's cold, it spreads more evenly that way and it cooks in minutes, so watch it like a hawk.

This element was the cause of much frustration, we baked several pairs of cookie legs; prepped the one you see above with a dab of chocolate to secure them to a toothpick, for shooting purposes.  We knew that the cookie would start to melt as it it came in contact with humidity and then droop, so we added the toothpick give me more time with the camera, plus another drop at the knee, to help keep them straight.

They broke as they were being placed, but my guy does not give up so easily.  He re-attached and adapted.

Credit where credit is due, Chef B had the patience of a saint, and the end result truly is stunning.  A risque little dessert.  What can I say, he's a food genius.

Chef B carefully constructs the final product. The three dark drops you see under the basket are also chocolate, to help hold it in place.

Chocolate Tuile Recipe (from allrecipes.com)

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
4 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup cake flour
5 tablespoons cocoa powder

A closeup so you can see the elements in greater detail...

Chef Lynn Crawford's  Pitchin' In, 100 Great Recipes From Simple Ingredients, is a refreshingly, simple take on food that is at once personal, conversational and very well informed.

The Chef in my life has shelves filled with the likes of Thomas Keller, Peter Gilmore, and Ferran Adrià.  His cookbooks are on a whole different level than mine.  This makes perfect sense, he has been in the kitchen for 25 years, and his skills are such that he can actually execute the plates that inspire him.  It is rare for him to pick up a book from the shelves of the Gypsy Kitchen and get excited, and I have never seen him ask for stickies to mark the pages of ideas he wants to try.

I cannot think of a higher compliment for a chef to say another chef loves her book.  (The pink markers are for him).

I am quite enamoured with Lynn Crawford's first cookbook, chronicling the first three seasons of her hit Food Network show Pitchin' In.  The photography is beautifully executed, it's not boxed and styled to death, the lighting is natural and soft.  In some shots the play of dappled shade complements the food so playfully; like the leg of lamb placed on a picnic table, ready to carve and share with friends.

The copy is straight from Chef Lynn herself, it's chatty and conversational and punctuated with her signature passion.  The liberal use of exclamation marks makes it all the more real, because when she speaks about food, Crawford's speech is peppered with them.  Each recipe is carefully thought out, with instructions not only on how to cook it, but also on timing and preparation: "While this cooks, do this, while that is cooling, start this...".

Chapters start with a colourful introduction based on her travels on land and water, both fresh and salt and an introduction to each ingredient as well as candid shots from the production of Pitchin' In, the series.  Between these pages, Chef Lynn covers everything, from lamb to berries, from catfish to lobster from avocados to pork.

"Not many people make pork belly at home, and I want to change that.  Step away from the chops and roasts you're so used to and take a chance on a cut that has long been ignored.  Simply rubbed with a spiced salt then braised over sliced Gala apples with apple cider and maple syrup, these are teh most heavenly bites you will ever put in your mouth. " ~ Chef Lynn Crawford's, Pitchin' In (page 161)

Long live pork belly... people we be braisin' more pork belly on Food Gypsy, this is a cause I can get behind!

We have several recipes bookmarked, mine include:  Apple Cider Pork Belly (hel-lo, like yea!), Tomato & Goat Cheese Quiche (wail till you see it), Bacon Wrapped Duck with Cranberries (double yum) and Potato Crusted Halibut (so pretty).  I've never crusted anything with potatoes before, new kitchen challenge for this Gypsy.

Chef B's bookmarks include: Lobster Rolls, Microwave Lobster (it is truly amazing, trust me... and Chef Crawford), Crawfish Beignets, Crispy fried oysters with Salsa and his favorite, Shallot Creme Brulee with Smoked Trout which he proclaimed as "super sexy".

If you've ever thought you might like to take a course in cuisine, or if a member of the family has suddenly started using every pot in the house, this is a must have book.  My favorite section is Chef Lynn's Basics; in it you'll find a primer on everything from basic stocks and sauces to rubs and marinades.  It is a short course in technique, simple and easy to follow.

To my mind it's this section that makes Lynn Crawford's Pitchin' In such an excellent resource in the kitchen.  A book that a home cook can refer to over and over again, and be grateful that someone had the forethought of printing it on a satin finish paper, which will easily wipe should it get splashed or splattered on.  Something tells me Chef Crawford would like that, very much.

Like Crawford herself, Pitchin' In, 100 Great Recipes From Simple Ingredients is not afraid to get dirty.

Among the things I find interesting about the culture of cuisine is the underlying symbolism behind food and no where is that more relevant than in Asia.   Some call it superstition and cast it aside but I have long enjoyed the interpretation it brings to the kitchen, the table and the daily practice of feeding ones self; body, mind and spirit.

In a time when fast food reigns supreme, when so many are disconnected from environment and each other; why not take a moment to reflect on the energy long associated with food from a culture rich in history and ritual, at the start of a new year.  After all, this is a people who have a God of the Kitchen.

The Story of The Chinese Kitchen God

Each year  Zao Jun,  the Kitchen God is assigned by the Emperor of Heaven to watch over each family and report on their activities.  On the New Year, the Kitchen God returns to heaven to file his report.

In the annual thank you dinner to the Kitchen God, sticky rice is served because if his mouth is full of sticky rice, Zao Jun can't tell tales.

Born under the Chinese astrological sign of the Dragon, I have a big appetite for life and living large.  Can't wait to spread my wings in 2012, the Year of the Dragon.  As the lunar new year energy kicked into high gear this week, I've been plagued by unusual food cravings (thus my recent journey to T&T Supermarket). So I took a few moments and look up the Chinese symbolism behind each and see what is this Dragon is really has an appetite for.

I simply can't get enough rice at the moment.  I'm not a big bread girl, I tend to opt for unleavened breads, but at the moment I am throwing over wheat all together and opting for rice, in particular, sticky rice.

In Chinese tradition, rice symbolizes fertility, wealth, luck and the link between Gods & Men.  This is among the reasons you see a bowl of rice on alters honoring various gods & deities across many cultures.  Rice, being such a large part of the Asian diet, represents life.  A home without it is poor indeed.

At this time of the year, in Chinese households you'll find Nian Gao (Sticky Rice Cake) symbolizing the increasing prosperity of each year.   I'm craving Lo Mai Gai, glutinous rice with combined with pork and Chinese sausage, mushroom and water chestnuts; wrapped in a lotus leaf and steamed.  Often associated with Dim Sum, this sticky rice is all about family togetherness (and it wouldn't hurt to shut up the Kitchen God).

Oranges and pomelo keep coming home in big bags from the market.  As it turns out, oranges represent wealth, good fortune and gold (we Dragons do love our treasure) and pomelo for abundance, prosperity, having children, good health and family unity.

Lately I just can't resist spouts; all sprouts and baby vegetables, just have to have them.  Sprouts, in particular bean spouts, represent your 'heart's content' and symbolize a fresh start to the year.   Theses delicate Singapore Bok Choy Spouts perfectly fit the bill, bright and fresh I just could not resist them, as it turns out this is more than just lunch.

Life Speaks Through Food

Over the holidays, I got engaged to the Chef in my life.  Along with him comes a 'bonus daughter' who is almost three and (of course) our two dogs (mine and his) --- we are a rag-tag bunch of hooligans --- but we are family.  Joyfully abundant, sticky, but fresh and still juicy thanks to a generous amount of healthy stream.

After a long absence, steam is making a big come back in the Gypsy Kitchen, sure this will appease the Kitchen God (and keep him from seeing me sneaking those almond cookies between meals).  Besides, it feels very Dragon to me.

Happy Chinese New Year to you, may love and life be filled with joy and a measure of magic.  What does your food say to you?

Be sure to feed the Kitchen God.

Resources:  Lo Mai Gai (sticky rice) & Singapore Bok Choy Sprouts found at T&T Supermarket
224 Hunt Club Rd Ottawa, ON
(613) 731-8113

Steaming tip: Steam Lo Mai Gai over boiling water for 15- 20 minutes until bamboo leaves are dark green and contents is soft. Best practice, line steamer with parchment paper or cabbage leaves to prevent sticking. Serve hot.