Yassa Poulet

A Senegalese mainstay--Yassa au Poulet Classique is African simplicity at its best: chicken, onions, and spices. The recipe was passed down from a friend of mine who was a frequent traveller in Africa. At her lavishly supplied African banquets, this dish was constant favourite.

I've modified her recipe only slightly (reduced the amount of oil) and also consulted Jessica Harris' The Africa Cookbook.




Ingredients

• 4 Tbs vinegar
• 1/2 c. lemon juice
• 2 Maggi cubes (or equivalent)
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 Tbs Dijon Mustard
• 1/2 c. peanut oil
• 4-6 chopped onions
• salt
• pepper
• cayenne pepper
• 1 habanero chile
• 1 frying chicken (cut into serving pieces) or 3-4 chicken breasts, cubed

1. Combine the ingredients in a large bowl. Prick the chile with the tines of a fork and add it to the marinade. Add the chicken and marinate, covered and refrigerated overnight.
   
2. Remove the chicken from the marinade and broil until lightly brown on both sides.
   
3. Remove the onions from the marinade and sauté in a large cast iron pot.
   
4. Add the marinade and heat until heated through.
5. Add the chicken pieces, lower the heat and simmer for at least 30 minutes.
6. Serve over white rice.
   

Homemade Sourdough

Fondant à la châtaigne (Chestnut Fondant) Nº1

The location: A square off the Cours Napoleon in the late afternoon, Porto Vecchio, Corsica.

The actors: Two weary, famished hikers coming off two weeks on the GR20, sitting in the shade of Église St. Jean-Baptiste.

The discovery: le fondant à la châtaigne

Here's our first attempt at recreating the experience...


Ingredients:

• 1 can (435g) chestnut purée, unsweetened
• 200g caster sugar
• 3 eggs, separated yolks and whites
• 30g butter, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC (170ºC fan-assisted)
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the chestnut purée with the caster sugar until well blended. Then add in the butter and vanilla extract, and finally the yolks. Mix until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
4. Combine egg whites with chestnut mixture until fully incorporated.
5. Pour into baking tins either with baking cups or well-floured.
6. Bake for approximately 25 mins until a skewer comes out almost clean but not entirely.
7. When cooled, remove from tin and place in refrigerator or leave to reach room temperature.

So Michel Roux jr may not like the air bubbles or some of the colours. But he hasn't tasted it. Just as decadent and delicious as the original of Corse. The texture was quite as sticky as the first one, and I don't think that the purée was as smooth. Any suggestions on tweaking the recipe are much appreciated.

Larousse Gastronomique

For those bibliophiles out there, Hamlyn has printed a new handsome UK edition of Larousse Gastronomique. Beautiful copper-coloured hardback with a slipcover. Well done.

(Blackwell)

Cheese Soufflé Revisited

PBS had done the world a great service. Without further ado, Julia and the cheese soufflé.

We maintain that we have always loved Julia before "Julia" was in vogue. In fact, about 10 years ago, we found an original imprint of From Julia Child's Kitchen. The conversational style and tolerance for culinary incompetence make it far more accessible than her monumental Mastering the Art.

Ben's Birthday Brownies

[I did not take this photo... ours is below. But, like stew, all brownies look the same.]

Ingredients
200 g dark chocolate
100 g butter
200 g cream cheese
360 g sugar
4 large eggs
60 g self-rising flour
Mixed spices (cinnamon and nutmeg in particular), about 1 t

Method
Preheat oven to 350˚
1. Melt chocolate, butter, and cream cheese in a bain marie.
2. Beat eggs with sugar.
3. When chocolate mixture is melted, incorporate by spoonful into the eggs. Whisk.
4. Add flour and spices, and mix just to incorporate.
5. Pour into a 10x12 baking pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes. (I made a half recipe, used a pan about half the size of this, and cooked them for 15 minutes. I am guessing at the cooking time here. The final texture should be like that of a fondant.)
6. While still warm, dust with confectioners' sugar.

Cooking Supplies

One of our favourite discoveries in one of the world's most expensive cities is Pages. The supplies are high quality and inexpensive. In the showroom (as with the website) prices are listed excluding VAT. If you don't own a restaurant, you'll have to add on 15% at the till. Still well worth it and cheap.


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On offer were some Luminarc tumblers that we fell in love with in Corsica and Italy. There's no fancy stemware; just hardy, low volume glasses.