Gratin Dauphinois

(serves 8)
Gratin Dauphinois, or as the French call it Gratin de Pommes à la dauphinoise, is the fine dining version of scalloped potatoes. It is a dish of layers upon layers of thinly sliced potatoes bathed in creamy savoury goodness. Perhaps Gratin Dauphinois is the crème de la crème of potatoes precisely because of the amount of cream and milk it incorporates. This explains why it beats all other potato dishes hands down even though there is nothing special about it ingredients, and its method of preparation is unremarkable. It goes without saying Gratin Dauphinois is something every decent cook should have in his repertoire.

Ingredients

1. Waxy Potatoes (750g)
2. Cream (200ml)
3. Milk (200ml)
4. Garlic (2t minced)
5. Shallots (2)
6. Parmigiano-Reggiano (40g)
7. Butter
8. Sherry
9. Cumin
10. Tarragon

Preparation

1. Slice the potatoes. Each slice should be about 1/8 of an inch or 3mm thick. As its the waxy type of potatoes you can leave the skin on.
2. Mince a few garlic cloves until you get 2 heaped teaspoons of garlic. Finely chop 2 shallots.
3. Put 200ml of whipping cream and 200ml of milk in a pot together with the garlic and shallots. Add 1t salt, 1t cumin, and 1t tarragon and bring to a boil.
4. Arrange the potato slices into the pot, vertically as best you can. Add 1T of sherry and simmer for ten minutes, stirring gently occasionally to nudge apart any slices stuck together. Then allow the pot to cool.
5. In the meanwhile butter a 2 quart sized (i.e. holds 8 cups) casserole, preferably one with a cover. Preheat your oven to 175^oC (350^oF).
6. When the pot has cooled and the liquid within has visibly thickened, layer the potatoes a slice at a time into the casserole dish using a table spoon. Ensure each slice is coated in cream and take care to minimize any empty spaces. Spoon any remaining sauce, there shouldn’t really be much left over, over the top.
7. Cover the casserole and cook in the oven for 25 minutes. If you don’t have a proper cover, just use foil snugly crimped over the top edges of your casserole dish.
8. In the meanwhile grate 40g of parmigiano-reggiano.
9. Take the casserole out of the oven, but leave the oven on. Using a spatula, press down on the potatoes firmly to compress them. Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the potatoes. Return the casserole to the oven uncovered and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until you see a nice golden cheese crust.
10. You may serve your gratin dauphinois in the casserole or in square cake-like blocks on the plate with the main dish.

 Notes

• The boiling in the pot allows the cream and milk to interact with the starch of the potatoes, so it thickens before you begin layering. This is the only way the slices will be coated properly. If you are thinking to skip a step and arrange the raw potato slices in the casserole to do all the cooking in one shot in the oven, it won’t work. The potato slices will end up stacked together as if they weren’t sliced at all and all you end up with is boiled potatoes.
• Also you can’t just pour the potatoes and cream from the pot into the casserole in one go. There will be too many gaps and all the liquid will end up at the bottom. 
• Gruyere is the other cheese commonly used to top off this dish. You can also try a combination of both gruyere and parmigiano.
• You can do most of the preparation of your Gratin Dauphinois ahead of time, up to the point you have baked the casserole the first time and compressed it. You can even keep the casserole in the fridge overnight. Continue with the cheese and final bake when it’s dinner time.
• Although I’ve suggested waxy-type potatoes because they hold their structure better, if you decide to use starchy-type potatoes, remember to peel the potatoes before slicing them.
• Pommes Dauphine is a deep fried cheese ball, a different thing altogether; just in case you got confused.

 

Simple and Easy Lobster Thermidor, in a Ramekin

(serves 5)
My Lobster Thermidor recipe avoids the main pitfall of the traditional in-the-shell method; You can have your lobster meat nice and tender since you don’t have to cook it an extra time to first remove the meat from the shell. It is also simple and easy, you don’t have to worry about procuring whole fresh lobsters, halving them without breaking the shell, removing meat from the claw, serving an odd number of servings etc. In addition, you avoid the hassle of making a béchamel sauce. And it still tastes rich and creamy.

Ingredients

1. Lobster Tails (2=300g)
2. Mushrooms (100g)
3. Onion (0.5)
4. Mascarpone (200g)
5. Emmental (100g)
6. Parmesan (70g)
7. White Wine (0.75 cups)
8. Cooked Rice (2 cups)
9. Garlic (3t)
10. Butter
11. Tarragon

Preparation 

1. Boil 3/4 cups of long grain rice, this will become 2 cups when it is cooked.
2. Fully defrost your raw lobster tails if they come frozen. Separate the meat from the shell. Cut the meat into bite sized morsels.
3. In a bowl mix 20g of warm butter, 3t of crushed garlic, 0.5t of salt and 0.5t of white pepper. Add the lobster and mix well. Leave it to marinate while you do the next steps.
4. If your cheese did not come grated, grate it now. In any case leave the cheese out to warm.
5. Julienne half an onion into small bits and slice the mushrooms into thin slices. Pan fry the onions on low heat with a large knob of butter, adding the mushrooms once the onion begins to brown.
6. When the mushrooms become limp turn up the heat and add 3/4 cup of white wine. I tend to use chardonnay for its woody flavour. Let the mixture boil and reduce for 1 minute.
7. Turn off the fire. Add the Mascarpone to the pan and stir till it has melted. Next, gradually sprinkle on and stir in the grated emmental as you bring the mixture back to a low simmer. Finally sprinkle on two thirds of the parmesan. Turn off the fire as soon as the cheese has melted. Season with 0.5t salt, 0.5t sugar, 1t black pepper and 1T of tarragon.
8. Preheat your oven to 200^oC (390^oF).
9. Divide your cooked rice into 5 ramekins. Press the rice down lightly till it is flat, but do not compact it. Arrange the lobster meat on top of the rice.
10. Spoon the cheese sauce evenly into the ramekins and sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the top of each ramekin.
11. Bake for 15 minutes or until brown spots begin to appear on the surface.

Notes

• Make sure you let the emmental warm to room temperature before using it or it will separate into oily rubbery clumps.
• You can use semi cooked orzo pasta if you are not used to cooking rice, but rice goes better with this dish. For more information on rice, refer to my White Rice Page.
• The easiest way to separate the meat from the shell is to cut the shell in two lengthwise with a pair of scissors along the ‘spine’.
• For alternative cheeses, refer to my Cheese Page.
• Butter is essential to the taste of lobster thermidor, do not substitute with olive oil.

 

Crab and Cheese Faux Soufflé

(serves 6)
This is not a real soufflé as it uses what I call the french toast method, but it is permissible for a savoury dish and it certainly tastes as good as any traditional soufflé made from beaten egg-white. Within each ramekin, there’ll be that heavenly combination of crab meat and 3 different cheeses, melded into a fluffy body of bread and egg; sort of like crab gratin meets bread and butter pudding, only lighter.    

Ingredients

1. Canned Crab Meat (300g)
2. Capsicum (1)
3. Onion (1/2)
4. Diced Bread (4 cups)
5. Cream (1 cup)
6. Milk (1 cup)
7. Eggs (3)
8. Parmigiano Reggiano (40g)
9. Cheddar (80g)
10. Brie (120g)
11. Dillweed 
12. Cognac

Preparation

1. Drain the crab meat and then soak it in a blend of 1/2 cup water and 2T brandy. Make sure you loosen the packed meat so the brandy can permeate faster.
2. In the meanwhile, julienne half an onion and one capsicum (without the seeds). Dice slices of soft crustless bread until you end up with four cups of loosely packed cubes of bread.
3. Grate the parmigiano and cheddar. You can mix them together. Dice the Brie but keep it in the fridge to maintain its hardness.
4. Using a large pan, stir-fry the onion pieces on low heat with a knob of butter till they become limp. Turn up the heat, add a second knob of butter together with the capsicum bits. Stir-fry for one further minute.
5. Drain the crab meat (the second time) and add this to the pan. Continue stir-frying for 3 minutes, and then turn off the heat.
6. Add a blend of 1/4 cup warm water and 1T brandy, then mix well. Add the diced bread to the frying pan and mix until they sponge up all the liquid. Sprinkle on the grated cheese, 1T of dillweed and 1t of pepper.
7. Distribute half the pan’s contents evenly into 6 ramekins. There is no need to brush the inside of the ramekins with butter, this soufflé does not stick. Add the brie piece by piece to ensure even distrubution; they have a tendency to clump together. Top up with the remaining contents of the pan.
8. Mix half a cup of cream, 0.5t of sugar and three eggs in a large bowl.
9. In a pot, heat to almost boiling another half cup of the cream and 2/3 cups of milk. Slowly pour this hot half & half into the bowl with the eggs, stirring all the time to make sure the egg doesn’t get cooked. Pour the hot egg mixture into the ramekins and leave to settle for at least half an hour.
10. Preheat the oven to 180^oC (350^oF) and bake your soufflés for about 20 minutes. You can see them rise, so its not too dificult to know when they are done.

Notes

• I mostly use canned crab meat, as its most convenient. Raw frozen (but thawed) crab meat will also work. If you happen to be using boiled fresh crab meat you can skip the soaking in step 1.
• I typically add a can of crab roe paste in step 5 to amp up the crab flavour. This is canned by a Korean company called YDK. I didn’t mention this in the main recipe as some people may not be able to find it.
• I would use either red or orange capsicum (bell pepper). The yellow and green ones do go as well with the soufflé visually and they have a stronger taste. 
• If this recipe turned out nicely for you, you may want to check out this similar dish, my earlier liver pate souffle recipe.

 

Orzo in Blue Cheese and Pesto Sauce

(serves 4 full portions)
Orzo (a.k.a. Risoni a.k.a. Puntalette) is a great pasta variety I recently discovered. It looks like risotto and you cook it like a risotto, but the bouncy texture of these rice shaped pasta pieces is a nice change. Like in risotto, you have to use strong flavours to compliment orzo and in this recipe I have chosen a blue cheese and pesto as the main flavours. The dish is finally topped off with pine nuts and poppy seeds, a perfect balance of taste and texture.   

Ingredients

1. Gorgonzola (140g)
2. Gouda (50g)
3. Grana Padano (30g)
4. Orzo (250g)
5. Cream (1/4 cup)
6. Chardonnay (1/2 cup)
7. Chicken meat (350g)
8. Pine Nuts (1/2 cup)
9. Pesto
10. Poppy Seeds
11. Basil
12. Cognac

Preparation 

1. You cannot use stock cubes for this recipe as the stock needs to be unsalted. Make some chicken stock ahead of time. Simply boil one chicken leg with thigh, or an equivalent amount of other cuts or bones in 3 cups of water for a while and leave to cool covered.
2. Boil some water in a non-stick frying pan and turn the fire off. Stir 250g of Orzo in the pan for 15 seconds and then drain the water. This will get rid of some of the loose flour it is coated in.
3. Portion out the cheese next. I’ve picked the 3Gs for this recipe; The easiest way to get the right weight of each type of cheese is to look at the total weight of each package and cut out the appropriate portion by volume. There’s no need to actually weigh the cheese. Remove the wax rind of the Gouda and then cut it into 1cm cubes. Grate the Grana Padano coarsely.The Gorgonzola will fall apart easily, so there is no need to do anything to it.
4. Pour 2 cups of hot chicken stock into the pan with the Orzo and bring to a simmer. Add 1/2 cup white wine and 3 heaping t of pesto. Keep on a low simmer, stirring once in a while.
5. When half of the liquid has been absorbed/evapourated, add 1/4 cup of cream. Melt the  the Gorgonzola in the cream first, and when that has melted the grated Grana Padano. Finally the Gouda, stirring to prevent clumping.
6. Continue to simmer the mixture, testing the softness of the orzo frequently by trying a grain. I usually don’t have to, but add a bit of water if the pan gets too dry. When the orzo is just tender to the bite, turn off the fire and mix in the pine nuts and 2t of chopped basil.
7. Finally, the seasoning; add 1 flat t of sugar, a generous sprinkle of black pepper and 1T cognac. Stir, taste and add salt incrementally. The inherent saltiness will depend on your cheese so add a little at a time till the flavour is just right. You may not need to add any at all.
8. Plate the pasta. Sprinkle on 2T of poppy seeds and a bit more chopped basil as garnishing.

Notes

• You can swap in other cheeses but you have to replace each cheese with one of the same type. Its always 140g blue cheese, 50g of melting and 30g of grating cheese. You can check out what the alternatives are in my Cheese Page.
• The package I bought labled orzo as Puntalette. Maybe its because orzo is Italian for barley and not rice. A third name for orzo is Risoni and this mean rice in Italian. Regardless, you can use all three types for this recipe.

 

Linguini Quattro Formaggi

(serves 4 full portions)
Quattro Formaggi, the ultimate cheese lover’s (and vegetarian’s) pasta dish. Its deceptively plain appearance hides a treasure trove of flavour within. No meat or vegetables are used in its preparation, and all you need is a carefully chosen blend of four cheeses (that’s what Quattro Formaggi means) in a creamy sauce to please the palate. My recipe is easy to remember, 400g of cheese plus 400g of pasta plus 400ml of milk & sake. The four cheeses I use are common varieties: Roquefort, Gruyere, Edam and Parmigiano.   

Ingredients

1. Roquefort (150g)
2. Gruyere (100g)
3. Edam (100g)
4. Parmigiano Reggiano (50g)
5. Linguini (400g)
6. Milk (300ml)
7. Sake (100ml)
8. Onion (1/2)
9. Almonds (1/2 cup)
10. Chopped Parsley (3T)
11. Honey
12. Nutmeg
13. Coriander Seed Powder
14. White Pepper

Preparation 

1. Remove the wax rind of the Edam and then cut both the Edam and Gruyere into 1cm cubes. Grate the parmigiano coarsely.The Roquefort will fall apart easily, so there is no need to do anything to it. Do this ahead of time and leave the cheese to warm to room temperature.
2. Smash your almonds in a clear plastic bag using a meat mallet.
3. Boil a pot of water for the pasta, with 1t of salt and a knob of butter.
4. Julienne half an onion and pan fry with a dash of oil in a large saucepan until the begin to caramelize.
5. Add 300 ml of milk and bring to a low simmer. Melt the Gruyere and Edam in the cream first, stirring frequently to prevent clumping. When those two cheeses have melted, add the remaining two cheeses followed by the sake. For seasoning, add 1t honey, 1t nutmeg, 1t coriander seed powder, 1/2 t white pepper and 2T chopped parsley.
6. Simmer for a minute or two until the sauce is at the right consistency. It doesn’t have to be too thick as it will thicken as it cools. For most sauces you will add salt at the end but since cheese is salty, you will add sugar instead. Sprinkle on a bit at a time till you think the taste is right. The amount will depend on the types of cheeses you used.
7. Boil the linguini till it is semi-soft. Drain and then add the pasta to the saucepan. Reheat while tossing the pasta in the cheese sauce til the pasta is al dente. You may need to add a bit of water if the sauce begins to dry up too much before the pasta gets soft enough.
8. Plate the pasta. Sprinkle on the remaining 1T of parsley plus 2T of almond bits per plate.

Notes

Roquefort – a type of blue cheese

• There are some websites that tell you you can use any 4 types of cheese you like. I disagree. You can swap in other cheeses but you have to replace each cheese with one of the same type. Its always 150g blue cheese, 100g each of melting and medium cheeses and 50g of grating cheese. The traditional Italian lineup would probably be gorgonzola + mozeralla + fontina + pecorino romano. You can check out what the alternatives are in my Cheese Page.
• The cheese must be allowed to warm to room temperature or there is a chance some types won’t melt but become stringy instead.
• The easiest way to get the right weight of each type of cheese is to look at the total weight of each package and cut out the appropriate portion by volume. There’s no need to actually weigh the cheese.
• Nuts are one of the natural complimentary foods to cheese. I introduced some to provide added texture to the bite and to add a new layer of flavour. Even so, make sure you use meaty dishes for other courses to balance out the meal. You can also use half portions as appetizers.
• White wine is usually added in this sauce but if sake was invented in Italy, I’m sure the originators of quattro formaggi would have used sake. Many types of white wine can make the sauce taste unnecessarily sour. I have tried many different types of alcohol and I’ve found that sake adulterates the taste of the cheeses the least. 

 

Croque Monsieur (Béchamel variety)

(2 big or 4 small sandwiches)
Croque Monsieur is the ultimate grilled ham and cheese sandwich, one of my favourite things to have for lunch. Leave it to a Frenchman to make something as mundane as a sandwich into a gourmet dish. After you have had a properly made Croque Monsieur with a béchamel topping, like me you won’t be wanting to eat any other kind of ham and cheese sandwich again.  

 

Ingredients

1. Bread (1 mini loaf)
2. Emmental Cheese
   (1.25 cups grated)
3. Sliced Ham (100g)
4. Egg (1) 
5. Butter
6. Flour
7. Milk (2/3 cup)
8. Nutmeg
9. Cognac

Preparation

1. Grate a block of emmental till you get 1.25 cups of grated cheese. The block would be roughly equal in size to half a block of butter.
2. Slice your bread into four slices such that two slices can fit into the toaster oven at a time. They need to be twice as thick as a typical slice of bread, so you can’t use regular pre-sliced bread. I prefer a raisin loaf for that extra sweetness myself , but it doesn’t really matter what bread you use as long as its crust is not hard.
3. Beat one egg in a large flat container. Butter 2 slices of bread on one side and place them buttered-side up into the egg. The idea to to have only the bottom half of the bread soaked in egg, so you’ll need to do both slices at the same time. Place the two slices into the toaster oven, this time with the buttered-side down in the toasting tray and grill till the top browns a bit. This should take about ten minutes, depending on your toaster oven.
4. In a frying pan, melt 3T of butter on low heat. Sprinkle in 1 heaped t of flour and stir fry till it foams up and darkens slightly. Drizzle in 2/3 of a cup of milk, stirring all the while to get rid of any lumps. Sprinkle in a flat t each of nutmeg and pepper. When you see a nice white sauce, turn off the heat. Then add 1T of cognac and half of your cheese. Mix well to get a cheese sauce. When this cools further, you should end up with a cheese paste.
5. Arrange your ham slices on the toasted egg-bread. If you like, you can spread a bit of mustard on the bread before that. For croque monsieur, I usually prefer thinly sliced deli ham (the type with water added) as it is softer and adds more bounce to the bite. Sprinkle half the remaining grated cheese on the ham and then cover with the other two slices of bread.
6. Spread the cheese paste on top of the sandwiches and then sprinkle the remaining grated cheese over the paste. Toast in the toaster oven again till the cheese becomes a nice golden brown. This should take 15 -20 minutes. Parts of the bread that are not covered by the cheese paste will likely get burnt. Use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim some off that off and serve.

Notes

• Croque Monsieur means Mister Crunchy in French.
• A regular Croque Monsieur does not contain any egg. When served with a fried or poached egg, the same sandwich is called a Croque Madame. Technically, my version is a cross between the two. 
• Gruyère is often used in place of Emmental for Croque Monsieur, as both of these cheeses have a buttery flavour. Raclette is another option. Have a look at Cheese Page for more details.

 

Fettucine Carbonara

(serves 2)
This may be one of the most basic pasta recipes but the combination of bacon, egg yolk and cheese makes for a wonderful pasta sauce which is considered one of the great classics. Anyone can make this pasta dish with a minimum of fuss in a relatively short amount of time, using common ingredients. If someone who is cooking for the first time comes to me for advice, this is the recipe I’d recommend.  

 

Ingredients

1. Bacon (200g)
2. Fettucine (160g)
3. Heavy Cream (150ml)
4. Parmigiano Reggiano (40g)
5. Egg (1)
6. Chopped Parsley
7. Turmeric
8. Nutmeg 
9. Cognac
10. Honey

Preparation

1. Take your egg out of the fridge so it can warm up a bit.
2. Cut 200g of bacon (basically 6 strips) breadthwise into thin slices. I find that if you partially freeze your bacon in a stack, this will make the task all the easier. Put the bacon to fry in a pan under low heat until most of the fat has been melted to oil. The bacon itself should begin to crisp and turn to a dark shade of pink. 
3. The bacon will continue to cook until it begins to cool so turn the heat off a minute before you think its done. During this minute, mix 2T cognac with 1/2t of honey, 1/2 t of nutmeg in a bowl. Scoop out the bacon pieces onto a strainer held over the pan, such that the drippings fall back into the pan. Place the bacon into the marinade and mix well. For best results, you can do parts 1-3 ahead of time so the bacon has a longer time to soak and soften up.
4. Put a pot of water to boil with a pinch of salt and a dash of olive oil. When this boils, put your pasta in.
5. While waiting for the water to boil, finely grate 40g of Parmigiano Reggiano (or any of the other grating cheeses).
6. Then add the grated cheese, together with 150ml of whipping cream and 1/4t of turmeric to the bacon oil in the pan. Heat under low heat for a short while while stirring, until all the cheese has melted. Then turn the heat off once again. You should end up with a nice yellow sauce which thickens by itself over time.
7. When the pasta begins to soften and is about 3/4 done, strain the pasta and transfer it to the pan as well. At this stage, pour the bacon including any liquid in as well. Stir fry under low heat until the fettucine is almost al dente. 
8. Leave the pasta to stand in the pan. In the meanwhile seperate away the white of your egg and stir the yolk into the pasta after the pan has been given a minute to cool down. You can also use two yolks if you like. Stir immediately to prevent the yolk(s) from solidifying before it melds with the sauce.
9. As a final touch sprinkle on 1T of chopped parsley and some black pepper. Serve immediately.

Notes

• Strictly speaking you are supposed to use pancetta for a true carbonara but it comes in small cubes and I find that a lot of it gets left behind on the plate. Bacon on the other hand sticks well and evenly to the fettucine and that is why I usually use bacon.
• Carbonara verses Alfredo I
  Italians will insist that there should be no garlic or onion in a carbonara sauce, which are some of the ingredients found in alfredo sauce. Well for once I am in agreement with tradition.
• Carbonara verses Alfredo II
  However, I am inclined to use a limited amount of cream which Italians also insist belongs only in an alfredo sauce. The cream makes for a better dish, just make sure you don’t use too much or you really will end up with an Alfredo sauce instead.  Remember, a carbonara sauce is supposed to be thick and clingly – zoom in on the photo to get a closer look.
• If you have grappa lying around the house for some strange reason, by all means use that instead of the cognac (and skip the honey as well). If you are the adventurous type, you can also try Chinese Cooking Wine.
  

 

Macaroni and Cheese

(serves 3-4) 
A while back I came up with a ‘European’ version of Mac & Cheese, which contains a secret ingredient, bacon. When you want to add flavour to a vegetarian dish, use meat I always say. It’s great as a side dish or can be eaten on its own. I’ve also made it extra creamy by using mascapone and doing away with any kind of bread or flour.  I guess that sums up why my macaroni and cheese is European?   

Ingredients 

1. Emmental (125g)
2. Mascarpone (125 g)
3. Cheddar Singles (4 slices)
4. Farfalle Pasta  (3 cups)
5. Onion (1/2)
6. Bacon (5 slices)
7. Milk (1/2 cup)
8. Chicken Cube (1)
9. Coriander Seed Powder
10. Tarragon
11. Brandy

Preparation

1. The recipe starts off with a soffritto of bacon and onion. Cut your bacon and onion into pieces not exceeding 3x3mm in size. The smaller the better as they have to disintegrate into the cheese. The bacon needs to be almost frozen for you to accomplish this easily.  In a pan, heat the bacon until some of the fat liquifies and then add the onion bits.
2. While the soffritto is frying, cut the Emmental into 1 cm cubes so that it fills half a cup. Take the opportunity to dissolve a chicken cube in 3/4 cup of hot water to make chicken stock. Mash the cube with a spoon to ensure it dissolves. At this point, preheat oven.
3. When the onion softens, add the chicken stock and milk. Boil for 30 seconds. Next add the Mascarpone, then Emmental and finally the cheddar singles in that order, making sure the previous cheese has been fully mixed in and melted before adding the next one. Reduce this under low heat until you end up with about 2 cups of sauce. Flavour with 1t of white pepper, 1t of coriander seed powder, 1T of tarragon and 2T of brandy. Set aside.
4. Now for the pasta.  Pick a pyrex or casserole dish where the raw pasta fills about half the container. Boil the pasta for five minutes (olive oil and pinch of salt in water before pasta) and then strain. 
5. Place the pasta, which should still be hard, into the pyrex or casserole dish. Pour the the cheese mixture in and mix lightly. Bake for 20 minutes at about 180^oC (350^oF) or until cheese begins to brown.  

Notes

• OK, I didn’t actually use macaroni. I’ve swapped in bowtie pasta for macaroni as coats and stacks well but really any type of non-noodle pasta will do.
• Why am I using the yucky processed cheese instead of real cheddar? It melts well because of its inferiority and gives the cheese sauce just the right consistency by preventing the emmental from clumping. The emmental is the main flavour so don’t fret, no one will know there is processed cheese unless you tell them.
• You can also choose to make the macaroni and cheese in individual portions by baking a seperate serving for each person in a ramekin.

 

French Onion Soup

(serves 6-8 )
It is amazing that something as simple as onions can make such a fantastic soup. All this thanks to that someone ages ago who discovered that the sugar in onions caramelizes when it is slow cooked in oil, bringing out the onion’s hidden natural sweetness. This is a really labour intensive and time consuming soup, but it’s well worth the effort. You can serve it as is, or oven-baked with a cheese topping.

Ingredients 

1. Oxtail (2 pieces)
2. Onions (4 big)
3. Butter (50g)
4. Bay Leaves
5. Thyme
6. Garlic (4 cloves)
7. Oxo Beef Cubes (2)
8. Sherry

Optional Ingredients

1. Gruyere Cheese (100g)
2. French Baguette (1 short)
3. Flour (2T)
4. Miso (2t)

1. Start by making your stock. Into 5 cups of boiling water, add your ox tail, 4 bay leaves, 4 cloves of garlic, 1T thyme. Mash 2 oxo cubes in a bowl with a bit of hot soup first and add this to the stock as well. 
2. Simmer for at least two hours, or longer if you wish.
3. Slice your 4 onions into 1/4 inch rings. Using a heavy non stick pan, stir-fry the onions in a quater block of butter under low heat for about 45 minutes. The onion rings will slowly caramelize into a deep yellow colour and shrink to one quarter of their original volume. A sign that your onions are done is when they stop whistling. (you can do part 2 and 3 concurrently)
4. Strain the solids from the stock. Ladle some beef stock into the pan and then empty the pan’s contents back into your stock pot.
5. Simmer for a further half hour (you’ll need to stir occasionally as it sticks to the bottom) to bring out the full flavour of the onions.
6. Season with, 2T (or more) of sherry, 2t sugar, 2t miso, a generous sprinkle of black pepper. Stir and add salt to taste.
7. For best results, allow to cool and reheat before serving.

Baked Option (you’ll need ramekins)

1. Have your onion soup refrigerated. This stops the bread from soaking completely through before the cheese browns.
2. Preheat the oven to 180^oC (350^oF).
3. Medium grate your Guyere.
4. Slice six pieces of your french loaf diagonally so they just fit across the remekins and toast  them a bit (again to stop the soup fom soaking through too fast)
5. Pour your cold onion soup into your remekins, filling only 3/4 of the way up. Put a piece of bread on top of soup and then heap cheese on till it covers both the bread and any gaps.
6. Bake till cheese melts and begins to brown, about twenty minutes. Serve immediately.

Notes

• If you want to use flour, sprinkle in 2T of flour 3 minutes before the onions are done frying, and deglaze slowly while stirring. This is a trade off. The flour will bind away some of the oil that would otherwise film on your soup and give it a bit more body. However, you no longer have a clear soup. I do it both ways, depending on what else I am serving during the meal.
• Instead of oxtail you can use beef ribs or any part of the cow that has plenty of connective tissue.
• Isn’t Miso Japanese? What’s it doing in a French soup? Trust me, Miso goes really well with onions. If you have never used it before, check out my post on Miso Paste.
• Why aren’t I using French wine? I prefer sherry as it brings out the sweetness of the onions.
• If you can’t find Gruyere, either Raclette or Emmental are good alternatives. For further details, refer to my Cheese Page.
  

 

The Cheese Page

I have here various types of cheeses that are commonly used in cooking. You will use them in sauces, salads, as toppings, as fillings; their uses are endless. I have broken them down into 7 types of cheese: Grating, Melting, Ripened, Blue, Cream, Whey and Medium. Each type of cheese has its own unique characteristics and several specific cheeses are given for each type.

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Grating Cheeses

Parmigiano – a type of grating cheese

These are also called the hard cheeses, because they have been hardened over a long aging process. Consequently, they are less often found on the cheese board (but when served with honey and pear slices they make a delicious dessert… I digress). The grating cheeses, as the name implies, are often used in their grated form as a flavouring and thickening agent, such as in a carbonara sauce, or in risottos. They dissolve well and have a characteristic ‘sweet and nutty’ flavour.

1. Parmigiano-Reggiano is the most common variety, and is named after the areas in Italy where it is produced, i.e. Parma and Reggio Emilia. Parmesan is the French term for this cheese but it has also become a generic name for cheeses imitating Parmigiano. These powdered fakes only vaguely resemble the real thing and contain much more salt because of their short commercial manufacturing process.
2. Pecorino Romano is a stronger grating cheese than Parmigiano and is exclusively from sheep’s milk, pecora meaning sheep in Italian. In spite of its Romano name, it is made mostly in Sardinia nowadays. Pecorino Romano is preferred for pasta dishes with heavy sauces and in Risotto but because of its stronger smell, it is less often grated directly as a topping on pasta dishes. There are other cheeses starting with Pecorino, like Pecorino Toscano as they are also made from sheep’s milk, but they are (probably) not grating cheeses.
3. Grana Padano is a third Italian hard cheese. It is the mildest of the three and purportedly the best-selling hard cheese in Italy. “Grana” means grainy and “Padano” refers to the Po River Valley. This cheese is good with dishes where the cheese imparts flavour but should not smother delicate tastes, such as in a carpaccio, where the taste of fresh raw meat needs to be retained.
4. Manchego Viejo is a Spanish hard cheese similar to Pecorino Romano as it is also made from sheep’s milk. Do not confuse this with Manchego Curado which is a less aged version.

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Melting Cheeses

Gruyere – a type of melting cheese

Melting cheeses melt nicely (like ice into water), but they don’t dissolve (like sugar in coffee) as easily. When they melt, they remain chewy and don’t run. That’s why they are also called stringy cheeses. So melting cheeses are usually used in situations where the cheeses are meant to remain separate and distinct after melting, like in a panini or on nacho chips. 

1. Gruyère, being a Swiss cheese, is surprisingly used in a lot of French recipes. It is traditionally used to top off French Onion Soup, and is sandwiched in Veal Cordon Bleu and Croque Monsieur, two other perennial French favourites. It is also an essential component of Mornay Sauce and Cheese Fondue. Gruyère has a higher fat content, which gives it a distinctive buttery flavour when it’s melted.
2. Comté, this is a type of Gruyère, except it comes the area next to Switzerland in France. Another less popular Gruyère type French cheese is Beaufort.
3. Amozzerella is a low moisture mozzerella, a commercial variety invented by (surprise!) the Americans, as a pizza topping. This type of ‘fake’ mozzerella is made all over the world now. Unlike the case of the fake American swiss cheese, this mozzarella is actually quite commonly used in cooking, when it come to dishes where a stringy cheese is desired, like in lasagna or fried mozzarella sticks.
4. Raclette is another Swiss which is often eaten on its own when melted. There is in fact specialized equipment to slice and melt this cheese. It is softer than, but can generally be used as a substitute for Gruyère.
5. Wensleydale is a mild, creamy and crumbly British cheese. It is perhaps the best cheese for making grilled cheese on toast; the British certainly think so. Everyone is familiar with Wensleydale because it is the favourite cheese of Wallance and Gromit.

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Soft Ripened Cheese

Brie – a type of ripened cheese

These cheeses are characterized by a chalky white rind and soft yellow core. They are normally eaten as part of a cheese platter, so why are they here? Because they are sometimes served as appetizers as well. One way to serve ripened cheese is fried in bread-crumbed batter and another way is baked in filo pastry. In both cases, they are usually served with cranberry jam.

1. Brie and Camembert invariably come to mind when one thinks of French cheeses. The two are actually made pretty much the same way, from very similar ingredients and for our purposes, you can consider Brie and Camembert to be one and the same. The main difference is Brie is made in larger wheels, which leads to a less mature centre while Camembert is made in small cylinders and is therefore aged more evenly. The French insist on giving them different names because Brie originates from someplace near Paris while Camembert is from Normandy (you know how they are). The name Camembert is not protected so all foreigners only make the Camembert variety. One other minor difference is that there are double and triple cream versions of Brie.
2. Saint Marcellin is less common variety of French ripened cheese, from the Lyon area. It has a similar texture to Brie but it’s taste is not as mild.

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Blue Cheeses

Roquefort – a type of blue cheese

Blue cheese is a general classification of soft cheeses that are spotted or veined with bluish-green mould. During the aging process, rods are inserted into the cheese and this allows the cheese to be ‘infected’ with mould spores from within. They are crumbly, and have a salty and sharp taste. The most telling characteristic of the blue cheeses however, is their pungent smell.

1. Gorgonzola is frequently used in Italian cooking. It is more often than not found to be one of the four cheeses in quattro formaggi pasta sauces recipes. It is also sometimes served with polenta.
2. Roquefort is a blue cheese from the south of France and is commonly used to make blue cheese salad dressing. While both Gorgonzola and Roquefort use the same mould, Roquefort is made from sheep’s milk. When making blue cheese dressing, Roquefort is the traditionally the blue cheese that is used.
3. Blue Stilton is the other better-known blue cheese. It is the milder British version of Blue Cheese and is sometimes know as the King of Cheeses. As its milder and crumbly, it is sometimes sprinkled on top of salads.

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Soft Cream Cheeses
This class of cheese is defined by soft, spreadable, creamy cheeses. Some might say this is not really a class of cheeses but a group of cheese derivatives, but they are sure useful when it comes to cooking creamy dishes and desserts.

1. Mascarpone is a cream cheese made from a type of sour cream. It is milky-white in color and and has the consistency of hard mousse. A versatile cooking ingredient which can be used to increase the richness of sauces, and even risotto, Mascarpone is most well known as a key component of tiramisu and other desserts.
2. Burata is a cheese made from mozeralla and cream. It comes in a shell of regular mozerella but the insides are extremely soft, creamy and mild. Burata is usually eaten with a sweetened aged balsamic vinegar.
3. Petit Suisse is the next most popular non-pastuerized cream cheese. It is made from cows milk and with extra cream added. Unlike Mascarpone, it is mildly salty. While this cheese is often eaten plain with jam, fruit or compote as a desert, you can also use it to make savoury dishes creamy. Petit Suisse is also used in cakes, but only in France for some reason.
4. Philadelphia Cream Cheese is the omnipresent brand of Kraft cream cheese which has only been with us for less than 150 years. Philadelphia, which comes in the original harder block form and a softer tub version, is most commonly used as a spread on bagels, and is also the key ingredient in the non-baked cheese cake.
5. Boursin is another commercial brand of soft cream cheese which has become popular. It differs from Philadelphia in that it is salty and crumbly, and comes in various herb or pepper flavours. They are ideal for savoury recipes requiring cream cheese.

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Whey Cheeses
These cheeses are made from the whey that is discarded after the curds are used in producing ‘normal’ cheeses. Consequently, they don’t taste like other cheeses.

1. Ricotta is the only whey cheese I use with any regularity. It is neither salted nor ripened, giving it a very mild taste. Because it is a ‘blank canvas’, more often than not this white powdery cheese is used as part of a filling. To elaborate, ricotta is very versatile and can be made sweet or savoury, and it easily allows other flavours to be embedded into itself. It is found in cheese blintzes and cannelloni fillings for example. Ricotta is also used to make desserts for the same reason.
2. Feta, is not really a whey cheese, but it is cured in a whey and brine solution in the manufacturing process and coincidently has the same powdery texture as ricotta. It is however very salty in comparison. Feta, when cut into small cubes becomes the defining ingredient of the Greek salad. It is also used in various Greek pies and pastries.
3. Mozzerella. There is the real Italian mozzarella, those that come in brine. These can be made from buffalo milk (better) or cow milk. They are very soft but chewy and are best served in salads such as Insalata Caprese.

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Medium Cheeses

Edam – a type of medium cheese

This is just a generic classification of firm cheeses which don’t fall under any of the other categories. In fact the majority of cheeses belong here and I have just named a few. Also called semi-firm or semi-hard cheeses, most of them are pressed to reduce moisture. I would say that these cheeses typically appear in dishes like cheese soufflés or omelets, which don’t require cheeses with any special qualities. They are also often used in cheese sauces and cheese soups.

1. Emmental (also called Emmentaler) is probably the most famous cheese of Switzerland. It is a firm cheese, with characteristic large holes. In cooking, it is often used in to create golden cheese crusts, or gratins. In America, a commercial type of Emmental is sold everywhere as simply “Swiss Cheese”. This is widely used in hot sandwiches where the cheese melts and should never be substituted for Emmental in cooking.
2. Cheddar was originally from Somerset, England but has become the world’s most mass produced cheese. It ranges from off-white (natural) to dark orange (dyed) in colour. Because it comes in a large variety of sub types nothing too specific can be said cooking-wise about Cheddar, other than some version of it is normally used in many cheese soup recipes, in American macaroni and cheese and as a burger topping. Beware, many commercial cheeses use the Cheddar name, but are actually processed cheeses (yet another American ‘invention’) and often bear little resemblance to the real McCoy. Kraft singles for example are only about 50% real cheese.
3. Gouda is the ubiquitous Dutch cheese everyone is familiar with. As it is a ‘curd washed’ cheese, it is a milder substitute to the sharper Cheddar. Beyond this, Gouda is mostly eaten by itself or used in recipes which contain the word ‘Dutch’.
4. Edam, also from the Netherlands, is the low fat version of Gouda. It is unique in that it has very little smell. Use this if your audience has had little experience in eating cheeses.
5. Danish Fontina, the softer and milder version of the Italian original which it has overshadowed. It can be used as a substitute for Gouda or Edam (but not Italian Fontina).The last 3 cheese are typically covered with a red or bright yellow coating of edible paraffin wax making them easily recognizable. The coloured wax forms part of the rind and prevents them from drying out.