Camacho Watcho

Le Fournil – our best meal in Provence

katiejocannon — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 14:48:48 +0000

I admit that we made quite a few mistakes in Provence when it came to eating. First, we visited the area during the *slow* days of the week and second, we just didn’t think much to make reservations to eat anywhere. In a sleepy area like the Luberon, it just seemed contradictory to need to plan anything in advance.

I was highly anticipating the food we’d devour for dinners. I had lists of entrees, ingredients and the restaurants in which to find these delectables, but I didn’t have the Provencal mindset to go along with these. For instance, some restaurants are open all days but Monday and Tuesday. Others are open just for lunch on these days but not for dinner, and so on. Information posted in guidebooks (even recent ones) was found to be generally out of date.

We encountered restaurants that were closed for the evening (despite our previous research) and other restaurants that were “full” for the evening. And while I love the concept of a place being considered “full” at 7:30pm, as there is only one sitting and diners have the table for the night, my heart broke as I looked around the restaurant at all the happy people clinking their glasses. Turning sadly to leave the restaurant, I decided that the next trip would take better planning.

It was time to take some advice. Our inn owner suggested that he call for reservations for us the following evening at a restaurant that he highly recommended. This is how we came to dine at Le Fournil on our final evening.

Le Fournil was on our list of places to try while in Provence. We had, however, previously stopped by for lunch while in Bonnieux, but found it closed (of course). Upon our return the next day for our 7:30pm dinner reservation, however, we found a bustling restaurant that was, thankfully, open. Without a second thought, we both ordered the menu which included an amuse, salad, entree, cheese and dessert.

Asparagus was in season while we were in town, so it wasn’t surprising when a chilled asparagus soup arrived for our starter course. We both were giddy at how asparagus-y it tasted. And while I apologize for my lack of descriptive food writing here, simple food can sometimes only be described that simply. So I’ll say it again: it was the ultimate in asparagus-y. Served chilled, the grassy qualities came forward — a clean and refreshing way to start the meal.

I love how French eat their meals with an abundance of bread to mop up the sauces — not letting a morsel go to waste. I so badly wanted to sop up the rest of the asparagus soup with warm bread and was thankful when the man eating next to us did that very thing. Following suit, we left not a drop on our plates; going through three bread bowls in total.

Following the soup, we each had a salad course; mine a second asparagus course (pictured above). I love asparagus! Following were two of the most amazing entrees — lamb for me and pigeon for Kyle.

And, of course, we mopped these plates clean as well. SO MUCH YUMMY BREAD!

Perhaps we were a bit aggressive to both order the menu with the cheese course. We had no idea that we each would receive a platter for five generous servings of cheese with a salad as well. No matter, we dug into the cheeses, doing as much damage as we could before moving on to dessert — strawberry tiramisu for Kyle and a chocolate mousse for me.

Finally — Our best meal in Provence!

Hanging with Guy Fieri

katiejocannon — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:32:09 +0000

Before posting more Europe photos, I wanted share a timely piece that just posted on Heavy Table about my behind the scenes look at Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives while they were filming in the Twin Cities. The production crews of this show are incredible and I had such a great time hanging out with them!

View my Heavy Table article and photos here.

Breakfast in Provence

katiejocannon — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 03:18:40 +0000

Earlier this summer, Kyle and I took a trip to Europe. Our initial intentions were to hit northern Spain, but as we got around to actually booking tickets and seeing what was available, our plans changed.

Our final itinerary, which we dubbed Milan to Madrid, had us arriving into Milan, training it to Nice, renting a car and spending several days in Provence, then on to Barcelona and finally out of Madrid.

My next few posts will hit on the fabulous food of this trip. I thought it only appropriate to start with my favorite breakfast, which we had each morning in Provence.

Our time in Provence was spent in the hilly area of the Luberon. We drove aimlessly through small towns and countryside, taking in the vineyards and cherry groves. At times we consulted a map, but for the most part we just made up our minds as we went along. The countryside is gorgeous — stone buildings created from the rocks that are scattered throughout the fields and the poppy fields were in full bloom. A couple weeks later and we would have been there for lavender season — maybe next time.

Each day we started out with breakfast at our inn. Simple pleasures like toasted baguette and croissants with butter and jam and homemade yogurt served outside made for an idyllic start to the day. And despite the many espressos we enjoyed on our trip, we easily polished off a big carafe of cafe Americano with our meal each morning, ensuring we were fully caffeinated for our days of wandering.

Down on the Farm

katiejocannon — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:36:45 +0000

Lucky girl! I enjoyed dinner on the farm for the Tangletown Farms Tour de Farm event in June. I photographed and Maja wrote about it for Heavy Table. Maja’s write-up and my photos are here.

Hello, Old Friend

katiejocannon — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:04:15 +0000

It’s been a while. Okay, okay…it’s been a looong while since I’ve posted anything here. Happily, this means that I’ve been busy with work, travel and projects. More on that another time, but for now I’ll just share some pics of a recent dinner.

I’ve fallen in love all over again with the simple, yet always stunning, caprese salad. Yum!

This is a recipe from Alice Waters for her pea and asparagus ragout, which I served over angel hair. Next time I’ll toss the pasta with a bit of pesto or a light sauce, but this version topped with chevre was pretty darn tasty. Enjoy!

Cooking Club: Kick It Up A Notch

katiejocannon — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 04:13:56 +0000

You can probably guess by the post title what the theme of our last cooking club was…yup, you got it – Emeril inspired recipes. Brian and Jill hosted and chose a menu that was diverse, including Pecan Crusted Chicken Tenders, Cheddar and Beer Soup with Tempura Broccoli Florets, Wert’s Creole Caesar Salad, baked vegetables, and Bourbon-Chocolate Pecan Pie.

All the food was tasty, as you can imagine, given Emeril’s tendency to spice things up, but the stand out of the meal was the main entree: Matambre, or rolled stuffed flank steak.

The Matambre starts with flank steak, seasoned with Emeril’s Essence, a blend of paprika, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano and thyme. If you’re not familiar with Emeril’s cooking, this is his staple seasoning in the kitchen; most recipes start with it. Once the flank steak is seasoned, then layer on top: garlic, spinach leaves, carrots, hard boiled egg, and cayenne. This this rolled up and tied before it’s browned and then braised in red wine and beef stock until tender.

The presentation was perfect and we were all excited to dig in. As was expected, it was a bit of a salty dish but very flavorful and rich in texture. I was surprised by how much I liked the texture of the hard boiled egg rolled inside. It was certainly a fun main course and made for a pretty platter to present for a party. I’ll definitely keep this in mind when cool weather sets in again and I’m cooking for a crowd.

Target Field Food

katiejocannon — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 00:30:13 +0000

Last week I spent a hot (yes, it was actually hot in Minneapolis in April) afternoon at the new Target Field sampling their specialty fare for Metromix/Kare11. I have to say that I was really impressed by the variety of foods that the new ballpark offers — Asian food to State Fair Classics to three types of stuffed burgers. I love the ballpark classics, but some of the specialty items really hit the spot, too. Visit Metromix to find out more about the specialty foods at Target Field.

Lemon Mousse Pie

katiejocannon — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 03:17:46 +0000

While visiting Kate in Atlanta recently, we started talking about pies. She was planning her menu for dinner that Sunday and was thinking of whipping up a pie. As it is early Spring, we were in the mood for something lighter than the chocolate and rich custard pies that we eat in colder months, so we came up with the idea of looking for something with lemon.

I wish I could say that I was involved in the rest of the pie-making process but, truth be told, after helping with the idea for the flavor I left town for a few days. When I returned on Sunday (just in time for dinner), she had made a delightfully light Meyer lemon mousse pie with a gingersnap crust.

Someday I’ll actually be in town when she makes the pie and I’ll catch her in the action with my camera (especially to learn how to make her homemade pie crust). Someday…

Lemon Mousse pie
from 500 Pies & Tarts by Rebecca Baugniet

¾ cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
¾ cup granulated sugar
3 large egg yolks
pinch salt
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
¼ cup water
1 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup confectioners sugar
zest of 1 lemon to decorate

Preheat oven to 350. Press gingersnap crust (see below) into 9 inch pie plate. Bake for 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and cool to room temp.

Blend the lemon juice, zest, sugar, egg yolks, and salt in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens slightly- not as much as lemon curd. Sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a large saucepan. Set aside for a few minutes while you fill a large bowl with ice and water.

Add the lemon mixture to the gelatin and cook over medium heat for 3-4minutes, stirring continuously until the gelatin has dissolved. Pour the mixture into a metal bowl and set the bowl in the ice bath. Chill, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 min, until it begins to thicken.

Beat the cream using an electric mixer, adding 1 TBSp confectioners sugar at a time. Gently fold the cream into the lemon mixture, 1/3 cup at a time, until well combined. Pour the filling into the piecrust and refrigerate for 3 hours or until the filling has set. Sprinkle with lemon zest before serving with a dollop of whipped cream.

Ginger crumb crust:
1 c ginger cookie crumbs
¼ c melted unsalted butter
1 TBSP granulated sugar or honey
1 TBSP all purpose flour

Mix in food processor or if you have the crumbs you can mix by hand.

Seafood at The Sea Shack, Hilton Head Island

katiejocannon — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 03:09:02 +0000

Just a hole-in-the-wall type of place serving up some delicious seafood favorites, The Sea Shack is a must-visit when visiting Hilton Head. Get there early, as the crowd gathers quickly and you’ll be left waiting in line while some other hungry diner digs into their po’boy.

Pictured below: crab cake best crab cake I’ve ever eaten and calamari tossed in a zesty roasted red pepper sauce appetizers, fried oyster po’boy mouthwatering good with just some lemon juice and Tabasco

Febgiving USA 2010

katiejocannon — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:54:21 +0000

Febgiving was created as a brilliant excuse to gather friends mid-winter (and to gorge ourselves mercilessly on Thanksgiving tradition favorites). Jim and Becca hosted this year’s Febgiving USA 2010 this past weekend, which Kyle and I were excited to attend. A great gathering and some fantastic food!

More photos and info about Febgiving here.