Cherry Tomato Clafoutis

  
Cherry Tomato Clafoutis  by Marc Matsumoto
  
My own version of this recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 8.5 ounces cherry tomatoes (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup whole 2% milk
• 1/4 cup greek yogurt
• 1 ounce all-purpose flour (about 1/4 cup)
• 1 teaspoon fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1.75 ounces feta or goat cheese, grated

Instructions
Move your oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Generously oil an 8" pie dish or cake pan and then add the cherry tomatoes evenly  spaced.
Whisk together the eggs, milk, yogurt, flour, mint, salt and pepper until smooth and free of   lumps.
Slowly pour the mixture over the tomatoes, being careful not to clump the tomatoes together.
Sprinkle with the cheese.
Bake until puffy and golden brown (about 35-40 minutes).  
Slice and serve hot or at room temperature.

enjoy

summer 2014

upside down apple cake

Ingredients

• 4 apples
• 1 pound, or about 450 gr, or about 3,5 cups all purpose flour (we can also use self raising flour)
• 1 cup butter room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup milk
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• juice of 1 lemon

for the caramel syrup

• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1,5 cups water

Instructions
Peal the apples, remove seeds and cut into thin slices.
Rinse the apples with lemon juice in order to avoid browning.
Preheat the oven to 180° C, or 360° F.
In a big bowl, or in a food processor, beat butter and sugar very well.
Add eggs one by one.
Add milk and vanilla.
Whisk and add shifted flour with baking powder, little by little, until you have a thick batter.
Put a parchment paper into a cake pan (preferably an adjustable one) and place the apple slices.
Rinse them with more lemon juice.
Sprinkle on apples cinnamon and brown sugar.
Pour the batter over apples and bake for about an hour.
Let the cake cool for a while and place it upside down on a platter.
In a small saucepan put 2 cups brown sugar and 1/2 cup water over medium heat.
When sugar starts to boil and makes bubbles remove from the heat and add 1 cup water.
Return the saucepan to the heat and boil until the syrup become deep golden brown and thick.

enjoy  with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream

sour cherries

velouté pumpkin soup

Ingredients
1 small yellow pumpkin
1 leek
1potato
1 medium onion
2 carrots
1/2 cup olive oil
1 package chicken broth

nutmeg
sage
salt & pepper

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350° F οr 180° C.
Cut the top of the pumpkin.
Then cut it into two or four pieces.
Remove the seeds.
Bake for about 20-30'.
Meanwhile rinse the vegetables, chop onion, peel potato and carrots, remove the outer leaf  from leek (cut out the green part of leek) and chop them into small pieces.
remove the pumpkin from the oven and let it cool for a while.
Scoop the pumpkin and cut into small pieces.
Bring a saucepan over high heat and pour the olive oil.
Add nutmeg and pepper.
Heat the olive oil and add onion and leek.
Saute and add potato and carrots, pumpkin and sage.
Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5'.
Pour chicken stock and cook for 30'.
Add salt and some more pepper.
Cook for additional 5'.
Let the soup cool for a while and pure it.

enjoy with a spoonful greek yogurt

chicken with leeks & celery

Ingredients

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breast (halves)
• 2 pounds or 1kg leeks
• 1 celery (stalks and leaves)
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 2 eggs
• juice of 1 lemon
• salt and pepper

Instructions
Cut the chicken breast halves into smaller pieces (2-3).
Rinse and put the pieces onto paper towel to dry them.
Rinse, remove the outer leaves and cut the leeks into small pieces (about 1 inch long).
Rinse and chop celery.
Bring a saucepan over high heat and pour the olive oil.
When the olive oil is hot put the chicken pieces and saute them both sides.
When the chicken pieces are light golden add about one cup water, leeks and celery stalks.
Reduce the heat to low/medium, add salt and pepper, and cook until chicken and vegetables are soft and tender.
Note at the end of cooking must has remained about 1/2 to 2/3 cup of liquid.
Remove the saucepan from heat.
In a bowl beat the egg whites and when start thicken add the egg yolks.
Beat and add lemon juice.
Continue beating the egg-lemon sauce and add spoonful by spoonful about 1/2 cup of the liquid.
Pour the sauce in the saucepan and stir carefully.

enjoy

signs of spring

                                                        If you cannot find the spring, you make it !
                                                        And either you go to play storm, or you drown.

                                                                                                  Odysseas Elytis