Week Three : the honeymoon continues

Two really amazing things happened this week. First it snowed for the first time in 3 years. For about twenty minutes big beautiful flocks of white fell from the heavens. Then it was over.  All the joy, none of the mess. (..so unlike the surplus in our cellar)

Second, this week I discovered that my over-zealous acquisition of produce inaugurates me into a prestigious line of over-zealous acquirers of Normand vegetables. Together we share in a (literally) decades-long tradition of being allured by the prospect of orchard-fresh apples and potatoes pulled directly out of the earth into our cellars. Not just another swindled sucker who happened to be at home that morning, I can be a voice for all those who have struggled, who are struggling, and who will struggle under the weight of 50 lb sacks of potatoes and 35 lb crates of apples and countless pounds of dirty carrots, all on the verge of rotting. I hope my surplus survival guide will give those who have recently, and those who have not yet, agreed to hand over absurd amounts of money for vegetables they don’t need, the courage to cook, stew and bake their excess into something delicious.

And so, without further ado:

Carrot Soup

Gnocchi (aka, who has time for that ?!?)

Coming soon…

Poitrine de porc farcie aux fruits (Stuffed Pork belly)

Crunchy oven-roasted potatoes

Bonus! Easiest Applesauce of all time

Carrot Soup

Those carrots have got to go, which is how carrot soup ended up on the menu. Plus it was actually wintry cold this week and there is no better time for soup than winter (unless you have crates of carrots in your basement, in which case soup is always in season!).

I may have mentioned already that the carrots are dirty, but I think it is worthwhile to point out that if your carrots look like ours, they need to be washed multiple times before consumption. The first few dishes I made, I was perhaps a bit too easy on the issue. Noah didn’t complain since he’s in the habit of eating mouthfuls of sand anyway but there was just a little bit too much grit for a proper side of steamed carrots. Now I first shake the sand off, then scrub thoroughly under running water, peel and wash again. I’m estimating that by the bottom of the crate I’ll need to borrow Noah’s sand shovel to find the last few carrots.

The inspiration for this recipe must be credited to the Carrot & Cardamom Soup recipe in the nom, nom, paleo cookbook. Every recipe I have made from the cookbook is excellent. No groans, don’t worry, we clearly aren’t adherers to the diet for two obvious reasons: 1) we have 100 lbs of potatoes in our basement; and, 2) we live in France. It would be somehow sacrilegious to live within a short walk of four French bakeries and abstain from gluten, not to mention the cheese stand at the weekly market and the wine selection in our cave. Should there come a day when we no longer live in the land of croissant, brioche, baguette, comte, morbier and Saint-Felicien, then we might consider a foray into paleo but for now we will happily enjoy our Saturday morning croissants and our tubers and cream.

Carrots, 2 generous pounds (1 kg) (If I just make carrot soup 27 more times, we’ll be through our stash!)

Leek, or onion or shallot, as you have on hand. I used two enormous leeks.

Apple, 1-2

Oil

Ground cardamom, ½ tsp.

Ginger, fresh or ground depending on how many children are currently under your charge, 1 tsp.

Stock, 4 cups (100 cl) of the stock that you lovingly prepared at 5 am this morning because you would never ever serve your family a soup made from stock out of a little paper-wrapped cube.

Salt and pepper

1. Sautée chopped leek in a few tablespoons of whichever oil is currently trending in your cupboard, until translucent.
2. Add roughly-sliced carrot, chopped apple, cardamom andginger. Sautée until fragrant.

3. Add stock, bring to a boil and then turn down heat to simmer for about 30 minutes.
4. When carrots are tender, start blending soup. You can blend in batches in a blender or use an immersion blender. If soup resembles the floor of the car after you forget to give your toddler her anti-nausea medicine, keep at it a bit longer until it starts to look edible.
5. Salt and pepper to taste.
6. Enjoy a potato-free lunch.
7. The original recipe suggests stirring in ½ cup of coconut milk and bringing to a boil before serving. I didn’t have any coconut milk on hand and the soup was deliciously carrot-y without it. Cook’s choice.

Carrot Soup

The inspiration for this recipe must be credited to the Carrot & Cardamom Soup recipe in the “nom, nom, paleo” cookbook. Every recipe I have made from the cookbook is excellent.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• Carrots 2 generous pounds (1 kg)
• Leek or onion or shallot, as you have on hand.
• Apple 1-2
• Oil
• Ground cardamom ½ tsp.
• Ginger fresh or ground, 1 tsp.
• Stock 4 cups (1 l)
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

• Sautée chopped leek in a few tablespoons of whichever oil is currently trending in your cupboard, until translucent.
• Add roughly-sliced carrot, chopped apple, cardamom and ginger. Sautée until fragrant.
• Add stock, bring to a boil and then turn down heat to simmer for about 30 minutes.
• When carrots are tender, start blending soup. You can blend in batches in a blender or use an immersion blender.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Enjoy a potato-free lunch.

Notes

The original recipe suggests stirring in ½ cup of coconut milk and bringing to a boil before serving. I didn’t have any coconut milk on hand and the soup was deliciously carrot-y without it. Cook’s choice.

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Gnocchi

I’ll preface by saying this is not the recipe that is going to get us through those sacks of potatoes in the basement. We are big fans of gnocchi and the home-made variety taste a-m-a-z-i-n-g but making them is a little bit like giving birth. You will only brave it again once the vivid recollection of the experience has faded and been replaced by a warm fuzzy memory of the very worthwhile end result. (Unless you are Italian and own an oversized garlic press that effortlessly produces a lush mound of grated potato.)

Nonetheless gnocchi are an Italian comfort food par excellence and deserve a place of honor among potato recipes of the world. Plus it has been a few years since I last made gnocchi so I was ready to give it another go. The secret ingredient to making really awesome gnocchi born out of a labor of love and scorched fingertips? A babysitter.

The original recipe in Italian can be found here.

Potatoes, 2.2 pounds (= 1 kilo = 1/50^th of the potatoes I had in my basement when this silliness started)

Egg, 1

Flour, 2-1/2 cups (300 g)

Salt

That’s it.

1. Place the potatoes, whole and unpeeled, in a pot filled with cold water. Put on to boil.
2. When the water starts to boil, count about 30 minutes cooking time until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork. (This recipe requires some precise time discipline. Once the potatoes are ready, there’s no stopping until the finished gnocchi are on the table. Hence the babysitter…)
3. When the potatoes are done, (are you ready for this?) remove and peel immediately. I have never so fully appreciated the childhood game of “hot potato” until I started peeling potatoes straight out of a pot of boiling water. It’s like perpetually and voluntarily ending up with the hot potato.
4. But it gets worse (in the absence of the giant garlic press at least). Put the flour in a mound on the countertop and grate the hot potatoes on top. This is neither a graceful nor comfortable procedure. I used a small washcloth to protect my fingertips from the molten potato interior and we enjoyed some extra grated cloth fibers with our gnocchi.

5. If you’ve made it this far, congratulations! The worst is over and in mere moments you will be filling your belly with delicious little dumplings smothered in your topping of choice. (We often eat them with pesto but Margherita, our resident Italian, says her family would eat them dressed in butter and sage.)

6. Lightly beat the egg and add to the top of the grated potato with a pinch of salt. With your hands begin to knead the mound together into a lump of dough. It takes some kneading to incorporate all of the flour but do keep at it.  Add some extra flour if it seems too sticky but at the same time try not to overwork it.

7. Sprinkle the work surface with some semolina. Divide the dough into several parts and roll each into a thick snake. Slice into ½ inch slices. Form into small nuggets and use the thongs of a fork to make light indentations. Margherita’s aunt twists the nuggets instead of making the traditional indentations.

8. Place the almost-finished gnocchi onto a tray covered in a lightly-floured kitchen towel.

9. Cook the gnocchi in a generous quantity of boiling salted water. They are finished when they rise to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and serve immediately with pesto, butter and sage, tomato sauce or even just olive oil and grated parmesan.

10. The recipe made 99 gnocchi so depending on your appetite, invite a small crowd. You can try to store them by placing the kitchen towel-flour-dumpling trays into the freezer for 20 minutes and then placing the lightly frozen gnocchi into a plastic bag and refrigerating. In my experience they are at their very best fresh.

Gnocchi

Gnocchi are an Italian comfort food par excellence and deserve a place of honor among potato recipes of the world.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• Potatoes 2.2 pounds (= 1 kilo = 1/50th of the potatoes I had in my basement when this silliness started)
• Egg 1
• Flour 2-1/2 cups (300 g)
• Salt

Instructions

• Place the potatoes, whole and unpeeled, in a pot filled with cold water. Put on to boil.
• When the water starts to boil, count about 30 minutes cooking time until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork.
• When the potatoes are done, remove and peel immediately.
• Put the flour in a mound on the countertop and grate the hot potatoes on top.
• Lightly beat the egg and add to the top of the grated potato with a pinch of salt. With your hands begin to knead the mound together into a lump of dough. It takes some kneading to incorporate all of the flour but do keep at it.  Add some extra flour if it seems too sticky but at the same time try not to overwork it.
• Sprinkle the work surface with some semolina. Divide the dough into several parts and roll each into a thick snake. Slice into ½ inch slices. Form into small nuggets and use the thongs of a fork to make light indentations. Margherita’s aunt twists the nuggets instead of making the traditional indentations.
• Place the almost-finished gnocchi onto a tray covered in a lightly-floured kitchen towel.
• Cook the gnocchi in a generous quantity of boiling salted water. They are finished when they rise to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and serve immediately with pesto, butter and sage, tomato sauce or even just olive oil and grated parmesan.

Notes

The recipe made 99 gnocchi so depending on your appetite, invite a small crowd. You can try to store them by placing the kitchen towel-flour-dumpling trays into the freezer for 20 minutes and then placing the lightly frozen gnocchi into a plastic bag and refrigerating. In my experience they are at their very best fresh.

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Don’t miss the next recipes!

Coming up later this week :

Poitrine de porc farcie aux fruits (Stuffed Pork belly)

Crunchy oven-roasted potatoes

Bonus! Easiest Applesauce of all time