The perfect Easter gift for the foodie hostess

 

The perfect package.

 

 

Yes, there are chocolates galore that you can buy.  The most exquisite truffles in the shape of eggs are nestled in cute little boxes and baskets in every shop from major grocery stores to boutique food shops.  Beautiful dark, chocolate bunnies line the shelves of the chocolate shops and the pharmacy.  But, chocolate is not for everyone.  Or rather, everyone is expecting some chocolate.  So if you are looking for something a bit different or unique then go back to basics.

I think the most perfect gift for a hostess this Easter is a beautiful box of eggs.  I do not mean chocolate eggs.  I am referring to fresh, gorgeous eggs to be scrambled for breakfast, to display as a centerpiece and eat later on, or to mix in a spring teacake.  

 

Wicken Fen Eggs

The Wicken Fen eggs available at Formaggio or  not your every day eggs.  They are gorgeous, fresh and delicious.  They have duck and goose eggs as well as chicken eggs.  The chicken eggs are particularly beautiful as each hen produces a different egg both in size and color – some are blue, others tan, some white, some speckled and others light green.

The eggs are carefully packed in small boxes and rest on a bed of hay that offers up a wonderful smell of hay that transports you to Vermont. When you cook with them, you will notice that the the yolks are a deep orange color, the eggs are delivered fresh and the vibrance of color that you notice is reflected in taste as well. Formaggio Kitchen frequently sells out because they only have a small quantity each week, so call and have some set aside if you want some of your own to keep or give as a gift.

More Wicken Fen eggs:

 Amuse Bouche 

Wicked Flavory 

Formaggio Kitchen visits Wicken Fen Farm

Recipe: Creamy Scrambled Eggs With Wild Mushrooms and Herb Purée

Scrambled eggs redefined. Photo by Dieter Wiechmann

Chef Wiechmann heads over to the Couveé family’s Chip-in Farm in Bedford to choose the freshest eggs for T.W. Food Restaurant.  On occasion, he can even be found on the farm sorting eggs with the family.  Chef Tim Wiechmann’s recipe is based on an old 18th century French recipe.  The eggs would have traditionally been cooked in a double boiler to prevent large curds from forming.  

Creamy Scrambled Farm Egg With Wild Mushrooms and Herb Purée

From Chef, Tim Wiechmann, TW Food Restaurant             

For 4 Appetizer Portions
Time: 45 Minutes
 
Ingredients:

Egg:
12 Local High Quality Eggs
4 T Heavy Cream
1 T Butter
Salt, Black Pepper
 
Herb Purée:
1 Bunch Parsley
2 T Olive Oil + 2 Ice Cubes
Coarse Sea Salt
Fresh Black Pepper
 
2 cups wild mushrooms, cleaned and chopped, morels, chanterelles, whatever is in season
 
Directions:

1. Combine 8 Eggs with 4 Yolks. Discard the excess whites.

2. Blanche parsley in salted boiling Water for 1 Minute including the stems. Quickly transfer to blender, add 2 ice cubes, olive oil and salt. Blend to thick purée.

3 Melt butter in a high rim saucepan, add the egg mixture and whisk over med. low heat. (vigorously). The mix will set up slowly. Do not allow large thick curds to form on the bottom or sides of the pan. The eggs should curdle to small grains. At this point, move the pan off the heat and add the heavy cream to cool the mass and stop any continued cooking. Taste and season.   

4. In a deep bowl or cup, or martini glass, spoon the parsley purée into the bottom. Cover with the eggs, sauté wild mushrooms in butter, season, spoon these over the top and serve.         

TW Food Restaurant is located at 377 Walden street, Cambridge, MA.
For reservations, phone (617) 864-4745.

 

 

 

 

Recipe: Lemon Tiramisu With Coriander and Rhubarb Compote

Chef Tim Wiechmann of TW Food Restaurant’s 

Lemon Tiramisu With Coriander and Rhubarb Compote 

This is a non-traditional tiramisu that looks like a napoleon, but still 
has the soaked lady finger aspect. Save time by using store-bought 
Ladyfingers. 

For 8 Main Portions 
Time: 2 hr. 
Special Equipment: none 

Ingredients: 

Ladyfingers: 
7 medium size egg whites + pinch cream of tartar 
2/3 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar 
5 large egg yolks 
1 cup flour 

Syrup: 
1 Tbsp Coriander 
1 q water 
1 cup sugar 

Compote: 
4 large rhubarb branches, chopped 
1 cup sugar + 1 vanilla bean 
1Tbsp. butter 

Mousse: 
5 eggs 
5 oz. Lemon juice 
1 cup sugar 
1/4 lb butter cubed. 
1 cup crème fraiche + 1/2 cup sugar 

Directions: 
1. Prepare the syrup by toasting the coriander over high heat until 
they begin to smoke. Add the water and sugar, boil, strain and cool. 

2. Prepare the compote by melting the butter, adding the rhubarb, 
sugar and vanilla. Cook covered on low 30 minutes until the rhubarb 
is shredded and very cooked. Cool. 

3. Prepare the lady fingers by whisking the whites with the cream of 
tartar until they have soft peaks. Gradually whisk in the sugar until 
you have a stiff meringue. Then, whisk the yolks and the sugar until 
frothy in a separate bowl. Fold into the egg whites and then fold in
flour. Pipe onto a baking sheet with parchment paper into 2 inch 
sticks touching one another in a straight horizontal line. Bake at 350F 
until golden about 10 minutes. 

4. Prepare the mousse: over a double boiler heat eggs, sugar and 
lemon juice to 180F. it will double in size. Whisk in 2 sheets gelatin 
that have been soaked in water. Remove and whisk to cool, adding 
the cubed butter at 140F. Cool further to room temp. Meanwhile 
whisk the crème fraiche and the sugar to a stiff whipped cream. Fold 
this into the lemon mixture and refrigerate. This will need about 30 
minutes to set-up. 

5. To assemble: cut the lady fingers into 3 inch squares. Soak 
generously in the coriander syrup. Pipe the mousse between each 
layer of ladyfinger until you have a three-tier napoleon. Spoon the 
rhubarb compote around the side.

Tim Wiechmann, is one of a handful of chefs in the country to have trained at several 3 star Michelin Restaurants, before opening T.W. Food Restaurant in Cambridge.  He worked with Alain Passard of Arpège, Alain Soliveres at Taillevent and Joël Robuchon at his Atelier – all of whose cuisines he admires tremendously and incorporates into his own style. 

Easter wine pairing

Pair an organic wine with your organic grass-fed lamb for Easter.  South End Formaggio will be having an “all organic, all the time” white, red, and rose wine tasting event. What better time than Spring to go organic.  Formaggio Kitchen’s easter menu includes organic grass-fed lamb from Jaminson Farm in Pennsylvania.  Whether you’re cooking yourself or having another talented chef prepare your meal, you still need some great wines to pair with the food.  Stop in and sample some of these hand-selected organic wines.

Cheers.  Let’s eat.

Beer and cheese pairing, South End Formaggio

If you are in Boston’s South End this Sunday, March 22nd then you can stop by and discover some beers and sample them paired with some great cheeses.   From 2-4 pm South End Formaggio’s beer buyer Anthony Liberti will be doing a comparative tasting of wheat beers from Belgium and Bavaria, among others.  There will of course be a selection of Formaggio’s extensive cheese offerings to be paired with the beer.  This event is free to the public.

Prost! Let’s eat.

Beer and food pairing save the date

 

Dann brewer of Pretty Things

On Saturday, April 25th 2009 at 2pm Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge will have Dann Paquette of Pretty Things brewery and author, Lucy Saunders for a free event about pairing beer and food (with a focus on cheese).  

Dann Paquette will bring some of his local Pretty Things beer:  

1. The Jack d’Or a simple table beer or “Saison Americain”.  It is a beer that can be enjoyed before, during, or after a meal.  It is easy going. 
2. The  Saint Botolph’s Town that is simply described as a rustic dark ale.  For a more detailed story visit the Pretty Things website.

This guarantees to be a tasty and thirst-quenching event.

Let’s eat.

Nantucket Wine Festival: Pairing wine and cheese

 

Cheese seminar at the Nantucket Food and Wine Festival

 

 

The 13th Nantucket Wine Festival is coming up soon.  The Nantucket Wine Festival starts off on Wednesday, May 13th 2009 and runs through Sunday, May 17th 2009.  This is a great event for foodies, food lovers, and those who enjoy wine, know wine, or want to learn more about food and wine.  Not to mention that the setting couldn’t be more perfect.  Nantucket has so many hidden gems including restaurants, farms, wineries, and other island-made foods.  

The Nantucket Wine Festival has a complete schedule of cooking demonstrations, wine and food seminars, luncheon symposia, a celebryity chef and wine maker auction dinner, restaurant and winery luncheons and dinners, and charity gala events.

On the theme of pairings there is a special food and wine tasting event:   Fromage with the King.  On Thursday, May 14th from 11:00 – 12:00  Ihsan Gurdal, who travels the world seeking out artisan producers of the world’s finest cheeses from his home base at Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge, will take  you through a sensory exploration of cheese.  He will pair cheeses with some favored condiments and explain the relationship between cheese and wine.  Not only will the tastings be spectacular but Ihsan’s dynamic energy combines both passion and intellect.  You will find yourself satiated at very least by the end of this session.

Good food paired with a good cause

 

Formaggio Kitchen supporting the East End House at Cooking for a Cause.

I love charity food events because I love to eat good food and I think it is really important to contribute to great causes and support those in need.  Even as a full time student, when I had little or no income of my own, I volunteered my time.  It’s a big part of my culture and my family life to always give to others.  

When I can enjoy great food and support a good cause that’s a perfect pairing.  I love the Hunger Brunch for that reason and the pairing of Didrik’s and Chef Tim Wiechmann of T.W. Food.  Two locally owned business worked together to kick-off a month of fund raising for Food for Free.  Food for Free is a local organization that rescues food and redistributes it to those in need.  Chef Tim Wiechmann of T.W. Food, known for having a close relationship with his food sources and his delectable and creative uses of all parts of his ingredients,  offered his delicious and beautiful hors d’oeuvres for Didrik’s kick-off party celebrating the beginning of  special fund raising month.

On March 20th 2009, Formaggio Kitchen paired up with some of the top chefs and mixologists in Boston and Cambridge’s East End House to put on a fabulous, delicious and convivial gala event to raise money for the East End House.  The East End House is a unique multi-service community center and social service agency in Cambridge.  They provide programs and services to strengthen family and community to a diverse population.  The East End House programs include an emergency food program, an “out of school time” program, family support programs, youth support programs and childcare programs among many others.  

It was a great event, a great view, great food and drinks, and a great cause.  There really is no better pairing than a great cause and some great food.

Let’s share what we have to offer and let’s eat.

A marriage of wine and cheese

To go with our theme of pairings, I will post a couple events happening at respected restaurants and stores in and around New England.

 

T.W. Food

 

 

T.W. Food a restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts that is tucked away outside of Harvard Square in a residential neighborhood, is worth a visit.    The chef knows his food and farmers and he keeps the sources as local as possible.  The restaurant is fine dining at a fair price.  For this special pairing meal the cheeses are French, the wines are Italian and French, and many of the rest of the ingredients are local. (Note that the links to each cheese may not be the exact cheese that Chef Wiechmann will be serving, but it will tell you a little bit about the style and flavors of each cheese.)

A Marriage of Wine & Cheese
Four Course with Wine $49

On Tuesday April 7, T.W. Food Restaurant will do a special four-course Wine &
Cheese dinner, called a Marriage of Wine & Cheese. The menu will feature
hand selected cheeses with wines from Italy and France. According to Chef
Wiechmann, “A good cheese and wine pairing can be magic.”
❣
Amuse Bouche

Gratin of tuscan kale
with bleu cheese Fourme d’Ambert
or
Oeufs au Fromage
with a Normandie Livarot

American lamb leg
shaved with local potato salad, Pyrénées cheese
Ossau-Iraty and black cherry compote
or
Gnocchi Parisienne
gratin with fennel, celery and carrot, cave-aged
French Comté
or
Farm Beef
Painted Hills Farm, roulade with potato gratin,
sauce with Burgundy cheese Epoisses

Cheese
first spring vermont greens, Loire Valley goat
cheese Bucheron

Tiramisu
Vermont Mascarpone, espresso, ladyfingers

T.W. Food is located at  377 Walden Street, Cambridge.

 For reservations call
617 864-4745

Wine and cheese pairings

 

 

How can one conceive of a one party system in a country that has over 200 varieties of cheese. Charles DeGaulle

 

 

When I think about pairings, the first thing that comes to mind are wine and cheese pairings.  I know cheeses quite well.  Having lived in France, Canada, England, and now the US, I have tasted a great variety of both mass produced and artisanal cheeses (even before they had such a fancy title).  

Characteristics of cheese come from so many aspects of the cheese:  the animal’s environment and diet, the type of milk, the process of cheese making and of course the aging or lack thereof of the cheese.  If you don’t know cheeses very well begin by going to a local cheese shop or a larger grocery chain such as Whole Foods which has a large cheese selection and well-informed staff.  Ask to sample cheeses made with different milks.  As you taste let the person behind the counter know what you like and they will guide you.

As for wines, their characteristics are regional among many other things.  To learn about wine casually, visit some local liquor or wine stores or boutique foodie shops and participate in their wine tastings.  Many stores offer free wine tastings.  You can go online or stop in to your local shop and ask about their upcoming tasting events. 

Cheers.  Let’s eat.