Rough Night... Nice And Tasty Side: Quinoa

Rough night!! Last night I made food for 125 people. You read that right! Not 12 but 125 hungry, eager eaters. It was absolutely A-M-A-Z-I-N-G (in my own opinion!). Making food for such a great number of people is an obvious challenge, not such in terms of food itself but it terms of planning. Preparing food is not just about putting good ingredients together; it’s also about planning each and every step of the way as well as attaining a perfect timing. Food needs to be fresh and tasty; hot and striking. This kind of an experience is also an incredible rush, a true flood or adrenaline… And one could get hooked to it. I must say I loooove a good challenge and this one, which was given to me by trustful people (thank you, you know who you are!), was one I took on like a bull and ended like a swan (I know, that sounds weird but I felt it ended in such a graceful way that it made me feel like a swan!!).

Anyways, when you go through such a rush of adrenaline, you need a really good break. The glass of wine at the end of the night was absolutely well deserved and the chatting and mingling with the people who devoured the food was a breeze, a relaxing and unwinding moment. Today, I might need more than my usual single cup of coffee and a take out dinner tonight might be what we end up eating. Because spending such great time in your kitchen means hours of pleasure, you still need to get away from it once in a while. It’s like great love: you need a little bit of space here and there to remember how big your love is when you get back to it!

On this note, enjoy some easy quinoa today (or tomorrow!) and enjoy a beautiful day!

QUINOA SIDEDISH

Makes about 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 cup quinoa

2 cups chicken broth

1 dried chipotle

1 tbsp olive oil

½ onion, finely diced

½ red bell pepper, finely diced

1 garlic clove, minced

PREPARATION

In a small pot, put your quinoa, chicken broth and chipotle. Bring the broth to a boil. Bring the heat down and cook for about 20 minutes.

In a small pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and the peppers and cook for a few minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two. Take off the heat.

When the quinoa is ready, add in the cooked onions and peppers. Mix well and serve immediately.

Tomato Season With Tarte Tatin

Fall is a great season for fruits and veggies. They’re at the peak of their flavor and they’re so diverse, it can get hard to choose between one and the other. Tomatoes are in season and if you’re still buying your tomatoes in a supermarket, it’s that you’re missing out on the real tomatoes that are sold in local markets these days. Whether they’re red or pink, you’ve got plenty of tasty choices and you should take advantage of their cheap price… that’s what happens when the offer is bigger than the demand!

If you’re really into working hard, you should be canning your own tomatoes these days (if you’re Italian, you probably have a family day planned to do so). If you’re into cooking but don’t have that much time on your hands, than maybe you should be cooking something simple made with loads of tomatoes. That was my option last week when I was looking for something original and different to make with the ‘in season’ vegetable. So I made a tarte tatin, which is basically an upside down tart. Traditionally, it’s made with caramelized apples but you can also make it with other fruits and veggies. I chose to make it with ripe red tomatoes. Quite simple to prepare, it makes for an impressive dish. It does take a lot of cooking time but while the tomatoes are cooking, you can do a lot of other things around the house! There’s always a plus to slow cooking food!

On a sunny day (because we still have them in September), try this tart. Have it for lunch with a nice rosé wine. It’ll make you fully appreciate the end of a great summer.

TOMATO TARTE TATIN

Makes 6 servings

 

INGREDIENTS

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

10 big tomatoes

1 onion, thinly sliced

5 tbsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped

½ tsp sugar

Salt & pepper 

Black Pepper Pastry

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

Pinch of salt

½ cup chilled, unsalted butter, cut into cubes

About 3 tbsp cold water

PREPARATION

Preheat your oven at 300˚F.

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Fill a large bowl with ices cubes and cold water. With a knife, cut a small X in the base of each tomato. Blanch the tomatoes for 1 minute in a large pot of boiling water. Drain and drop into the ice water to stop the cooking. Peel the tomatoes, cut them in half and seed them.

In a bowl, combine the tomatoes with the remaining ingredients. Season with salt & pepper. Place on a 10-inch pie plate. Roast for about 2 ½ hours.

Black Pepper Pastry

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the flour, pepper and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the pieces are the size of peas. Add the water. Pulse again until the dough just begins to hold together, adding more water if necessary. Remove the dough and shape it into a disk with your hands.

On a floured surface, roll out the dough and cut a circle of 10-inch in diameter. Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Remove the tomatoes from the oven. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.

Lay the dough over the tomatoes, tucking the edges inside the pie plate. Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Invert the tart onto a serving plate.

Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.