Posted on by Myfrenchkitchen

Fresh fig with labneh, pistachios and pomegranate molasses.

This makes for a perfect little starter or in this case an aperitif or amuse bouche. The sweetness of the fig aginst the tartness of the pomegranate molasses and the salty cremainess of the labneh make for a delicious explosion of flavours.It is very easy to make and doesnt take a lot of time. The longest is waiting for the labneh to drain. Make it in season when figs are in abundance and if you can pick it straight from you tree, even better. That is actually a golden rule in cooking…stay in season.

Recipe:

  • Four big figs, yellow or purple
  • labneh
  • pistachio nuts
  • pomegranate molasses
  • little branch of green petit pois
  • sumac
  • Pomegranate seeds(optional)
  • 8 small fig leaves(optional)
  1. Break/tear the figs in half and place each half on a small fig leaf on 8 small plates.
  2. Spoon a small tsp of labneh onto the fig half.
  3. Sprinkle the labneh with sumac.
  4. Drizzle with pomegranate molasses and sprinkle with pistachio nuts and pomegranate seeds.
  5. Finish off with the little green branch of petit pois for decoration and serve as an amuse bouche on a fig leaf.

Serves 8 as amuse bouche or 4 as starter

Pinch of salt:

  • Place two halves on a plate for a starter serving instead of one per person for an amuse bouche serving.
  • Sprinkle some sumac over the whole plate.
  • Use walnuts instead of pistachios.
  • Use soft goat’s cheese or ricotta cheese instead of the labneh.
  • Sprinkle with a few pomegranate seeds.
  • Use any other green herb decoration instead of the pea shoot.

Posted on by Myfrenchkitchen

Gremolata

In the previous post I made chimichurri my way, this time it is gremolata, another favorite sauce using fresh herbs and often used in mediteranean cooking. It can be used with either fish or meat and even on a tomato salad, or sandwich with ham or cheese or tomato, pourquoi pas?

Recipe.

  1. A handful of fresh flatleaf parsley
  2. 2 cloves of fresh garlic
  3. lemon
  4. a squirt of lemon juice to your taste
  5. Fleur de sel salt flakes
  6. A little olive oil
  • Chop the parsley finely.
  • Chop the garlic finely, or push through garlic press or grate finely
  • Grate the peel of one large lemon
  • Mix all ingredients together and add a little fleur de sel to taste

A pinch of salt:

  1. Add a little chopped fresh mint leaves to the chopped parsley, not too much, since the main herb is parsley.
  2. The addition of salt flakes brings out the flavour of the garlic.
  3. Cream the chopped garlic with a little fine salt on a wooden board with the flat side of the knife, in which case you don’t add salt flakes later.
  4. Use a microplane to grate the lemon.
  5. Use grated orange peel orange instead of lemon, especially when used with chicken or duck.
  6. Make the gremolata fresh with your meal.