Ineke, Jack's darling cousin from Paris, was here visiting for the month of August and we had a lot of fun, mostly centered around cooking and eating (wow, big surprise, huh?) We started off the evening of her arrival, with a large block of fois gras, which Ineke had brought from France. I am just a huge fan of fois gras, which Ineke knows, so she very generously treated us to some of the best, procured from a chef friend of hers. When she unveiled it, I knew we were in for a fattening month.
Melt-in-your-mouth divine!
We planned a feast with friends for the following Saturday night. Giles, Mia and Taylor were coming from New York, so we would have a full house chez nous.
On Saturday, our kitchen was crowded with busy cooks, preparing various parts of the evening's meal. It never ceases to amaze me how many cooks we can fit in our kitchen, all doing different things at once: opening the refrigerator and the ovens, stirring pots on two stovetops, chopping and slicing on all the countertops, and generally making a huge mess. I mean, our kitchen is not that big, but it can host a lot of activity! Somehow it always works, with no one getting a paring knife in the ribs, or a black eye from bending down at the wrong moment.
My three iron chefs: Drake, Jack and Giles
Jack made bread, which he does frequently. He never measures anything, just goes by instinct. I will write a future post on his bread making, with step-by-step photos (and measurements).
The rising dough always emits a tantalizingly yeasty aroma!
Two loaves, dusted with fennel powder, ready for the oven
Giles and Mia had brought their Old Smokey meat smoker with them from New York (along with the baby, her stroller, portable crib, numerous bags, a guitar, and the dog.) About mid-day, Giles began preparing a dry rub for the ribs. The colors of this mixture, before the ingredients were mixed together, reminded me forcibly of the earth in Provence, especially in the area of Rousillon, where the soil is every shade of ochre - reds, oranges and yellows - spectacularly gorgeous.
GILES'S DRY RUB for SMOKED RIBS
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Ground Cumin
Sweet Paprika
Hot Paprika
Oregano
Kosher Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
(All amounts are to taste.)
Removing the membrane from the bone side of the rack eliminates the bitter flavor the membrane can have.
Step One - Rub the ribs.
Step Two - Put wood chips in the bottom of the smoker and start to heat.
These are Hickory chips.
Step Three - Ineke and Giles load the hot smoker.
You can smoke different kinds of meat on different tiers within the smoker. Of course, this alters the flavors of all of them.
Drake assembled fresh cut, juicy chunks of pineapple, wrapped in apple wood smoked, maple sugar cured bacon.
Drake's hors d'oeuvres ready for the grill
Ineke prepared dessert, a fruit soup invented by her son Brian, who is a pastry chef in Paris and Brusssels.
Preparing the fresh strawberries from the Hingham Farmers Market
Ineke simmering spices in simple syrup
INEKE'S STRAWBERRY SOUP
Simmer in equal parts sugar and water (simple syrup):
Star Anis Pods
Seeds scraped from Half a Vanilla Bean
Cardamon Seeds
Whole cloves
Small Cinnamon Stick
Whole Black Peppercorns
After the spices have imparted their flavors to the simple syrup, strain well, through several layers of cheesecloth, so that the liquid is clear. Let cool.
When cool, add the syrup to Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice. Stir to blend. Then add sliced Strawberries. We also added halved Blueberries and chopped fresh Mint from our herb garden. (Every time we use this mint we think of our friend Renato, who brought the seeds back from one of his trips home to Italy, and gave us some - real Menta Triestina. I made a mental (no pun intended!) note to let Renato know later that evening, that we had used his mint, since he and Dolores would be joining us for the feast.
The finished soup would chill until later.
Meanwhile, as Giles's ribs smoked outside, he was back in the kitchen, stirring the makings for his barbeque sauce. He then let it simmer for several hours over low heat.
GILES'S BARBEQUE "MOP SAUCE"
Ketchup
Honey
Cider Vinegar
Full Grain French Mustard
Worcestershire Sauce
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Cumin
Chile Powder
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Ground Kosher Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
(All amounts are to taste.)
It's worth making a lot of this sauce, as it keeps well in the refrigerator, and can be used to complement a variety of meats.
Hours later, the smoked ribs are ready for a dousing of barbeque sauce.
Just out of the smoker
Giles coating the ribs with sauce, as Ineke, Mia and Taylor look on.
Ready for presentation to the assembled party
Meanwhile, in the upper garden.....
Lisa looked happy, as Drake did some last minute assembly with toothpicks.
...then grilled his pineapple/bacon hors d'oeuvres, which were so incredibly juicy, they dripped profusely when we ate them. They were the perfect combination of sweet, salty, crispy, chewy and juicy.
A variety of sausages were grilling, topped with rosemary leaves.
Jack's bread had been baked, sliced and then toasted on the grill with garlic, olive oil and parmesan cheese.
Yee haw!
Madeleine and Matt (I call them Maddie and Mattie)
Lisa, Drake, Ineke and Dan
Austin, Sam, Alec and Drake anticipating dinner
As the Italians say, a tavola.
Dolores and Renato
Ineke serving her dessert soup
After a feast that included roasted, marinated beets, and grilled eggplant, as well as various other veggies, olives and cheeses, we tasted Ineke's dessert, which was light and fruity with an almost elusive hint of spice. Both tangy and sweet, it was a perfect way to top off our meal.
And then the music started. We had four guitars going, with various singers entertaining us. Madeleine sang a lilting rendition of the Beatles' "Blackbird"; Cindy put in a superb imitation of Norah Jones; and the piece de resistance was Alec, rapping and ad lib-ing about all of us there - in both Spanish and English. I was laughing so hard, I barely got any photos of that.
Madeleine singing
The incredibly talented Joe, who plays numerous instruments
Alec the rapper, accompanied by Jack, Joe, Austin and Giles
Jack playing lone flamenco
Madeleine and Ineke share a hug
Suddenly, Ron has picked up a new talent... "Baby, I'm the guitar man."
End of a terrific evening. My three Iron Chefs, slightly looser than in the previous photo.
Ah...breakfast the next morning. What better way to start the day than with a slice of fois gras?Ineke and Jack's sister, Anne
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