Tag: appetizer


Nov
2016

Cake with Olives, Goat Cheese & Piment d’Espelette

categories: Recipes

cakesale-2Cake salé (savory cake) is easy to make and extremely versatile (you can experiment endlessly with different types of cheeses, meats, herbs and condiments). A good cake salé is lovely as lunch or a light dinner with soup and a salad. I also like to serve it as a late afternoon apéro in the company of a fruity, rosé Crémant de Bougogne.
Though the cake is best eaten on the day it is made, it does freeze well.

 

Cake with Olives, Goat Cheese & Piment d’Espelette
Serves: 8

  • 100g whole wheat flour
  • 100g all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 ½ tsp piment d’Espelette
  • 3 medium eggs
  • 150ml milk
  • 4 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
  • 150g soft goat cheese, in small chunks
  • 100g kalamata olives, whole
  • 1 ½ tbsps chives, chopped
  • salt (preferably fleur de sel) and freshly-cracked pepper

Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a 26 x 11 cm cake tin with baking paper. In a large bowl, mix the two flours with the baking powder. Add the piment d’Espelette and mix again. Make a well in the center of the mixture and crack in the eggs. Pour in the milk and oil, and whisk gently, just until combined. Using a spatula, fold in the goat’s cheese, olives and chives. Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for approximately 40-45 minutes. Allow to cool before serving. Delicious with a green salad and a mustardy vinaigrette


Aug
2016

Smoked Salmon Tartare

categories: Recipes

tartare 2Today’s recipe is something I quickly made yesterday because I had no intention of hanging out in the kitchen for too long — it was HOT! The temps are passing the 30s here in the Netherlands, and as much as I love warm weather, I am not a fan of cooking elaborate meals in the heat (with the exception of a roast chicken once in a while, but how elaborate is that?).
It was late in the afternoon, and I had no idea what to serve for dinner, so I made a quick dash to my local supermarket. When I spotted two thick, beautifu smoked salmon fillets, I immediately knew what I would make — salmon tartare! A light, refreshing dish with tons of flavor! With a salad, some bread and a cold soup (I’ll be posting the recipe here tomorrow), it was the perfect dinner to end a steamy summer day! PS: I used ring molds to serve the tartare, but you can also serve it with toast or little boats made from Belgian endive. Enjoy!

Smoked Salmon Tartare
Serves 4

  • juice of 1 small lemon
  • 1 ½ tbsps good olive oil
  • ½ tsp Dijon mustard
  • 3 tbsps chopped chives
  • fleur de sel
  • freshly cracked pepper
  • ¼ cucumber, finely diced
  • 400g smoked salmon fillets, diced
  • crème fraîche, thinly sliced lemon & microgreens, to serve

In a medium bowl, whisk the lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper to make a vinaigrette. Stir in the chopped chives, cucumber and salmon. Mix well and refrigerate for at least an hour. When ready to serve, use a ring mold to form the individual tartares. Top each one with a little crème fraîche and garnish with lemon, a scattering of microgreens and a good grinding of pepper.