Oui, Chef

Lemon Thyme Cake with Blueberry Compote

While scouting around for a light "Spring" dessert to serve at a dinner party we had on Saturday, I came across a couple versions of lemon pound cakes that caught my eye.  Unfortunately there was something about each that gave me pause, but with a little recipe re-engineering I was able to come up with this hybrid of the two that we all loved.

Rhubarb and Ginger Buckle

Here is yet another Genius recipe from Food52 that I had to share.  I promise you are going to want to make this, so don't screw around and put this recipe on the bottom of your to-cook pile, stick it on the top and make it the next sweet treat you make.  Remember, rhubarb won't be available in the markets much longer.

Like the other "Genius" recipe we've posted here, Alice Medrich's Best Cocoa Brownies, this cake is absolute perfection.  Rich with butter, sweet with sugar, slightly tart from the rhubarb and buttermilk, and with a spicy pop from the candied ginger, this confection is firing on all cylinders.

Flank Steak with Soy Mustard Sauce

Ask a bunch of friends what defines a really great restaurant meal and you're likely to hear all sorts of answers.  For some it's the service, for some the ambiance of the space, for others the caché of securing a table at the latest outpost of a top chef.  For many though, the answer will be that it's all about the sauces.  There is just something about a well made sauce that seems to elevate a restaurant meal well beyond what most folks ever hope to accomplish at home.

Fact is, many of the best sauces you'll enjoy in a top restaurant ARE daunting to make, taking days to craft from the initial roasting of bones and veggies for stock, to the long slow reduction of same, fortifying with aromatics, and finally finishing with cream or butter.  A true made-from-scratch classic sauce is a labor of love, only attempted by the most devout and ambitious home cook.

Middle Eastern Barley Salad

This little ditty is something I whipped up with some leftover cooked barley from a Cooking Matters class I taught last week.  It was the first class of a six week session and was all about healthy cooking basics, with a focus on the My Plate diet recommendations.  Given that My Plate recommends a diet that leans heavily towards whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and looks to dairy and lean protiens (meats) to play a lesser role, I wanted to cook a meal with our students that pretty well reflected this thinking.  

Triple Chocolate Threat

So....guess who's birthday cake this was?

HA....those of you who guessed Muppet, give yourself a gold star!

Yes indeed, to celebrate our young chocoholic's 14th birthday (where does the time go?), and in keeping with our habit of crafting fairly non-traditional birthday cakes around here (remember this one, and this one?), we decided to get all fancy this year and make this insanely good "Palet d'Or" for the Divine Miss M.

Cod with Kale and Chorizo

Up until this point the only unqualified success I've had in getting the kids to eat kale was with kale chips.  Every other preparation, whether tossed with pasta, served up in a soup, or just sauteed with some garlic has met with tepid acceptance.  I know that the fact they eat kale at all is cause for celebration, especially when I think that most of their friends have never even heard of it before.....but still.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

We've been going a bit crazy with rhubarb around here as of late.  As the first true sign of spring produce we see in these parts we like to greet it's arrival with a bit of fanfare, thank you very much.  So far we've used the lovely, tart red-green stalks in a knock-out Rhubarb Fool recipe we pinched from our friends Jody and Ken at The Garum Factory, in some Rhubarb Mojitos concocted by our fun dinner companion Tammy, and in this super easy, yet wildly delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp.

Breakfast Quinoa

Imagine my excitement when I found this recipe in the June issue of Cooking Light.  It was the "Kid in the Kitchen" feature for the month, and as you all know, Oui, Chef is all about getting kids busy in the kitchen.  We are all big fan's of quinoa here, but like Matisse Reid, the kid-chef who cooks this dish in the magazine, we've never made it for breakfast before, always opting for a more traditional oatmeal when we feel like a hot breakfast "cereal".

S'More Tarts

I've had the thought of these little buggers marinating in the back of my brain for a while now.  In fact, about 6 months ago I titled a post "S'more Tarts" as a placeholder and reminder that the concept seemed worthy of a little investigation and culinary creativity.  Well, last week after having seen that empty post yet again, I decided it was time to get off my ass couch and get busy making a Oui, Chef version of these treats.

Grilled Pork Chops with Clementine Marmalade

I have a confession to make.

I have never been to New Orleans.

I have a number of friends who make an annual pilgrimage to the Big Easy; some for the food, some for the music, and all for the joie de vivre for which the city is so famous.  As a lover of great food (and jazz), I'm embarrassed and a bit sad to admit that I've never made the trip myself.  New Orleans has long been known as one of this country's premier food and music destinations, and while I'm thinking that the whole Mardis Gras scene would be a bit much for me, it is definitely high on my list of spots to visit one day.