AT THE GATE: THANKS TO SPICE-POACHED PEARS

AT THE GATE: THANKS TO SPICE-POACHED PEARS

This week’s French Friday with Dorie recipe choice, Spice-Poached Pears

 

Let’s play JEOPARDY:

Answer: Dorie Greenspan’s Spice-Poached Pears, this week’s FFWD recipe.

Question: How do you thank a neighbor who is driving you to the airport…..at 4 A.M……on a Saturday!?!

 

Mise en Place, so few ingredients yield such a tasty treat

 

This week’s recipe, cooked fruit, seems so basic, so un-special, a “why bother?”.  Dorie describes this compote as “the simplest of French family sweets, and the most comforting too.”

After making a batch, even if cooked fruit wasn’t  my idea of a palate pleaser this week, it  tasted heavenly and  refreshing. (That’s why Dorie writes the books and I only cook from them.)  I picked Bosc pears to poach for this recipe. Really, it’s your choice because all kinds of fruits – apples, pears, plums, apricots, peaches, cherries, prunes, figs, kumquats – to name a few, can be simmered to tasty perfection.

 

Putting the syrup ingredients together, ready to boil and simmer. This spicy syrup recipe is a Keeper.

 

What I suggest is to link to Dorie’s recipe here and use her basic syrup recipe to create all kinds of delightful dishes. The sweet and fruity ingredients in the syrup combined with the spices of star anise, cinnamon sticks and vanilla beans, provide a lovely, flavorful and warm bath in which the fruit can bask.

Although the French, according to Dorie, usually serve their compotes with little more than heavy cream, crème fraîche or plain yogurt, I prefer the more-is-better approach. Embellish pancakes, waffles or French toast by spooning this spicy fruit on top.  Ladle it over pound and angel food cakes, rice pudding or ice cream. With the right fruit combo, this would be wonderful with ham or poultry. Be even more creative than I am. Poach  your taste buds gently, allowing your culinary imagination to run wild.

 

Papa Pear said to Mama Pear and the little Pears, “Where’s my warm, syrupy bath. I need a soak?” After poaching the pears in the syrup, gently remove the pears to a bowl and continue boiling and reducing the syrup for an additional 10 to 15 minutes before again pouring it back over the fruit.

 

I made my spicy poached pears midweek, pleased that they’d become a special thank you-treat for my neighbor and friend, Ray, who is taking me to the airport Saturday morning.  Although the Hot Now sign isn’t even on at our local Krispie Kreme shop by 4 A.M., Ray, ever the good guy, never complains and, especially not after today when I gave him a bowl of spice-poached pears. Memo to me: Next time, double the recipe.

 

 

 

For the next two weeks, I will be in South America, joining a Tauck Tours excursion which begins in Santiago, ending in Rio de Janeiro. After traveling alone for five years, I find there are some trips that are  far easier and safer to do with others.  (Or, so my children say………) Tauck seems to understand the independent traveler. I can often turn left when they go right.

Because the celebrations for Chilean Independence Day begin this weekend, I am arriving early to watch the colorful festivities. With the assistance of guide Liz Caskey, I’ll have the opportunity to visit La Vega and Mercado Central, Santiago’s largest markets, following her virtual tour to experience the local foodie scene. As far as the South American culinary culture is concerned, consider me clueless. I hope to change that as I taste my way through these countries.

My Posts the next two weeks will be sporadic and, with appreciation,  I am handing off my FFWD administrative duties to Laurie and Betsy. Perhaps, just perhaps, I’ll even catch up with our Argentinean Dorista, Paula, when I am in Buenos Aires. Stay tuned, please…….

 

Project Dinner Table, a charity event last Saturday in Las Vegas, where 175 people gathered to eat together, family-style.

 

 

My dinner partners for the evening, Todd Harrington, Executive Chef at Central Michel Richard at Ceasar’s Palace, and his assistant. Thousands of dollars were raised to benefit Safe Nest and The Shade Tree, organizations dedicated to aiding abused women and to the eradication of domestic violence.

PROJECT DINNER TABLE/Vegas-style and Eggplant Tartine/FFWD-style

PROJECT DINNER TABLE/Vegas-style and Eggplant Tartine/FFWD-style

 

 

This week’s FFWD recipe is all about veggies: Eggplant Tartine with Tomatoes, Olives and Cucumber. A tartine is actually an open-faced sandwich with a spread on top. For today’s presentation, however, the bread has been banished and replaced by eggplant. The result is so delicious and tasty, you don’t realize the grain product is missing. Don’t ask. Don’t tell.

I’m especially pleased to be making a nutritious dish today because Less is More this week. Needing to eat Less this week because More is happening on Saturday night. I’ve returned to Nevada to attend my first Project Dinner Table charity event on Saturday. This exciting event benefits two organizations that have become dear to my heart lately:  Safe Nest, a charity that promotes the eradication of domestic violence and The Shade Tree, a 24-hour shelter designed specifically to support abused women and children in Southern Nevada.

 

 

The purpose of PDT is to create meaningful and adventurous experiences around the dinner table, celebrating local food, community and philanthropy. That the dining table is loooooong, accommodating 175 people, six courses, and served pass-the-plate family style, brings Pop-Up Entertaining to an entirely new level. Oh, yes, this time it’s open-air, streets closed, a Main Street meets the Strip atmosphere. Hello, new experience.

The Chefs for this PDT, Executive Chef Royden Ellamar of Sensi at Bellagio and Executive Chef Edmund Wong of Bellagio, only raise the bar.

 

Executive Chef Ellamar of Sensi, Bellagio, Las Vegas  PDT Photo

Executive Chef Wong of Bellagio, Las Vegas PDT Photo

 

 

What I have found, since moving to Henderson, is that local casino conglomerates are very philanthropic and generous locally. They can afford to be, of course. One-upmanship is the game name here. Now is Bellagio’s moment and I’m betting they’re up to the glitz-and-grits task. Their Horticulture department, in charge of decor, is already loading up citrus trees and potted fruit plants. No chandeliers necessary, stars will suffice. A feel-good moment for Las Vegas.

 

The Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens, a popular attraction on the Las Vegas Strip. Kudos to the hotel-casino’s reknown horticulture department. destination360.com photo

 

The tartine dovetails nicely with this upcoming gastronomic overload.  Roast 1-inch thick eggplant slices for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Toss together a delicious salsa using tomatoes, celery, onion, garlic and green olives. The dressing is simply red wine vinegar and olive oil with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper added for seasoning. Throw some cucumber slices haphazardly over the top and you’ve got a lunch, snack or dinner.

 

Eggplant slices waiting for olive oil, salt and pepper, before basking in 350 degree temperatures for 45 minutes

 

Saturday evening will be an eye-opener for me, a charity function, Vegas-style. Since moving here, I’ve been so focused on my personal life and responsibilities, I’ve spent little time thinking about those less fortunate. For me, now, it’s a different world and I’m looking forward to using my considerable energy to help others, particularly women. A feel-good moment for me.

 

Eggplant Tartine with Tomatoes, Olives and Cucumbers