Strawberry and Pomegranate Crumble Bars ... a sweet Treat !!

Yeah, Spring is here and Strawberries from Whole Foods are already super tasty and super sweet ! I love Strawberries, even in a Quinoa Salad !

Today weather is warm in Connecticut, and I'm going having lunch with friends at the beach (life is good !)... and guess what ? I can't go to the beach without bringing a snack !!!

So I baked Pomegranate and Strawberry Bars, the perfect treat for my friends.

No need to tell you great things about Strawberries, Strawberries are people's favorite - remember the song "Strawberry Fields Forever" ;-)

To me, people don't use enough Pomegranate in cooking. Pomegranate is a really "good-for-you" fruit.
I love his crunch, his color, his sweet & sour taste and Pomegranate has a lot of good properties : for heart, digestion, liver, kidney, diarrhea, and more ....

  

These Strawberry & Pomegranate Bars are really yummy. The texture is between a cake and a crumble, and the fruits spread in the middle gives a smooth taste !!

Think about this recipe for your next brunch !!

A bientot et bon Appetit
Emilie your French Chef
http://www.emiliefrenchchef.com

La recette de Barre Crumble aux Fraises et Grenade (Strawberry and Pomegranate Crumble Bars)

Ingredients for 10-12 individual Bars :


- For the dough :
1 granulated Sugar
3 cups Flour
1 1/2 stick of cold unsalted Butter
1 large Egg
1 teaspoon baking Powder
1 teaspoon of pure Vanilla extract
2 pinches of Salt


- For the Fruits:
4 cups of diced Strawberries or any kind of red berries or a mix
2 cups of Pomegranate
1/2 cup granulated Sugar
4 teaspoon Cornstarch
1 Tablespoon cold Water


Preheat the oven to 380F.  Line a 11" square or rectangular deep baking dish with baking paper.


Whisk together 1 cup of the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.  Add the butter and stir with a fork until you get a sand texture (like bread crumbs). 


In an other bowl, whisk the egg with the vanilla.  Mix the egg  to the flour mixture, until everything is incorporated and you get a dry mixture.
Put 2/3 of the mixture into your baking dish and press to have a regular layer.


In a bowl, stir water and cornstarch. When diluted, add the sugar. Add the fruits and stir gently.


Spread the fruits over the first layer of dough. Then squeeze the rest of the dough to get chunks (with your hands or a fork) and spread everywhere over the fruits.


Bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until golden color.  Wait until everything completely cool before cutting  into bars (you can even wait overnight (in the fridge).


Store in an air tight container for up to 3 days in the fridge.

Egg lovers ... green up your Frittata !!!

I love eggs, I love green Vegetables so I love enjoying a Frittata for my Brunch !!!

To me Frittata is a wonderful healthy meal (as long as you love eggs, of course ;-))

It is an egg dish, almost like an omelette, but easier because it cooks in the oven.
Plus you can use almost all the veggies, cheeses, or meats that you like.

It is perfect for a light meal, served with salad on the side.

If you want a light Frittata, you can use only veggies, like me today (Zucchinis, sweet Peas, Spinaches, and  Pesto), but if you prefer, you can add grilled bacon, ham, sausage .... E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G !!!!

After grilling the Veggies, you cover with the Eggs batter, and hop ... directly in the oven at 450 F.

20mn later ... you can enjoy a puffy and light Frittata ... trop bon ! (so yummy !)

A bientot & bon Appetit
Emilie your French Chef
www.EmilieFrenchChef.com


La recette de Frittata aux petits Pois, Courgettes et Epinards (sweet Pea, Zucchini and Spinach Frittata)

Ingredients for 4 persons :

- 1 Zucchini
- 2 tablespoons of Pesto
- 12 eggs
- 1/2 bag of baby Spinach
- 2 cups of sweet Pea
- 2 tablespoon of heavy Cream
- 1/2 cup of chopped Onions (optional)
- 1 clove of chopped Garlic (optionl)
- 1/2 cup of shredded Cheese, Swiss, Mozza, Gouda etc ... (optional)
- Fresh Sage : chopped or whole.
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper

Preheat your oven at 450F.

Heat a 10'' non-stick pan (that you can put in the oven!!) with 2 tabespoons of olive oil.
Saute the onions, diced zucchinis and the sweet peas. Add the garlic, salt & pepper and sage.
Cook on medium/high until the veggies are tender and brown (around 5-8mn).

In a mixing bowl, beat eggs with the pesto and the cream. Add the shredded cheese and the chopped baby spinaches.
Add salt and pepper to taste and beat all ingredients with a hand beater.

Pour the egg/spinach mixture in the pan over the vegetables.

Bake uncovered for 20-25mn or until you get a puffy frittata with a brown color.
Serve hot with Salad.

PS: you can use boiled & grilled Potatoes, grilled Tomatoes, grilled Mushrooms, grilled Bacon, grilled Sausage, etc ... just use all the ingredients you like (and grill them before)

Green Pistachio Madeleines ... you will be nuts about them !!!

When I was a kid, I just loved these French Madeleines you can find in all the supermarkets, with a chemical taste of Almond extract (do not blame me, I said I was a kid !!!).

Twenty years later, I'm still in love with Madeleines and also with all types of Nuts (almonds, pistachios, cashews, macadamias ...) but only with natural ingredients ;-)

The French Madeleine is a cute Butter Cake (baked in a specific mold) and it looks like a shell with a bump on the top. Ohhh yeeessss, you really need THE BUMPS to call your cake "a Madeleine" (especially if you are French conservative-minded ... like I am ;-))))

The original recipe is made with Lemon zest or Orange Blossom Water, but of course, you can go behind the rules, and use other flavors.
Because I am not that conservative-minded, and because Patrick's Day is around the corner and I decided to green up my Madeleine, with Pistachios.
What a great idea !!! I think I even prefer this recipe to the original one (you know, I am nuts about nuts !!)

BUT, one thing that I needed to get with my Pistachio Madeleine is : THE BUMP !!
And I got it !!! (check out the recipe below to understand how to get THE BUMP ;-))))

You can enjoy your Madeleine(s) for the "petit dejeuner" (breakfast) or for the "gouter" (afternoon snack) or just right out of the oven when they are still warm .... yum yum !!!!
Et voila !

A Bientot & bon Appetit
Emilie your French Chef
www.EmilieFrenchChef.com


La Recette de Madeleines aux Pistaches (Pistachios Madeleines)

Ingredients for 20 Madeleines :

- 4 large eggs
- 140gr of granulated Sugar (5oz)
- 1 stick + 1 tbspoon of Butter (salted or unsalted)
- 1 tbspoon of  Pistachio Nut Paste (Whole Food)
- 1 package of dry Yeast
- 1 tbspoon of Baking Powder
- 100gr of Flour (3.5oz)
- 30gr of Almond Meal/Powder (1oz)
- 1 teaspoon of pure Pistachios or Almond Extract

I recommend a non stick silicone Madeleine mold. But if you only have a regular steel mold, generously butter your pan.

With an electric stand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar until you get a light yellow color (around 3mn). Beat in Pistachio Paste.
Add flour, Almond Meal, yeast, baking powder and Extract.
Beat until well blended.

In the microwave, melt the butter 20-30sec, until it is really soft (not too hot).
Gradually add soft Butter in the mixture and beat on high until everything is blended.

For the BUMPS : cool your mixture for 30-40mn in the fridge ! It is because you will put a very cold batter in a very hot oven that you will get the bumps !!
After 30-40mn, preheat oven at 400°F.

When the oven is preheated, put 1 tablespoon batter into each indentation in pan (dont fill up more than 3/4 of each indentation).

Bake about 10-15mn (depending on the size of your molds) until you Madeleines are puffed and brown, about 16 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Gently remove from pan.

The Moelleux au Chocolat ... What else ?

Le Moelleux au Chocolat (Lava Cake) is 'the' recipe for all my fellow Chocolate Addicts, all the Chocoholics, and for everyone who has a bad mood today !!

Oh ouiiii  ... every bite is an addiction t and the decadent molten center of this cake will melt into your mouth ...
Believe me, Chocolate is health food and mood enhancer : Chocolate is a Therapy !

Make it your Valentine's Day dessert and listen to your Valentine singing "Je vois la Vie en Rose" .... do not forget a glass of Champagne for this special occasion (or a strong expresso) !!!

Please please, give it a try, you will feel good about savoring every bite ....
I have a secret (shuuut) it is a very easy recipe, trust me, you will astound your Valentine ;-)

A bientot & bon Appetit
Emilie your French Chef
www.EmilieFrenchChef.com

La recette de Moelleux au Chocolat (Lava Cake)

Ingredients for 2/4 persons (depending on the size of your mold):

- 4 Ramequins
- 100g semi sweet Chocolate (ideally 70% cocoa minimum). I highly recommend a very good Chocolate quality (remember better qualitly better results)
- 75g unsalted Butter = 1/2 stick of Butter
- 50g powdered Sugar
- 25g all purpose Flour
- 2 eggs

Preheat the oven to around 400degres F.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a bain marie (double boiler).

Mix together the sugar and flour in a separate bowl. Then add the eggs and mix well.

Butter and flour your ramekin dishes.
When the chocolate & butter mixture is truly melted, pour the mixture into the flour/sugar/egg bowl and mix completely with a hand mixer (or your food processor).

Pour the batter into the ramekins about 3/4s full and place in the freezer for 10minutes.
Cook for approx 12-14mins, or until  you can see the edges of the cake perfectly cooked and the middle still moving/trembling a little bit.

Remove from the oven an use a knife all around the edge of the ramequin.
Flip the cake over the plate quickly. Serve with warm Chocolate Sauce and fresh Raspberry or Raspberry coulis or vanilla Ice-Cream if you want.

Raspberry & Strawberry Crumble ... for your Valentine Day !

Add Red and Pink to your Valentine's Day this year ... with a Zesty Strawberry & Raspberry Crumble !

Oh yes, you better-half deserves a dessert with lot of character for Valentine's Day ... so I decided to add blood orange to my Crumble ... I promise she/he will love the zesty taste of this dessert !

I love everything about Crumble, and the light brown Sugar & Almond topping of this recipe is absolutely crunchy and flavorful ... perfect !!

You're right, I always say "the better the fruits, the better the desserts" and Winter is not the season for best Strawberries or Raspberries BUT for my Valentine, I can bake Strawberry & Raspberry Crumble each day every single year !!!!

Do not forget the "Crumble Must-Have" : a scoop of Ice-Cream on the top of your warm Crumble ... I prefer Vanilla Ice-Cream ... Now it's your turn to cook for your Valentine !!!!!

A bientot & bon Appetit

Emilie your French Chef

http://www.emiliefrenchchef.com/

La recette de Crumble aux Fraises et Framboises (Strawberry & Raspberry Crumble)

Ingredients for 6 persons

2-1/2 cups of a mix of chopped Strawberries, Raspberries and diced blood Orange
1 tablespoon of blood Orange Juice
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
3/4 cup of granulated Sugar
1/4 of light brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 cup all-purpose Flour
1 cup Almond Meal (= Almond Flour)
Dash of salt
1 stick of Butter, cut into small pieces and a room temperature (soft)

(whipped Cream Or Vanilla Ice Cream, for serving)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine Strawberries, Raspberries, Cornstarch, light brown Sugar and Vanilla. Stir and set aside.

In a separate bowl combine Flour, Sugar, Almond Meal/ Flour, dash of Salt, and Butter pieces.

Use a fork and mix until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Pour the fruits in the bottom of a pie pan or into 6 individual ramequins.

Sprinkle topping mixture all over the top. And sprinkle 1 tablespoon of blood Orange juice on the top of the crumble.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until topping is golden brown.

Cool during 10 minutes at room temperature before serving.
Put a scoop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on the top.