Another one of my savoury “cake” recipes from France. This recipe is slightly more substantial than my Recipe #316039, as this recipe contains ham with white wine and port! Serve this as alternative sandwich bread or as a light snack spread with cream cheese or butter. This cake recipe will also make fantastic little appetisers if the loaf is cut into small cubes and served with olives, cubes of cheese and savoury spreads. Please note that the texture of this savoury cake is NOT like a sweet dessert cake – it will be slightly holey with a robust and slightly chewy texture, almost like sourdough.
I adore moules, mussels, and this is the classic French recipe for them. Moules Marinières is also commonly known as Sailor’s mussels or Mariner’s mussels. The dish consists of delicately steamed fresh mussels in a white wine, garlic, parsley, butter, onion and cream sauce. Moules Marinières can be served as an appetising starter or even a light main meal. It is delicious served with fresh crusty bread or with frites (chips/fries). There is nothing more mouth-watering than a huge bowl of artistically presented mussels, yet the fun part is eating them. The best way is to use an empty mussel shell as the “spoon” in which to pick the remaining mussels from their shells and then eat them. It’s a brilliant excuse to use your fingers to eat rather than the usual knife and for – very tactile! A traditional French recipe will use butter, however the butter may be substituted for a few tablespoons of olive oil for a healthier option – I sometimes use a mix of butter and olive oil I hope you find the step-by-step photos helpful, this recipe was used in the September 2008 Cooking School for the TOTM – hopefully, the photos will debunk the myth that mussels are hard to prepare and cook, NOT so! Bon Appétit!
This is delicious! I serve this over rice or Israeli couscous. *Note: . You can substitute canned San Marzano tomatoes for fresh tomatoes. You can also use kalamata olives in place of nicoise olives.
Snagged this one for both cold & warm weather fare. Plan to serve hot in winter & more room temp in summer. Food & Drink Weekly editors listed their Top Picks of 2008 – this recipe which they claim can be on the table done in 35 minutes made the cut. It was devised by the retiring former Test Kitchen director Donna Deane. Give the breasts a three-minute pan fry until they’re nearly done, and then in the same pan make a quick Basque-style sauce — tomatoes and olives and herbs, slightly smoky pancetta. It’s all fantastic with the perfectly cooked chicken breasts that are so tender the meat is almost silky. Note: From test kitchen director Donna Deane. Espelette pepper is available at specialty food stores. Substitute in smoked paprika or even cayenne if needed. You can substitute canned San Marzano tomatoes for fresh tomatoes.
Make and share this Shrimp Scampi from the Wool Growers Basque Restaurant recipe from Food.com.
