Le Moine Échanson - a real find in Quebec!

In my travelogue of our vacation in Quebec, I had promised a special write up of the little gem called Le Moine Échanson located just outside the walls of the old Quebec. And, here it is.

We casually strolled into the place on our first night in Quebec and managed to get a table only because we were there super early in the evening (6:30 pm) and that table had been reserved for 8pm!! Later, we realized that every table in the place (there were just 15 two seaters including 3 on the patio outside) had the little "reserved" tag and by the time our entree came, the place was bustling full. So, I must warn you, if you want to go there, make a reservation ahead of time!

Although, the place had a casual feel, there was nothing casual about the dinner we enjoyed that night. The food was inspired and the flavors nicely matched and, best of all, the dishes so beautifully presented!!

The menu, handwritten on a black board (and apparently changes almost every day), is short but well thought out. And yes, it was all in French! But, thankfully between the waitress and us, we sort of managed to translate enough to know what was in them. Dinner started with yummy fresh bread and olive oil. I have said this before - the welcome bread is truly a fair indicator of the meal ... and it was, yet again!

I had fish - poached mackerel with granny smith apples and chive mousse along a side of fennel and dill salad; simply one of the best fish dishes I have had. Husband had black pudding (blood sausage... yes, yes, blood but surprise! it tastes good, once you get used to the idea of eating it!) served on puff pastry with aged balsamic, cumin crème fraîche mousse and a side of fresh potato chips and lettuce presented beautifully. Although, the idea of blood sausage did not appeal to me first, I did try it and really liked it!!!

Dessert, or I should say desserts (because we just could not resist having two!! :-)), were the house Nougat and layered cake with dark chocolate mousse, nuts and couscous. Nougat was fabulously rich filled with almonds and pistachios. But, the real star was the cake! It was delicate, light and served with a reduced port wine sauce, date paste and a sweet cracker! I would have been happy eating with just my eyes. (Please excuse the photographs. My camera does not take good low light pictures and does little justice to the beauty of the food.)

What amazed me was that although the quality of food, here, was on par with some of THE most expensive joints in New York and definitely way above most of the fare that we saw in Quebec itself, it was very reasonable priced. Our meal of two entrees and two desserts was under $50!!!

I really wish we had stayed another night in Quebec, just to go to this place again. We did not, this time. Next time, I will definitely plan for a long sojourn with the place! Now, that is something to look forward to.... :))

Le Moine Échanson
585, rue Saint-Jean, Québec
+1-418-524-7832

Bonjour Quebec!

Ever since our trip to Paris a couple of years back, I have been in love with most things French! Isn't the language just so mellifluous?? The country is just steeped in history and the architecture is such a wonderful reflection of their culture. Oh! and the food... Words cannot do justice to the whole rainbow of flavors that the cuisine encompasses.

Anyway, in the wake of the Julie and Julia and my summer obsession with homemade tarts and breads, I yearned to relive my French experience. Unfortunately, summer isn't the cheapest time to travel to Europe. Fortunately, living in New York puts us just about a stone's throw away from another French locale - lovely Quebec, a true European gem in the middle of America! We spent 6 days in the French-Canadian state of Quebec; 4 in the city of Montreal and 2 in the old town of Quebec.

We stayed at the Le Meridian Versailles in downtown Montreal right by the Parc Royal. This was a great location to be based. We could walk or take a short metro ride to all the areas of interest from here. And Montreal is really a walking/biking city. We saw many tourists and locals alike biking around the city. They even have bikes that you can hire as you go; Bixis. You rent them from a stand at point A and return the stand at point B; very convenient but not exactly cheap! If you plan to bike for a considerable amount of time, a traditional cycle rental would work out more economical.

Montreal is a nice balance of the old and the new. There were the old European buildings; halls, churches, museums, little galleries; there were also the high rises of glass and steel juxtaposed with the stone architecture. And, although the people are bilingual for the most part, soft, fluid French is what you hear for the most part on the streets.

A couple of blocks away from the hotel is the Premiere Moisson Boulangerie, which, honestly, is the best French bakery in North America. Their almond croissant is the best I have ever tasted, generously filled with almond paste wrapped in a flaky, very buttery (you can taste the butter) crust! I could just go on and on about their breads; on which topic, by the way, you must have the bread of month when you go there. We got to try raspberry bread and apple-pecan bread when we were there. And most importantly, everything is very reasonably priced. They serve lunch for $8 which includes a full portion of entree, a generous slice of dessert and coffee. We had lunch there almost everyday!

Old Montreal is really the tourist-interest side of the city. They have their own version of Basilique Notre-Dame (I think there is one in every major city here. We saw one in Old Quebec as well.). Along the city runs the Lachine canal. We walked along it for a bit but you can also bike, or even rent a speed boat to go over the canal's rapids.

The city also has its own casino which is about a 30 minute metro and bus ride from downtown. Well, while it does not compare to Vegas, it is functionally well equipped with multiple floors of slot machines, a high stakes arena and a secluded poker section. We gambled our usual 10 dollars on the slots and proceeded on to more sight seeing in the area - Biodome and the Gilles Villeneuve race track. I was really thrilled being on the race track. Ofcourse, nothing was happening just then, but, I honestly think that is the closest I am ever going to be to a race track! :)

For dinner we went to a restaurant that came highly recommended as the locals' favorite; L'Express. It is in the lovely Mont Royal district (which reminds me a lot of West Village in NYC) and serves casual bistro food. It's open late into the night (until 2 am) and the service was prompt and generous. We actually went there twice. I would recommend the house ravioli and steak tartare very much.

If there is one thing that you must have while French-Canada, it is Poutine. It is a dish made with french fries, melted fresh cheese curd and doused in gravy. You can get this in appetizer or entree portions and it is heavenly. But, I must warn you, it is a gut sticking dish and perhaps a side of sliced tomatoes will do well to balance the richness.

There are many little cafes as well as upscale restaurants in downtown Montreal. Rue Crescent, Peel and Montagne were our favourite streets to scout. One little cafe that caught our attention was Vasco Da Gama, a quaint Portuguese place where we stopped for tapas. The parma ham (Spanish cured ham which is so much better than proscuitto but is banned in the US) with salty, aged St. Jorge's cheese was simple, elegant and fantastic!

Another find was Nocochi on the corner of rue St. Mackay and rue Sherbrooke. It's a cute patisserie that serves aromatic tea and wonderful bite-sized Iranian cookies. A lovely way to start the day!

On the whole, we loved Montreal. Our experience in the city was rich in food and the hospitality of Montrealites. They were just sweet, helpful and nice. Granted, there also seemed to be pretty well-heeled:). We saw a lot of high end cars (including a Ferrari Spider!!!) liberally dotting the landscape!

Next, we headed off to Quebec City, a three our drive from Montreal. We stayed at the Four Points in Levis, which is across the St. Lawrence river. It was pretty convenient; the ferry ride across was bi-hourly and short.

Now Quebec city; let me put the disclaimer up front. Quebec is more French than Montreal (it is definitely not bilingual) and so has a lot more of the beautiful architecture and retains a lot more of its past and culture. But, that also makes it extremely touristy and pricey! Old Quebec was just packed with tourists and over-flowing with souvenir shops and over-priced restaurants. I was shocked to find that the food was more expensive than even high end New York places.

Nevertheless, if you hunt long enough, you will find something to treasure. And we did; albeit outside of the walled city and away from the mayhem. I will get to that shortly. Let me tell you about the sights before I get sidetracked by the food.

The most famous structure in the city is the Chateau Fronterac, which is now a hotel and supposedly the most photographed one at that. It is a nice looking chateau and definitely dominates the landscape being right by the river and built on a elevation and well, it is huge and has a lovely fountain out front. But, frankly, we did not think it was worth all the hype. The husband and I have seen better looking chateaus, palaces and even hotels both in Europe and India.

Old Quebec, is also a nice town to walk and, the further you get from the chateau, the less crowded it becomes. Walking along the Governeur's board walk, we detoured onto the Dufferin Terrace and strolled on (yes on top) the walls enclosing La Citadelle. The Citadel is a active military base and so we really did not get to do much other than peek. If you time it right, you can see the change of guard at the gate, which we did not.

Coming out of the Citadel we were just by the Parliament house, which is a gorgeous old building with a lovely garden upfront. We cooled our heels by the fountain here and rested our feet before heading outside the walls of the city for a short visit to a chocolate museum Erico and the hidden gem for dinner. Near by is a church converted to a library and the church of St. Jean Baptiste which is very beautiful.

Le Moine Échanson on rue St. Jean was a lucky find on a discussion board and am I grateful to the person who wrote about it. This small hole in the wall restaurant literally salvaged the Quebec experience for me. The day until then had offered very little in the way of inspiring food but the dinner changed everything. There is so much to say about this place that I am going to write a separate post on it! Let me just say that if you are in Quebec, definitely make a reservation at this place...

On the second day, we drove about 10 minutes out of Quebec to view the Montmorency falls. At 83 feet, it is the tallest falls in North America and a full 30 feet taller than Niagara. But, it does not have the same volume. We walked up many flights of stairs to climb atop the 83 feet natural wonder. The force of water from that height created mist that we could feel quite a way back. It was a beautiful falls and it was a great day to appreciate the might of nature.

Back in Quebec city, we did more walking in the city and the park which led to the Plains of Abraham Battlefield Park. It's a nice place to walk and relax. We headed back to the tourist section for lunch. On the way, we stopped at Notre-Dame of Quebec that is adjacent to the University of Laval. The church is beautiful and well maintained with lovely ceilings and grand balustrades.

Aux Anciens Canadiens on rue Saint Louis is a wild meat restaurant that is known for the game meats of caribou, wild buffalo and wapiti. They also have a good deal for lunch. A $20 pre-fixe of soup, entree and dessert.

I had the Lac St. Jean meat pie made with small chunks of game meat and potatoes and served with a sweet and sour side of fruits and tomatoes marinated in a maple syrup vinaigrette. Husband had the dish of the day which was beef bourguignon (you have to have the French staple atleast once!:) ). The sauce was rich and flavorful and both dishes were well executed. We rounded off with maple syrup pie with fresh cream and fresh raspberries with cream and maple sugar. The pie was very good though a bit too sweet but that was balanced by the unsweetened whipped cream.

After a lazy afternoon we headed to Montreal and our flight back to New York. All in all, it was a lovely trip and I definitely satisfied my cravings with some culture and a lot of traditional and neuvo-inspired food!!! :)

Berry Pie - Perfect summer dessert!

Here is the Berry season!!! The grocery stores are overflowing with delicious, deep colored and succulent berries - luscious red strawberries, deep purple blue berries, bright pink raspberries and so many more... I love berries; I could snack through a whole box of blueberries while watching my favorite show (for the record, that's House.. Isn't Hugh Laurie simply the best?!). Someday, I want to go to a farm and handpick berries ....

Anyway, these days I seem to always have a pint of some sort of berry at home. So, when I found myself with leftover pastry dough from the Tomato Tart, I had made earlier, a simple a dessert presented itself for dinner (very convenient, eh! Plus this was the perfect opportunity to use the 4" pie moulds that I had recently acquired!)

I had some ripe raspberries in the fridge and pie popped into mind. I wanted old fashioned grandma style berry pie... but without all that effort! Raspberries are naturally tart as well as sweet. So, I used a simple recipe to bring out the sweetness while not overpowering some of the tart flavor.

Thirty minutes later, I had a pie that looked just like the ones Paula Dean makes on TV and tasted just as yummy!


Raspberry Pie
(for 1 or 2, depending on your mood)

*I prefer my pies to be not too sweet. So I do use less sugar than a typical for a fruit pie. You can definitely adjust measurements to your taste.

2 6" pastry dough rounds
3/4 cup fresh raspberries or any other berry
3 T cup powdered sugar
1 tsp corn starch

Toss together the berries, sugar and corn starch and let the fruits macerate in the mixture for about 30 minutes.

Carefully line the pie mould with one of the pastry shells. Spoon in the berries filling; berries will cook down a bit, so you can be generous with the filling. Cut 1/2 inch strips of the other pastry round and decoratively arrange them over the filling, crimping the edges under the base pastry.

(The traditional way to go is to pleat the pastry strips but honestly that is a little beyond my skill level now. So, I was happy with just the simplistic version I managed; rustic I call it!)

Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove and let rest for a few minutes. Garnish with fresh raspberries. Whipped cream or vanilla bean ice cream would be great too!

This pie recipe is listed on Foodista -

The secrets of a delicious bread

OK, I confess. I find the complimentary warm bread and butter, the best indicators of what is to follow at a restaurant. If the bread hits the spot, then somehow everything else falls into place. And, I have never turned down a refill of my empty bread plate! Ever.

So, while perusing one of my favorite blogs, Smitten Kitchen, I was very motivated to make bread at home. Sometime back I had used one of SK's recipes for homemade pizza with much success. That experience redeemed bread making at home for me and while I have made pizza many times at home since then (but ofcourse! It's pizza!), I had yet to venture into the sphere of real breads.. And, I mean yeast bread that work on timetables and all the kneading and degas-ing and stuff..

I have always wanted to take a course on bread and pastry making but the three-digit price tags have daunted me. So, armed with a library copy of The Bread Bible and a simple looking recipe on SK, I decided to give it a try. And, for opening night, I chose, Potato and Rosemary Bread!

Now, I did my homework! I read up on the techniques and terms (like biga, sponge etc.) used in bread making and was reassured by Ms. Beranbaum (author of The Bread Bible) that hands are indeed sufficient tools for all the labor involved (and no, I did not get my excuse for making another purchase.. nevertheless..!). And most importantly, I realized that I have to plan to make most breads because they need some starter material (the biga, in this case) that needs to sort of ferment overnight to be at its prime!

But, I persevered. And the fruits of my labor were flavorful indeed. In truth, it was not that much effort really. There are a just few important things to keep in mind -

1. Use fresh yeast - Yeast is a living organism that ferments the sugars into CO2 which creates the spongy texture of breads. So, the fresher it is, the more potent. I used the rapid rising variety.



2. Be patient - Yes, it can be very hard for some of us to wait for the dough to become sufficiently elastic without biting nails or tapping foot, but patience has its merits. An under-risen dough will be tough and very dense.



3. Beware the right starter/pre-ferment - Many breads need a starter or pre-ferment that kick starts the fermenting in the actual bread dough. Different breads need different types of starters that pre-ferment for different times. Plan your bread making with sufficient time for this starter.



4. Knead just enough - The idea of kneading is to ensure that the ingredients, especially the yeast, is even spread around the dough for even rising. Stop kneading once the dough is supple and soft but not sticky. Do not over knead. It will make the dough very tough.



5. Always test your dough - Although timings are given, they are only indicative. The only sure way of knowing if the dough is ready is to do a test. The simplest one that supposedly works for all breads is the Dimple Test; Make a dimple on the dough surface with your finger and the dough should not rise to fill it completely when you release.



6. Test your oven temperature - Some ovens are good at retaining heat, and some sadly not, when the door is opened. This is terribly important in the first 10 minutes of baking as the yeast's fermenting process completes insides the hot oven during this time. So, if you think your oven is not very retentive, they pre-heat to 50 degrees higher and turn the temperature back down once the bread is in.



7. Garnish into the dough, not on it - I learnt this hard way. If you are using something like rosemary, in this case, as a garnish on top of the bread, make sure it's fully embedded into the dough or it will burn in the oven.



8. Let bread rest - More of the patience needed here, especially in the face of the wonderful aroma from the fresh bread. But, desist from slicing before it rests for the full time mentioned.

Potato and Rosemary Bread
(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

I made only one loaf, so it was bit tricky scaling down the measurements but some approximation is ok.

4 oz biga (recipe below)
1-1/2 cups bread flour + plus extra for kneading
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
5/8 tsp rapid rising yeast
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
1 T olive oil
1 T chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 cup water at room temperature
Olive oil for brushing on top

Remove the biga from the refrigerator 1 hour before you plan to make the bread. Cut it into about 10 small pieces with a knife. Cover with a plastic wrap or damp towel and let sit for 1 hour.

Once the biga has thawed, stir together the flour, salt, black pepper, and yeast. Add the biga pieces, mashed potatoes, oil, rosemary, and water. Work the ingredients into a ball. Add more water, if necessary, or more flour, if the dough is too sticky.

Transfer the dough to a well-floured surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes, adding flour if needed, until the dough is soft and supple, tacky but not sticky. Gather the dough into a ball. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size. Test the dough with the dimple test.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Shape each of the larger pieces into a boule (oblong round) and place the dough on the parchment. Brush the dough with oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap.

Proof at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours (depending on the size of the pieces), or until the dough doubles in size. The dough should pass the Dimple test again.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F for 15 minutes with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Remove the plastic from the dough and lightly brush the bread with olive oil. You do not need to score these breads, but you can if you prefer.

Place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake the loaf for 20 minutes, then rotate the pan 180° for even baking. The bread takes 35 to 45 minutes total to bake. The loaves and rolls will be a rich golden brown all around, and the internal temperature should register at least 195°F (check the temperature).

(The loaf should make a hollow sound when thumped on the bottom. If the loaf is fully colored but seems too soft, turn off the oven and let them bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes to firm up.)

Remove the bread from the oven and cool on a rack for at least 1 hour for loaves.



Biga
(~16 oz)

Biga will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months. You can use it as soon as it ferments, but I prefer to give it an overnight retarding to bring out more flavor.

2 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour
1/2 tsp rapid rising yeast
3/4 to 1 cup water, at room temperature

Stir together the flour and yeast. Add water slowly, stirring until everything comes together and makes a coarse ball. It is okay if the dough is a bit sticky, you can correct for it when kneading. It is harder to add water once the dough firms up.

Transfer the dough to a well-floured surface. Knead for 4 to 6 minutes until the dough is soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and ferment at room temperature for 2 to 4 hours, or until it nearly doubles in size.

Remove the dough from the bowl, knead it lightly to degas, and return it to the bowl, covering the bowl with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight.

This recipe has been yeastspotted!

I say Tomato and be Tart about it!

"A world without tomatoes is like a string quartet without violins" - Laurie Colwin

I really think, I would be in serious depression, if you took away tomatoes from me. Oh I know, there are many a dish that needs none of the acidity of a tomato. But, taking away tomato from me is like refusing an Italian, basil. The number of tomatoes we go through in a week is a constant source of wonder for our grocer! On the whole, I think a world with this sweet and tart vegetable is a whole lot sunnier than without! :)

Anyway, the other day, when the husband and shopping-dampening-frown were away, I decided to visit the cake supply store here in NYC, New York Cake Supplies (very original, I know). As soon as I stepped into the dungeon-ish store, I felt like a kid in a candy store! Here were shelves overflowing with baking supplies; from pans and moulds of every size made of glass, metal, silicone to every conceivable pure extracts to palettes full and beyond of food colors to many more things I do not even know the purpose of!

So, ofcourse, I indulged my heart and bought a few necessary items and few I-would-really-love-to-have-this-one-surely-it-is-useful stuff. One of the former was a 9 inch tart pan, the standard size mould with removable sides that is a must-have for any baking enthusiast.

Bursting with glee, I dreamt of all the wonderful stuff I was going to make with my new purchases and put them all (almost) to use immediately. The very first thing that popped into my head was a simple Tomato Tart.

Having learnt the lesson the hard way about boxed pie crusts, I decided to make them from scratch. You won't believe how surprisingly easy it was! It really is the simplest thing to make once you get past the frustration of cutting cold butter into the flour with a pair of forks. (No, I don't have a Cuisinart mixer and refuse to buy a pastry cutter). Incidentally, I found out that a quick 5 second pulse on a standard blender helps the process along quite a bit.

Once, the dough was cooled enough to roll out, the next thing is to roll the dough to fill the mould. Being a novice and in my enthusiasm, I rolled it out a bit too large. The recipe I used was for one 9" shell but I managed to get a 9" tart and a 4" pie (I'll write about that another time) out of it! But, honestly, it was no loss. The shell was still sufficient and flavorful.

Then came the tricky part. Transferring the dough into the mould. A note of caution here: If you are using the removable bottom mould,handle the pan ONLY using the sides. Do NOT touch the bottom. I did that and almost lost my perfectly fit dough!

Phew! It was finally done. Since my filling was not going to need much oven time, I blind baked the shell before filling it. Meanwhile, I caramelised some sweet Vidalia onions. Yes, the Vidalias really do make a difference. I was a sceptic till I tried them but I am now a sworn aficionado! They are wonderfully sweet and soft and balance the tartness of the tomatoes perfectly.

I layered onions, Wisconsin sheep milk cheese and fresh tomatoes on my partially baked shell and popped it into the oven for about 30 minutes. Topped with a bit of basil, the tart looked as delectable as it tasted!

Something about the bright red and fresh green just makes you want to jump in and devour the whole thing instantly! :)


Tomato and Vidalia Onion Summer Tart
(one 9" tart)

Pâte Brisée:

1-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 stick very cold butter (frozen is even better but a bit more work)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
3-4 T ice water

Filling:

1 Vidalia onion julienned
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
3 roma tomatoes sliced thin horizontally
1/2 - 3/4 cup grated medium aged sheep milk cheese (depends on how much cheese you like. I like mine cheesy!)
2 T fresh basil chiffonade
1 T fresh grated parmesan
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

To make the Pâte Brisée:

In a large bowl blend the flour, salt and sugar. Cut in the cold butter until the mixture resembles meal. (here is where a blender is useful!). Add ice water one tablespoon at a time and toss the mixture until the water is incorporated and the dough forms into a ball. Knead the dough lightly with the heel of the hand (coldest part of hand) against a smooth surface for a few seconds to distribute the fat evenly and re-form it into a ball. Dust the dough with flour and chill it, wrapped in wax paper, for 1 hour. You HAVE to work very quickly with this dough to prevent the butter from melting.

To blind bake:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

On a very well floured surface, roll out the cooled dough into an approximate 10 inch circle. Roll the dough over your rolling pin. Transfer the dough onto the mould, starting from one edge and rolling it out to fit the mould. Do NOT stretch to fill the mould, it will collapse while baking.

If needed, place in freezer for a few minutes to firm up the shell. Cover the shell with aluminium foil and fill with pie weights or beans making sure to gently press them to the sides. This will help the sides to maintain shape. Bake for 12-13 minutes till the edges are golden brown.

Remove the weights and foil, poke the base with a fork and bake for another 3-4 minutes. If you are fully baking the shell (for cold desserts or tarts that need no cooking) let the shell bake for 8 more minutes or until fully done.

Meanwhile, caramelise the onions in oil over low heat and season with the dry herbs, salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar.

To assemble the tart. Spread the onions at the bottom of the tart in an even layer. Next add the cheese. Finally, top with the tomato slices arranged decoratively. Season with salt, pepper and a dash of balsamic vinegar.

Lower oven temperature to 375 degrees. Pop the tart back in and bake for 25-30 minutes until the crust is light brown and flaky, cheese melted and the tomatoes are starting to shrivel but not fully cooked.

Rest on rack for a few minutes. Sprinkle the fresh parmesan and basil all over. Slice, bite and relish!