Cooking from David Lebovitz’s delightful cookbook, My Paris Kitchen, was only one of the joys; it was well-written and the stories of
his Parisian culinary adventures were nostalgic for several of our members who
lived in Paris. Lebovitz recalled experiences
and adventures in the kitchen that we’ve all had, albeit, not always in Paris!
We opted for a brunch this time for our Parisian meal because of
the drive to Brentwood. It was
actually closer that we had anticipated and for most of us a 1 hour, 15
minute drive. Brentwood is
home to many farms, most notably corn.
Brentwood corn is one of the best, often available in
grocery stores as well as Farmer’s Markets. It is easy to see why because of the sun and high heat
that this part of our state enjoys.
We entered Sandi & Willie’s home on the notes of a
beautiful grand piano, created by a re-engineered, computerized piano that will
play music as if performed by a specific artist…all controlled by their
computer! Listen to Gershwin playing Gershwin. How cool is that!
We started with two appetizers that David S. prepared that
he said was extremely simple to make (I’m going to test that theory!). The first was a Sardine Paté that was created using canned sardines, cream cheese, butter and some heat
(maybe cayenne?). Annie thought
the canned sardines brought a more intense flavor that fresh sardines would but
David’s going to try it with fresh sardines, which is what Lebovitz recommends. I’m glad he prepared it for us
because it was one of the recipes I had flagged to try. It was delicious and not at all “fishy”
like one would have thought.
The cream cheese softened the flavors.
His second appetizer was a Green Olive, Basil and Almond Tapenade. I would not have chosen to try this
recipe thinking that green olives are so salty but after tasting it, this dish
is one that I will have to try. Gebruder Simon 2010 Riesling Brut Sekt, Mosel, Germany. I don’t think we’ve had a German sparkling wine
before. I liked it and thought it
brought nice fruit to the two savory appetizers.
Our next appetizer was plated after we sat down for our Sunday feast. Sandi W. made the Merguez Meatballs with Sriracha Mayonnaise. These
lamb meatballs used harissa for the heat and, obviously, sriracha for the heat
in the mayo. Sandi mentioned that
she ground fresh spices herself for the meatballs and there were a lot of
them: fennel, coriander, cumin,
garlic, cinnamon, allspice, and sumac.
She was worried that they had been overcooked but we all thought it was
wonderful. She also served a
yogurt sauce with it to cool the heat from the meatballs and mayo. It was perfectly paired with a wine
from our own cookbook club cellar that Bill selected for us to enjoy. We had a field trip several years ago
and visited Quivera who boasts a biodynamic garden and several vineyards. We had dinner in their wine cellar
surrounded by huge barrels, emiting that wonderful aroma of aging wine. As part of our agreement with the
winery, we purchased a case of wine, some of which we had with our dinner there
but the rest, has been carefully aging in our cellar. This afternoon we enjoyed a 2000 Quivera Zinfandel, from the Anderson Valley, Dry Creek Valley
area in Sonoma. The zinfandel was
fruity and perfectly balanced after aging for 15 years. It also stood up to the spiciness of
the meatballs and sriracha mayonnaise.
Well done, Bill!
I prepared the next dish that I
chose because it seemed so very “French” to me. The Leeks with Mustard-Bacon Vinaigrette was a very simple recipe that combines steamed and
cooled leeks with a vinaigrette that was punctuated with Dijon mustard, bacon
and parsley while softened with chopped hardboiled eggs. The hardest part of this recipe was
finding small leeks and getting them to cook to right “doneness.” I noticed that some of the larger
leeks were soft and sweet while the smaller ones were tougher. I now think that larger leeks might be the better
choice. We all noted that
Lebovitz’s recipes were simple, easy and produce results that successful. This afternoon meal confirmed it! Simple and delicious…what more
can a cook ask for?! While
not many wines work well with vinaigrettes or mustard, I think that Bill’s
choice for this dish worked. The Sutter Home, nv, Gewürtztraminer was recommended by a friend of
ours who is a wine judge for several events who told us it won a gold
medal. The fruitiness of the wine
actually turned out to be a palate cleanser and did not clash with the mustard
or the vinegar. As a
Gewürtraminer, however, it fell short of a gold medal, IMHO; no flaws but
lacked depth. Bill brought a back up wine for this dish and it was a better pairing:
On to our main course and sides prepared by Annie and
George. Chicken with Mustard is the dish pictured on the cover of Lebovitz's
cookbook: chicken thighs sauteed in onions and bacon fat, then
treated to a creamy mustard sauce. It's all but irresistible to the carnivores among
us. I had made his Chicken Lady’s Chicken and loved that
one but now here’s yet another recipe for me to try. I love chicken thighs, finding them so much more flavorful
than chicken breasts! Annie
prepared them at the house, using those so very French ingredients: bacon, Dijon mustard, thyme, parsley,
white wine and heavy cream. This
was totally divine and the perfectly simple and delicious way to prepare
chicken….sigh, so many recipes, so little time!
George complemented the chicken with Pureed Celery
Root and Sugar Pea Pods. The
puree had potatoes in it to give it texture and creaminess and was a
silken transportation to that elusively light flavor of celery that gives one
pause to think, “What is this?”
Because it is not celery root season (Late Fall), it
was difficult to find large tender celery roots so George had to puree them in
a food processor and then push it through a sieve to get the creamy
consistency. Well worth the
effort, George! The pea pods added
a bright green color to the plate and a sweet foil to the savory chicken. This was complemented by the
addition of a wine from Jeffrey’s vineyards, 2014 Mount Eden
Vineyard, Grenache Rosé, Santa Cruz Mountains. The rosé is a great summer quaffing wine and we
recommend it for the months ahead
however, it wasn’t a great a pairing as we had expected so Bill produced yet another bottle from our cellar for us to try.
A 2005 Merry Edwards Pinot Noir,
Tobias Glen Vineyard, Russian River, Sonoma. Ahh,
a much better choice!
Because we all had a drive ahead, we did not bring a dessert
wine and Bill is of the opinion that no wine goes well with chocolate and there
was definitely chocolate in one of our desserts!! Janice made the Chocolate Dulce de Leche Tart with bittersweet chocolate and
canned dulce de leche. It had a
wonderful chocolate crust with the dulce de leche covered with a layer of
bittersweet chocolate. Several people
had seconds, it was so yummy!
We all lamented that David K. wasn’t here to join us since
he’s the King of Duck Fat! Sandi
W. baked Duck Fat Cookies for us. The recipe calls for butter as well duck fat and was accented
with tiny currants. This time she
used Muscovy duck fat in the recipe. The first time she made it with Peking duck
fat and the duck flavor was more pronounced and the cookies flatter and crispier. I ate two, as did many
others! Shortbread cookie
extraordinaire!
And, this ended our brunch in Brentwood! (I found recipes
for most of the dishes online so if you want to replicate this dinner, just
click on the recipe titles)
Our next dinner will be on Saturday,
September 5th.
Jeffrey has graciously offered his home on top of the Santa Cruz
mountains for that dinner. The
good news is that over half of the road up to his home is now paved!! Jeffrey has yet to select a cookbook
for this dinner so when he does, I will let everyone know what feast to cook
next! In the meantime, please mark your calendars to save this date.
Cook on!
