The Paris Beat: Le Boudin Noir

The Paris Beat is covered by our foreign correspondent Jeanlouise: Jolie

[Dear Macmac]

Here’s an oldie but goodie for the nose to tail crowd: Blood sausage, or as my French friends say, le boudin noir. Blood is pretty high up there on the squeamish scale, but with rich flavors and no funky textures, the adventurous will be rewarded for diving in mouth first. I bought my first blood sausage in March when hosting some traveling eaters from Ann Arbor. When we approached the counter, I only knew we wanted boudin noir. A piece was cut off and wrapped in paper. I asked for guidance on preparation: It was already cooked so it could be eaten cold or even better if you have the time, fry the sausage gently in butter and serve up with some cooked apples. After picking up some apples from the fruit vendor next door, we excitedly headed home and got the frying pan going. I was a bit nervous about trying the sausage. I mean, blood man, gross right? Wrong. After chomping up that sausage, I sat back reassured, satisfied and curious- what was that thing and why was it so tasty?



Answers came last week when master artisanal charcutier Dominique Bignon came to school for a demonstration. Monsieur Bignon has won many awards for his work including the gold medal for boudin noir in 2006 (another reason to love France: it is a country that rewards good work). He runs a shop called Au Cochon Rose (The Pink Pig) in the XVeme. He has about 10 full time workers in an on-site ‘laboratory’ where they make blood sausage every Tuesday and Friday, among many other things (terrines, pates, head cheeses, hams, rilletes, etc).



Monsieur Bignon’s smiley demeanor won me over immediately- here was a man who loved the pig. He set to work demonstrating how to make boudin noir. The ingredients are simple: equal part of onions, jowl and blood, some cream, parsley and seasonings. The onions are chopped and cooked into a confit (softened and sweet). Then the jowl is added and cooked very gently-- or lovingly according to M. Bignon! for about 10-15 minutes, at which time the parsley is added.



Then, then magic happens . . . .off heat, the blood is poured into the onions. Spices (salt, pepper, nutmeg and the royal boudin spice mix) are stirred in followed by the cream, which acts as a biding agent.



At this point, he asked if anyone wanted to try the ‘raw’ blood mixture. My hand shot up. Jokes about me being a pastry student were made. The stuffing was delicious and ready to be funneled into casings. Purists will stop here. But if you wish, you could at this point add to the stuffing cooked apples, chopped chestnuts, fatback, cabbage or what ever else you dream up. . .



Our master charcuiter used a large metal funnel to stuff the casings. He did not knot the end to avoid air pockets, and tied off both ends once the casing was filled.


The tying he said, was the trickiest part. Anyone who has made sausage will agree. You walk the fine line between a nice plump link, and the alternative, a burst casing and blood all over your kitchen (Brown dogs will however, lap up your misfortune).



To finish off, the sausage is poached (80 c) for 15-20 min (or until it does not geyser out when pricked). The poaching water should be green, as this is an indicator of fresh blood with the principle being that the greener the water, the fresher the blood.

The freshly poached boudin was delicious, homey and incredibly rich. There were also other preparations from the Cochon Rose for us to try (a variety of head cheeses, ham, duck liver pate). The one dish that really blew me away was a variation on the boudin noir: a boudin noir terrine.



The terrine is made from packing the base boudin noir stuffing into a greased loaf pan. In order to have a firm, sliceable loaf an additional gelling agent is required. Pig snout is the part of the animal that contains the most gelatin (feet are second). To prepare his terrines, M. Bignon will pre-cook fresh (not brined) snouts, chop them very fine and add them to base. A terrine will need to cook longer—about 1 hour in a water bath in a gentle oven. The internal temperature should reach 72 c, 65c being the magic temperature at which proteins bind properly for a nice solid terrine. The terrine that I tasted also contained pig tongue and cooked apples. Again, I was nervous. . . I mean tongue, gross right? Wrong again, so very wrong.



Très Bien!

Au Cochon Rose
137 RUE SAINT CHARLES
75015 PARIS
01 45 78 03 68

DU MARDI AU VENDREDI DE 9H00 A 13H30
ET DE 15H30 A 19H30

SAMEDI 8H30 A 19H30

DIMANCHE DE 8H30 A 13H00

Springtime In Columbus

We went to Columbus for Easter, and we had a great time. Spring in Columbus always seems about three weeks ahead of cold dreary Chicago, and this past weekend we had nice weather to get out and hit some of our favorite spots.



On Friday we went to Yankee Trader to load up on trinkets for the Easter egg hunt. Plastic bugs, stickers, butterfly erasers, fuzzy gnomes, you just get a paper bag and write down what yer putting in the sack. I hadn't been there in a long time, it seemed a lot less cluttered but still fun. Just don't play with the whistles.





Then Ma took us to Pistacia Vera for cookies.





Once back in Clintonville I made a trip to Wasserstrom where found a wok brush and I also stopped at Giant Eagle for a 25Lb bag of Sapphire flour.



For Dinner we had turkey sandwiches and blue cheese potato chips. The turkey was left over from the Seder dinner my mom had at church.

On Saturday I made my pantry run to Penzeys then ma took me to The Fresh Market and Marcs. She calls them the yin and yang of grocery shopping in one stop.



In the Afternoon we hunted for eggs and had cake.










For dinner Bonne Femme made Blue cheese burgers. She said she gets them like this at Hackney's and they're called the Inside Out Burger.



Could it be a Jucy Lucy?



I fried up some shoulder bacon to top it off. After dinner I took Bonne Femme to Studio 35. She thought it was pretty cool.



Sunday started with a trip to church. I'm not much of a church-going person but I liked walking to Church. Crestview Presbyterian is where my parents got married, I got baptized, and I attended many a mother-son banquets. It was a nice day for a walk. The boys got to ring the tower bell.



For brunch we had a salmon bendict with a sorrel sauce. Sorrel is the first green up in my mom's garden, we got the recipe from the Herbfarm Cookbook. My mom cured the salmon and got the eggs from the coop.



After brunch we walked to grandma's house. We hunted for Easter baskets.



Then for dinner I prepared a leg of lamb on the kettle.









It turned out pretty good. Family and place are made special by what we make of them. Take care to make it good and the memories will flow.

Cheers.

The Paris Beat: Macaroons and Ping Pong

Chocolate macaroons with pistachio butter cream



Jeanlouise: Jolie's photostream on flickr

Lorne Sausage and the Full Scottish Breakfast

"Gotta eat a breakfast...I'll fix ya some eggs."

Pure poetry. I love fixing breakfast, during the week it's a disperate but constant affair; Henry eats Cheerios, Bonne Femme and Emmet have granola and yogurt and I start the day with and an egg, toast and tomato. But on the weekend the guns come out: Cinnamon rolls, huevos rancheros, hash, stratas, benedicts of any type, just give me a reason.

Last week I made up a reason of sorts because of a comment left by Andrew* on the St, Paddy's Day Post. Yeah, I got all Bobby Flay on him because he was lamenting that he hadn't made the time to make Lorne sausage and potato scones. Zero hour has arrived buddy, time to unfurl your Saltire and get grinding.



I had never heard of Lorne sausage, and I couldn't find any reference in my usual books, but on the internet, site after site lists it as an essential component of the Full Scottish Breakfast. The Lorne is described as a minced meat that's formed into a square loaf,sliced and fried. Apparently you can buy this in any store in Scotland, but here I have to make it up as I go along.



For mincing all you really need is a big sharp knife, but my mom found this grinder in my grandma's basement, and I figured why not go a little old school:



Lookin good.

As I far as I could determine the Lorne is spiced with pepper, coriander and nutmeg. Bonne Femme isn't crazy about nutmeg so I'll let the coriander take the star roll. I used oatmeal as the rusk.

Oh boy I'm getting hungry. I got a couple of Scottish cookbooks from the library. The Full Scottish Breakfast is coming into focus: Fried tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms, potato scones, and bacon...oh no, I need to make some bacon...



Bonless pork shoulder was on sale for 89 cents a pound I couldn't pass it up. It's not what I really wanted but I cured it, like I would a ham, rolled it and smoked it (ja mon).



It turned out ok, I'm interested in working on this bacon, I like the look of a wide streaky slice that I can get with pork shoulder, but I going to have to get a better roast. I'll report back soon.

Now back to the program.



I have my meats sorted out, how about that potato scone? As opposed to a crumbly biscuit block one might get at Stardunkin or DunkinBuck's, the Scottish Tattie is more of a griddle cake or even a tortilla. It's flat, round and cooked on a hot skillet. I used a recipe from the book, Classic Recipes from Scotland, by Tom Bridge, and his version he adds some cheddar. I made them as I would a corn tortilla, I portioned them then pressed them with a plate. Here's Bridge's ingredient list:

450g/1lb mashed potato, still hot
50g/2oz / 4T butter
100g/4oz A P flour
50g/2oz Cheddar cheese grated

combine ingredients, mix well. Divide into eight balls. Place a ball between pieces of plastic and flatten with a plate or pan. cook on hot oiled griddle.

Here's what I did for the Lorne Sausage

225g/8oz Beef chuck
225g/8oz Pork Shoulder
15g Salt
5g Black Pepper
5g Coriander
1g Mace (I like this instead of nutmeg, but use either)
2g Mustard seed (I like this as an emulsifier)
5g Milk powder (Helps retain moisture)
60g/2oz Rolled oats

I diced the meats, and processed the salt and spices in a spice mill then mixed them together along with the milk powder. The mixture rested in the fridge for an hour. I minced the mixture with a meat grinder fitted with a large die. I pulsed the oats in a cuisinart then folded them into the minced meat. I kneaded the mixutre adding a little cold water until it came together. I lined a small loaf pan plastic and pressed in the sausage. I let it sit in the freezer for an hour, then I took the mostly frozen loaf and cut 3/8 slices. Fried in pan.



I got about 16 or so slices out of my loaf and I guess you just keep them in the freezer until you are ready to fry.



Bonne Femme made a sammie with her Lorne, everybody loved their Full Scottish Breakast. Now if we only had a bit of Broon sauce.

Cheers.


(P.S. for those readers who know my Secret Code Name, please don't be confused, the Andrew referred to above writes the blog Slim Pickins'Pork. What a coincidence huh? Anyway, Andrew gets a few days grace since his weekend was booked with trip to Jungle Jim's, but it's never too late.)

The Paris Beat: Spring Break in Alsace

The Paris Beat is covered by our international corespondent Jeanlouise:Jolie. Currently She's in Paris working her way through the baking and pastry program at Le Cordon Bleu. This week is Spring break and she traveled to the Alsace region to report on doughnuts gone wild.


Hi macs, you would luv this place- Alsace is pork heaven.

Last week, I took my final exam in the intermediate pastry program. It was a real stinker of an exam, but I passed at least. I had to prepare a cake given only an ingredients list, 2.5 hours and a chef breathing down my neck. Well, after that it was spring break, and with Cancun outta reach, me and a pal opted instead to spend a week exploring the scene in Alsace.



Alsace is located in the north-eastern corner of France. This tiny region is separated from neighboring Germany by the Rhine and from the rest of France by the Vosges mountains to the west. It is a unique area with its own Germanic language, culture, and mostly Lutheran religion.

I was attracted to Alsace because of its wines: principally white and ranging from refreshingly dry and mineral to late harvest sweet wines. I am now in love with Rieslings (the nice minerally dry ones in particular). All the other stuff is pretty good as well. Something for everyone, right? Because wines in Alsace are identified by grape rather than geography, they were much easier for me to get a handle on. A Pinot Blanc is a Pinot Blanc, Muscat is Muscat, etc. It’s a grand cru if it’s grown in a field identified as producing superior grapes. That’s the about it when it comes to the basics. I’ve come to appreciate more and more (thanks to France . . .) that wine is best with food and food best with wine. So I had to pleasure of digging into not only the wine, but also the food that it goes best with-- the food of Alsace! Here’s what’s for the chomping in Alsace. . . . .



Alsatian Sauerkraut(Choucroute): A mound of sauerkraut topped with a variety of porcine delights including belly, ceverlas, blood sausage, frankfurters, ham, pork knuckle. . . ). It was awesome, and my major splurge in the meals department. I kept thinking, Jolie, you should eat more belly, that is where the flavor is. Also blood sausage, super rich and delicious, I should eat more of that. The wine pairing that works best with this pork fest is a Riesling or a Sylvaner (I had a nice grand cru Riesling).

Onion Tart: Not quite dessert, but not totally savory, one thing this pie definitely is is delicious . . . throw in a nice green salad and a glass of Sylvaner and you got some serious plans. The simple prep to deliciousness ratio is definitely in the cook’s favor.



Flammekueche: This is essentially a flour tortilla type crust topped with crème fraiche, onions and bacon. There are other variations, but this is the basic recipe. Here is what I want to know: hows come this thing tastes so good? Is it the crème fraiche? Is it the bacon? I tried it with beer and I had it with Riesling. Both were great, so do what feels right.



Snails: Snails are delicious. I recommend if you haven’t tried them, just do it. You know who you are. Seriously, don’t think about your garden, just chomp. I haven’t seen these things for sale in the market, which seems curious, but I would be very interested in trying them at home. Supposedly the cooking process is long (several hours). I guess that means it takes a while to get the slime outta them slugs. Wait, you’re not supposed to be thinking about that part! Pop a bottle of Alsatian Riesling to help you forget . . .



Kougelhpf: This is the emblematic pastry of Alsace and these things are everywhere. It’s got all the good looks of a bundt cake and all the nail biting excitement of a coffee cake. I’m saving my chomping for something more yumm-o, as the feller says. The ‘vendage tardives’ or late harvest wines tend to be quite sweet because they are left on the vine and infected with noble rot (a friendly fungus that concentrates the juices in the grape by removing water from the fruit). These wines are great for pairing with fruit tarts and other sweets though the traditional pairing for kouglehopf is a glass of gewürztraminer.



Munster cheese: Ok, I thought I knew what Munster cheese. Its white, got that reddish rind and is chewy and mild? Well maybe at the Kroger, but in Alsace Munster is hard-core in your face. It is a goopy, washed rind stinker of a cheese. I went to the village of Munster, found a local cheese monger and picked up 350 grams of the stuff.

The dude says, lady, this cheese has real attitude. I was all like, kewl, I'm all into attitude; I'm a wild and crazy guy, quoi. Well, I had no idea what I was getting into.



That cheese is crazed like a coon hound, it's cute at first, but you get into your third or fourth helping of the thing and you’re like, wait, you’re not cute anymore, you’re just insane. Well, thankfully the Munster didn’t dig through my purse and chew up my cell phone, eat Jo’s glasses or jump out of a moving car, but wow, I don’t know if I’ll have that again for a while.

Pair with Gewurztraminer, the only wine gutsy enough to stand up to that stuff. Hey, daredevils: try it. You might like it. If not, at least you’ll have more hair on your chest. Now to find le nair. . .







Donuts, donuts, donuts. Like any good girl from Columbus, I luvs me my donuts. Imagine my delight to find like-minded people in Alsace after spending so much time in the donut desert of Paris! Donuts done right and filled with jelly, pudding, or shaped into pretzels and coated with sugar abound.



Yeah, all that and I even chomped a real live apple fritter. I kept thinking maple logs would go over real well here. The Alsatian donuts (or beignets as they are called locally) are serious, confident and satisfying. I paired them with coffee and got off to a great start each and every day. . . .



I’ve got recipes for everything except the donuts if you is interested. I really encourage you to get up to your local wine dude see what they have in the way of Alsatian wines because they are a delight! I am also trying to convince the director at the Clintonville Compound to plant some vines on the front hill- bonne idea, non?

More from Paris soon.

JL