Gâteau de Riz (Rice Cake) with Cardamom and Vanilla

I have made reference so many times to my childhood special moments in France and my fond memories of my nanny's famous gâteau de riz in previous posts, that I think you get the picture that gâteau de riz (aka rice cake) has been my favourite dessert since I was a teenie weenie. I never forgot the taste of the cake my nanny would make in Normandy, while we were on vacation with family and friends.

Now more than ever, it really does feels like years ago, yet I can still smell the cake baking in the oven at the country house my nanny's family owned in north of France. Finally, I found the recipe that my nanny had given me eons ago. As you know, when you move, you either never find anything ever again, or you discover old little items that you thought were forever lost or long gone. And there it was, in a very dusty box, along with old pictures of high school and black and white pictures of my parents when they were students back in Grenoble, France.

Despite the fact that North America produce is so much different than that of France, I was very happy with the way this rice cake turned out but it didn't quite have the exact taste or aroma as I remember it to be back in the days..but close enough. If you've travelled to France (and even other countries in Europe), you'd agree with me that meats, bread and especially dairy products taste so much better. Yogurts are "creamier" and taste a hundred times more fresh! Cheeses are more flavourful and meats are sooooo tender. At least, those are my observations.

So, I now share with you a wonderful recipe of gâteau de riz, to which I added my favourite combination of fragrances, cardamom and vanilla.

recipe "au pif":

1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened to grease pans / ramequins

4 tbsps short grain rice (Arborio or other)

3 whole eggs

4 tsps raw cane sugar (or 1/3 cup regular granulated sugar)

2 cups milk (I prefer using 3.25% whole milk - but 1 or 2% can also be used)

1/3 cup crème fraiche (sour cream can be used)

1 vanilla bean, sliced in two lengthwise, seeds scraped with knife

5 cardamom pods, shells discarded, seeds finely grinded in mortar and pestle

1/2 tsp freshly grounded nutmeg

1/4 cup raisins (optional), soaked in warm water for 30 minutes , water discarded

Preheat oven at 320F (160C).

Using your hands, generously grease any medium sized baking dish or 6 - 8 small ramequins with the softened butter.

Cook rice in boiling water for about 10 minutes until rice is soft. Discard excess water through strainer. Put rice aside.

In a salad bowl, whisk eggs with sugar, milk, crème fraîche, vanilla and cardamom until all ingredients are well blended together. Add in the rice (and raisins if desired) and give it a nice stir.

Pour the mixture in the greased baking dish (or ramequins) and sprinkle freshly grated nutmeg.

Bake for about 45 minutes (or 20-25 minutes in convectional oven).

With a toothpick, check rice cake for firmness (toothpick should come out clean), then remove from oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes to cool before serving.

This wonderful dessert can be served with fresh fruits and of course, a drizzle of your favourite liquor (rum, amaretto...you name it).

Serves 6-8 people.

Share and enjoy!

Meaningful Gifts

Isn’t it beaut-ee-ful?

Although I can’t say no to meaningful gifts, I can’t say that I need anything more than I have now. I have everything that I need – loved ones with whom I share so much, good health and a positively energy-giving philosophy that helps me live my days through highs and lows, and of course a beautiful comfortable home with a wonderful and practical kitchen.

But I do have to admit that little things, like receiving gifts when least expected, can make my day a little more interesting. Only recently, I got to know more Mayur and his beloved wife Bhavya who share similar interests as mine such as photography and of course, cooking and eating good food. From their last trip to India, they brought back this wonderful gift – a gold mortar and pestle. I remember feeling overwhelmed by the mesmerizing gold colour of this very useful kitchen tool – handed over in a small greenish – gold sheer satin bag. I haven’t used it yet – but it won’t be long before it becomes one of my favorite items for cooking.

Thank you Mayur and Bhavya !

Dream Kitchen

What is your dream kitchen?

There’s been a very good and exciting reason for putting temporarily new QlinArt recipes on hold…

…creating my ideal kitchen space in my new home!

This beautiful and functional space used to be a battlefield just a couple of months ago. Now, I can say it’s my cozy home where I rush to every evening after work to just sit down and sip a nice cup of tea; and to contemplate the warm colours and lines that contour the shape of this lovely kitchen. To be honest, I never thought I had decorating skills in me. I take that back. I did enjoy decorating in the past, but I was always afraid of colour. I was the beige-white type of girl, no clutter and very little furniture. In other words, my past homes would often be nice and clean, but lacked character and life. As they say, what you put in your home often reflects your inner self. As years have gone by, I’ve grown to enjoy and appreciate life better; to be more daring and to actually enjoy the shapes and different colours life has to offer. I also noticed that I put less importance into “things”. I’ll purchase and enjoy – but if I lose some “thing”, I’ll let it go and move on.

In any case, I realized during the entire renovation/decorating venture, which involved breaking down walls and dealing with feisty contractors, that a dream can be realized when fed by true passion and desire. Funny how as one grows and learns in this world, dreams transform as well. Initially, I always dreamt of having a spotless white (again… white) kitchen with granite countertops. Now I think – white kitchens are beautiful but…how BORING, for whom I’ve become.

This time around, I let my own intuition lead the way and decided to not take any advice, unless I asked for some. It took some time as I looked into a few magazines for inspiration.

Last December, we made the decision to put our condo up for sale and get a new place and start afresh. From QlinArt perspective, I was looking for a new place mostly to create a functional and practical kitchen. My idea of ‘functional’ is to have more countertop space than I had at the condo and at long last…windows… beautiful windows that provide abundant natural lighting highly sought after by food photographers.

Our house, built in the 60s, had old walls and floors, but still had a lot of potential to be rejuvenated. We wanted to preserve its original attribute by giving it a fresh, clean new look without going over board and over budget. To achieve this, I went for the IKEA kitchen designs. Personally, I had a wonderful experience with IKEA and I would recommend it to anyone who plans to redo or create his or her dream kitchen: they are very affordable, they have a variety of kitchen designs to suit almost anyone’s needs, very functional storage pieces, and they deliver within 3 weeks time, AND they install everything for you in just 1 day.

Most importantly, I love the amount of space I have now to cook and be messy!

Tender Chicken in a Spicy Curry and Prune Sauce

That curry powder I've been writing about in my last post was used in this succulent chicken dish. It's a mix of Persian and South East Asian cuisine that complement each other very well. Any good flavourful dish needs that extra kick in aroma by using a little teaspoon of a freshly made curry powder.

This dish has been one of my favourites and my dearest friends for a while now. The chicken melts in your mouth and the sauce is incredibly velvety that we hardly leave a drop of it in our plates.

The prunes, pre-soaked in warm water, adds such an interesting fruity flavour without overpowering the dish with sweetness. It is very easy to make as you simply mix all the ingredients together and leave it on low heat to simmer for no more than 30 minutes. Chicken thighs cook very quickly and become very tender when cooked slowly over low heat.

Recipe "au pif":
4 skinless chicken legs (includes drumstick and thighs)
2 medium sized yellow onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tsp flour
1/3 cup red wine
10 prunes, pre-soaked in warm water for 30 minutes, water discarded
1 tsp hot chili paste
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp good quality curry powder (hot or mild - your preference)
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 cups boiling water
2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
Fresh coriander to garnish

Heat oil in large deep sauce pan on medium low heat.

Brown the chicken on both sides. Put aside.

Add in the onions, garlic and stir until the onions have softened.

Add in the flour and the wine and stir for about 2 minutes. You should have a thick and velvety texture.

Add in the tomato paste, the chili paste, dijon mustard, curry powder and stir for about 1 minute.

Add in the chicken legs and pour in the boiling water, enough so that the chicken is covered just at the surface.

Add in the bay leaf and the prunes.

Lower the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Cook until the prunes are slightly softened and almost disintegrated.

Serve with brown basmati rice, cooked in water which was drizzled with a bit of oil and melted garlic butter. Garnish with fresh coriander.

Serves 4 people.

Share and enjoy.