Yogurt and berry Parfait

    As Donkey once said in Shrek: "Who doesn't love parfait?" I certainly do. This recipe is officially the easiest one I've posted so far. The reason for that is that it's Mother's Day tomorrow and this one is something that the kids can whip up for Mom, without having to touch the stove. The only element that involves cooking is the strawberry coulis. You can find the recipe for that in my last post for French toast. You can use a good quality strawberry jam instead, but the coulis is easy to make and is guaranteed to taste better than any store-bought jam.

Start to finish: 5 minutes. Serves 4

Ingredients

300ml Vanilla yogurt
100ml Strawberry coulis
8 ladyfingers
1 cup fresh strawberries, quartered
1 cup blue berries
1 sprig of fresh mint

Cut 4 of the lady fingers into small cubes and then place them in the bottom of a glass (I used wine glasses.) Add a few strawberries and blueberries and then a layer of strawberry coulis. Alternate layers of yogurt and strawberry coulis until the glass is full. Garnish with more fresh berries, one whole ladyfinger and a few mint leaves.

French Toast

   French toast is a great brunch classic. It's so easy to make, but if it's done right it can be a real luxury. The key to good French toast shouldn't surprise you - it's all about using the right bread. Avoid using pre-sliced white bread, which truth be told, is good for for pretty much nothing. What you want to use for French toast is either brioche, or a good quality egg bread such a challah. If you are feeling adventurous, you can even make your own bread. I posted a recipe for braided Easter bread on the Foodnetwork.ca site that would be perfect for making French toast with. The other secret to great, restaurant-style French toast is to slice the bread really thick, about one inch. This way you can get a nice brown crust on the bread and still have a beautiful soft center.  

        The strawberry coulis in this recipe is super simple to make. It has just two ingredients: strawberries and sugar. You simply cook the strawberries for a few minutes and then purée. The coulis make a perfect accompaniment to all sorts of desserts. It's a great way to add a homemade touch to any store-bought cake or ice cream. 

Prep time: 8 minutes. Cooking time: 10 minutes, Serves 4 

Ingredients

4 thick slices of brioche

1 pint fresh strawberries

3 tablespoons sugar

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter

1 sprig fresh mint (optional)

icing sugar, for garnish

1. Quarter all the strawberries, then set half of them aside for garnishing the finished toast. Put the remaining strawberries in a pot with 3 tablespoons sugar and 1/4 cup water. Let simmer for 10 minutes and then purée. 

2. While the strawberries are make the egg-wash and toast the bread. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and cinnamon. Dip each piece of bread in the eggwash, make sure it is thoroughly coated on both sides, and then remove from the bowl, allowing the access eggwash to drip off. Heat 1/2 tablespoon of butter in a large non-stick frying pan and cook the bread until golden of each side, about 2 minutes per side. 

*Having your pan at the right heat will help you get a perfect crust. You want the pan just hot enough that the bread sizzles in the pan. If the pan gets to hot, the toast will burn before a nice golden crust has the chance to form.

To serve: Pour 3 tablespoons of strawberry coulis in the center of each plate. Lay one piece of toast on top of the coulis and then garnish with fresh strawberries, mint and icing sugar.    

Clams Casino

    Clams Casino is an old American classic. I absolutely love that other American baked shellfish classic, Oysters Rockefeller, and this dish is just as tasty. 

             I got the idea to make this dish based on what I happened to have in my fridge that day. I had some clams leftover from when I made Pompano a la nage and some handmade salami that I picked up at a local Italian deli. Clams casino is usually made with bacon, but I knew that the homemade salami would go really well with clams. Like many old classics, there are a lot of different variations of the dish. A lot of recipes call for red peppers. I decided to use sun-dried tomatoes for a little extra tartness. A healthy amount of garlic and a good dose of butter make the clams really sing. 

         To open the clams, I give them a quick steam before stuffing them. Although, if you are feeling patient and are good with a clam knife, it is worth the extra effort to open them by hand. The clams will be extra tender if they are raw when you bake them. The things is, it takes a long time to open each clam by hand, whereas they'll all pop open with zero effort if you steam them. I opted to steam them, so I certainly won't hold it against you if you do to. 

Prep time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Serves 4 as appetizers 

Ingredients:

1 lbs littleneck clams

Stuffing:
80g salami, finely diced

80g sun-dried tomatoes, finely diced  

100g (1cup) breadcrumbs 

50g butter, melted

juice of 1 lemon

100ml white wine (for steaming)

1. To open the clams, put 100ml white wine in the bottom of a pot and bring to a slow boil. Put the clams in a strainer above the pot and cover. Steam the clams until they are all open, about 8 minutes. Check the pot occasionally to make sure the wine isn't boiling too rapidly or it could all evaporate. If the level gets too low, add a bit of water. 

2. Combine all the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir well.

  

3. Remove the top shell from all the clams and then use a knife to separate the clam from the bottom shell. Place a spoonful of stuffing in each clam and then pack it down. Lay the clams on a baking tray. Broil with clams on the middle rack until the bread crumbs have browned, about 3 - 5 minutes. 

*You can use a layer of course salt mixed with a bit of water to steady the clams when baking them, but unlike oysters, I find you don't really need to with clams.   The clams will need something to steady them when you serve them though. For this you can use coarse salt, but instead I like to use a bed of seaweed. I find it looks nice, and the aroma of the seaweed reminds me of the sea as I eat the clams. Inexpensive packets of dried seaweed can be found at most Asian markets.  Soak the dried seaweed in cold water for about 10 minutes, strain, and then pat them dry with a towel.